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Cedric Sharpe,
. He composed a number of original pieces mostly for solo cello with piano accompaniment.
in the years leading up to the
Cedric Sharpe, ARCM
Associate of the Royal College of Music (ARCM) is a diploma qualification of the Royal College of Music, equivalent to a university first degree. Like the Licentiate of the Royal Academy of Music diploma (LRAM), it was offered in teaching or perf ...
, Hon RAM (13 April 1891 – 1978) was a British cellist, composer and music professor
Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professors ...
of the early to mid-20th century. He studied cello at the Royal College of Music
The Royal College of Music is a conservatoire established by royal charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, UK. It offers training from the undergraduate to the doctoral level in all aspects of Western Music including performanc ...
later becoming professor of cello at the Royal Academy of Music – the start of a teaching career that was to span almost four decades before he retired in 1966 at the age of 75. During the inter-War years he became a prominent player of both chamber
Chamber or the chamber may refer to:
In government and organizations
* Chamber of commerce, an organization of business owners to promote commercial interests
*Legislative chamber, in politics
* Debate chamber, the space or room that houses delib ...
and orchestral music
An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families.
There are typically four main sections of instruments:
* bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, ce ...
; his repertoire included both British and European contemporary music. He recorded for HMV
Sunrise Records and Entertainment, trading as HMV (for His Master's Voice), is a British music and entertainment retailer, currently operating exclusively in the United Kingdom.
The first HMV-branded store was opened by the Gramophone Company ...
and was broadcast by the BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...Early life
Cedric Sharpe was born inMaida Vale
Maida Vale ( ) is an affluent residential district consisting of the northern part of Paddington in West London, west of St John's Wood and south of Kilburn. It is also the name of its main road, on the continuous Edgware Road. Maida Vale is ...
, London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
, England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, in 1891, the son of Herbert Sharpe
Herbert Francis Sharpe, (1 March 1861 – 14 October 1925) was a British pianist, composer and music professor of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He studied piano at the Royal College of Music in London later becoming professor there. He c ...
a professor of piano and composer at the Royal College of Music in London. From the age of seven he studied under Tennyson Werge, a cellist who had performed with his father in London concerts. He continued his studies with the cellist W. H. Squire at the Royal College of Music gaining a scholarship there in 1907 at the age of 16. After completing his studies he left the Royal College of Music in 1912. In 1913 he married Evelyn Blanche Jennings a composer of songs
A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetition ...
and settings of poems
Poetry (derived from the Greek ''poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language − such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre − to evoke meanings in ...
; they had a son and a daughter.
Playing career
Sharpe became a prominent player of both chamber and orchestral music. In 1914 along withJames Lockyer James Lockyer may refer to:
* James Lockyer (activist), Canadian lawyer and social justice activist
* James Lockyer (architect), English architect and surveyor
* James E. Lockyer, Canadian lawyer, law professor, and politician
* James Lockyer (m ...
(viola) and the London String Quartet
The London String Quartet was a string quartet founded in London in 1908 which remained one of the leading English chamber groups into the 1930s, and made several well-known recordings.
Personnel
The personnel of the London String Quartet was:
...
he performed in the first British public performance of Schoenberg's ''Verklärte Nacht
''Verklärte Nacht'' (''Transfigured Night''), Op. 4, is a string sextet in one movement composed by Arnold Schoenberg in 1899. Composed in just three weeks, it is considered his earliest important work. It was inspired by Richard Dehmel's p ...
'' at the Bechstein Hall in London.
In 1915 he formed the Philharmonic Quartet with Arthur Beckwith (1st violin), Eugene Aynsley Goossens
Sir Eugene Aynsley Goossens (; 26 May 189313 June 1962) was an English conductor and composer.
Biography
He was born in Camden Town, London, the son of the Belgian conductor and violinist Eugène Goossens (''fils'', 1867–1958) and Annie ...
(2nd violin) and Raymond Jeremy
Raymond Jeremy, FRAM, (1890-1969) was a British violist, known for his quartet playing, particularly the first performances of Edward Elgar's String Quartet (Elgar), String Quartet and Piano Quintet (Elgar), Piano Quintet. He was professor of viol ...
