"A London Symphony A London Symphony is the second symphony composed by Ralph Vaughan Williams. The work is sometimes referred to as the Symphony No. 2, though it was not designated as such by the composer. First performed in 1914, the four-movement symphony was lost, reconstructed and later modified by Vaughan Williams. The work is scored for: Vaughan Williams said that while the title may suggest a programmatic piece (and the work includes sounds heard in London such as the Westminster Quarters), it was intended to be heard as absolute music. In a programme note in 1920, he suggested that"
"is not usually cited as an example, although if one were to count ""Kullervo"" as his first symphony, the ill-fated Eighth was the ninth he worked on. There is evidence from his correspondence with George Butterworth that Vaughan Williams did not regard his choral cantata ""A Sea Symphony"" (1910) as a true symphony and considered his 1913 ""A London Symphony"" as his first work in the genre. However, he did not number his symphonies until 1956 when his ""Symphony in D minor"" appeared. Concerned that the work might be confused with RVW's ""Symphony in D"" (1943), his publisher suggested the"
"own musical evocation of the sea, the symphonic poem ""La mer"" (""The Sea""), in 1905. Bridge was to die at Friston near Eastbourne in 1941. ""The Sea"" received its first performance at a Prom Concert in London on 24 September 1912, with the New Queen's Hall Orchestra conducted by Sir Henry Wood. The composer himself conducted the Cleveland Orchestra, Detroit Symphony and Boston Symphony premieres after the First World War. Bridge also conducted a recording of the suite. Later recordings have been conducted by Sir Charles Groves, Vernon Handley and Richard Hickox. Piccolo, 2 Flutes, 2 Oboes, English Horn, 2"
"On Shore and Sea On Shore and Sea is a ""dramatic cantata"" composed by Arthur Sullivan, with words by Tom Taylor. Sullivan completed this work to open the Royal Albert Hall, and it was performed at the opening of the London International Exhibition of art and industry on 1 May 1871. The concert featured works commissioned from Italy, France, Germany, and Great Britain. Charles Gounod was the French representative. The cantata has an appropriately international flavour, telling of war and reunion, based on a 16th-century conflict between Christians and Moors at a time when conflict raged between the Saracen settlements"
"La mer (Debussy) La mer, trois esquisses symphoniques pour orchestre (French for The sea, three symphonic sketches for orchestra), or simply La mer (i.e. The Sea), L. 109, is an orchestral composition by the French composer Claude Debussy. Composed between 1903 and 1905, the piece was premiered in Paris in October 1905. It was initially not well received; even some who had been strong supporters of Debussy's work were unenthusiastic. But the work was given in the US in 1907 and Britain in 1908, and after it second performance in Paris, in 1908, it quickly became one of Debussy's most"
"of the Sea"" (1904) and ""Songs of the Fleet"" (1910), Edward Elgar's ""Sea Pictures"" (1899) and Ralph Vaughan Williams' choral work, ""A Sea Symphony"" (1903–1909). The English composer Frank Bridge wrote an orchestral suite called ""The Sea"" in 1911, also completed at Eastbourne. ""Four Sea Interludes"" (1945) is an orchestral suite by Benjamin Britten that forms part of his opera ""Peter Grimes"". The burial of entire or cremated bodies at sea has been practised by countries around the world since ancient times, with instances recorded from the ancient civilisations in Egypt, Greece, and Rome. Practices vary by country and by"
"The Sea (Bridge) The Sea, H.100 is an orchestral suite written in 1910–11 by Frank Bridge. It is also described as a symphonic tone poem. It lasts about 22 minutes. It consists of four movements, about which Bridge wrote the following comments for the programme notes at the premiere: 1. Seascape: ""Allegro ben moderato"" 2. Sea Foam: ""Allegro vivo"" 3. Moonlight: ""Adagio non troppo"" 4. Storm: ""Allegro energico – Allegro moderato e largamente"" Bridge completed the work in July 1911, while staying at the Sussex coastal town of Eastbourne. This was the same place where Claude Debussy had finished his"
"""The Lawnmower Man"", ""Stargate"", ""Tombstone"", ""RoboCop"" and ""Young Sherlock Holmes"". Sinfonia of London The Sinfonia of London is the name of two distinct session orchestras based in London, England. The original ensemble of this name was founded in 1955 by Gordon Walker, an eminent flautist of his time, specifically for the recording of film music. The orchestra came into being when there was a split in the future direction of the London Symphony Orchestra, many LSO players leaving to join the Sinfonia of London in order to undertake the more lucrative film soundtrack work. The orchestra appeared in the musical"
