1948 in British music
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This is a summary of 1948 in music in the United Kingdom.
Events[]
- 16 January – The day after her New York concert debut, Kathleen Ferrier writes to her sister: "Some of the critics are enthusiastic, others unimpressed".[1]
- 17 April – The death of Alice, Viscountess Wimborne, lover of William Walton, ends their 14-year affair.
- 5 June – Opening of the first Aldeburgh Festival, founded by Benjamin Britten, Eric Crozier and Peter Pears.
- 13 October – Kathleen Ferrier joins Sir John Barbirolli and the Hallé Orchestra in a broadcast performance of Mahler's song cycle Kindertotenlieder.
- October – The Duke of Edinburgh is introduced to musical comedy star Pat Kirkwood in her dressing room after a show. They are seen together at a restaurant, creating a scandal in the newspapers.[2]
- 13 October – William Walton marries Susana Gil Passo.[3]
- date unknown
- Steuart Wilson becomes head of music at the BBC; the appointment results in the retirement of Sir Adrian Boult as chief conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra.[4]
- Harman Grisewood replaces George Barnes as controller of the BBC Third Programme.
- The National School of Opera is founded by Joan Cross.[5]
Popular music[]
- Anne Shelton – "If You Ever Fall in Love Again" (Dick Farrelly)
- Dorothy Squires – "A Tree in the Meadow" (Billy Reid)
Classical music: new works[]
- Malcolm Arnold – The Smoke (Overture), Op. 21
- Arnold Bax – Magnificat[6]
- Benjamin Britten – Saint Nicolas, for tenor soloist, children's chorus, chorus, and orchestra[7]
- Michael Tippett – Suite in D for the Birthday of Prince Charles[8]
- Ralph Vaughan Williams – Partita for Double String Orchestra[9]
Opera[]
- Arthur Bliss – The Olympians[10]
- Norman Demuth – Le Flambeau[11]
Film and Incidental music[]
- William Alwyn – The Fallen Idol directed by Carol Reed, starring Ralph Richardson.[12]
- Arnold Bax – Oliver Twist directed by David Lean, starring Alec Guinness.
- Brian Easdale – The Red Shoes directed and produced by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger.
- Constant Lambert – Anna Karenina, starring Vivien Leigh and Ralph Richardson.
- Elisabeth Lutyens – Penny and the Pownall Case (the first feature film to be scored by a female British composer).
- Ralph Vaughan Williams – Scott of the Antarctic, starring John Mills.
- William Walton – Hamlet, directed by and starring Laurence Olivier.
- John Wooldridge – The Guinea Pig, starring Richard Attenborough.
Musical theatre[]
- 10 March – Carissima, starring Ginger Rogers and David Hughes, opens at the Palace Theatre and runs for 488 performances.
- 22 December – High Button Shoes (Jule Styne and Sammy Cahn) opens at the Hippodrome and runs for 291 performances.
Musical films[]
- A Date with a Dream, starring Terry-Thomas, Jeannie Carson and Wally Patch.[13]
- Bless 'Em All, starring Max Bygraves.[14]
- One Night with You, directed by Terence Young and starring Nino Martini, Patricia Roc and Bonar Colleano.[15]
D.C.
Births[]
- 17 January – Mick Taylor, guitarist
- 19 January – Amanda Holden, English playwright, lyricist and composer
- 3 February – Gavin Henderson, English trumpet player and conductor
- 28 February – Geoff Nicholls, keyboardist (Black Sabbath) (died 2017)
- 4 March – Chris Squire, guitarist and singer-songwriter
- 11 March – Jan Schelhaas, keyboard player
- 22 March – Andrew Lloyd Webber, composer
- 16 April – Robert Kirby, arranger (died 2009)[16]
- 28 April – Scott Fitzgerald (William McPhail), singer
- 12 May – Steve Winwood, R&B singer
- 15 May – Brian Eno, synthesizer virtuoso and composer
- 21 May – Leo Sayer, singer-songwriter
- 29 May – Michael Berkeley, composer
- 6 June – Richard Sinclair, bass player (Caravan, The Wilde Flowers, Camel and Hatfield and the North)
- 1 July – John Ford, English-American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Strawbs, The Monks and Elmer Gantry's Velvet Opera)
- 4 July – Jeremy Spencer, English guitarist (Fleetwood Mac)
- 5 July – Alan Hazeldine, pianist and conductor (died 2008)