(viola). The First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
interrupted their work as some of the members were called up for service; they re-formed in 1918 with Frederick Holding and Thomas Peatfield as 1st and 2nd violins. The quartet was active until the early 1940s.
In 1924 Sharpe founded the Virtuoso Quartet
The Virtuoso String Quartet was a British quartet, founded by the Gramophone Company (better known as HMV) in 1924, being the first such quartet established specifically for recording. In effect they displaced the Catterall Quartet from their posi ...
with Marjorie Hayward
Marjorie Olive Hayward (14 August 188510 January 1953) was an English violinist and violin teacher, prominent during the first few decades of the 20th century.
Biography
Marjorie Hayward was born in Greenwich in 1885. An "infant prodigy", he ...
(1st violin), Edwin Virgo (2nd violin) and Raymond Jeremy
Raymond Jeremy, FRAM, (1890-1969) was a British violist, known for his quartet playing, particularly the first performances of Edward Elgar's String Quartet (Elgar), String Quartet and Piano Quintet (Elgar), Piano Quintet. He was professor of viol ...
(viola). They made frequent tours of the British Isles
The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isles, ...
sometimes forming quintets with other well-known players of the day, for example Leon Goossens
Leon, Léon (French) or León (Spanish) may refer to:
Places
Europe
* León, Spain, capital city of the Province of León
* Province of León, Spain
* Kingdom of León, an independent state in the Iberian Peninsula from 910 to 1230 and again f ...
(oboe), William Murdoch
William Murdoch (sometimes spelled Murdock) (21 August 1754 – 15 November 1839) was a Scottish engineer and inventor.
Murdoch was employed by the firm of Boulton & Watt and worked for them in Cornwall, as a steam engine erector for ten yea ...
(piano), Harriet Cohen
Harriet(t) may refer to:
* Harriet (name), a female name ''(includes list of people with the name)''
Places
* Harriet, Queensland, rural locality in Australia
* Harriet, Arkansas, unincorporated community in the United States
* Harriett, Texas, ...
(piano) or Arnold Bax
Sir Arnold Edward Trevor Bax, (8 November 1883 – 3 October 1953) was an English composer, poet, and author. His prolific output includes songs, choral music, chamber pieces, and solo piano works, but he is best known for his orchestral musi ...
. In 1926 with Dale Smith (baritone) and Sidonie Goossens
Annie Sidonie Goossens OBE (19 October 1899 – 15 December 2004) was one of Britain's most enduring harpists. She made her professional debut in 1921, was a founder member of the BBC Symphony Orchestra and went on to play for more than half ...
(harp) they performed in a BBC concert of contemporary music which included "Ode to a Nightingale" by Eric Fogg
Charles William Eric Fogg (21 February 190319 December 1939) was an English composer, conductor and BBC broadcaster. His early works were influenced by Igor Stravinsky, though his later pieces owe more to Granville Bantock and Richard Strauss a ...
and ''Aquarelles'' for string quartet by John Foulds
John Herbert Foulds (; 2 November 188025 April 1939) was an English cellist and composer of classical music. He was largely self-taught as a composer, and belongs among the figures of the English Musical Renaissance.
A successful composer of li ...
; this was broadcast from the New Chenil Galleries studios in Chelsea
Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to:
Places Australia
* Chelsea, Victoria
Canada
* Chelsea, Nova Scotia
* Chelsea, Quebec
United Kingdom
* Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames
** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...
over the radio station 2LO
2LO was the second radio station to regularly broadcast in the United Kingdom (the first was 2MT). It began broadcasting on 11 May 1922, for one hour a day from the seventh floor of Marconi House in London's Strand, opposite Somerset House.
H ...
.
Sharpe was also a member of several other ensembles – the Chamber Music Players, the Chamber Music Trio, the English Trio, the Trio Players with Eda Kersey
Eda Kersey (15 May or 16 May 190413 July 1944) was a British violinist who was renowned for her brilliant playing. She premiered a number of important works, including the Bax Violin Concerto, but her career was cut short by her early death.
E ...
