Albert Arlen AM (10 January 190524 March 1993) was a

Turkish Australian Turkish Australians ( tr, ) or Australian Turks ( tr, ) are Australians who have migrated from Turkey or who have Turkish ancestral origins. Turks first began to emigrate to Australia from the island of Cyprus for work in the 1940s, and the ...

pianist, composer, actor and playwright. He is best known for his musical ''

The Sentimental Bloke ''The Sentimental Bloke'' is a 1918 Australian silent film based on the 1915 verse novel ''The Songs of a Sentimental Bloke'' by C. J. Dennis. Produced and directed by Raymond Longford, the film stars Arthur Tauchert, Gilbert Emery, and Lottie Ly ...

'' (to the poetry of

C. J. Dennis Clarence Michael James Stanislaus Dennis (7 September 1876 – 22 June 1938), better known as C. J. Dennis, was an Australian poet and journalist known for his best-selling verse novel ''The Songs of a Sentimental Bloke'' (1915). Alongside ...

), the "Alamein Concerto", and his setting of

Banjo Paterson Andrew Barton "Banjo" Paterson, (17 February 18645 February 1941) was an Australian bush poet, journalist and author. He wrote many ballads and poems about Australian life, focusing particularly on the rural and outback areas, including the ...

's ''

Clancy of the Overflow "Clancy of the Overflow" is a poem by Banjo Paterson, first published in '' The Bulletin'', an Australian news magazine, on 21 December 1889. The poem is typical of Paterson, offering a romantic view of rural life, and is one of his best-known w ...

''.

Biography

Albert Aarons was born in Sydney in 1905 to Turkish immigrants.Papers of Albert Arlen and Nancy Brown
/ref> He was educated at Cleveland Street Public School and Crown Street High School. He studied at the New South Wales State Conservatorium (graduated in 1924) and the

École Normale de Musique de Paris The École Normale de Musique de Paris "Alfred Cortot" (ENMP) is a leading conservatoire located in Paris, Île-de-France, France. At the time of the school's foundation in 1919 by Auguste Mangeot, Alfred Cortot. The term ''école normale'' (Engl ...

. He then worked in London where he played various roles in West End repertory productions, as well as writing his own musical compositions and plays such as ''The Son of the Grand Eunuch'' (January 1937). He was known professionally as Albert Arlen and legally changed his name in 1948. In 1939, he joined the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

as a pilot's assistant, serving in the Middle and Far East. These experiences inspired a concerto for piano and orchestra, which he called the "Alamein Concerto". This was first performed in

Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...

in 1944, with pianist Phil Finch and conductor

Hugo Rignold Hugo Henry Rignold (15 May 1905 – 30 May 1976) was an English conductor and violinist, who is best remembered as musical director of the Royal Ballet (1957–1960) and conductor of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (1960–1968). Aft ...

.Digital Collections Pictures
/ref> It was recorded by Monia Liter with the

Mantovani Annunzio Paolo Mantovani (; 15 November 1905 – 29 March 1980) was an Anglo-Italian conductor, composer and light orchestra-styled entertainer with a cascading strings musical signature. The book ''British Hit Singles & Albums'' stat ...

Orchestra.

Pathé Pathé or Pathé Frères (, styled as PATHÉ!) is the name of various French people, French businesses that were founded and originally run by the Pathé Brothers of France starting in 1896. In the early 1900s, Pathé became the world's largest ...

used the music in their documentary on the anniversary of the

Battle of El Alamein There were two battles of El Alamein in World War II, both fought in 1942. The Battles occurred in North Africa, in Egypt, in and around an area named after a railway stop called El Alamein. * First Battle of El Alamein: 1–27 July 1942 * Secon ...

. After the war Arlen was sent to Singapore, and wrote musical revues which were seen in Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaya and

Ceylon Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

. Albert Arlen married actress, singer and playwright Nancy Brown in 1949. Nancy was born in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

in 1909 and moved to England at the age of 14, after her parents' divorce. She appeared in such musicals as ''Old Chelsea'' with

Richard Tauber Richard Tauber (16 May 1891 – 8 January 1948) was an Austrian tenor and film actor. Early life Richard Tauber was born in Linz, Austria, to Elisabeth Seifferth (née Denemy), a widow and an actress who played soubrette roles at the local theat ...

The Sentimental Bloke

Albert and Nancy returned to Australia, living in

Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...

. Together, they started writing ''The Sentimental Bloke'' around 1950, to

's ''

The Songs of a Sentimental Bloke ''The Songs of a Sentimental Bloke'' is a verse novel by Australian poet and journalist C. J. Dennis. Portions of the work appeared in '' The Bulletin'' between 1909 and 1915, the year the verse novel was completed and published by Angus & Rober ...

