Bertram Luard-Selby
Encyclopedia
Bertram Luard-Selby was an English composer and cathedral organist. As an organist, he served in Salisbury Cathedral
and Rochester Cathedral
. As a composer, he wrote prolifically for the church, the concert-hall and the theatre.
, Kent
. He studied the organ at the Leipzig Conservatoire under Carl Reinecke
and was appointed organist at, successively, St. Barnabas, Marylebone, and Highgate School
(1876); Salisbury Cathedral
(1881); St. John's, Torquay
, 1884; and St. Barnabas, Pimlico
, 1887. He was appointed organist of Rochester Cathedral
on the death of the incumbent, John Hopkins, in 1900, and held the post until 1916, when he resigned to take up a post at Bradfield College
. He was the musical editor of Hymns Ancient and Modern
, published in 1904. He also gave chamber music concerts in London in the 1880s.
At the Three Choirs Festival
of 1877, Luard-Selby's Kyrie Eleison was premiered at a concert together with two other novelties, Sullivan
's In Memoriam
and Brahms
's German Requiem. The Musical Times
said of Luard-Selby's work, "We failed to discover any originality of thought, but the writing throughout shows that its composer is an accomplished musician." He composed two school cantatas, The Waits of Bremen and A Castle in Spain; chamber music including two piano quintets; a piano quartet; three sonatas for violin and piano; and many songs and part-songs. His church music includes two settings of the Magnificat and Nunc dimittis, 16 anthems, and a number of pieces for the organ.
Among Luard-Selby's orchestral works were Village Suite, which premiered at the Henry Wood Proms
in 1908, and An Idyll, described by The Manchester Guardian
as "extremely tedious" in 1897 and as "picturesque" two years later. His other works include incidental music to Helena in Troas, a drama by John Todhunter and E. W. Godwin (London, 1886). He also wrote three operas: The Ring (1886) and Adela (produced in Nottingham in 1888), and a one-act comic opera
for two characters, Weather or No
, first produced at the Savoy Theatre
in 1896 as a curtain-raiser for The Mikado
. Both The Observer
and The Times
praised the music and the libretto of Weather or No and advised readers not to miss it. It was also popular in Germany and Austria as Das Wetterhäuschen.
Luard-Selby died in Brigg
, Lincolnshire
at the age of 65.
Salisbury Cathedral
Salisbury Cathedral, formally known as the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is an Anglican cathedral in Salisbury, England, considered one of the leading examples of Early English architecture....
and Rochester Cathedral
Rochester Cathedral
Rochester Cathedral, or the Cathedral Church of Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary, is a Norman church in Rochester, Kent. The bishopric is second oldest in England after Canterbury...
. As a composer, he wrote prolifically for the church, the concert-hall and the theatre.
Life and works
Luard-Selby was born at The Mote, IghthamIghtham
Ightham is a village in Kent, England, located approximately four miles east of Sevenoaks and six miles north of Tonbridge. The parish includes the hamlet of Ivy Hatch....
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
. He studied the organ at the Leipzig Conservatoire under Carl Reinecke
Carl Reinecke
Carl Heinrich Carsten Reinecke was a German composer, conductor, and pianist.-Biography:Reinecke was born in Altona, Hamburg, Germany; until 1864 the town was under Danish rule. He studied with his father, Johann Peter Rudolph Reinecke, a music teacher...
and was appointed organist at, successively, St. Barnabas, Marylebone, and Highgate School
Highgate School
-Notable members of staff and governing body:* John Ireton, brother of Henry Ireton, Cromwellian General* 1st Earl of Mansfield, Lord Chief Justice, owner of Kenwood, noted for judgment finding contracts for slavery unenforceable in English law* T. S...
(1876); Salisbury Cathedral
Salisbury Cathedral
Salisbury Cathedral, formally known as the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is an Anglican cathedral in Salisbury, England, considered one of the leading examples of Early English architecture....
(1881); St. John's, Torquay
Torquay
Torquay is a town in the unitary authority area of Torbay and ceremonial county of Devon, England. It lies south of Exeter along the A380 on the north of Torbay, north-east of Plymouth and adjoins the neighbouring town of Paignton on the west of the bay. Torquay’s population of 63,998 during the...
, 1884; and St. Barnabas, Pimlico
Pimlico
Pimlico is a small area of central London in the City of Westminster. Like Belgravia, to which it was built as a southern extension, Pimlico is known for its grand garden squares and impressive Regency architecture....
