John Ansell (26 March 1874 – 14 December 1948) was a British composer of light classical music.

Early life

Born in London, he studied under

Hamish MacCunn Hamish MacCunn, ''né'' James MacCunn (22 March 18682 August 1916) was a Scottish composer, conductor and teacher. He was one of the first students of the newly-founded Royal College of Music in London, and quickly made a mark. As a composer he ...

at 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 ...

, and played violin and

viola The viola ( , also , ) is a string instrument that is bow (music), bowed, plucked, or played with varying techniques. Slightly larger than a violin, it has a lower and deeper sound. Since the 18th century, it has been the middle or alto voice of ...

in various orchestras before being appointed musical director at the

Playhouse Theatre The Playhouse Theatre is a West End theatre in the City of Westminster, located in Northumberland Avenue, near Trafalgar Square, central London. The Theatre was built by F. H. Fowler and Hill with a seating capacity of 1,200. It was rebuilt i ...

in 1907.

Career

He became music director at the

Alhambra Theatre The Alhambra was a popular theatre and music hall located on the east side of Leicester Square, in the West End of London. It was built originally as the Royal Panopticon of Science and Arts opening on 18 March 1854. It was closed after two yea ...

in 1913, and later worked at other theatres including the

Winter Garden Theatre The Winter Garden Theatre is a Broadway theatre at 1634 Broadway in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. It opened in 1911 under designs by architect William Albert Swasey. The Winter Garden's current design dates to 1922, when ...

. Between 1926 and 1930, he worked at 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 ...

as conductor of the 2LO Wireless Orchestra.Philip L. Scowcroft, "John Ansell", ''Classical Music on the Web''
Retrieved 30 March 2017 As well as incidental music, Ansell composed various popular light musical pieces, most notably the overture ''Plymouth Hoe'', which incorporated several nautical melodies and continues to feature in the repertoire of orchestras and military bands; and another overture, ''The Windjammer''. He also wrote

operetta Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs, and dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, length of the work, and at face value, subject matter. Apart from its s ...

s, including ''The King's Bride'' (1911), and ''Violette'' (1918); and the ballet ''The Shoe''.John France, "John Ansell: The Shoe Ballet", ''Land of Lost Content'', 19 April 2013
Retrieved 30 March 2017 Ansell's obituarist in ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'' commented that his music "exhibits a soundness of construction and vein of fantasy which should ensure it the regard of discriminating audiences".

Compositions

* ''Children's Suite'' * ''Danses Miniatures de Ballet'' * ''John and Sam'' overture * ''Mediterranean Suite'' * ''Overture to an Irish Comedy'' * ''Plymouth Hoe'', overture * ''Private Ortheris'' overture * ''Suite Pastorale'' * ''The Shoe'', ballet suite * ''Three Irish Pictures'' * ''The Windjammer'' overture

Death

Ansell died in

Marlow, Buckinghamshire Marlow (; historically Great Marlow or Chipping Marlow) is a town and civil parish within the Unitary Authority of Buckinghamshire, England. It is located on the River Thames, south-southwest of High Wycombe, west-northwest of Maidenhead and ...

in 1948, aged 74.

References

1874 births 1948 deaths English musical theatre composers English male classical composers {{England-musician-stub