William Savage (1720 – 27 July 1789) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

composer, organist, and singer of the

18th century The 18th century lasted from January 1, 1701 ( MDCCI) to December 31, 1800 ( MDCCC). During the 18th century, elements of Enlightenment thinking culminated in the American, French, and Haitian Revolutions. During the century, slave trad ...

. He sang as a boy

treble Treble may refer to: In music: *Treble (sound), tones of high frequency or range, the counterpart of bass *Treble voice, a choirboy or choirgirl singing in the soprano range *Treble (musical group), a three-piece girl group from the Netherlands *T ...

and

alto The musical term alto, meaning "high" in Italian (Latin: ''altus''), historically refers to the contrapuntal part higher than the tenor and its associated vocal range. In 4-part voice leading alto is the second-highest part, sung in choruses by ...

, a

countertenor A countertenor (also contra tenor) is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range is equivalent to that of the female contralto or mezzo-soprano voice types, generally extending from around G3 to D5 or E5, although a sopranist (a s ...

, and as a

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

. He is best remembered for his association with the composer

George Frideric Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque music, Baroque composer well known for his opera#Baroque era, operas, oratorios, anthems, concerto grosso, concerti grossi, ...

, in whose

oratorio An oratorio () is a large musical composition for orchestra, choir, and soloists. Like most operas, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias. However, opera is mus ...

s Savage sang.

Life and career

Savage married Mary Bolt (1718-1788), and together they had three children. William died young in the West Indies, and Rev. George Savage died in 1816. Their daughter

Jane Savage Jane Savage (born 1752/1753, died 1824) was an English harpsichordist and composer. She was the daughter of English musician and composer William Savage (c. 1720–1789) and his wife Mary Bolt Savage. It is likely that Jane Savage accompanied her ...

was also a composer. Mary published two volumes of ''Poems on Various Subjects and Occasions'' in 1777.

Singer

Savage first came to prominence as a boy treble in 1735, singing in a revival of Handel's ''

Athalia Athaliah ( el, Γοθολία ''Gotholía''; la, Athalia) was the daughter of either king Omri, or of King Ahab and Queen Jezebel of Israel, the queen consort of Judah as the wife of King Jehoram, a descendant of King David, and later quee ...

'' and in ''

Alcina ''Alcina'' ( HWV 34) is a 1735 opera seria by George Frideric Handel. Handel used the libretto of ''L'isola di Alcina'', an opera that was set in 1728 in Rome by Riccardo Broschi, which he acquired the year after during his travels in Italy. P ...

'' during the composer's Covent Garden season. The role of Oberto in ''Alcina'' was specially composed with his voice in mind and was added to the score at a later time in order just to cast him. After his voice had broken, he initially continued his career singing as an alto (

), and later turned into a bass. As a countertenor he performed possibly the small roles of La Fortuna and Childerico in Handel's operas, '' Giustino'' (1737) and ''

Faramondo ''Faramondo'', HWV 39, is an opera in three acts by George Frideric Handel to an Italian libretto adapted from Apostolo Zeno's ''Faramondo''. The story is loosely based upon the legend of Pharamond, a mythological King of the Franks, circa 420&nb ...

'' (1738), and also appeared in the first performance of ''

Israel in Egypt ''Israel in Egypt'', HWV 54, is a biblical oratorio by the composer George Frideric Handel. Most scholars believe the libretto was prepared by Charles Jennens, who also compiled the biblical texts for Handel's ''Messiah''. It is composed ent ...

'' (1739), as well as in revivals of other Handel oratorios.The information for these performances and their dates comes from http://gfhandel.org/. As a bass, he created the title role in ''

Imeneo ''Imeneo'' (alternative title: ''Hymen'', HWV 41) is an opera seria in three acts by George Frideric Handel. The Italian-language libretto was adapted from Silvio Stampiglia's ''Imeneo''. Handel had begun composition in September 1738, but did ...

'' (1740), the role of Fenice in '' Deidamia'' (1741)Burrows. and that of Manoa at the premiere of the oratorio ''

Samson Samson (; , '' he, Šīmšōn, label= none'', "man of the sun") was the last of the judges of the ancient Israelites mentioned in the Book of Judges (chapters 13 to 16) and one of the last leaders who "judged" Israel before the institution o ...

