The Burdett Coutts memorial, Old St Pancras

John Danby (1757 – 16 May 1798) was an English composer of

glee Glee means delight, a form of happiness. Glee may also refer to: * Glee (music), a type of English choral music * ''Glee'' (TV series), an American musical comedy-drama TV series, and related media created by Ryan Murphy * ''Glee'' (Bran Van 30 ...

s, of which he wrote around 92, some of which were only published after his death. Among the most popular of his glees are ''Awake, AEolian lyre!'' and ''Let Gaiety Sparkle''. He won 10 prizes for his compositions from the Catch Club between 1781 and 1794. He was a pupil of Samuel Webbe and a friend of Turner. For many years he was employed as the organist at the chapel of the Spanish Embassy in London. However near the end of his life he suffered from paralysis of the limbs. He died at the age of 41 during a benefit concert which had been arranged for him by his friends. They used the money raised to erect a monument to him in the

Old St. Pancras St Pancras Old Church is a Church of England parish church in Somers Town, Central London. It is dedicated to the Roman martyr Saint Pancras, and is believed by many to be one of the oldest sites of Christian worship in England. The church ...

cemetery. The monument was lost or removed during the 19th century but his name is listed on the

Burdett Coutts memorial The Burdett Coutts Memorial Sundial is a structure built in the churchyard of Old St Pancras, London, in 1877–79, at the behest of Baroness Burdett-Coutts. The former churchyard included the burial ground for St Giles-in-the-Fields, where ma ...

in the graveyard, listing the eminent graves lost.

References

1757 births 1798 deaths English classical composers Glee composers 18th-century classical composers 18th-century British male musicians English male classical composers {{UK-composer-stub