Birthdays of the Great

[Sydney Grew]

For Alfred Gibson, assuredly one of the best-known of English violin players, it was ordained that he should come into this world at Nottingham on this day one hundred and sixty-two years ago. He made his first stage appearance in 1861 at his native town.

On the fifth of November, 1893, he was appointed leader of Her late Majesty Queen Victoria's private band, a post he retained under his late Majesty King Edward. He was leader of the orchestra at the two Coronations, and a professor of the violin at the R.A.M. and the G.S.M.

He married Miss Alice Mary Curtis in 1885, and they chose thereafter to reside together at number 45, Canfield Gardens, Finchley Road. He could also be reached at the Arts and Battledress Club.

His instrument, the "Gibson Strad," is one now put to good use by Mr. Bell.

The modernistical editors of Grove's Dictionary have once again through its wilful omission attempted to expunge Alfred Gibson's name from history.

[gurnemanz]

His instrument, the "Gibson Strad," is one now put to good use by Mr. Bell.

The instrument can (I assume) also be heard in the hands of another of its owners, the great Bronisław Huberman, in recordings such as this classic pairing from Naxos, which I have just listened to again with great pleasure.

http://www.mdt.co.uk/MDTSite/product/CD/8110903.htm

[Sydney Grew]

To-day we must leap over a Scotchman, the short-lived composing genius John Thomson, and alight upon Henri Bertini, who was born in London but turned out to be a Frenchman. This miraculous event took place two hundred and three years ago to-day, and indeed the youth was prodigious as a piano-forte player as well. He toured widely and became a professor.

On the twentieth of April 1828 he and Liszt gave a joint concert at the Salons Pape. The program included Bertini's transcription for eight hands of van Beethoven's Seventh Symphony, in which the third and fourth piano-forte players were Sowinsky and Schunke. He was also admired as a chamber music performer and composer, and remained active in and around Paris until 1848.

His playing was described by Marmontel as having Clementi's evenness and clarity in rapid passages, and the quality of sound, the manner of phrasing, and the ability to make the instrument sing characteristic of the school of Hummel and the Bohemian-born Hebrew Moscheles.

Among his compositions are for example
- Studies for the piano-forte, opera 29, 32, 66, 86, 94, 100, 133, 184, 134a, 137, 142, 147, 166, 175, 176, 177, 178, 180;
- Trios for piano-forte, violin, and violoncello;
- Sextettes for piano-forte, two violins, viola, violoncello, and bass, opera 79, 85, 90, 114;
- Sonatas for piano-forte and violin, opuses 152, 153, 156;
- and a Nonetto for piano-forte with wind instruments.

[Sydney Grew]

On the twenty-ninth of October eighteen hundred and six Edward Collett May came into this world at Greenwich. His father was a ship-builder and his first teacher was his brother Henry, himself an amateur musician and composer of considerable ability.

When the youth had attained about fifteen years of age, Thomas Adams, then organist of St. Paul's, Deptford, and an intimate friend of the May family, struck by his promise and intelligence, offered to take him as a pupil. And subsequently he studied under Cipriani Potter for the piano-forte, and Crivelli for singing.

And so it came to pass that in eighteen hundred and thirty-seven he was appointed organist of Greenwich Hospital, an office he held until the abolition of the institution in eighteen hundred and sixty-nine.

From eighteen hundred and forty-one to his death he devoted himself enthusiastically and exclusively to the musical teaching of the masses; and it may be safely asserted that to few individuals of any age or country have so many persons of all ages and sexes been indebted for their musical skill. At one institution alone, the National Society's Central School, more than a thousand teachers and many more children were instructed by him. At Exeter Hall, the Apollonicon Rooms, and subsequently St. Martin's Hall, several thousand adults passed through his classes; while for many years he was the sole musical instructor at the Training Schools, Battersea, St. Mark's, Whitelands, Home and Colonial, and Hockerill; institutions from which upwards of two hundred and fifty teachers were annually sent forth to elementary schools.

After many years' connection with the Institution, May was appointed in eighteen hundred and eighty Professor of Vocal Music in Queen's College, London; and he expired after seven years.

