John Joseph Braham Sr.

Braham as a young violinist

John Joseph Braham (1847 – October 28, 1919) was an English-born American musical theater conductor and composer who introduced the works of Gilbert and Sullivan to the United States and composed some of the earliest original orchestral scores for silent film.

Braham emigrated from England to America as a child. As a teenager, he toured as a violinist. After this he became a conductor and music director at New York and Boston theatres. In 1879, he conducted the first American production of a Savoy opera, H.M.S. Pinafore and became associated with Gilbert and Sullivan works for the next decade. He also conducted a number of other musical theatre works and at music halls. In 1913 and 1914, he composed musical scores for silent films, including In the Land of the Head Hunters.