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Richard Henry Walthew

{{Short description|English composer and pianist}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}

{{Infobox classical composer

|name = Richard Henry Walthew

|image =

|birth_date = {{birth date|1872|11|4|df=y}}

|birth_place = Islington, Middlesex, England

|death_date = {{death date and age|1951|11|14|1872|11|4|df=y}}

|death_place = East Preston, Sussex, England

|known_for = Clarinet music

|occupation = Composer, pianist and teacher

|children = 1

}}

Richard Henry Walthew, often known as Richard H. Walthew (4 November 1872{{spaced ndash}}14 November 1951) was an English composer and pianist, and an important figure in English chamber music during the first half of the 20th century."Walthew, Richard Henry" (2001). The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, second edition, 29 vols., edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell

Life

Richard Henry Walthew was born in Islington in Middlesex, the only son of Richard Frederick Walthew (1833-1910) and his wife Emily Jeffreys (1842-1930), and was educated at Islington Proprietary School. William Heath Robinson was also at the school and he remained a lifelong friend.[http://www.unsungcomposers.com/forum/index.php?topic=3252.0 Unsung Composers] Walthew was a pupil of Hubert Parry for four years at the Royal College of Music (1890–1894). A contemporary at the RCM was Ralph Vaughan Williams.[http://vaughanwilliams.uk/letter/vwl2400 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Richard Walthew], dated 18 October 1947 (VWL 2400) Recognition as a composer came early, with the success of his cantata The Pied Piper (performed by the Highbury Philharmonic Society on March 20, 1893, and published by Novello)[https://www.jstor.org/stable/3363758 The Musical Times Vol. 34, No. 602 (1 April, 1893), p. 220] and the Piano Concerto (first performed at Queen's Hall on 3 May 1894 by the Strolling Players´ Amateur Orchestral Society with the composer as soloist).[http://www.concertprogrammes.org.uk/html/search/verb/GetRecord/5335/ Concertprogrammes.org][https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/page/b2ca059608e746df8b0ee62decdab5e3 Radio Times, Issue 243, 25 May 1928, p. 34]

From 1900 until 1904 Walthew was music director of Passmore Edwards Settlement.A. Eaglefield Hull (ed.). A Dictionary of Modern Music and Musicians (1924) He taught the opera class at the Guildhall School of Music and was for a time conductor of the University of London Musical Society. From 1907 he was Professor of Music at The Queen's College, Harley Street."Walthew, Richard Henry" (2007). Who Was Who

He had a natural affinity for chamber music and a long association with the South Place Sunday Concert series for which he wrote programme notes. He conducted the orchestra there and it was where much of his chamber music was played. He also gave a series of lectures on the history and development of chamber music, which were published by Boosey and Co in 1909. Thomas Dunhill recorded his admiration for the refined, lyrical and unostentatious style of Walthew's writing, the suitability of his compositions for amateur performance, his special aptitude for writing for the piano and his energetic devotion to chamber music.Dunhill, Thomas. 'Richard Henry Walthew' in Cobbett's Cyclopaedic Survey of Chamber Music (1929)

Walthew died, aged 79, in East Preston, Sussex, where he lived at 1 Clarence Drive. His son Richard Sidney Walthew also played the clarinet at many South Place concerts and went on to become principal clarinet of the City of Birmingham Orchestra in the 1930s, as well as principal clarinet of the BBC Midland Orchestra.[https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/page/3173b5dcab90497b8600ff1eab75d0b3 Radio Times, issue 827, 6 August 1939, p 45], Genome.ch.bbc.co.uk His grandson John Walthew (1940–2017) was also a clarinettist.{{Cite web|url=http://classicaljourneyphonic.blogspot.com/2011/11/music-of-great-british-composer-and.html|title=Classical Journey: The Music of a Great British Composer and Pianist - Richard Henry Walthew - Played by his Grandson, Clarinettist John Walthew, with Composer and Pianist Josephine Pickering. Glenorchy Church Exmouth Wednesday 26 October|first=Luch|last=Càise-dearg|website=Classicaljourneyphonic.blogspot.com|date=11 November 2011|accessdate=28 July 2020}}{{Cite web|title=JOHN WALTHEW - Obituary - Exmouth Journal Announcements - Family Notices 24|url=https://www.familynotices24.co.uk/ejl/view/4487769/john-walthew|access-date=2021-04-22|website=www.familynotices24.co.uk|language=en}}