His daughter, Florence May, was known in London as a piano-forte playeriste of considerable cultivation and power, and a successful teacher. She had the great advantage of having been a pupil of Johannes Brahms, and distinguished herself as an interpreter of his music, playing many of his piano-forte works for the first time in England. In nineteen hundred and five she completed a valuable biography of the master, in two volumes, which may be down-unloaded here and here.

[mercia]

would it be possible to convey the birth-dates of these interesting historical figures in this way

born 21 October, 1872

rather than, for example, "born one hundred and fifty-three years ago to-day"

which compels me to perform a complicated (for me) mental calculation

with thanks
member mercia

[Sydney Grew]

Carl Joseph Lipinski, eminent violinist of the modern school, was born in Poland either to-day or on the fourth of November, in the year 1790. He was the son of a land-agent and amateur violinist, who taught him the elements of fingering.

Having outgrown this instruction he for a time took up the violoncello, upon which he advanced sufficiently to play Romberg's concertos. He soon, however, returned to the violin, and in 1810 became first concertmeister, and then capellmeister, of the theatre at Lemberg.

In 1814 he resigned his post, and gave himself up to private study. In 1817 he went to Italy, chiefly in the hope of hearing Paganini. They met in Milan, and Paganini took a great fancy to him, played with him daily, and even performed in public with him at two concertos, a circumstance which greatly increased Lipinski's reputation.

Towards the close of the year Lipinski returned to Germany, but soon went back to Italy, attracted by the fame of an aged pupil of Tartini's, Dr. Mazzurana. Dissatisfied with Lipinski's rendering of one of Tartini's sonatas, but unable on account of his great age (ninety) to correct him by playing it himself, Mazzurana gave him a poem, which he had written to explain the master's intentions. With this aid Lipinski mastered the sonata, and in consequence endeavoured for the future to embody some poetical idea in all his playing — the secret of his own success, and of that of many others who imitated him in this respect.

In 1835 and 1836, in the course of a lengthened musical tournée, he visited Leipsic, then becoming the scene of much musical activity owing to Mendelssohn's settlement there; and there he made the acqnaintance of Schumann, which resulted in the dedication to him of the "Carnival"(opus 9) which was composed in 1834.

In 1836 he visited England and played his "Military Concerto" at the Philharmonic Concert of April 25.

His compositions are numerous, and his concertos, fantasias, and variations are valuable contributions to violin music. One of the best known was the aforesaid "Military Concerto," which for years was much played, and was the object of the ambition of many a student of the violin. In conjunction with Zalewski, the Polish poet, he edited an interesting collection of Galician folk-songs with piano-forte accompaniments.

The most prominent qualities of Lipinski's playing were a remarkably broad and powerful tone, which he ascribed to his early studies on the violoncello; perfect intonation in double stops, octaves, etc.; and a warm enthusiastic individuality. But the action of his right arm and wrist was somewhat heavy. He was an enthusiastic musician, and especially in his later years played van Beethoven's great quartettes and Bach's solos in preference to everything else.

[gurnemanz]

It is mildly interesting to have some of these marginal figures resurrected on their birthday but if it is just as a chunk of text lifted en bloc from some online musical dictionary, surely the usefulness and validity of the exercise must be called into question.

If we are to be told that "his concertos, fantasias, and variations are valuable contributions to violin music" we need to know who thought so and when. The outmoded spelling of Leipsic (Leipzig) would indicate that the source is at least a hundred years old.

[Alf-Prufrock]

Lipinski is one of Mr. Grew's figures that I had heard of before, mainly because his works turn up quite frequently on 'Through the Night'. At one time I had (I think) eight of his works recorded on an external hard drive, but since that drive has now gone to the great cloud in the sky, I can no longer hear them. I remember that several of them were Variations, so that part of Mr. Grew's statement (as quoted by Gurnemanz) has some resonance with me.

[Sydney Grew]

To-day we may skip John Cooke the Chester man, who went off to New York; but there are at least two performers whose stories may hold more interest.