"Symphony song The English symphony song was a musical genre of baroque music best known in the compositions of Henry Purcell and his contemporaries including his teacher John Blow. In the symphony song voices and continuo were enriched with ritornelli for violins or a pair of recorders. Among the earliest symphony songs are four published by Oxford composer Henry Bowman in 1677. John Blow's most notable early example is ""Awake, awake my lyre"". The symphony song was a genre mainly linked to the Restoration royal court, just as the symphony anthem was linked to the English Chapel Royal. Purcell's symphony"
"Wood, founding conductor of the Proms, and friend of Vaughan Williams. Sea Songs Sea Songs is an arrangement of three British sea-songs by the English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams. It is based on the songs ""Princess Royal"", ""Admiral Benbow"" and ""Portsmouth"". The work is a march of roughly four minutes duration. It follows a ternary structure, with opening material based on ""Princess Royal"" and ""Admiral Benbow"", with ""Portsmouth"" forming the central section before a return to the opening material featuring the first two songs. The march was arranged for military band in 1923 as the second movement of ""English Folk"
"Symphony), received its world premiere recording in 2011 for CD label Cameo Classics, nearly 100 years after its composition. Written in 1912, the second movement, 'Elegy', commemorates Robert Falcon Scott's death in the Antarctic that year. The Malta Philharmonic Orchestra was conducted by its Musical Director, Michael Laus. The symphony (of nearly 37 minutes duration) is coupled with two other premiere recordings of British orchestral works, Alexander MacKenzie's Tone Poem, 'La Belle Dame sans Merci', and Josef Holbrooke's Pantomime Suite op.16 on CC9034CD. Arthur Somervell Sir Arthur Somervell (5 June 18632 May 1937) was an English composer and art song"
"Sea Sketches Sea Sketches is a suite of five movements for string orchestra, composed by Grace Williams in 1944, and dedicated to her parents. It is one of the composer's most popular works. Grace Williams composed ""Sea Sketches"" in 1944, while living in Hampstead, London. Shortly after completing the work Williams wrote to Gerald Cockshott, in 1945, saying ""I don't want to stay in London – I just long to get home and live in comfort by the sea"". She returned to her home town of Barry in south Wales, two years later. The suite was premiered by the BBC"
"(suite); ""Pull Up Your Socks"" (1960) Library music/genre pieces: B""lue Days at Sea, Busy Life, Country Market, Enchantment, Fairy Cobweb, Feather on the Breeze, Frivolity, Gala, Golden Harvest, Hackney Carriage, Jogging Along, March of the Astronauts, Paddle Steamer, Paul Pry, Procession, Softly She Sleeps, Spindlelegs, Stormy Passage, Tomorrow the World"" Film and television music: ""Dark Eyes of London"" (1939), ""Rhythm of the Road"" (1946); ""The Eleventh Hour"" (1962) King Palmer Cedric King Palmer (13 February 1913 – 13 July 1999) was an English composer, conductor, author and teacher, best known for his popular educational books on music and as a"
"symphonies are alike, either in structure or in mood. Commentators have found it useful to consider the nine in three groups of three—early, middle and late. The first three symphonies, to which Vaughan Williams assigned titles rather than numbers, form a sub-group within the nine, having programmatic elements, absent from the later six. ""A Sea Symphony"" (1910), the only one of the series to include a part for full choir, differs from most earlier choral symphonies in that the choir sings in all the movements. The extent to which it is a true symphony has been debated; in a 2013"
"was a music critic for ""The Globe and Mail"" newspaper. Leo Smith (composer) Joseph Leopold Smith (26 November 1881 – 18 April 1952) was an English composer, writer, music critic, music educator, and cellist who was primarily active in Canada. His compositional output consists of works for cello, piano, choir and orchestra (most notably ""An Ancient Song"" and ""A Summer Idyll"") and a considerable amount of chamber music (most notably ""String Quartet in D"", ""Sonata in E Minor"" and ""A Horse Race Ballad""). Smith was born in Birmingham. A child prodigy, he began studying cello at a very young age"
