This Week's Great Day

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XVII, 26 November 1927, Page 9

This Week's Great Day

Events m the httfoiM of the Empire-

By

Charles Conway

NOV. 22—DEATH OF SIR ARTHUR SULLIVAN

(Copyrighted.)

Twenty seven years ago, on the 22nd November, 1900, Sir Arthur Sullican, one of the greatest geniuses and most popular composers in the history of British music, died at the age of 58.

He was born in London, on the 13th May, 1842. ah dinherited his wonderful musical gifts from his father, who was the leading military bandmaster of’his day. At the age of eight, Sullivan was able to play every wind instrument in the Sandhurst Royal Military College Band, of which his father was the conductor, and when he was twelve his fine treble voice and musical ability gained him a place in the choir of the Chapel Royal, of which he soon became the leading vocalist. He remained in the choir for four years, and during that time he compsoed an anthem which was used in the r 'val services. At the age of fourteen he won the coveted Mendelssohn scholarship at the Royal Academy of Music, and two years later, when his voice broke and he had to leave the choir, he was sent to Leipzig, where he continued his musical studies under Lizst and other Lftnous masters. During the two years that he stayed at Leipzig he made a highly successful debut as an orchestral conductor and produced several of his own compositions.

Soon after he returned to London his incidental music to Shakespeare’s play - “The Tempest” was first played, and it won for the young composer, then only twenty years of age, universal recognition of his genius. During the next few years he produced numerous successful works, including ballets, overtures, oratories, cantatas and songs, all of which added to-his fame, but it was his collaboration in a few of Sir Francis Burnand’s popular extravaganzas, then the range of London, that first revealed to the world his gift of musical -drollery, an accomplishment

which was to gain for him his wides and most enduring fame. It was in 1871 that Sullivan first met William Schwenk Gilbert, the greatest writer of burlesque comedy of his day, and their meeting resulted in the production of that absolutely unique aeries of light musical plays known as the Gilbert and Sullivan Operas, which have made the names of their author and composer household words througnout the civilised world. Their first collaboration war a burlesque in 1872, but it was not until three vears later that they joined forces witli Richard D’Oyly Carte, the theatrical manager, an dcommenced to produce the everpopular light operas which marked an epoch in the history of the musical drama.

The first production of the three partners was “Trial by Jury,” the music of which was composed by Sullivan in less than three weeks, and during the next 1 twenty years the inimitable trio presented to the world, “The Sorcerers,” “H.M.S. Pinafore,” “The Pirates of Penzance,” “Patience,” “lolanthe,” “Princess Ida,” “The Mikado," “Ruddi. gore,” “The Yeoman of the Guard,” and “The Gondoliers.” The enormous success which attend the constant revival of these light operas in all parts of the world has tended to voershadow Sullivan’s great achievements in other fields of the musical art, notably in the production of church music, of which “The Golden Legend” is considered to be his masterpiece. Sullivan composed the music for both the most popular hymn and the most popular song of the 19th century, namely—“ Onward, Christian Soldiers” and “The Lost Chord.” His indefatigable efforts to -raise the standard of British music was rewarded with a knighthood in 1893 and many other honours, and his burial in St. Paul’s Cathedral was- the occasion of a most remarkable demonstration of public sorrow.