- 21 July – Cat Stevens (Steven Demetre Georgiou), singer-songwriter[17]
- 2 August – Andy Fairweather Low, guitarist, songwriter, producer and vocalist
- 26 September – Olivia Newton-John, singer and actress
- 3 October – Ian MacDonald (Ian MacCormick), music critic (died 2003)[18]
- 11 October – David Rendall, operatic tenor
- 24 October
- Dale Griffin, rock drummer and producer (died 2016)
- Barry Ryan, singer-songwriter
- Paul Ryan, singer-songwriter and producer (died 1992)
- 22 November – Mick Rock, rock photographer (died 2021)
- 3 November – Lulu (Marie McDonald McLaughlin Lawrie), singer and actress
- 1 December – Colin Sell, pianist
- 3 December – Ozzy Osbourne, singer-songwriter
- 20 December – Alan Parsons, engineer and record producer
Deaths[]
- 9 January – Violet Gordon-Woodhouse, harpsichordist and clavichordist, 75[19]
- 21 February – Frederic Lamond, pianist, 80
- 17 May – David Evans, composer, 74[20]
- 14 June – John Blackwood McEwen, composer, 80
- 8 July – Reginald Somerville, composer and actor, 81
- 20 August – David John de Lloyd, composer, 65
- 12 September – Rupert D'Oyly Carte, impresario, 70
- 20 November – Robert Carr, baritone, 67
- 24 November – Nellie Wallace, music hall star, actress, comedian, dancer and songwriter, 78[21]
- 14 December – R. O. Morris, British composer and teacher, 62
- 31 December – Ethel Barns, violinist, pianist and composer, 74
- date unknown – Euphemia Allen, composer best known for "Chopsticks"
See also[]
References[]
- ^ Fifield, Christopher (ed.) (2003). Letters and Diaries of Kathleen Ferrier. Woodbridge, Suffolk: The Boydell Press. ISBN 1-84383-012-4. p. 49
- ^ Edge, Simon (2007-12-27). "The prince and the showgirl | Express Yourself | | Daily Express". Express.co.uk. Retrieved 2014-06-07.
- ^ Friedrich Blume (1968). Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart: allgemeine Enzyklopädie der Musik (in German). Bärenreiter-Verlag.
- ^ Kennedy, Michael (1987). Adrian Boult. London: Hamish Hamilton. ISBN 0-333-48752-4. p215
- ^ D. Brook, Singers of Today (Revised Edition – Rockliff, London 1958), 55–60.
- ^ Maggie Humphreys; Robert Evans (1 January 1997). Dictionary of Composers for the Church in Great Britain and Ireland. A&C Black. p. 25. ISBN 978-0-7201-2330-2.
- ^ Eric Walter White (1983). Benjamin Britten, His Life and Operas. University of California Press. pp. 63. ISBN 978-0-520-04894-2.
- ^ Michael Kennedy; Tim Rutherford-Johnson; Joyce Kennedy (15 August 2013). The Oxford Dictionary of Music. OUP Oxford. p. 857. ISBN 978-0-19-957854-2.
- ^ Ryan Ross (17 March 2016). Ralph Vaughan Williams: A Research and Information Guide. Routledge. p. 294. ISBN 978-1-317-64616-7.
- ^ Stewart R. Craggs (1996). Arthur Bliss: a source book. Scolar Press. ISBN 978-0-85967-940-4.
- ^ Enciclopedia dello spettacolo. Unedi-Unione editoriale. 1975.
- ^ Adrian Wright (2008). The Innumerable Dance: The Life and Work of William Alwyn. Boydell & Brewer Ltd. p. 3. ISBN 978-1-84383-412-0.
- ^ "BFI | Film & TV Database | DATE WITH A DREAM (1948)". Ftvdb.bfi.org.uk. 2009-04-16. Archived from the original on 2009-01-16. Retrieved 2012-02-12.
- ^ "Bless 'Em All / BFI Most Wanted". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on 3 August 2012. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
- ^ "BFI | Film & TV Database | ONE NIGHT WITH YOU (1948)". Ftvdb.bfi.org.uk. 2009-04-16. Archived from the original on 2009-01-13. Retrieved 2014-06-07.
- ^ Irwin, Colin (7 October 2009). "Robert Kirby obituary". guardian.co.uk. Retrieved 19 May 2011.
- ^ "Prince goes pop to praise school". BBC News. 10 May 2000. Retrieved 11 December 2012.
- ^ Williams, Richard (2003-09-08). "Obituary: Ian MacDonald". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
- ^ Jessica Douglas-Home (1996). Violet: The Life and Loves of Violet Gordon Woodhouse. Harvill Press. ISBN 978-1-86046-269-6.
- ^ "Evans, David (1874-1948)". Dictionary of Welsh Biography. National Library of Wales. 2001. Retrieved 2014-06-07.
- ^ "Wallace, Nellie [Eleanor]", The Cambridge Guide to Theatre, Cambridge University Press, 2000
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