Una Mabel Bourne (23 October 1882 – 15 November 1974) was an Australian pianist and composer.

Early life

Una Mabel Bourne was born at

Mudgee, New South Wales Mudgee is a town in the Central West of New South Wales, Australia. It is in the broad fertile Cudgegong River valley north-west of Sydney and is the largest town in the Mid-Western Regional Council local government area as well as being th ...

, the daughter of James George Bourne and Margaret Webber Bourne. Her father was a shopkeeper. She was raised in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

. Una Bourne's musical abilities were evident early in life; she performed on piano in professional venues before her teens."Miss Una Bourne: A Wonder-Child"
''Dominion'' (29 April 1909): 3. She studied with Benno Scherek in Australia, and in several European cities as a young woman.Peter Burgis
"Bourne, Una Mabel (1882–1974)"
''Australian Dictionary of Biography'' (National Centre of Biography, Australian National University).

Career

"Miss Bourne has an excellent technique and plays with refinement and distinction," an English critic wrote of a performance at London's Bechstein Hall in 1906. Bourne joined

Nellie Melba Dame Nellie Melba (born Helen Porter Mitchell; 19 May 186123 February 1931) was an Australian operatic dramatic coloratura soprano (three octaves). She became one of the most famous singers of the late Victorian era and the early 20th centur ...

's touring entourage in Australia in 1907, 1909, and 1912, both as an accompanist and performing solo. After 1912, she moved to England, where she gave concerts and toured. She performed for Queen Mary of Teck in 1914, and during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

she gave benefit concerts and concerts at hospitals. In 1915 she began making recordings with the English

Gramophone Company The Gramophone Company Limited (The Gramophone Co. Ltd.), based in the United Kingdom and founded by Emil Berliner, was one of the early recording companies, the parent organisation for the '' His Master's Voice (HMV)'' label, and the Europe ...

. She also made player-piano rolls in the United States, and gave performances for women's clubs and radio audiences. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

she was based in Melbourne again, where she performed and opened a conservatory. Bourne's art songs and compositions for piano are considered "light and dainty", and include ''March Grotesque'', ''Petite Valse Caprice'', ''Gavotte'', ''Humoresque,'' and ''Wiegenlied'', which was dedicated to Nellie Melba.Larry Sitsky
''Australian Piano Music of the Twentieth Century''
(Greenwood Publishing 2005): 94-95.

Personal life

Una Mabel Bourne lived for many years with her friend and colleague, soprano Mona McCaughey, who died in 1964. Bourne died ten years later, in 1974, aged 92 years. Some of her papers, including original compositions in manuscript, are archived in the State Library of Victoria.Music manuscripts and papers, Una Mabel Bourne
State Library of Victoria. There is a scholarship named for Una Bourne at

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb no ...

References

External links

*A recording of Una Mabel Bourne is included o
''Women at the Piano: An Anthology of Historical Performances, Vol. 1''
(Chandos 2008). *Recordings of Una Mabel Bourne are included o
''Edvard Grieg: The Piano Music in Historic Interpretations''
(Simax 1992). {{authority control 1882 births 1974 deaths 20th-century Australian women musicians 20th-century Australian musicians