Music

Walthew's early works were larger scale choral and orchestral pieces such as the Clarinet and Piano ConcertosThe Clarinet Concerto was never orchestrated in the composer's lifetime. Alfie Pugh has completed the orchestration and it was recorded by [http://www.robertplane.com/recordings/concertos/reawakened/ Robert Plane and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra] in 2020, Robertplane.com and the Aladdin overture (1899). His "somewhat Gilbertian" one act operetta The Enchanted Island, loosely based on The Tempest, was composed in 1900 and received many performances, including a revival in the early 1930s with the BBC Theatre Orchestra conducted by John Ansell.[https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/page/c97cc3cb1b394636bf493b7030892142 Radio Times, issue 457, 3 July 1932 p 42], Genome.ch.bbc.co.uk

But it was with chamber music that he made the greatest impression. His String Quartet in E major, his Mosaic in Ten Pieces for clarinet and piano, and his Trio in C minor for clarinet, violin and piano were all played at a South Place concert on Sunday 25 November 1900.The Times, 27 November 1900, p 10 The Mosaic pieces were later taken up by Lionel Tertis, swapping clarinet for viola, and in 1943 Walthew provided an orchestrated version for Tertis, intended for (but in the end not played at) the 1943 Proms. (This version was recorded by Dutton Epoch in 2016).{{Cite web|url=https://www.gramophone.co.uk/reviews/review|title=Review|website=Gramophone.co.uk|accessdate=28 July 2020}}

His most successful chamber work was the Phantasy Quintet for piano, violin, viola, cello and double bass, commissioned by the Worshipful Company of Musicians, dedicated to Walter Cobbett and published by Stainer and Bell in 1912. This was later revived by the composer at the marathon one thousandth South Place Sunday Concert in February 1927.{{cite book|last=Meadmore|first=W.S.|title=The Story of a Thousand Concerts (1887-1927)|year=1927|publisher=South Place Ethical Society|location=London|page=5}} Among his educational piano works, the short piece Sun and Shade was chosen as one of ten test pieces for the Daily Express national piano playing competition in 1928, and recorded as a demonstration by William Murdoch.{{Cite web|url=http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2019/Oct/Murdoch_Columbia_6029.htm|title=William Murdoch (piano) Complete Columbia Solo Electrical Recordings - APR 6029 [SG] Classical Music Reviews: October 2019 - MusicWeb-International|website=Musicweb-international.com|accessdate=28 July 2020}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxcXyxEWiJo |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211221/UxcXyxEWiJo |archive-date=2021-12-21 |url-status=live|title=William Murdoch plays "Sun and Shade" on The Complete Columbia Solo Electrical Recordings (1925-1931) APR 6029 (2019)|date=5 September 2019 |publisher=YouTube|accessdate=28 July 2020}}{{cbignore}} The Prelude and Fugue (1945), originally written for strings, later transcribed for two clarinets and bassoon, has been reissued in recent times and recorded by The Trio Pleyel.{{Cite web|url=https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/products/8438384--sobeck-hennessy-carulli-2-clarinets-bassoon|title=Sobeck, Hennessy & Carulli: 2 Clarinets & Bassoon|website=Prestomusic.com|accessdate=28 July 2020}}

Selected works

Orchestral

  • Aladdin, overture and entr'actes (1899){{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZNaYhiAhZv8 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211221/ZNaYhiAhZv8 |archive-date=2021-12-21 |url-status=live|title=A digital realisation of the opening of Aladdin|date=July 2017 |publisher=YouTube|accessdate=28 July 2020}}{{cbignore}}
  • Friend Fritz, overture{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/events/ejjfhn|title=Prom 04|website=BBC Music Events|accessdate=28 July 2020}}
  • The Masqueraders, orchestral suite
  • Night Scenes
  • Table-Music, suite in 4 movements for string orchestra
  • ''Variations in B{{music|flat}}

Concertante

  • Caprice Impromptu for violin and orchestra{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/events/ew4p5v|title=Prom 43|website=BBC Music Events|accessdate=28 July 2020}}
  • Concerto for clarinet and orchestra (1902){{Cite web|url=https://tashmina.co.uk/news/robert-plane-to-record-with-bbc-scottish-and-martyn-brabbins/|title=Robert Plane to record with BBC Scottish and Martyn Brabbins|website=Tashmina.co.uk|date=April 2019 |accessdate=28 July 2020}}
  • Concerto for piano and orchestra in E{{music|flat}}(1894)
  • Fiammetta, concert piece for piano and orchestra
  • A Mosaic in Ten Pieces for viola and orchestra (1900, orchestrated 1943)[http://www.duttonvocalion.co.uk/dutton-epoch-july-2016/ Dutton Vocalion]

