David George Lloyd (6 April 1912 – 27 March 1969) was a

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

singer. Lloyd, a

tenor A tenor is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The lo ...

, was noted for being one of the first Welsh solo singers to seek a broader audience beyond

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

, in the

concert hall A concert hall is a cultural building with a stage that serves as a performance venue and an auditorium filled with seats. This list does not include other venues such as sports stadia, dramatic theatres or convention centres that may ...

s and

recording studio A recording studio is a specialized facility for sound recording, mixing, and audio production of instrumental or vocal musical performances, spoken words, and other sounds. They range in size from a small in-home project studio large enoug ...

s of

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 ...

, mainland

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

, and

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

. During his lifetime, Lloyd was renowned in

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

oratorio An oratorio () is a large musical composition for orchestra, choir, and soloists. Like most operas, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias. However, opera is mus ...

, and in

recital A concert is a live music performance in front of an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, choir, or band. Concerts are held in a wide variety an ...

, in particular for his performances of

Verdi Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the h ...

and

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...

. As a Welshman, however, he is remembered most for his renditions of the hymns and

folk song Folk music is a music genre that includes #Traditional folk music, traditional folk music and the Contemporary folk music, contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be c ...

s of his native land.

Early life

David Lloyd was born in

Trelogan Trelogan is a village in Flintshire, north east Wales. It is located between Mostyn and Trelawnyd and is almost contiguous with Berthengam. Trelogan had a population of 671 as of the 2011 census. The village has its own primary school (''Ysgo ...

, Flintshire. He was one of seven children, the son of a coal miner. At age 14, he left school to become an apprentice carpenter, but soon began to acquire a reputation as a singer at local eisteddfodau.

Studies and early successes

Lloyd entered the

Guildhall School of Music The Guildhall School of Music and Drama is a conservatoire and drama school located in the City of London, United Kingdom. Established in 1880, the school offers undergraduate and postgraduate training in all aspects of classical music and jazz ...

in 1933, having won a scholarship to study singing under

Walter Hyde Walter Hyde (6 February 1875 – 11 November 1951) was a British tenor, actor and teacher of voice whose career spanned genres from musical theatre to grand opera. In 1901 he sang Borrachio in the premiere of Stanford's ''Much Ado About Noth ...

. He won several prestigious prizes at the school, and then in 1938 took on his first notable role, as Macduff in Glyndebourne Festival Opera's production of

's ''

Macbeth ''Macbeth'' (, full title ''The Tragedie of Macbeth'') is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. It is thought to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those w ...

''. It was the first professional production of the opera in England., p. 159. He was also the principal tenor at a Mozart festival in

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, and a Verdi festival in

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

in the same year.

Second World War

When the

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 opposin ...

broke out in 1939, Lloyd's career was put on hold, spending five years serving in the band of the

Welsh Guards The Welsh Guards (WG; cy, Gwarchodlu Cymreig), part of the Guards Division, is one of the Foot Guards regiments of the British Army. It was founded in 1915 as a single-battalion regiment, during the First World War, by Royal Warrant of George V ...

. He resumed his professional singing in 1946 as the principal tenor at the Verdi and Mozart Festival of the Netherlands, and the Verdi Festival of Britain soon after.

Injury, and later career

In June 1954 he had a serious accident whilst working on a programme for the

BBC #REDIRECT 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 ex ...

, which resulted in a fractured spine. Lloyd was not able to perform for the next six years, only making his comeback at the Llangollen International Eisteddfod in July 1960. He died on 27 March 1969.

Discography

* ''Y Caneuon Cynnar (The Early Recordings), Volume 1: 1940-41'' (CD compilation, 1994) * ''Y Canwr Mewn Lifrai, Volume 2'' (CD compilation, 1995) * ''Y Llais Arian, Volume 3'' (CD compilation, 2002) File:Y Caneuon Cynnar (1940-41), album cover.jpg File:Y Canwr Mewn Lifrai (1940-41), album cover.jpg File:Y Llais Arian (Cyfrol 3 - Volume 3), album cover.jpg

References

1912 births 1969 deaths Alumni of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama British Army personnel of World War II Welsh Guards soldiers Welsh operatic tenors People from Flintshire 20th-century Welsh male opera singers {{UK-opera-singer-stub