(violin) and Gerald Moore
Gerald Moore CBE (30 July 1899 – 13 March 1987) was an English classical pianist best known for his career as a collaborative pianist for many distinguished musicians. Among those with whom he was closely associated were Dietrich Fischer-Di ...
(piano), the Harp Ensemble and the Cedric Sharpe Sextet (formed in 1930) which was broadcast regularly by the BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
. The June 1932 issue of '' Gramophone'' magazine commented: These are all interesting organisations, but one cannot help wishing that Cedric Sharpe, instead of making up the ensemble of so many different combinations, would devote himself exclusively to solo work; or, following the example of the Flonzaley and Lener Quartets, found a quartet whose members would devote themselves solely to their own organisation.In 1933, the Trio Players along with Enid Cruickshank (contralto) performed three of Schoenberg's lieder: "Ewartung" and "Schenk Mir Deinen Goldenen" from Opus 2 and "Hochzeitslied" from Opus 3. These were broadcast over London Regional along with works solely for trio by
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 classic ...
, Berlioz, Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
and Schubert
Franz Peter Schubert (; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical and early Romantic eras. Despite his short lifetime, Schubert left behind a vast ''oeuvre'', including more than 600 secular vocal wor ...
.
Sharpe also held the following positions as an orchestral player (with approximate dates where known): principal cello for the New Symphony Orchestra (1930s and 1940s), director and principal cello for 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 symphony orchestras. The LSO was created by a group of players who left Henry Wood's Queen's Hall Orc ...
(1930s and 1940s), principal cello with the Royal Albert Hall orchestra and principal cello with the Royal Opera House
The Royal Opera House (ROH) is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. It is the home of The Royal Ope ...
Covent Garden orchestra (1940s). He played cellos by David Tecchler
David Tecchler, sometimes also written Techler, Tekler, Deckler, Dechler, Decler, TecclerRené Vannes, ''Dictionnaire universel des luthiers'', Bruxelles : Les Amis de la musique, 1951, p. 356 or Teckler, (1666–1748) was a German luthier, best kn ...
(dated 1701) and Charles Buthod (dated 1897).
Academic career
In 1928 Sharpe became professor of cello at the Royal Academy of Music in London. His teaching career was to span nearly 40 years before his retirement in 1966 at the age of 75. He contributed to books about cello technique, for example editing and revising "''The Violoncello''" a primer originally written by Jules de Swert in 1920. The cellist Dennis Vigay (born 1926) was amongst Sharpe's pupils.Compositions
Sharpe's compositions date mainly from between the two World Wars. He wrote a number of original pieces for cello and piano, a number of arrangements for cello and piano, some original and arranged songs inballad
A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...
style and two pieces for light orchestra.
His original cello and piano pieces (with dates where known) are: ''Midsummer Song'' (1921), ''Gavotte in G minor'' (1927), ''The Angelus'' (1927), ''Chansonette'' (1928), ''An Old Time Dance'' (1928), ''Le Soir'' (1928), ''Five Little Solos for Cello and Piano'' (1928), ''Romance in A'' (1929), ''Valse Capricieuse'' (1933), ''An Old World Love Song'' (1933), ''Cradle Song'' (1939), ''Humoresque Rumbaesque'' (1939), ''Petite Valse Lyrique'' (1950), ''Nocturne'' (1951), ''Pavane'', ''The Vesper Bell'' (from an old Breton
Breton most often refers to:
*anything associated with Brittany, and generally
** Breton people
** Breton language, a Southwestern Brittonic Celtic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken in Brittany
** Breton (horse), a breed
**Ga ...
folk tune) and ''Five Little Songs''.
His cello and piano arrangements are of music by J. S. Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wo ...
and Thomas Arne
Thomas Augustine Arne (; 12 March 17105 March 1778) was an English composer. He is best known for his patriotic song " Rule, Britannia!" and the song "A-Hunting We Will Go", the latter composed for a 1777 production of '' The Beggar's Opera'', wh ...
. He also arranged the following traditional folk tunes: ''Six Old English Airs'' (1921), ''Six Old Irish Airs'' (1923), ''Eight Welsh Melodies'' (1925) and a set of Scottish folk tunes originally arranged for solo piano by his father Herbert Sharpe
Herbert Francis Sharpe, (1 March 1861 – 14 October 1925) was a British pianist, composer and music professor of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He studied piano at the Royal College of Music in London later becoming professor there. He c ...