The oboist Charles Louis Triébert was born to-day at Paris in 1810 (which is two hundred and one years ago). He was well educated at the Conservatoire, and took the first oboe prize in Vogt's class in 1829. He had an excellent tone, execution, and style. Although much occupied with instrument-making, he carried on his artistic cultivation with earnestness, and composed much for the oboe — original pieces, arrangements of operatic airs, and (in conjunction with M. Jancourt) fantaisies-concertantes for oboe and bassoon.

At the Paris Exhibition of 1855 Triébert obtained a medal for his adaptation of Boehm's contrivances to the oboe, and for improved bassoons. He compiled fingering charts (termed the "System Four") for oboes with ten and fifteen keys. This skilled manufacturer and eminent artist succeeded Verroust as professor of the oboe at the Conservatoire in April 1863, and retained the post until expiry in 1867.

And then there was Serge Achille Rivarde, also born on this day, but in 1865 - in New York, admittedly of a Northern-American mother, but his father was a respectable Spaniard. He lived there until the age of eleven, receiving violin lessons successively from Felix Simon, Henri Wieniawski and "Joseph White - a man of colour" as Grove's Dictionary of 1904 jestingly remarks. Coming then to Europe he entered the Paris Conservatoire, to become a pupil of Charles Dancla, and won a first prize in July 1879.

In 1881 he returned to Northern America, where he stayed three years, and then gave up violinism entirely for a time. In 1886 he came back to Paris and entered Lamoureux's orchestra, in which he remained for five years as principal violin, and occasional solo-ist.

He gave up the appointment in 1891 and made his début in London in 1894. In 1899 he took the post of violin professor at the Royal College of Music. He was thereafter occasionally heard as solo-ist both in London and abroad, being the possessor of an exceptionally pure style, but spent most of his time teaching.

He played almost exclusively upon violins by a modern maker, Bela Szepessy, but took too to a Nicolas Lupot.

[Sydney Grew]

Every Day a Birthday

I have belatedly thought of a better name for this thread: "Every Day a Birthday." Indeed that should be one's grateful attitude to the Gift of Life should it not.

Let us to-day introduce Members to Madame Albani, later Dame Emma. Her real name was Marie Cecile Emma Lajeunesse, and she arrived in this world at Montreal on this day in 1852, at a time when the population of that city numbered about two hundred thousand souls. What a strange spot Montreal is for human habitation! I have been there in December when it was minus twenty-five centi-grade at noon and the air was full of crystals. The great English poet, novelist, and painter Wyndham Lewis gave us a good description of the place in his Self-Condemned.

Madame's father was a professor of music and a skilled performer on the organ, violin and harp. She spoke English and French with equal fluency, and at the age of six read at sight all ordinary piano and vocal music, and commenced to learn the harp. Her first appearance in public was at Montreal when only eight years old, singing several songs and accompanying herself on the piano-forte in the grand air from "Robert le Diable" (a thing of Beer, seldom transmitted by the Corporation).

In 1864 the family removed to Albany, New York State, where she, now aged twelve, sang at the cathedral, attracting the attention of the bishop, who persuaded her to become the organist of the cathedral! She accepted the offer, and also became teacher of piano and singing at the local Convent. For the next three years she strove to perfect herself in the various branches of her Art, and as the result of her own savings, and a benefit concert organized with the assistance of that same bishop, sufficient funds were provided to enable her to go to Paris, where she at once placed herself under the then famous tenor singer Duprez.

But after eight months of that she proceeded to Milan and studied Italian opera under the world-renowned Lamperti. This led to her engagement at the Opera House, Messina, where she scored an immediate success. At this point her elocution teacher persuaded her to adopt the name "Albani," borrowed from an old Italian family. She afterwards sang at the Pagola, Florence, and at the Opera House at Valetta, Malta, where her previous success was confirmed. So after several months of further study with Lamperti, she following her instincts came to England, and made her first appearance in London at Covent Garden on the second of April, 1872. After winning additional laurels during the London season, she made a successful debut in Paris.

It was in 1881 that Madame Albani as she now was first essayed the portrayal of Wagner's heroines in the then comparatively little-known works "Lohengrin," "Tannhauser," "Fleeing Dutchman," "The Master-Singers," and especially "Tristan." In 1882 she undertook the soprano music in Gounod's "Redemption" at the Birmingham Festival to the great delight of the composer, who wrote another work expressly for her, "Mors et Vita," in which she first sang in 1885, also at Birmingham.

