Jean Harlow spotted Marguerite Gray Granger’s musical talent early on.  Both were performing at San Pedro’s Yugoslavian Club one evening during the 1930’s when Harlow heard the eight-year-old Granger play the piano.  “Jean Harlow told my aunt she thought I was gifted and that my family should encourage me to keep playing,” Granger said.  “But no one needed to push me,” she laughed, “I knew music was for me.”  She agreed to the interview on a Friday afternoon when the school was closed.  “I’m so glad we can talk without interruptions,” she said with a smile.  “Things have a tendency to get a little crazy around here.”  The “craziness” Granger refers to is probably a result of many students vying for this woman’s attention at the same time.  With a background as an international piano soloist, a Big-Band-era singer and instrumentalist, and a serious music academician who holds a B.A., an M.A. and a Ph.D. in music, Granger, simply is a local music gold mine.  (Following the most recent Gray School recital it is obvious that her students realize this, as both children and adults swarm around her and respectfully solicit her opinion of their performances.)  During her interview, Granger is a soft spoken, direct and friendly.  Professional in her demeanor and stylishly dressed, she gently commands respect.  After she enthusiastically talks about an upcoming recital, she proudly recounts the history of the music school.  The building that houses the Gray School of Music, located at 1079 W. 22nd St. in San Pedro, was originally owned by Mr. and Mrs. George Jackson.  In 1932 the Jacksons converted an apartment on their property into a music studio and rented the space to a married couple who offered voice and piano lessons.  Later that year Granger’s parents, Mr. and Mrs. Fred Gray, bought the property, which also contained a frame house and a neighborhood market.  While Granger’s father ran the market, her mother took charge of the music studio. 

During the studio’s early days, classes were offered in piano, violin, viola, cello, accordion and voice.  As time went on, the studio’s enrollment increased and the Grays began selling musical items such as strings, reeds and instruments in the adjacent market.  In 1945, Sherwood Music School extension courses for piano and violin were added to the studio’s curriculum.  Finally, in 1950, after years of operating under a variety of different names, the students and teachers voted to call the studio the Gray School of Music.  That same year, Granger’s parents stopped operating the market and converted it into additional space for the music school.  “Gray has always been a real family endeavor,” Granger said.  In addition to acting as director of the school, Granger’s mother played the piano and the cello.  Her father was the school’s business manager, and contributed creatively as an artist.  Among other things he designed the school’s stone and glass exterior which was somewhat revolutionary looking in the ‘50s.  “A lot of people didn’t know what to make of the design,” she said.  “But today it looks very up to date.  I guess my father was ahead of his time.”  While the Gray’s music school became more well known, so did the musical talents of their daughter. Beginning at the age twelve, Granger toured internationally as a piano soloist under a four-year contract with the prestigious Behymer Artist Bureau.  During this period, Granger also made numerous appearances with many major symphony orchestras.  “This brings back a lot of memories,” Granger said as she looked through a scrapbook of her early career.  The book contains Photos and news clippings from newspapers written in a variety of languages ranging from German to Italian to Spanish.  “My years with Behymer were wonderful,” she said, “but when my contract was up, I headed straight for college.” She explained that although the management company wanted her to sign another contract and continue performing, her parents had promised her an education at UCLA, and she chose to go to school.  Granger attended UCLA during a highly exciting period for its music department.  A list of her instructors contains names of some of this century’s most respected musical figures.  “Stravinsky, Schoenberg, Aaron Copland –it was quite an education,” she said.  After graduating from college, Granger joined forces with another musical member of her family, Freddie Gray.  “Maybe you’ve heard of my brother?” she asked.  “He was very popular during the Big Band era.”  Granger pointed out a photograph of a handsome young man holding a trumpet.  “I used to sing and play with his band,” she said.  Later she finds a 1950s photograph of the Rendezvous Ballroom in Balboa.  Freddie Gray’s orchestra is headlining over Lawrence Welk’s on the marquee.  While performing with the orchestra, Granger met and married Richard Granger.  At the time he was in charge of booking bands for a local organization.  “I couldn’t figure out why he kept hiring us over and over again,” Granger said.  “I finally figured out why,” she laughed.  The couple went on to have four sons while Granger continued to perform with the band, teach at the school and pursue higher academic degrees. 

In keeping with the tradition of family involvement, her son Edward is currently co-director of the school.  “He writes beautifully,” Granger said.  In addition to composing, Ed Granger teaches piano and manages the day-to-day operations of the school.  At a recent Palos Verdes recital he also proves to be the resident wit.  As he hands out certificates of accomplishment he jokes with all of the students and tells one boy who has been at Gray for a number of years, “You now have more certificates than the school.”  Before the interview ended, Granger reluctantly agreed to play the piano.  Once she began, however, she seemed to enjoy herself as her fingers effortlessly and gracefully glided over the keys.  Her talent was obvious, her touch extraordinarily delicate as she played a series of Chopin polonaises.  It is no surprise that Granger won the highly coveted Artist Federation Performance Award in 1983.  “I guess my talent is more in my technique than anything else,” she modestly suggested.  After 40 years, the Gray School of Music is still going strong.  With 200 students currently enrolled and a solid staff committed teachers, the school shows no signs of slowing down.  “Before my father died he told me that he hoped the school would continue to be a place where children could come and learn about the art in music,” said Granger.  “I feel the same way.  I think the happiest times I’ve had I’ve spent teaching people about the real joy and beauty of music.”