He is considered to be one of the first to champion the cause of the American composer and of opera performance in English. He was a student of L. Meignen in harmony and counterpoint. In 1845, Fry had the distinction of producing the first performance of an American grand opera, his Lenora, being performed in Philadelphia. Lenora was produced later in 1858 in New York City, and abroad. As a foreign correspondent, Fry sought out meetings with well known composers and musicians. He interviewed Berlioz in 1852. Returning to the U.S. he delivered a number of lectures on music, attacking what he termed an indifference of American artists to draw on purely American themes.