Frank Cordell
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Frank Cordell (1 June 1918 – 6 July 1980) was a British composer, arranger and conductor, who was active with the
Institute of Contemporary Arts The Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) is an artistic and cultural centre on The Mall in London, just off Trafalgar Square. Located within Nash House, part of Carlton House Terrace, near the Duke of York Steps and Admiralty Arch, the ICA c ...
. He also composed music under the name Frank Meilleur or Meillear (Meillear being his mother's maiden name).


Early life

He was born Frank Cordell in
Kingston-upon-Thames Kingston upon Thames (hyphenated until 1965, colloquially known as Kingston) is a town in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, southwest London, England. It is situated on the River Thames and southwest of Charing Cross. It is notable as ...
. His father was a doctor who served with the Royal Army Medical Corps in the
First World War 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 ...
. Frank had two sisters. His brother, Sid Cordell, who was a professional musician, composed music for some of the
Hammer Horror Hammer Film Productions Ltd. is a British film production company based in London. Founded in 1934, the company is best known for a series of Gothic fiction, Gothic horror and fantasy films made from the mid-1950s until the 1970s. Many of thes ...
films based at Pinewood Studios. As a young teenager Frank worked briefly for Homfray & Company in the
cotton mill A cotton mill is a building that houses spinning or weaving machinery for the production of yarn or cloth from cotton, an important product during the Industrial Revolution in the development of the factory system. Although some were driven b ...
s in Halifax and the Midlands for a family relative, before returning to London. By age 14, he was a competent pianist. Cordell entered a citywide London music contest and won a '' Melody Maker'' poll at the age of 17 for the most promising
jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...
pianist of 1935. This enabled him to secure a job as a sound man in one of the prestigious London
Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
film
studios A studio is an artist or worker's workroom. This can be for the purpose of acting, architecture, painting, pottery ( ceramics), sculpture, origami, woodworking, scrapbooking, photography, graphic design, filmmaking, animation, industrial design ...
.


Military service

When
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 ...
broke out Cordell enlisted in the
Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...
(RAF) and trained as a
radio navigation Radio navigation or radionavigation is the application of radio frequencies to determine a position of an object on the Earth, either the vessel or an obstruction. Like radiolocation, it is a type of radiodetermination. The basic principles a ...
operator, flying the Vickers Wellington in RAF Bomber Command. In his time between dangerous flying "ops", Cordell was in constant demand entertaining his squadron with popular piano music in the mess. On completing his 33 ops he was transferred to flying stealth De Havilland Mosquito bombers on the run between Britain and the Middle East. While in RAF Middle East he was later assigned as bandleader with his own group of musicians and a small convoy of lorries to entertain the British troops in the Western Desert Campaign. He was then appointed music director of the Forces Broadcasting Service in
Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the Capital city, capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, List of ...
, where he conducted a weekly radio program called Music For Moderns. Among the friends and local Cairo artists he worked with was the singer, Delores El Greco. From there he was assigned to a double role of music entertainment and intelligence work in Palestine. It is in Palestine while music entertaining that he met his first wife
Magda Magda is a feminine given name, sometimes a short form ( hypocorism) of names such as Magdalena, which may refer to: * Magda Apanowicz (born 1985), Canadian actress * Magda B. Arnold (1903–2002), Czechoslovakian-born American psychologist * M ...
, who was a Hungarian refugee working for the British in translating intercepted wireless signals. Magda later became a " Brutalist" artist, and along with Cordell was a participant in the This Is Tomorrow Exhibit, and both were founder members of the Independent Group at the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London.


BBC work

Cordell returned to Britain in 1947, resided on Higher Drive in Banstead, and joined the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
as a composer, arranger, and orchestra conductor. Among the recording studios he used were the Abbey Road Studios in
St John's Wood St John's Wood is a district in the City of Westminster, London, lying 2.5 miles (4 km) northwest of Charing Cross. Traditionally the northern part of the ancient parish and Metropolitan Borough of Marylebone, it extends east to west from ...
, and the Aeolian sound studio in Bond Street, he also worked with
George Martin Sir George Henry Martin (3 January 1926 – 8 March 2016) was an English record producer, arranger, composer, conductor, and musician. He was commonly referred to as the " Fifth Beatle" because of his extensive involvement in each of the ...
. Some of his early music hits were "Sadie's Shawl" (1956, UK #29) and "The Black Bear" (1961, UK #44), conducted by his own orchestra, as well as "Wheels Cha Cha", performed by
Joe Loss Sir Joshua Alexander "Joe" Loss (22 June 1909 – 6 June 1990) was a British dance band leader and musician who founded his own eponymous orchestra. Life Loss was born in Spitalfields, London, the youngest of four children. His parents, Isr ...
(1961, UK #21) and his eponymous orchestra. Cordell was commended in 1951 for his radio score of the historical drama ''The Gay Galliard'', starring Valerie Hobson as
Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of S ...
. He worked with most of the performers and musicians of the day including Noël Coward, Charlie Chaplin, vocalists such as
Alma Cogan Alma Angela Cohen Cogan (19 May 1932 – 26 October 1966) was an English singer of traditional pop in the 1950s and early 1960s. Dubbed the "Girl with the Giggle in Her Voice", she was the highest paid British female entertainer of her era. C ...
and
Ronnie Hilton Ronnie Hilton (born Adrian Hill; 26 January 1926 – 21 February 2001) was an English singer and radio presenter. According to his obituary in ''The Guardian'' newspaper, "For a time Hilton was a star – strictly for home consumption – with ...
, and the jazz trumpet player
Humphrey Lyttelton Humphrey Richard Adeane Lyttelton (23 May 1921 – 25 April 2008), also known as Humph, was an English jazz musician and broadcaster from the Lyttelton family. Having taught himself the trumpet at school, Lyttelton became a professional ...
. In 1952, Cordell was drawn to the cinema and made his music film debut. He also commenced composing music for many advertising commercials for film and TV.