Chamber music

  • Five Diversions for violin, viola and cello
  • Five Lyrical Pieces for string quartet
  • Four Bagatelles for clarinet and piano (1890s)
  • Four Meditations for clarinet and piano (two sets, 1897 and 1903)
  • Idyll for flute and piano{{Cite web|url=https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/products/8440573--idyll-the-english-flute-unheard|title=Idyll: The English Flute Unheard|website=Prestomusic.com|accessdate=28 July 2020}}{{Cite web|title=Walthew, Richard: Idyll|url=https://stainer.co.uk/shop/n54276/|access-date=2021-04-17|website=Stainer & Bell|language=en-GB}}
  • Introduction and Allegro for bassoon and piano (1900)[https://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/dw.asp?dc=W22311_GBAJY2137101 Hyperion CDA68371/2 (2021)]
  • Miniature Quartet for flute, oboe, clarinet and bassoon
  • A Mosaic in Ten Pieces (with Dedication) for clarinet (or viola) and piano (1900)
  • Phantasy-Quintet in E minor and major for violin, viola, cello, double bass and piano (1912){{Cite web|url=https://imslp.org/wiki/Phantasy_Quintet_in_E_minor_and_major_(Walthew,_Richard_Henry)|title=Phantasy Quintet in E minor and major (Walthew, Richard Henry) - IMSLP: Free Sheet Music PDF Download|website=Imslp.org|accessdate=28 July 2020}}
  • Piano Trio in G major
  • Prelude and Fugue for two clarinets and bassoon{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A6uTXYKrNGc |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211221/A6uTXYKrNGc |archive-date=2021-12-21 |url-status=live|title=Trio Pleyel|date=25 October 2014 |publisher=YouTube|accessdate=28 July 2020}}{{cbignore}}
  • Quartet for violin, viola, cello and piano
  • Quintet for violin, viola, cello, double bass and piano
  • Quintet for 2 violins, viola, cello and piano
  • Serenade-Sonata in F minor for viola or violin and piano (1925){{Cite web|url=https://imslp.org/wiki/Serenade-Sonata_(Walthew,_Richard_Henry)|title=Serenade-Sonata (Walthew, Richard Henry) - IMSLP: Free Sheet Music PDF Download|website=Imslp.org|accessdate=28 July 2020}}
  • Short Quintet for clarinet and string quartet in Eb (1917-18)[https://www.chandos.net/chanimages/Booklets/CX7905.pdf Notes to British Clarinet Quintets, CPO CX 7905 (2015)] Chandos.net
  • Sonata in D for viola and piano (1938){{Cite web|url=https://imslp.org/wiki/Trio_in_C_minor_(Walthew,_Richard_Henry)|title=Trio in C minor (Walthew, Richard Henry) - IMSLP: Free Sheet Music PDF Download|website=Imslp.org|accessdate=28 July 2020}}{{Cite news|date=25 November 1938|title=Gramophone News|work=Catholic Herald|url=http://archive-uat.catholicherald.co.uk/article/25th-november-1938/10/gramophone-notes}}
  • Sonata for cello and piano
  • Sonata for violin and piano
  • String Quartet No. 1 in E
  • String Quartet No. 2 in B flat (1902)
  • String Quartet No. 3 (in E flat (1917)
  • String Trio No. 1
  • String Trio No. 2
  • Suite in F for clarinet (or viola) and piano (1899){{Cite web|url=https://imslp.org/wiki/Suite_in_F_major_(Walthew,_Richard_Henry)|title=Suite in F major (Walthew, Richard Henry) - IMSLP: Free Sheet Music PDF Download|website=Imslp.org|accessdate=28 July 2020}}
  • Trio for two clarinets and bassoon (or bass clarinet)
  • Trio in D for clarinet (or violin), horn (or bassoon) and piano (published Rosewood, 2000)
  • Trio in C minor for violin, clarinet (or viola) and piano (1897){{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76QpQjDf2iQ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211221/76QpQjDf2iQ |archive-date=2021-12-21 |url-status=live|title=Trio in C minor (1897), performance by P. López (violin), A. Cantarero (clarinet) and M. Álvarez (piano)|date=30 December 2016 |publisher=YouTube|accessdate=28 July 2020}}{{cbignore}}
  • Triolet in E{{music|flat}} for oboe, clarinet and bassoon
  • Two Pieces: Regret and Conversation Galante for clarinet (or viola, or cello) and piano (1918)