.
His ballad songs (with dates and lyricists where known) are: "The year's at the Spring" ( Robert Browning 1927), "The Fairy Fiddler" (N. Hopper arranged 1927), "Lullaby Song" ( Gabriel Setoun 1933), "Love thy Mother", "Little One. Prayer." (Thomas Hood
Thomas Hood (23 May 1799 – 3 May 1845) was an English poet, author and humorist, best known for poems such as " The Bridge of Sighs" and " The Song of the Shirt". Hood wrote regularly for ''The London Magazine'', '' Athenaeum'', and ''Punch' ...
1933), "It was the Time of Roses" (1933) and "In Praise of Ale" (1934).
His light orchestral pieces are: ''Suite Pompadour'' (orchestrated by Hubert Bath
Hubert Charles Bath (6 November 188324 April 1945) was a British film composer, music director, and conductor. His credits include the music to the Oscar-winning documentary ''Wings Over Everest'' (1934), as well as to the films ''Tudor Rose'' ...
1934) and ''Holyrood Suite'' (1935).
Recordings
Sharpe recorded forHMV
Sunrise Records and Entertainment, trading as HMV (for His Master's Voice), is a British music and entertainment retailer, currently operating exclusively in the United Kingdom.
The first HMV-branded store was opened by the Gramophone Company ...
starting in 1915 with a number of short pieces for solo cello, for example ''The Broken Melody'' by Van Biene (1915), ''Le Cygne
''Le cygne'', , or ''The Swan'', is the 13th and penultimate movement of ''The Carnival of the Animals'' by Camille Saint-Saëns. Originally scored for solo cello accompanied by two pianos, it has been arranged and transcribed for many instru ...
'' by Camille Saint-Saëns (1916), ''Roses of Picardy
"Roses of Picardy" is a popular British song with lyrics by Frederick Weatherly and music by Haydn Wood. Published in London in 1916 by Chappell & Co, it was one of the most famous songs of the World War I, First World War and has been recorded ...
'' by Haydn Wood
Haydn Wood (25 March 1882 – 11 March 1959) was a 20th-century English composer and concert violinist, best known for his 200 or so ballad style songs, including the popular ''Roses of Picardy''.
Life
Haydn Wood was born in the West Riding ...
(1918) and ''Salut d'Amour
''Salut d'Amour'' (''Liebesgruß''), Op. 12, is a musical work composed by Edward Elgar in 1888, originally written for violin and piano.
History
Elgar finished the piece in July 1888, when he was romantically involved with Caroline Alice Elg ...
'' by Edward Elgar (1919). Throughout the 1920s and 1930s he recorded with his ensembles, for example the Virtuoso Quartet recorded 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 classic ...
's quartets in E minor Op. 59 No. 2 (in 1924), C major Op. 59 No. 3 and E-flat major Op. 127. They also recorded the Debussy
(Achille) Claude Debussy (; 22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most influential composers of the ...
quartet in G minor Op. 10, the Cesar Franck quartet in D major M.9, the Tchaikovsky
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky , group=n ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer of the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music would make a lasting impression internationally. He wrote some of the most popu ...
No.1 in D major Op. 11 (in 1924) and the Ravel
Joseph Maurice Ravel (7 March 1875 – 28 December 1937) was a French composer, pianist and conductor. He is often associated with Impressionism along with his elder contemporary Claude Debussy, although both composers rejected the term. In ...
in F major (in 1929).
Death
He died inSteyning
Steyning ( ) is a town and civil parish in the Horsham district of West Sussex, England. It is located at the north end of the River Adur gap in the South Downs, four miles (6.4 km) north of the coastal town of Shoreham-by-Sea.
The smaller ...
, Sussex, England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, UK in 1978 aged 87.
References and notes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sharpe, Cedric 1891 births 1978 deaths English classical cellists British music educators People from Maida Vale Associates of the Royal College of Music Academics of the Royal Academy of Music Honorary Members of the Royal Academy of Music 20th-century English composers Musicians from London 20th-century cellists