![Henri Verbrugghen](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6c/Henri_Verbrugghen.jpg)
Henri Adrien Marie Verbrugghen (1 August 187312 November 1934) was a
Belgian
Belgian may refer to:
* Something of, or related to, Belgium
* Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent
* Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German
*Ancient Belgian language, an extinct languag ...
musician, who directed orchestras in
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 ...
,
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
,
Australia and the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
.
Born in
Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
, Verbrugghen made his first appearance as a violinist when only eight years old, and was a successful student at the Brussels Conservatorium under
Hubay and
Ysaÿe, winning many prizes. He visited England with Ysaÿe in 1888, and in 1893 settled in Scotland as a member of the
Scottish Orchestra
The Royal Scottish National Orchestra (RSNO) ( gd, Orcastra Nàiseanta Rìoghail na h-Alba) is a British orchestra, based in Glasgow, Scotland. It is one of the five national performing arts companies of Scotland. Throughout its history, the O ...
. During the summer he led the orchestra at
Llandudno under
Jules Riviere. For a time he was a member of the
Lamoureux Orchestra
The Orchestre Lamoureux () officially known as the Société des Nouveaux-Concerts and also known as the Concerts Lamoureux) is an orchestral concert society which once gave weekly concerts by its own orchestra, founded in Paris by Charles Lamoure ...
at
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
and then for three years was deputy-conductor at Llandudno. He was director of music for four years at
Colwyn Bay
Colwyn Bay ( cy, Bae Colwyn) is a town, community and seaside resort in Conwy County Borough on the north coast of Wales overlooking the Irish Sea. It lies within the historic county of Denbighshire. Eight neighbouring communities are incorpo ...
, and then returned to the Scottish Orchestra.
In 1902 he became leader and deputy-conductor under
Frederic Cowen, and during the promenade season led the
Queen's Hall
The Queen's Hall was a concert hall in Langham Place, London, Langham Place, London, opened in 1893. Designed by the architect Thomas Knightley, it had room for an audience of about 2,500 people. It became London's principal concert venue. Fro ...
Orchestra for three years.
In 1907, he was the soloist in the first performance in England of the
Violin Concerto in D minor by
Jean Sibelius
Jean Sibelius ( ; ; born Johan Julius Christian Sibelius; 8 December 186520 September 1957) was a Finnish composer of the late Romantic and early-modern periods. He is widely regarded as his country's greatest composer, and his music is often ...
.
[Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians, 5th ed., 1954]
He became chief violin professor at the Athenaeum,
Glasgow
Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
, and in 1911 succeeded Dr Coward as conductor of the
Glasgow Choral Union. In April 1914 he enhanced his growing reputation when a
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 ...
Festival was held at London, Verbrugghen "conducting throughout the festival with insight and masterly ability" (The Musical Times, 1 June 1914, p. 399). Early in 1915 he was appointed director of the
New South Wales State Conservatorium at a salary of £1,250 a year.
Verbrugghen arrived in
Sydney in the same year full of enthusiasm. He had a great admiration for English-speaking people but did not like the methods of their schools of music, and decided that the conservatorium at Sydney should be based on continental models. He got together a remarkably fine orchestra, including the other members of
his excellent string quartet who had come with him. For six years Verbrugghen's influence on the musical life of Sydney was of outstanding importance, but the politicians had not realized that it is impossible to carry on work of this nature without financial loss. The orchestra was disbanded in 1921 and Verbrugghen, who had suffered much from worry, went to America for health reasons.
In 1922 he was a guest conductor of the
Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra
The Minnesota Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Founded originally as the Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra in 1903, the Minnesota Orchestra plays most of its concerts at Minneapolis's Orchestra Hall.
History
Em ...
, and had such a brilliant success that he was given the position of permanent conductor. Efforts were made in Australia to persuade him to return without success. In 1927 he composed his Missa de Sancta Maria Magdalena for the choir of St Mary's Basilica in Minneapolis, which is still popular in various congregations in the Midwest which celebrate the Tridentine Latin Mass. In 1928, he was elected a national honorary member of
Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia
Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity of America (colloquially known as Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, Phi Mu Alpha, or simply Sinfonia) () is an American collegiate social fraternity for men with a special interest in music. The fraternity is open to men "w ...
fraternity, the American fraternity for men in music. In 1931 he collapsed at a rehearsal of his orchestra, and never completely recovered his health. From September 1933 he was chairman of the Department of Music at
Carleton College,
Northfield,
Minnesota
Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...
, and he died in 1934.
There is a Verbrugghen Street in the suburb of
Melba in the Australian national capital,
Canberra. All the streets in the suburb are named after significant figures in Australian music. Verbrugghen Hall at the
Sydney Conservatorium of Music
The Sydney Conservatorium of Music (formerly the New South Wales State Conservatorium of Music and known by the moniker "The Con") is a heritage-listed music school in Macquarie Street, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is one of the old ...
in Sydney also commemorates his name.
References
Sources
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Verbrugghen
Belgian conductors (music)
Belgian male musicians
Male conductors (music)
Belgian classical violinists
Male classical violinists
Sydney Conservatorium of Music faculty
1873 births
1934 deaths