"period as a freelance musicologist. Since the mid-1960s, when he composed his ""Phoenix Mass"", he has received commissions for new works from several important ensembles, including the English Chamber Orchestra and the Nash Ensemble. Three major orchestral works: ""The Spirit's Harvest"" (1985), ""Time's Arrow"" (1990), ""Visions and Journeys"" (2002) and ""Of Land, Sea and Sky"" (2016) were all premiered by the BBC Symphony Orchestra at The Proms in London. He has also composed a ""Concerto for Orchestra"" (1974) and other orchestral pieces, as well as chamber, instrumental and choral works. His String Quartet No. 2 (2010) won the Chamber category"
"of the movements of Britten's ""Four Sea Interludes"" from his opera ""Peter Grimes"" have striking similarities to the titles of the movements of Bridge's ""The Sea"". The Sea (Bridge) The Sea, H.100 is an orchestral suite written in 1910–11 by Frank Bridge. It is also described as a symphonic tone poem. It lasts about 22 minutes. It consists of four movements, about which Bridge wrote the following comments for the programme notes at the premiere: 1. Seascape: ""Allegro ben moderato"" 2. Sea Foam: ""Allegro vivo"" 3. Moonlight: ""Adagio non troppo"" 4. Storm: ""Allegro energico – Allegro moderato e largamente"" Bridge"
"their beloved ones. The sorrow of separation is turned to rejoicing; La Sposina and Il Marinaho will live and die in each other's arms. The cantata ends with a paean to the blessedness of Peace, inviting all nations to her temple. On Shore and Sea On Shore and Sea is a ""dramatic cantata"" composed by Arthur Sullivan, with words by Tom Taylor. Sullivan completed this work to open the Royal Albert Hall, and it was performed at the opening of the London International Exhibition of art and industry on 1 May 1871. The concert featured works commissioned from Italy, France,"
"at Kneller Hall on July 4, 1923. As a single work, its first performance was given at Wembley during the British Empire Exhibition in April 1924. This work, as well as the ""English Folk Song Suite"", stemmed from Vaughan Williams' admiration for the band of the Royal Military School of Music at Kneller Hall. The work was re-arranged for full orchestra in 1942 by the composer. The term ""Sea Songs"" may also be used to refer to any songs about or concerned with ships and seafarers. Such songs (including Sea Shanties and other work songs) are most commonly classed as"
"Leo Smith (composer) Joseph Leopold Smith (26 November 1881 – 18 April 1952) was an English composer, writer, music critic, music educator, and cellist who was primarily active in Canada. His compositional output consists of works for cello, piano, choir and orchestra (most notably ""An Ancient Song"" and ""A Summer Idyll"") and a considerable amount of chamber music (most notably ""String Quartet in D"", ""Sonata in E Minor"" and ""A Horse Race Ballad""). Smith was born in Birmingham. A child prodigy, he began studying cello at a very young age with W.H. Priestley in Birmingham and then later with Carl"
"Arnold Bax Sir Arnold Edward Trevor Bax (8 November 1883 – 3 October 1953) was an English composer, poet, and author. His prolific output includes songs, choral music, chamber pieces, and solo piano works, but he is best known for his orchestral music. In addition to a series of symphonic poems he wrote seven symphonies and was for a time widely regarded as the leading British symphonist. Bax was born in the London suburb of Streatham to a prosperous family. He was encouraged by his parents to pursue a career in music, and his private income enabled him to follow"
"Frederick Delius's ""Sea Drift"" (1994); William Walton's ""Troilus and Cressida"" (1995); the original 1913 version of Ralph Vaughan Williams' ""A London Symphony"" (2001 Record of the Year and Best Orchestral Disc); and Charles Villiers Stanford's ""Songs of the Sea"" (2006 Editor's Choice). He made only the second recording of Delius's ""Requiem"" (1996). He was awarded a Doctorate of Music at Durham University in 2003; and was an Honorary Fellow of Queens' College, Cambridge. He received two Royal Philharmonic Society Music Awards, the first Sir Charles Groves Award, the Evening Standard Opera Award, and the Association of British Orchestras Award. He"
"critics, he was appointed in Sullivan's place. He remained in charge until 1910. His compositions for the festival included ""Songs of the Sea"" (1904), ""Stabat Mater"" (1907) and ""Songs of the Fleet"" (1910). New works by other composers presented at Leeds during Stanford's years in charge included pieces by Parry, Mackenzie, and seven of Stanford's former pupils. The best-known new work from Stanford's time is probably Vaughan Williams's ""A Sea Symphony"", premiered in 1910. In 1901 Stanford returned once again to opera, with ""Much Ado About Nothing"", to a libretto by Julian Sturgis that was exceptionally faithful to Shakespeare's original."