Piano

  • Aubade (1907)
  • Sun and Shade (1928)

Choral

  • The Fair Maids of February (words by May Gillington){{Cite journal|date=1896|title=Review of Action Songs. Books III and IV; The Fair Maids of February. short cantata for female voices, May Gillington|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3368974|journal=The Musical Times and Singing Class Circular|volume=37|issue=644|pages=673|doi=10.2307/3368974|jstor=3368974 |issn=0958-8434}}
  • John-a-Dreams, cantata (words by A Ross) (1911)
  • Nocturn, for SATB choir (words by D. Donaldson)
  • Ode to a Nightingale, cantata (1897)
  • The Pied Piper of Hamlin, cantata for soloists, chorus and orchestra (1893)
  • There sits a bird on yonder tree (words by Thomas Ingoldsby).{{Cite journal|last1=Ingoldsby|first1=Thomas|last2=Walthew|first2=Richard H.|date=1905|title=There Sits a Bird on Yonder Tree. Four-Part Song|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/904400|journal=The Musical Times|volume=46|issue=752|pages=661–665|doi=10.2307/904400|jstor=904400 |issn=0027-4666}} Described as "a tasteful little anachronism".{{Cite journal|last=PS|date=24 August 1907|title=Reviews of New Music|journal=Musical Standard|volume=28|issue=712|pages=124|issn=2043-4847}}

Vocal

  • Eight Songs of Richard Smekal, op 12{{Cite web|title=Prom 45|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/events/e3r9mb|access-date=2021-04-15|website=BBC Music Events|language=en}}
  • Eldorado, song (setting Edgar Allan Poe) (performed at the Proms, 1902 and 1930){{Cite web|title=BBC Proms|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/events/works/4827bbbe-f770-4aff-92bd-2a57b73de09a|access-date=2021-04-15|website=BBC Music Events|language=en}}
  • An Album of Twelve Songs (including Mistress Mine)
  • The Gleaner's Slumber Song (performed at the Proms, 1896, 1899 and 1902){{Cite web|title=BBC Proms|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/events/works/ceb3217a-1952-4849-aefd-7b4fa795d2fb|access-date=2021-04-15|website=BBC Music Events|language=en}}
  • Hey Ho, the wind and the rain{{Cite web|title=Prom 22|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/events/ev5xn3|access-date=2021-04-15|website=BBC Music Events|language=en}}
  • May Day{{Cite web|title=Prom 41|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/events/ecbq2m|access-date=2021-04-15|website=BBC Music Events|language=en}}
  • St Agnes's Eve{{Cite web|title=Prom 27|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/events/e5gp5v|access-date=2021-04-15|website=BBC Music Events|language=en}}

Stage

  • The Enchanted Island, operetta in one act (1900); libretto by R.H.U. Bloor
  • The Gardeners, operetta (1906)

Literary

  • Musical Amateurs, London: Musical opinion and music trade review (1904)
  • The Development of Chamber Music, London: Boosey & Co. (1909)
  • String Quartets London: Royal Musical Association (1915/16){{Cite journal|last=Walthew|first=Richard H.|date=1915|title=String Quartets|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/765753|journal=Proceedings of the Musical Association|volume=42|pages=145–162|doi=10.1093/jrma/42.1.145 |jstor=765753 |issn=0958-8442}}
  • [Beethoven's] Chamber Music, London: Music and Letters (1927){{Cite journal|last=Walthew|first=Richard|date=1927|title=Chamber Music|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/725924|journal=Music & Letters|volume=8|issue=3|pages=317–321|doi=10.1093/ml/VIII.3.317 |jstor=725924 |issn=0027-4224}}

References

{{Reflist}}

External links

  • [https://www.classicalarchives.com/midi/composer/3536.html Classical Archives] - synthesised versions of various works

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Walthew, Richardhenry}}

Category:1872 births

Category:1951 deaths

Category:English composers

Category:English classical pianists

Category:English male classical pianists

Category:Alumni of the Royal College of Music

Category:People from Highbury

Category:Military personnel from the London Borough of Islington

Category:People from Islington (district)

Category:Academics of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama

Category:People associated with Conway Hall Ethical Society

Category:People from East Preston, West Sussex

Category:People educated at Islington Proprietary School