Arthur Sullivan: Difference between revisions

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[[File:Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan.jpg|thumb|Arthur Sullivan in 1888|alt=Head and shoulders of Sullivan, dressed in a dark suit, facing slightly left of center, with moustache and long sideburns. Black and white.]]

 

The son of a military bandmaster, Sullivan composed his first anthem at the age of eight and was later a soloist in the boys' choir of the [[Chapel Royal]]. In 1856, at 14, he was awarded the first [[Mendelssohn Scholarship]] by the [[Royal Academy of Music]], which allowed him to study at the academy and then at the [[Felix Mendelssohn College of Music and Theatre|Leipzig Conservatoire]] in Germany. His graduation piece, incidental music to [[William Shakespeare|Shakespeare]]'s ''[[The Tempest (Sullivan)|The Tempest]]'' (1861), was received with acclaim on its first performance in London. Among his early major works were a ballet, ''[[L'Île Enchantée]]'' (1864), a [[Symphony in E (Sullivan)|symphony]], a [[Cello Concerto (Sullivan)|cello concerto]] (both 1866), and his ''[[Overture di Ballo]]'' (1870). To supplement the income from his concert works he wrote hymns, [[Parlour music|parlour ballads]] and other light pieces, and worked as a church organist and music teacher.

 

===Mendelssohn scholar===

In 1856 the [[Royal Academy of Music]] awarded the first [[Mendelssohn Scholarship]] to the 14-year-old Sullivan, granting him a year's training at the academy.<ref name="Jacobs, pp. 12–13"/>{{refn| In 1848, [[Jenny Lind]] performed the soprano part to [[Felix Mendelssohn]]'s oratorio ''[[Elijah (oratorio)|Elijah]]'', which he had written for her. The concert raised £1,000 to fund a scholarship in his name. After Sullivan became the first recipient of the scholarship, Lind encouraged him in his career.<ref>Rosen, Carole. [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/16671 "Lind, Jenny (1820–1887)"], ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004, accessed 7 December 2008 {{ODNBsub}}</ref>|group= n}} His principal teacher there was [[John Goss (composer)|John Goss]], whose own teacher, [[Thomas Attwood (composer)|Thomas Attwood]], had been a pupil of [[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart|Mozart]].<ref name=mack>[[Alexander MacKenzie (composer)|MacKenzie, Alexander]]. [https://www.jstor.org/stable/929160 "The Life-Work of Arthur Sullivan"], ''Sammelbände der Internationalen Musikgesellschaft'', 3. Jahrg., H. 3, May 1902, pp. 539–564 {{subscription}}</ref> He studied piano with [[William Sterndale Bennett]] (the future head of the academy) and [[Arthur O'Leary (composer)|Arthur O'Leary]].<ref>Fitzsimons, pp. 98 and 142</ref> During this first year at the academy Sullivan continued to sing solos with the Chapel Royal, which provided a small amount of spending money.<ref>Jacobs, pp. 13–16</ref>

 

==Recordings==

{{Further|Gilbert and Sullivan#Recordings and broadcasts}}

On 14 August 1888 [[George Edward Gouraud|George Gouraud]] introduced [[Thomas Edison]]'s phonograph to London in a press conference, including the playing of a piano and cornet recording of Sullivan's "The Lost Chord", one of the first recordings of music ever made.<ref name=Edison>[https://www.gsarchive.net/sullivan/html/historic.html "Historic Sullivan Recordings"], the Gilbert and Sullivan Archive, accessed 28 July 2018</ref> At a party on 5 October 1888 given to demonstrate the technology, Sullivan recorded a speech to be sent to Edison, saying, in part: "I am astonished and somewhat terrified at the result of this evening's experiments: astonished at the wonderful power you have developed, and terrified at the thought that so much hideous and bad music may be put on record forever. But all the same I think it is the most wonderful thing that I have ever experienced, and I congratulate you with all my heart on this wonderful discovery."<ref name=Edison/> These recordings were found in the Edison Library in New Jersey in the 1950s:<ref name=Edison/>

{{Listen|type=music

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