If you live or work in Salem, you know there’s a second holiday directly after Halloween.
Starting November 1 (sometimes just hours after midnight), tourists begin their slow retreat from the city, which inevitably marks the end of another spooky season. Streets are less crowded, reservations to favorite restaurants are easier to find and we don’t have to worry about Michael Myers or nuns on stilts blocking our commute to work. The city quiets down while the remaining stragglers have one last march through the city for their Halloween fill.
This September, PEM debuted our Witch Trials Walk, a new self-guided audio tour featuring authentic witch trials materials and stories told by curators and local experts. From history lovers to Hocus Pocus fans, there was plenty to see and learn, both inside the museum and around downtown Salem.
Left, Essex Street filled with tourists on Halloween weekend. Photo by @purelysalem. Right, Essex Street the morning of November 1. Ellie Dolan/PEM.
Part of the tour goes through our exhibition Salem Stories, which takes you through Salem’s history from A to Z. The section “O is for October” includes a piece of sheet music titled “March of the Salem Witches”. This treasured item from PEM’s Phillips Library collection of early printed sheet music was published in 1896 and composed by local Salem musician John M. Missud.
The cover illustration of witches setting out with pointy hats and broomsticks brings to mind pictures of Essex Street during Halloween weekend. If you look even closer, you can spot more familiar details, like a small drawing of Salem Harbor. Missud's march is an incredible example of combining “witch kitsch” and local pride.
PEM curator Paula Richter, who speaks about this composition in our audio tour, says Missud was part of a local Salem band. When the time came to put the final details in our Witch Trials Walk, I was approached by our content producer Dinah Cardin about “March of the Salem Witches”. “We can’t highlight a piece of music without playing the music,” Cardin said. As a musician, my mind started spinning and I knew just the person who could masterfully execute this historic melody.
George H. Walker & Company, “March of the Salem Witches” sheet music, 1896, Phillips Library. E M678.1 1896 3 +.
My friend and bandmate Henry Zagarella and I have performed together for years, but most recently in our band The Far Out. As far as we know, Zagarella’s original recording, played on an eclectic keyboard in his studio, was the first performance of “March of the Salem Witches” in nearly 100 years. Zagarella described the composition as “a fun, jaunty tune with an air of fright, a fitting melody that makes me visualize a walk through the streets of Salem in October.” Having the composition revived by another local musician carries on the composer’s legacy. Zagarella said, “It feels very special. Carrying on the trend of local musicians performing this Salem composition is an unexpected honor.”
PEM’s Salem Witch Trials Walk is included with museum admission. The tour takes approximately one hour to complete with time for walking in between sites. We hope you take time soon to experience the whole tour for yourself and listen to “March of the Salem Witches” in our gallery.
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