Julian Edwards (December 11, 1855 - September 5, 1910) was an English composer of light operatic music, who composed many successful
Broadway
Broadway may refer to:
Theatre
* Broadway Theatre (disambiguation)
* Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
** Broadway (Manhattan), the street
**Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
shows in the
Progressive Era
The Progressive Era (late 1890s – late 1910s) was a period of widespread social activism and political reform across the United States focused on defeating corruption, monopoly, waste and inefficiency. The main themes ended during Am ...
. He attempted to introduce new levels of musical sophistication to the genre. Some of his songs achieved popularity at the time.
Early life
Edwards was born in
Manchester
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
, England, and studied in Edinburgh and London. He became conductor of the
Carl Rosa Opera Company
The Carl Rosa Opera Company was founded in 1873 by Carl Rosa, a German-born musical impresario, and his wife, British operatic soprano Euphrosyne Parepa-Rosa to present opera in English in London and the British provinces. The company premiered ...
. He also conducted at the
Royal English Opera House
The Palace Theatre is a West End theatre in the City of Westminster in London. Its red- brick facade dominates the west side of Cambridge Circus behind a small plaza near the intersection of Shaftesbury Avenue and Charing Cross Road. The Pal ...
, where he met his wife, ''prima donna'' Philippine Siedle.
["Honor Roll of Popular Song Writers, no 27, Julian Edwards", ''The Billboard'', July 9, 1949. p.38.] He composed a grand opera entitled ''Victorian'', first performed at the
Theatre Royal, Sheffield on 6 April 1883, which was also performed at
Covent Garden Opera House
The Royal Opera House (ROH) is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. It is the home of The Royal Ope ...
on 19 January 1884. The libretto, by J F Reynolds-Anderson, was based on
Henry Wadsworth 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 tran ...
's play ''The Spanish Student''.
Broadway career
He soon turned his attention to lighter music, moving to New York at the invitation of Broadway producer
James C. Duff, and creating a number of Broadway shows, beginning with ''Jupiter'' (1892), to a libretto by
Harry B. Smith. He followed it with 17 more musicals.
[Gerald Bordman, "Edwards, Julian", ''The Oxford companion to American theatre'', Oxford University Press, 1984.]
His first big success was ''Madeleine, or the Magic Kiss'' (1893). This was his first collaboration with playwright and lyricist
Stanislaus Stange, with whom he worked on several other projects. They later had an even greater success with ''Brian Boru'' (1896), a "Romantic Irish Opera" based on the life of
the medieval Irish king.
Among his many other works, he also wrote ''Jolly Musketeer'' (1898), ''Princess Chic'' (1900),
[with ]Kirke La Shelle
Kirke La Shelle (September 23, 1862 – May 16, 1905) was an American journalist, playwright and theatrical producer. He was known for his association with such successful productions as ''The Wizard of the Nile'', ''The Princess Chic'', ''Besid ...
''Dolly Varden'' (1902), ''When Johnny Comes Marching Home'' (1902), ''Love's Lottery'' (1904), ''The Gay Musician'' (1908, with book and lyrics by Chas. J. Campbell and
Edward Siedle, his brother-in-law), ''The Motor Girl'' (1909) and ''The Girl and the Wizard'' (1909). ''Love's Lottery'' was intended as a vehicle for the German opera singer
Ernestine Schumann-Heink
Ernestine Schumann-Heink (15 June 186117 November 1936) was a Bohemian-born Austrian-American operatic dramatic contralto of German Bohemian descent. She was noted for the flexibility and wide range of her voice.
Early life
She was born Ernes ...
, who withdrew after fifty performances.
Some of Edwards' songs with lyricist Stanislaus Stange were published as independent pieces. Their patriotic song ''My Own United States'' from ''When Johnny Comes Marching Home'', achieved particular popularity.
Among the stars of the era who performed his work were
Lillian Russell
Lillian Russell (born Helen Louise Leonard; December 4, 1860 or 1861 – June 6, 1922), was an American actress and singer. She became one of the most famous actresses and singers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, known for her beauty ...
