Ernest Edwin Mitchell (16 January 1865 – 10 December 1951) was an Australian composer, conductor, music lecturer and organist.

Career

Mitchell was born on 16 January 1865, in ,

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

, when his father, Thomas James Mitchell, was 43 and his mother, Thurza Lucy Cole, was 36. He married Amy Bertha Edmeades on 27 July 1885. He died on 10 December 1951, in

Payneham Payneham is an eastern suburb of Adelaide in the City of Norwood Payneham St Peters. It is part of a string of suburbs in Adelaide's east with a high proportion of Adelaide's Italian-Australian and French-Australian residents, many of whom can be ...

South, South Australia, at the age of 86, and was buried in Payneham Cemetery, Payneham, South Australia, Australia. They had three children Lillian Bertha Mitchell 1886–1974, Kathleen Lois Mitchell 1895–1972 and Alan Rodney Clemhilt Mitchell 1904–1983. Mitchell graduated from the

University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide (informally Adelaide University) is a public research university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. The university's main campus is located on N ...

with a Bachelor of Music and was granted honours in second year. He played keyboards and organ. Mitchell was a devout member of the

Uniting Church The Uniting Church in Australia (UCA) was founded on 22 June 1977, when most congregations of the Methodist Church of Australasia, about two-thirds of the Presbyterian Church of Australia and almost all the churches of the Congregational Union ...

with passionate feelings about music particularly the standard of teaching. So keen on quality services, he allowed his musical works to be distributed by newspaper. Mitchell was secretary of the South Australia Music Teachers' Society. He was active in music teaching for at least sixteen years. Fellow Australian composer

Ruby Claudia Davy Ruby Claudia Emily Davy (22 November 1883 – 12 July 1949) was an Australian pianist, composer and educator. She was the first woman in Australia to receive a DMus degree. The daughter of William Charles Davy, a shoemaker and musician ...

was a pupil.

Notable works

Mitchell's notable works include: * 1902 Eolus * This Land We Love The Best * Lovely Voices of the Sky – Christmas Carol * The Princes Men * Two Sacred Songs * Break Break Break * Oh Taste and see * 1913 Tomorrow * 1920 My Lady Sleeps - an SATB setting of 'Serenade' by

Longfellow Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (February 27, 1807 – March 24, 1882) was an American poet and educator. His original works include "Paul Revere's Ride", ''The Song of Hiawatha'', and ''Evangeline''. He was the first American to completely transl ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mitchell, Ernest Edwin 1865 births 1951 deaths Australian conductors (music) Australian male composers 20th-century Australian musicians 20th-century classical composers Australian classical composers Australian male classical composers Musicians from Adelaide 20th-century Australian male musicians 20th-century conductors (music) 19th-century conductors (music) 19th-century classical composers 19th-century Australian musicians Religion in South Australia Australian Protestant religious leaders Uniting Church in Australia people University of Adelaide alumni