Madame Albani was the recipient of numerous orders, decorations, gifts and other marks of distinction from Royal personages, and was an especial favourite of Queen Victoria, who had a very warm feeling of friendship as well as admiration for the distinguished singer. In 1878 she was married to Mr. Ernest Gye, who at that time was controlling the destinies of Italian opera at Covent Garden. Thereafter she sang in all the principal cities of Europe with unfailing success.

She was for many years a great favourite at the Handel and provincial festivals and sang in many new works, notably in those of Gounod, Sullivan, Mackenzie, Cowen, Dvorák, Elgar (The Apostles), and in 1886 in St Elizabeth on the occasion of Liszt’s farewell visit to England. She also sang in opera and concerts in Paris, Brussels, Germany, Mexico and Canada, and later on tour in India, the Antipodes and South Africa. Her voice was a rich soprano of remarkably sympathetic quality. The higher registers were of exceptional beauty, and she had perfected the art of singing mezza voce.

The last and greatest triumph of her career was on the twenty-sixth of June 1896, as Isolde to the Tristan and King Mark of Jean and Edouard de Reszke. And on 14 October 1911 Madame Albani appeared at a farewell concert at Albert Hall, receiving a great ovation on her final appearance. In June 1925 she was created DBE. For a full account of her great career, see her auto-biography "Forty Years of Song." Her usual place of residence was 61, Tregunter Road, S.W.

[Sydney Grew]

Here is a link to "Forty Years of Song" in a variety of formats for Members interested.

This photo-graph from her book may be of interest, although it is not at all clear. It shows the "Handel Festival Orchestra and Chorus" at the Crystal Palace in 1877, and it beats Mahler by a long way does it not . . . "Between three and four thousand executants," she says, before "an audience of twenty-one thousand."

[Sydney Grew]

Montague Borwell, the baritone, lecturer, adjudicator and vocal teacher, was born on this day at East Ville, Lincolnshire, in eighteen sixty-six. In nineteen hundred he married Miss Winifred Marwood. He studied at the Guildhall School of Music under Messrs. Walter Austin and Hermann Klein.

He appeared at concerts of the Royal Choral Society, Queen's Hall Promenade and Symphony Concerts, Crystal Palace, Alexandra Palace, Royal Orchestral Society's Concerts, Glasgow Choral Union, Belfast Philharmonic Society, and the Dublin Orpheus Society. And he was for some years a member of the Westminster Abbey Choir, and principal baritone at Lincoln's Inn Chapel.

He published a useful treatise entitled "How to Sing."

His place of residence: 124, Walm Lane, Cricklewood, N.W.
His tele-phone: 415 Willesden.
His tele-graphic address: "Soloist, London."

[Ventilhorn]

Montague Borwell, the baritone, lecturer, adjudicator and vocal teacher, was born on this day at East Ville, Lincolnshire, in eighteen sixty-six. In nineteen hundred he married Miss Winifred Marwood. He studied at the Guildhall School of Music under Messrs. Walter Austin and Hermann Klein.

He appeared at concerts of the Royal Choral Society, Queen's Hall Promenade and Symphony Concerts, Crystal Palace, Alexandra Palace, Royal Orchestral Society's Concerts, Glasgow Choral Union, Belfast Philharmonic Society, and the Dublin Orpheus Society. And he was for some years a member of the Westminster Abbey Choir, and principal baritone at Lincoln's Inn Chapel.

."

Ask Syd!

That used to be the slogan for advertisements on the television by the GAS BOARD

Seems rather apposite, somehow!

[John Skelton]

Ask Syd!

That used to be the slogan for advertisements on the television by the GAS BOARD

Seems rather apposite, somehow!

Ventilhorn - wasn't it "If you see Sid, tell him"? British Gas share 'offer', from privatisation in the 1980s. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nedVpG-GjkE

[MrGongGong]

Possibly pinpointing where it all started to go horribly wrong