''. Initially they sought the involvement of George Johnston, who showed little interest. Later, the actor

Lloyd Thomson Lloyd Thomson Royal Victorian Order, LVO (22 May 191926 August 2015) was an Australian public servant and diplomat. He also co-wrote the book and lyrics of the successful Australian musical ''The Sentimental Bloke (musical), The Sentimental Blok ...

was brought on board as writer. Albert and Nancy went to England in 1955 to promote the show. This was unsuccessful so they returned to Australia, borrowed some money, put together an amateur cast, and staged the show themselves in March 1961 in the

Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no governm ...

in Canberra. (A ballet with the same name, choreographed by Lauren Martyn with music by

John Tallis John Tallis (7 November 1817 – 3 June 1876) was an English cartographic publisher.Boase, F., Modern English biography'', 6 vols, 1892-1921 His company, John Tallis & Company, published views, maps and atlases in London from roughly 1838 to 18 ...

had premiered in Melbourne in 1952. This was withdrawn shortly after its premiere since Albert Arlen owned the rights to stage representations of Dennis's works.) The show had a one-week run in Canberra, which was so popular that extra seating in the aisles had to be arranged. J. C. Williamson's directors Sir Frank Tait and

John McCallum John McCallum (born 9 April 1950) is a Canadian politician, economist, diplomat and former university professor. A former Liberal Member of Parliament ( MP), McCallum was the Canadian Ambassador to China from 2017 to 2019. He was asked for h ...

attended the final performance and decided to sponsor it for a further six-week season at the Comedy Theatre in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

(from 4 November 1961), directed by John Young. This was later extended to five months. The roles of The Bloke, Doreen and Rose of Spadger's Lane were played by Edwin Ride, Patsy Hemingway and Gloria Dawn respectively. It eventually ran for over a year in

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

, Sydney and

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. The show was turned into another ballet, with Arlen's music freely arranged by

John Lanchbery John Arthur Lanchbery OBE (15 May 1923 – 27 February 2003) was an English-Australian composer and conductor, famous for his ballet arrangements. He served as the Principal Conductor of the Royal Ballet from 1959 to 1972, Principal Conductor ...

and choreography by Robert Ray, which the

Australian Ballet The Australian Ballet is the largest classical ballet company in Australia. It was founded by J. C. Williamson Theatres Ltd and the Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust in 1962, with the English-born dancer, teacher, repetiteur and direc ...

staged in 1985 in Australia, and presented on their tour of the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

. ''The Girl from the Snowy'' (Riverside Theatre, Canberra, 17 March 1960) and ''Marriages Are Made in Heaven'', two other musicals, failed to have the success of ''The Sentimental Bloke''. Arlen also wrote some songs and piano pieces. The songs ''

'' and ''The Rivetter'' were recorded by Peter Dawson, the former in a best-selling recording made on 4 May 1955, accompanied by the

London Symphony Orchestra The London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London. Founded in 1904, the LSO is the oldest of London's orchestras, symphony orchestras. The LSO was created by a group of players who left Henry Wood's Queen's ...

conducted by

Charles Mackerras Mackerras in 2005 Sir Alan Charles MacLaurin Mackerras (; 1925 2010) was an Australian conductor. He was an authority on the operas of Janáček and Mozart, and the comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan. He was long associated with the Eng ...

. In 1991 Nancy Brown Arlen published her autobiography "The Black Sheep of the Brown family: A Magic Life!". Albert Arlen died on the

Sunshine Coast, Queensland The Sunshine Coast is a peri-urban region in South East Queensland, Australia. It is the district defined in 1967 as "the area contained in the Shires of Landsborough, Maroochy and Noosa, but excluding Bribie Island". Located north of the ce ...

, in 1993.

Honours and awards

For his "service to music and the performing arts," Albert Arlen was appointed a Member of the

Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

in January 1990.

List of works

*"Alamein Concerto" (piano and orchestra, 1944) *"Ballad for Australians" (words Arlen and John Barnes) *"The Austr-laise (fellers of Australia)" (vocal march for military band, c. 1961) *"Bring back the Simple Faith" (song; lyrics by Harold Simpson, 1937) *"A Celtic Romance" (c. 1965) *"

" (1948) *"Elise-oh! Go-go! (with apologies to

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classical ...

)" (c. 1966) *"The Girl from the Snowy" (musical; lyrics by Arlen; c. 1960) *"Go to sleep, little baby" (waltz lullaby, words John Wheeler, c. 1948) *"God remembers every-thing" (words Kathleen Egan; c. 1935) *"I heard a blackbird in a tree" (words Bruce Sievier; 1935) *"Many things I have loved" (words Arlen; c. 1965) *"Marriages are Made in Heaven" (musical) *"My life is a love song" (words Bruce Sievier; 1936) *"Night club: an atmospheric impression" (piano; c. 1946) *"The Pagoda of Jade" suite (orchestrated by Denis Wright)music web international
/ref> *"Requiem for a Siamese Cat: inspired by the poem of the same name" (piano; 1965) *"The Rivetter" (song; baritone and orchestra; words Bruce Sievier; c. 1937) *''

'' (based on the poems of

; book by Nancy Brown and

; lyrics by Nancy Brown, Albert Arlen, Lloyd Thomson and C.J. Dennis; music by Albert Arlen. 1961) *"Song of Canberra" *"The Song of England" (soprano, chorus and orchestra) *"Spinnakers: a sketch of

Sydney Harbour Port Jackson, consisting of the waters of Sydney Harbour, Middle Harbour, North Harbour and the Lane Cove and Parramatta Rivers, is the ria or natural harbour of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The harbour is an inlet of the Tasman Sea (p ...

" (piano; 1970) *"Suzette, my dolly, and me" (words Harry Hemsley; c. 1938) *"Your Voice"

References

Sources