James Oswald
Encyclopedia
James Oswald was a Scottish composer
and music publisher.
Oswald was born in Scotland
in 1711, and died in Hertfordshire
in 1769.
He wrote variations of popular Scottish folktunes, arranged these for the fiddle
and composed other original tunes in the same genre
. He published much of his work under the nom de plume "David Rizzio". A "Collection of Minuets " was published in Edinburgh in 1736 and a "Curious Collection of Scots Tunes " in 1740.
In 1741 he left Edinburgh
for London
and Allan Ramsay
lamented this fact in "An Epistle to James Oswald". In London he eventually set up his own publishing house and published "The Caledonian Pocket Companion", a collection of Scottish folktunes, some with his own variations. This ran to 15 volumes and many editions.
Like many others whose works feature in the Wighton Collection in Dundee
, he was a member of "The Temple of Apollo", a secret musical society of composers in London along with the Earl of Kellie
, John Reid, Charles Burney
and others.
He was appointed chamber composer to George III in 1761. Since many of his compositions were written anonymously, research still needs to be done to identify them. He composed in both Scottish and classical 'style gallant' forms.
Contained within the Wighton Collection in Dundee is an MS for "Air for Autumn" in the composer's own hand.
Modern editions of Oswald's Eighteen Divertimento's for two Guitars or two Mandolins and Twelve Divertimentis for the Guittar can be found at the Mandotopia website.
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
and music publisher.
Oswald was born in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
in 1711, and died in Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
in 1769.
He wrote variations of popular Scottish folktunes, arranged these for the fiddle
Fiddle
The term fiddle may refer to any bowed string musical instrument, most often the violin. It is also a colloquial term for the instrument used by players in all genres, including classical music...
and composed other original tunes in the same genre
Genre
Genre , Greek: genos, γένος) is the term for any category of literature or other forms of art or culture, e.g. music, and in general, any type of discourse, whether written or spoken, audial or visual, based on some set of stylistic criteria. Genres are formed by conventions that change over time...
. He published much of his work under the nom de plume "David Rizzio". A "Collection of Minuets " was published in Edinburgh in 1736 and a "Curious Collection of Scots Tunes " in 1740.
In 1741 he left Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
for London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and Allan Ramsay
Allan Ramsay (poet)
Allan Ramsay was a Scottish poet , playwright, publisher, librarian and wig-maker.-Life and career:...
lamented this fact in "An Epistle to James Oswald". In London he eventually set up his own publishing house and published "The Caledonian Pocket Companion", a collection of Scottish folktunes, some with his own variations. This ran to 15 volumes and many editions.
Like many others whose works feature in the Wighton Collection in Dundee
Dundee
Dundee is the fourth-largest city in Scotland and the 39th most populous settlement in the United Kingdom. It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firth of Tay, which feeds into the North Sea...
, he was a member of "The Temple of Apollo", a secret musical society of composers in London along with the Earl of Kellie
Thomas Erskine, 6th Earl of Kellie
Thomas Alexander Erskine, 6th Earl of Kellie , styled Viscount Fentoun and Lord Pittenweem until 1756, was a British musician and composer whose considerable talent brought him international fame and his rakish habits notoriety, but nowadays is little known...
, John Reid, Charles Burney
Charles Burney
Charles Burney FRS was an English music historian and father of authors Frances Burney and Sarah Burney.-Life and career:...
and others.
He was appointed chamber composer to George III in 1761. Since many of his compositions were written anonymously, research still needs to be done to identify them. He composed in both Scottish and classical 'style gallant' forms.
Contained within the Wighton Collection in Dundee is an MS for "Air for Autumn" in the composer's own hand.
External links
A collection of digitised scores by James Oswald can be found at the Five Centuries of Scottish Music collection hosted by AHDS Performing ArtsModern editions of Oswald's Eighteen Divertimento's for two Guitars or two Mandolins and Twelve Divertimentis for the Guittar can be found at the Mandotopia website.