,
Jefferson De Angelis,
Della Fox,
Christie MacDonald
Christie MacDonald (February 28, 1875 – July 25, 1962) was a Canadian-born American musical comedy actress and opera singer. She was perhaps best remembered as the Princess of Bozena in the 1910 operetta ''Spring Maid''. The 1913 musical ' ...
, and
Lulu Glaser
Lulu Glaser (June 2, 1874 - September 5, 1958) was an American actress and vocalist. She appeared on Broadway and later Vaudeville.
Glaser's first appearance on the stage was at the Broadway Theatre in New York on December 30, 1891 in the play ...
.
Other works
While writing his Broadway shows, Edwards continued to work on more serious pieces. He made his name in America with an operatic adaptation of the play ''
King René's Daughter
''Kong Renés Datter'' (''King René’s Daughter'') is a Danish verse drama written in 1845 by Henrik Hertz. It is a fictional account of the early life of Yolande of Lorraine, daughter of René of Anjou, in which she is depicted as a beautif ...
'' (1893), presented as a one-act lyrical drama.
[Julian Edwards, "A Composer of Light Opera who has recently become famous", ''Lewiston Evening Journal'', October 30, 1896, p. 23.] Edwards wrote the libretto himself, from an existing English translation. The opera was criticised on the grounds that his music "wallows in Wagner". Edwards had intended to submit it for the
Sonzogno prize for one-act operas, but it was completed too late.
["Julian Edwards Dead: Composer succumbs to heart disease at his Yonkers home", ''New York Daily Tribune'', Sep. 5, 1910, p. 3] The work had only limited success.
[Bordman, Gerald Martin. ''American musical theatre: a chronicle'', Oxford University Press, 2001, pp. 132; 281.]
He also composed ''The Patriot'' (1907), another one-act grand opera, to a libretto by Stange, set in the American War of Independence. He completed two more grand operas, ''Elfinella'' and ''Corinne'', but these were unproduced. He was particularly proud of his sacred cantatas, including ''The Redeemer'' and ''Lazarus''.
His oratorio ''Mary Magdalene'' was not fully completed before his death. In 1907 he set a translation of
P. D. A. Atterbom's poem ''The Mermaid''.
He wrote incidental music for productions of many plays, including ''
Quo Vadis
''Quō vādis?'' (, ) is a Latin phrase meaning "Where are you marching?". It is also commonly translated as "Where are you going?" or, poetically, "Whither goest thou?"
The phrase originates from the Christian tradition regarding Saint Pete ...
'', ''In the Palace of the King'', ''Gringoire'', ''The Wooing of Priscilla'', ''King Robert of Sicily'', ''The Cipher Code'', ''In a Balcony'', ''The Land of Heart's Desire'' and others.
He also published collections of songs, including "Sunlight and Shadow", and copyists' full scores of two symphonies, in E major and A minor, exist in the
Tams-Witmark collection at the
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library ...
.
Views on music and songwriting
When interviewed in 1908 Edwards was asked about the proper relationship between a composer and a lyricist. He took the view that there is no single model but stated that "to my mind the ideal collaboration between the musician and the librettist is that of Gilbert & Sullivan. They stand alone." He especially praised Gilbert's libretti, and described Sullivan's music as "clever". He dismissed his own work in light music, emphasising his serious works, particularly his operas and cantatas.
["Julian Edwards", ''Lewiston Evening Journal'', July 3, 1908, p.8.] Initially, an opponent of Wagnerism, Edwards had become a strong supporter of the movement. He believed that
Richard Strauss's ''
Salome'' (1905) was the most important work of recent modern music.
Edwards died of heart failure in 1910. He is described as a "serious, but poorly endowed" composer by theatre historian Gerald Bordman, but Bordman's comments on Edwards concern only his operettas.
References
External links
Scores on imslp
{{DEFAULTSORT:Edwards, Julian
1855 births
1910 deaths
American musical theatre composers
Musicians from Manchester
English emigrants to the United States
American male classical composers
American classical composers
English male classical composers
English classical composers
American opera composers
Male opera composers
19th-century classical composers
20th-century classical composers
20th-century English composers
19th-century American composers
19th-century American male musicians
19th-century English musicians
20th-century American composers
19th-century British composers
20th-century American male musicians
19th-century British male musicians