, 1887. He was appointed organist of Rochester Cathedral
Rochester Cathedral
Rochester Cathedral, or the Cathedral Church of Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary, is a Norman church in Rochester, Kent. The bishopric is second oldest in England after Canterbury...
on the death of the incumbent, John Hopkins, in 1900, and held the post until 1916, when he resigned to take up a post at Bradfield College
Bradfield College
Bradfield College is a coeducational independent school located in the small village of Bradfield in the English county of Berkshire.The college was founded in 1850 by Thomas Stevens, Rector and Lord of the Manor of Bradfield...
. He was the musical editor of Hymns Ancient and Modern
Hymns Ancient and Modern
Hymns Ancient and Modern was a hymnal in common use within the Church of England. Over the years it has grown into a large family of hymnals....
, published in 1904. He also gave chamber music concerts in London in the 1880s.
At the Three Choirs Festival
Three Choirs Festival
The Three Choirs Festival is a music festival held each August alternately at the cathedrals of the Three Counties and originally featuring their three choirs, which remain central to the week-long programme...
of 1877, Luard-Selby's Kyrie Eleison was premiered at a concert together with two other novelties, Sullivan
Arthur Sullivan
Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan MVO was an English composer of Irish and Italian ancestry. He is best known for his series of 14 operatic collaborations with the dramatist W. S. Gilbert, including such enduring works as H.M.S. Pinafore, The Pirates of Penzance and The Mikado...
's In Memoriam
Overture In C (In Memoriam)
The Overture in C, "In Memoriam", by Arthur Sullivan, premiered on 30 October 1866 at the Norwich Festival, in honour of his father, who died just before composition began. The piece was written early in Sullivan's career, before he began to work with his famous collaborator, W. S. Gilbert, on...
and Brahms
Johannes Brahms
Johannes Brahms was a German composer and pianist, and one of the leading musicians of the Romantic period. Born in Hamburg, Brahms spent much of his professional life in Vienna, Austria, where he was a leader of the musical scene...
's German Requiem. The Musical Times
The Musical Times
The Musical Times is an academic journal of classical music edited and produced in the United Kingdom. It is currently the oldest such journal that is still publishing in the UK, having been published continuously since 1844. It was published as The Musical Times and Singing Class Circular until...
said of Luard-Selby's work, "We failed to discover any originality of thought, but the writing throughout shows that its composer is an accomplished musician." He composed two school cantatas, The Waits of Bremen and A Castle in Spain; chamber music including two piano quintets; a piano quartet; three sonatas for violin and piano; and many songs and part-songs. His church music includes two settings of the Magnificat and Nunc dimittis, 16 anthems, and a number of pieces for the organ.
Among Luard-Selby's orchestral works were Village Suite, which premiered at the Henry Wood Proms
The Proms
The Proms, more formally known as The BBC Proms, or The Henry Wood Promenade Concerts presented by the BBC, is an eight-week summer season of daily orchestral classical music concerts and other events held annually, predominantly in the Royal Albert Hall in London...
in 1908, and An Idyll, described by The Manchester Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
as "extremely tedious" in 1897 and as "picturesque" two years later. His other works include incidental music to Helena in Troas, a drama by John Todhunter and E. W. Godwin (London, 1886). He also wrote three operas: The Ring (1886) and Adela (produced in Nottingham in 1888), and a one-act comic opera
Comic opera
Comic opera denotes a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending.Forms of comic opera first developed in late 17th-century Italy. By the 1730s, a new operatic genre, opera buffa, emerged as an alternative to opera seria...
for two characters, Weather or No
Weather or No
Weather or No is a one-act comic opera, styled a "musical duologue", by Bertram Luard-Selby with a libretto by Adrian Ross and William Beach...
, first produced at the Savoy Theatre
Savoy Theatre
The Savoy Theatre is a West End theatre located in the Strand in the City of Westminster, London, England. The theatre opened on 10 October 1881 and was built by Richard D'Oyly Carte on the site of the old Savoy Palace as a showcase for the popular series of comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan,...
in 1896 as a curtain-raiser for The Mikado
The Mikado
The Mikado; or, The Town of Titipu is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert, their ninth of fourteen operatic collaborations...
. Both The Observer
The Observer
The Observer is a British newspaper, published on Sundays. In the same place on the political spectrum as its daily sister paper The Guardian, which acquired it in 1993, it takes a liberal or social democratic line on most issues. It is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.-Origins:The first issue,...
and The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
praised the music and the libretto of Weather or No and advised readers not to miss it. It was also popular in Germany and Austria as Das Wetterhäuschen.
Luard-Selby died in Brigg
Brigg
Brigg is a small market town in North Lincolnshire, England, with a population of 5,076 in 2,213 households . The town lies at the junction of the River Ancholme and east-west transport routes across northern Lincolnshire...
, Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
at the age of 65.
Reference
- Luard-Selby, Bertram. 1904. Hymns ancient and modern,with accompanying tunes. New edition 1904. London, William Clowes & Sons, OCLC 497122237