Mary Davies (27 February 1855 – 22 June 1930) was a

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

mezzo-soprano A mezzo-soprano or mezzo (; ; meaning "half soprano") is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range lies between the soprano and the contralto voice types. The mezzo-soprano's vocal range usually extends from the A below middle C ...

and the co-founder and first President of the

Welsh Folk Song Society Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

. She was principal vocalist at the London Ballad Concerts, and at the

National Eisteddfod The National Eisteddfod of Wales (Welsh: ') is the largest of several eisteddfodau that are held annually, mostly in Wales. Its eight days of competitions and performances are considered the largest music and poetry festival in Europe. Competitors ...

of 1906. Born in London, Davies was the daughter of the Welsh sculptor William Davies (''Mynorydd'') (1826–1901), who was himself the son of composer

Moses Davies Moses Davies (1799 – 6 January 1866) was a Welsh musician and composer. Davies was born in Defynnog, Brecknockshire (now in Powys), but in 1803 his parents moved to Merthyr Tydfil, where he grew up. He was an able singer and took to studying, a ...

. The family attended a Welsh-language chapel in London. Before attending 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 ...

she studied singing with

Henry Brinley Richards Henry Brinley Richards (13 November 1817 – 1 May 1885) was a Welsh composer, who also published some works under the pseudonym 'Carl Luini'. Richards was born in Hall Street, Carmarthen, his father being organist at St Peter's Church in the ...

, Megan Watts Hughes and Edith Wynne. She joined the London Welsh Choral Union, then under the direction of the composer John Thomas, which in 1873 awarded her a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music where she was a pupil of

Alberto Randegger Alberto Randegger (13 April 1832 – 18 December 1911) was an Italian-born composer, conductor and singing teacher, best known for promoting opera and new works of British music in England during the Victorian era and for his widely used textbook o ...

. She made her professional debut in her first year at the Royal Academy. In 1880 she sang in the first complete performance in England of

Hector Berlioz In Greek mythology, Hector (; grc, Ἕκτωρ, Hektōr, label=none, ) is a character in Homer's Iliad. He was a Trojan prince and the greatest warrior for Troy during the Trojan War. Hector led the Trojans and their allies in the defense o ...

's ''

La damnation de Faust ''La damnation de Faust'' (English: ''The Damnation of Faust''), Op. 24 is a work for four solo voices, full seven-part chorus, large children's chorus and orchestra by the French composer Hector Berlioz. He called it a "''légende dramatique'' ...

'' at the Hallé Concerts, Manchester. Davies was active in the musical life of Wales, and in the collection of Welsh folk songs. She was a member of the governing body of the University of Wales, from which she received an honorary doctorate.'Dr. Mary Davies', ''

The Manchester Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', 23 June 1930 In 1888 she married

William Cadwaladr Davies William is a male given name of Germanic languages, Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norm ...

, a journalist and the first registrar of the

University College of North Wales , former_names = University College of North Wales (1884–1996) University of Wales, Bangor (1996–2007) , image = File:Arms_of_Bangor_University.svg , image_size = 250px , caption = Arms ...

, Bangor. After her husband's death in 1905 she lived in London. She died on 22 June 1930 and was buried in Bangor.

Awards

*Honorary Mus.Doc., University of Wales (1916) *

Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion The Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion ( cy, Anrhydeddus Gymdeithas y Cymmrodorion), often called simply the Cymmrodorion, is a London-based Welsh learned society, with membership open to all. It was first established in 1751 as a social, cultural ...

medal for services to music (1929)

Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Davies, Mary 1855 births 1930 deaths 19th-century Welsh women singers Welsh mezzo-sopranos Alumni of the Royal Academy of Music Pupils of Alberto Randegger