'' (1743). The 18th-century musicologist

Charles Burney Charles Burney (7 April 1726 – 12 April 1814) was an English music historian, composer and musician. He was the father of the writers Frances Burney and Sarah Burney, of the explorer James Burney, and of Charles Burney, a classicist a ...

described Savage's voice as a "powerful and not unpleasant bass". The description of his pupil

R. J. S. Stevens Richard John Samuel Stevens (27 March 1757 – 23 September 1837) was an English composer and organist. Biography Stevens was born in London, where, in 1801, he was appointed Gresham Professor of Music.. In 1808 he received yet another appointm ...

is more complimentary: he describes Savage as possessing "a pleasant voice of two octaves", and details that Savage sang with "clear articulation, perfect intonation, great volubility of voice, and chaste and good expression". In 1740 Savage was elected organist of Finchley Church; in 1744 he became a bass (gentleman-in-ordinary) in the

Chapel Royal The Chapel Royal is an establishment in the Royal Household serving the spiritual needs of the sovereign and the British Royal Family. Historically it was a body of priests and singers that travelled with the monarch. The term is now also applie ...

's choir and in 1748 he was appointed Vicar Choral, Almoner and Master of the Choristers at

St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in London and is the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London. It is on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London and is a Grad ...

, where he influenced many of the following generation of high-class musicians. In 1777 he retired to

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

. He returned to London in 1780 to teach music but was not as successful as in previous years. He remained in London until his death there. Some music in Savage's collection was given to 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 ...

upon the death of his student, R. J. S. Stevens, in 1837. The collection included ''

Gloria Gloria may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music Christian liturgy and music * Gloria in excelsis Deo, the Greater Doxology, a hymn of praise * Gloria Patri, the Lesser Doxology, a short hymn of praise ** Gloria (Handel) ** Gloria (Jenkins) ...

'', a composition identified as Handel's work only in 2001.''The 'Handel' Gloria Reconsidered.'' Clifford Bartlett, Anthony Hicks, Hans Joachim Marx and Michael Talbo. Early Music, Vol. 30, No. 2 (May, 2002), pp. 252-262 (11 pages) https://www.jstor.org/stable/3519246

Composer

Savage was also a moderately prolific composer. He composed many

anthems An anthem is a musical composition of celebration, usually used as a symbol for a distinct group, particularly the national anthems of countries. Originally, and in music theory and religious contexts, it also refers more particularly to short s ...

and other church music. His anthem "O Lord my God" is his most ambitious work and is written for accompaniment by

string orchestra A string orchestra is an orchestra consisting solely of a string section made up of the bowed strings used in Western Classical music. The instruments of such an orchestra are most often the following: the violin, which is divided into first ...

. He also composed music for solo violin and various canons,

catches Catch may refer to: In sports * Catch (game), children's game * Catch (baseball), a maneuver in baseball * Catch (cricket), a mode of dismissal in cricket * Catch or reception (gridiron football) * Catch, part of a rowing stroke In music * Cat ...

and rounds, composed for the

Noblemen and Gentlemen's Catch Club In music, a catch is a type of round or canon at the unison. That is, it is a musical composition in which two or more voices (usually at least three) repeatedly sing the same melody, beginning at different times. Generally catches have a secular ...

, of which Savage was a member. A more idiosyncratic piece was his "On the very first of May", set to nonsense poetry written by his wife.

Notes

References

*Donald Burrows: "Savage, William", in ''Grove Music Online'' ed L. Macy (accessed 5 January 2007) grovemusic.com, subscription access. *Hogwood, Christopher (2007). ''Handel'' (Revised edition), Thames and Hudson, . *Stevens, R.J.S. and Henry George Farmer: "A Forgotten Composer of Anthems: William Savage (1720–89)" in ''Music & Letters'', Vol. 17, No. 3 (Jul. 1936), pp. 188–99 (available via

JSTOR JSTOR (; short for ''Journal Storage'') is a digital library founded in 1995 in New York City. Originally containing digitized back issues of academic journals, it now encompasses books and other primary sources as well as current issues of j ...

) {{DEFAULTSORT:Savage, William 1720 births 1789 deaths English classical composers English classical organists British male organists English Baroque composers English opera singers Operatic countertenors Operatic basses Gentlemen of the Chapel Royal 18th-century classical composers 18th-century British male musicians 18th-century keyboardists Male classical organists