David Evans (6 February 1874 – 17 May 1948) was a Welsh musician, academic and composer. Evans was born at

Resolven Resolven ( cy, Resolfen) is a small village and community in Neath Port Talbot county borough, Wales. It is located in the Vale of Neath. Location The village is situated in the Vale of Neath, north east of the town of Neath, next to the A465 ...

, Glamorgan. He worked in the coal industry as a teenager, but music was always his primary interest. He won a music scholarship and became a pupil of

Joseph Parry Joseph Parry (21 May 1841 – 17 February 1903) was a Welsh composer and musician. Born in Merthyr Tydfil, Wales, he is best known as the composer of " Myfanwy" and the hymn tune "Aberystwyth", on which the African song " Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika" ...

, which led to his qualifying at University of Wales, Cardiff, in 1895. He went on to become organist and choirmaster of Jewin Calvinistic Methodist Church in London. He succeeded Joseph Parry, his former teacher, in the Music department at Cardiff, where he was appointed a professor in 1908. Among his students there were Morfydd Owen,

Grace Williams Grace Mary Williams (19 February 1906 – 10 February 1977) was a Welsh composer, generally regarded as Wales's most notable female composer, and the first British woman to score a feature film. Early life Williams was born in Barry, Vale ...

and David Wynne. Most of his compositions were of a religious nature, including many hymns. Evans edited the revised edition of the

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland. The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Reformation of 1560, when it split from the Catholic Church ...

's Church Hymnary in 1927. Notably, it is in this publication that he combined an old Irish folk song with a versified

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

translation of an 8th-century Irish

poem 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 ...

to produce the now widely known Christian

hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hy ...

, "

Be Thou My Vision "Be Thou My Vision" ( sga, Rop tú mo baile or ''Rob tú mo bhoile'') is a traditional Christian hymn of Irish origin. The words are based on a Middle Irish poem that has traditionally been attributed to Dallán Forgaill. The best-known English ...

". One of his original hymn tunes, ''Lucerna Laudoniae'', was used to set the words

For The Beauty of the Earth "For the Beauty of the Earth" is a Christian hymn by Folliott S. Pierpoint (1835-1917). History Pierpoint was 29 at the time he wrote this hymn; he was mesmerized by the beauty of the countryside that surrounded him. It first appeared in 1864 ...

. It was initially written under the pseudonym Edward Arthur. Aside from hymns, Evans wrote anthems and service music as well as many orchestral and choral works. The oratorio ''Llawenhewch yn yr Iôr'' was first performed at the Caernarfon Festival in 1906 and a dramatic cantata ''The Coming of Arthur'', was premiered at the Cardiff Triennial Festival the following year. His orchestral ''Concerto for String Orchestra'' op 7, was published as part of the Carnegie Collection of British Music in 1928. Some compositions attributed to him were in fact written by his eldest son, Arthur, who died in the influenza pandemic of 1918. Evans participated actively in the

Eisteddfod In Welsh culture, an ''eisteddfod'' is an institution and festival with several ranked competitions, including in poetry and music. The term ''eisteddfod'', which is formed from the Welsh morphemes: , meaning 'sit', and , meaning 'be', means, ac ...

movement. He died at Rhosllannerchrugog. His papers are held by the National Library of Wales''David Evans (Musician) Papers'' at the National Library of Wales archive
/ref> and some by his grandson, also named David Evans.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Evans, David 1874 births 1948 deaths Welsh composers Welsh male composers Alumni of Cardiff University