Margaret Moncrieff (6 February 1921 – 12 November 2008) was a Scottish
cellist
The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a bowed (sometimes plucked and occasionally hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually tuned in perfect fifths: from low to high, C2, G2, D3 ...
and
author
An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states:
"''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...
writing under the
pseudonym
A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...
Helen McClelland and writing novels in the
Chalet School
The Chalet School is a series of 64 school story novels by Elinor M. Brent-Dyer, initially published between 1925 and 1970. The fictional school was initially located in the Austrian Tyrol, before it was moved to Guernsey in 1939 following the ...
series.
Early life
In 1921, Moncrieff was born as Helen Margaret Moncrieff in
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
, Scotland. Moncrieff's father was
Alexander Moncrieff, Lord Moncrieff
Alexander Moncrieff, Lord Moncrieff FRSE (14 August 1870 – 5 August 1949), was a Scottish lawyer and judge, who was created a Senator of the College of Justice.
Life
Alexander Moncrieff was the third son of Hope Margaret Pattison and her hus ...
, and her mother was Helen Moncrieff (née McClelland Adams, formerly Spens).
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In London, Moncrieff studied the cello at the
Royal College of Music
The Royal College of Music is a music school, conservatoire established by royal charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, UK. It offers training from the Undergraduate education, undergraduate to the Doctorate, doctoral level in a ...
with
Ivor James
Ivor James CBE (1882–1963) Percy A. Scholes. "James, Ivor". ''Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music''. Oxford University Press, 1964. was a British cellist. He taught for many years at the Royal College of Music; among his pupils were those who beca ...
, and then in Paris, with
Pierre Fournier
Pierre Léon Marie Fournier (24 June 19068 January 1986) was a French cellist who was called the "aristocrat of cellists" on account of his elegant musicianship and majestic sound.
Biography
He was born in Paris, the son of a French Army gen ...
.
She went on to a distinguished career as a soloist,
chamber musician
Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of Musical instrument, instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a Great chamber, palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music ...
, and teacher.
Career
Moncrieff was a
professor
Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who pr ...
of cello at the
Royal College of Music
The Royal College of Music is a music school, conservatoire established by royal charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, UK. It offers training from the Undergraduate education, undergraduate to the Doctorate, doctoral level in a ...
.
When Moncrieff was in her 60s, she became a writer.
In 2003, Moncrieff wrote her
memoir
A memoir (; , ) is any nonfiction narrative writing based in the author's personal memories. The assertions made in the work are thus understood to be factual. While memoir has historically been defined as a subcategory of biography or autobi ...
.
Personal life
In 1957, Moncrieff married
Alexander Kelly (1929–1996) a pianist, composer, and later head of keyboard studies at the
Royal Academy of Music
The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is the oldest conservatoire in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the first Duke of ...
. They had two children: cellist Alison Moncrieff Kelly, and
Catriona Kelly, Professor of Russian at
New College, Oxford
New College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1379 by William of Wykeham in conjunction with Winchester College as its feeder school, New College is one of the oldest colleges at th ...
.
[
]
Works
* 2001: ''Time and Again''
* 2003: ''Worlds Apart: Memoir of Margaret Moncrieff Kelly''
Chalet School
Montcrieff's entries in the series include:[Carina.org, "The Chalet School books"](_blank)
/ref>
*''Joey and Patricia: A Reunion in Guernsey'' (2000)
*''Visitors to the Chalet School'' (2004)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Moncrieff, Margaret
1921 births
2008 deaths
Scottish classical cellists
Scottish women novelists
Academics of the Royal College of Music
20th-century Scottish novelists
21st-century Scottish novelists
21st-century Scottish writers
20th-century Scottish women writers
21st-century Scottish women writers
20th-century classical musicians
20th-century Scottish musicians
Women classical cellists
20th-century women musicians
Scottish women music educators
Scottish music educators
Alumni of the Royal College of Music
21st-century British memoirists
Scottish memoirists
British women memoirists
20th-century cellists