1906 in British music
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This is a summary of 1906 in music in the United Kingdom.
Events
- 18 January - The first performance of Charles Villiers Stanfordâs Symphony No 6 in Eb major takes place at the Queenâs Hall with the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by the composer.
- 25 January - The Kruse Quartet, supplemented by other players (including Lionel Tertis), give the first performance of Charles Villiers Stanfordâs Nonet at the Aeolian Hall in London.[1]
- 1 March - Nicholas Gattyâs one-act opera Greysteel has its premiere in Sheffield during the University Opera week.
- 29 March - The first performance of James Friskinâs Quintet by the Cathie Quartet takes place at the Aeolian Hall in London.
- 24 April - The winning three compositions of the 1905 Cobbett Competition for chamber music are performed by The Saunders Quartet at Stationers Hall: William Hurlstoneâs Phantasie for String Quartet (first prize); Haydn Woodâs Phantasy Quartet (second prize); Frank Bridgeâs Phantasie Quartet (third prize).[2]
- 14 May - The first complete performance in the UK of Coppelia by Delibes is seen at the Empire Theatre, with Adeline Genée in the lead role.
- 14 June - The first performance of Variations on an African Air by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor takes place at a London Philharmonic Society concert, Queen's Hall, conducted by Frederick Cowen.[3]
- 23 August - The Norfolk Rhapsody No 1 in E minor by Ralph Vaughan Williams is performed for the first time at the Proms in London.
- August â Mary Davies is principal soloist at the National Eisteddfod of Wales.[4]
- Summer â Australian composer Percy Grainger begins collecting English folk songs with the aid of a phonograph.[5]
- 3 October
- Hans Richter conducts the first performance of The Bells, a poem for chorus and orchestra by Joseph Holbrooke, at the Birmingham Music Festival.
- Edward Elgar's oratorio The Kingdom, Op. 51, is first performed at the Birmingham Music Festival, conducted by the composer with soloists Agnes Nicholls, Muriel Foster, John Coates and William Higley.
- 25 October - Henry Wood conducts the first performance of Joseph Holbrookeâs orchestral suite Les Hommages at Queenâs Hall.
- 14 November -The Vicar of Wakefield (Goldsmith), a light opera by Liza Lehmann, is produced in London.[3]
- 15 November - Cyril Scott's orchestral and choral Christmas Overture is performed for the first time by the London Symphony Orchestra.[6]
- date unknown
- Operatic soprano Maggie Teyte makes her public début at a Mozart festival in Paris.[7]
- 16-year-old Phyllis Dare takes over the leading role in The Belle of Mayfair[8] at the Vaudeville Theatre when Edna May leaves suddenly because of a disagreement with the producer.
- Composer Lawrence Wright opens a music shop in his home city of Leicester.
Popular music
- "Ye Watchers and Ye Holy Ones" (hymn), with words by Athelstan Riley, first published in The English Hymnal by Oxford University Press, edited by Percy Dearmer and Ralph Vaughan Williams.[9]
Classical music: new works
- Granville Bantock â Sappho, nine fragments with a Prelude
- Rutland Boughton â Love in Spring, symphonic poem
- Frank Bridge
- Three Idylls for String Quartet
- String Quartet No. 1 in E minor "Bologna"
- Katharine Emily Eggar â Piano Quartet in D minor and major
- Edward Elgar â The Kingdom (oratorio)
Opera
- Dame Ethel Smyth & Henry Brewster â The Wreckers[10]
Musical theatre
- 20 June â See See, with music by Sidney Jones, book by Charles H. Brookfield, and lyrics by Adrian Ross, opens at the Prince of Wales Theatre; it runs for 152 performances.[11]
Births
- 31 January â Benjamin Frankel, composer (died 1973)
- 19 February â Grace Williams, composer (died 1977)
- 13 March â Dave Kaye, pianist (died 1996)
- 22 April â Eric Fenby, composer, conductor, pianist, organist and teacher, amanuensis of Frederick Delius (died 1997)[12]
- 9 July â Elisabeth Lutyens, composer (died 2005)
- 24 August â Walter Braithwaite, composer (died 1991)
- 4 November â Arnold Cooke, composer (died 1983)[13]
- 23 November â Mervyn Roberts, Welsh composer
Deaths
- 9 May â Helen Lemmens-Sherrington, concert and operatic soprano (born 1834)[14]
- 14 June â George Herbert, organist and composer of hymn tunes (born 1817)[15]
- 30 December â Eugène Goossens, père, Belgian-born conductor (born 1845)[16]