"the Sea"" was written for Harry Plunket Greene, a renowned baritone in his day. He gave the first performance, at the 1904 Leeds Festival. The texts are: A complete performance takes about 18 minutes. Haydn Wood (1882-1959), best known for his light music, made an orchestral arrangement of ""Songs of the Sea"", known variously as ""Stanford Rhapsody"" and as ""Westward Ho"". Greene was also connected with ""Songs of the Fleet"", premiered at the 1910 Leeds Festival. The texts are: A complete performance takes about 26 minutes. Songs of the Sea (Stanford) Songs of the Sea is a cycle of five"
"Amy Beach Amy Marcy Cheney Beach (September 5, 1867December 27, 1944) was an American composer and pianist. She was the first successful American female composer of large-scale art music. Her ""Gaelic"" Symphony, premiered by the Boston Symphony Orchestra in 1896, was the first symphony composed and published by an American woman. She was one of the first American composers to succeed without the benefit of European training, and one of the most respected and acclaimed American composers of her era. As a pianist, she was acclaimed for concerts she gave featuring her own music in the United States and in"
"Nimbus Wyastone. Dorothy Howell Dorothy Gertrude Howell (25 February 1898 – 12 January 1982) was an English composer and pianist. Howell was born in Birmingham, grew up in Handsworth, and received a convent education. At age 15, she began studies at the Royal Academy of Music, where her teachers included John Blackwood McEwen and Tobias Matthay. Howell achieved fame with her symphonic poem ""Lamia"", which Sir Henry Wood premiered at The Proms on 10 September 1919. Wood directed ""Lamia"" again that same week, on 13 September 1919. He subsequently conducted ""Lamia"" again in the 1921, 1923, 1924, 1926, 1930 and"
"Samson (Handel) Samson (HWV 57) is a three-act oratorio by George Frideric Handel, considered one of his finest dramatic works. It is usually performed as an oratorio in concert form, but on occasions has also been staged as an opera. The well-known arias ""Let the bright Seraphim"" (for soprano) and ""Total eclipse"" (for tenor) are often performed separately in concert. The German-born Handel had been resident in London since 1712 and had there enjoyed great success as a composer of Italian operas. His opportunities to set English texts to music had been more limited; he had spent the years 1717"
"a symphony'. I answered... that I'd never written a symphony and never intended to... I suppose Butterworth's words stung me and, anyhow, I looked out some sketches I had made for... a symphonic poem about London and decided to throw it into symphonic form... From that moment, the idea of a symphony dominated my mind. I showed the sketches to George bit by bit as they were finished, and it was then that I realised that he possessed in common with very few composers a wonderful power of criticism of other men's work and insight into their ideas and motives."
"suburb of London) on 16 November 2006. He was divorced and had several children, one daughter having died at the age of four. John Veale John Douglas Louis Veale (15 June 1922 – 16 November 2006) was an English classical composer. He was born in Shortlands, Bromley, Kent; his father, Douglas Veale, later served as Registrar of the University of Oxford (1930–1958) and received a knighthood. John Veale was educated at Repton and Corpus Christi College, Oxford (his father's old college), alongside Kenneth Tynan. As a composer, he was largely self-taught, but took some lessons from Egon Wellesz, Thomas Armstrong,"
"by a woman. Newspaper music critics responded to the Mass by declaring Beach one of America's foremost composers, comparing the piece to Masses by Cherubini and Bach. Beach followed this up with an important milestone in music history: her Gaelic Symphony, the first symphony composed and published by an American woman. It premiered October 30, 1896, performed by the Boston Symphony ""with exceptional success,"" although ""whatever the merits or defects of the symphony were thought to be, critics went to extraordinary lengths in their attempts to relate them to the composer's sex."" Composer George Whitefield Chadwick (1854–1931) wrote to Beach"
"study, Alain Frogley describes it as a hybrid work, with elements of symphony, oratorio and cantata. Its sheer length—about eighty minutes—was unprecedented for an English symphonic work, and within its thoroughly tonal construction it contains harmonic dissonances that pre-echo the early works of Stravinsky which were soon to follow. ""A London Symphony"" (1911–1913) which the composer later observed might more accurately be called a ""symphony by a Londoner"", is for the most part not overtly pictorial in its presentation of London. Vaughan Williams insisted that it is ""self-expressive, and must stand or fall as 'absolute' music"". There are some references"
"Felix Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 1809 4 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early romantic period. Mendelssohn wrote symphonies, concertos, oratorios, piano music and chamber music. His best-known works include his Overture and incidental music for ""A Midsummer Night's Dream"", the ""Italian Symphony"", the ""Scottish Symphony"", the overture ""The Hebrides"", his mature Violin Concerto, and his String Octet. His ""Songs Without Words"" are his most famous solo piano compositions. After a long period of relative denigration due to changing musical tastes and antisemitism"
"Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby"" (1946); ""Hamlet"", ""Oliver Twist"" and ""Scott of the Antarctic"" (1948); ""Kind Hearts and Coronets"" and ""Passport to Pimlico"" (1949); ""The Cruel Sea"" (1953); ""Battle of the Bulge"" (1965); "" Lady Caroline Lamb"" (1972); ""King David"" (1985); ""The King and I"" (1999); ""Great Expectations"" (2012); and ""The Lady in the Van"" (2015). Philharmonia Orchestra The Philharmonia Orchestra is a British orchestra based in London. It was founded in 1945 by Walter Legge, a classical music record producer for EMI. Among the conductors who worked with the orchestra in its early years were Richard Strauss, Wilhelm Furtwängler and"