The Atelier

It was in this 1952/3 period that Frank and Magda Cordell established an artistic
atelier An atelier () is the private workshop or studio of a professional artist in the fine or decorative arts or an architect, where a principal master and a number of assistants, students, and apprentices can work together producing fine art or ...
at 52 Cleveland Square in
Paddington Paddington is an area within the City of Westminster, in Central London. First a medieval parish then a metropolitan borough, it was integrated with Westminster and Greater London in 1965. Three important landmarks of the district are Padd ...
London, which they shared and artistically collaborated with the British Modern artist John McHale. The McHale/Cordell atelier occupied three floors in a large Georgian row house in Cleveland Square. Frank used the top floor with his piano and large windows overlooking the park as his music composing studio. John McHale occupied the large sky-lit studio at the back of the atelier on the ground floor. Magda used the other large painting studio downstairs, which was also used by all three artist as a film studio. McHale used the downstairs film studio to produce his photograms for his Telemath collage series. There was also a separate downstairs workshop and photographic dark room. The living room on the ground floor was used for entertaining guests such as: Reyner Banham and other members of the ICA group, musicians, writers such as
Eric Newby George Eric Newby (6 December 1919 – 20 October 2006) was an English travel writer. His works include '' A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush'', ''The Last Grain Race'' and '' A Small Place in Italy''. Early life Newby was born in Barnes, London, ...
, dramatists such as
Arnold Wesker Sir Arnold Wesker (24 May 1932 – 12 April 2016) was an English dramatist. He was the author of 50 plays, four volumes of short stories, two volumes of essays, much journalism and a book on the subject, a children's book, some poetry, and oth ...
, and international guests such as Buckminster Fuller, and Picasso's son. Cordell made numerous
tape recording An audio tape recorder, also known as a tape deck, tape player or tape machine or simply a tape recorder, is a sound recording and reproduction device that records and plays back sounds usually using magnetic tape for storage. In its present ...
s of Fuller.


Musical scores

In 1955, Cordell left the BBC to become musical director of
HMV Records His Master's Voice (HMV) was the name of a major British record label created in 1901 by The Gramophone Co. Ltd. The phrase was coined in the late 1890s from the title of a painting by English artist Francis Barraud, which depicted a Jack Russ ...
, known subsequently as
EMI EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British Transnational corporation, transnational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in March 1 ...
, a post held until 1962 when he decided to become a full-time film composer, and scored the music for the film '' The Captain's Table'' (1959). In the early 1960s, Cordell divorced Magda, who went with McHale to America. Cordell married his second wife, Anja, whom he met on film location in Japan while doing the music score for the film '' Flight from Ashiya'' (1964). He wrote the theme music for the spy adventure TV series starring
Robert Lansing Robert Lansing (; October 17, 1864 – October 30, 1928) was an American lawyer and diplomat who served as Counselor to the State Department at the outbreak of World War I, and then as United States Secretary of State under President Woodrow Wi ...
called '' The Man Who Never Was'' (1966–67), and wrote ''The White Mountain'' introductory music for the science fiction episode of '' Space: 1999'' – "Mission of the Darians" in 1975. Frank Cordell composed over twenty music scores including '' The Voice of Merrill'' (1952), ''First on the Road'' (1959), '' The Rebel'' (1961) starring Tony Hancock, ''
The Bargee ''The Bargee'' is a 1964 British comedy film shot in Techniscope directed by Duncan Wood, and starring Harry H. Corbett, Hugh Griffith, Eric Sykes and Ronnie Barker. The screenplay was written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson. Plot Hemel Pike ...
'' (1964), ''
Never Put It in Writing ''Never Put It in Writing'' is a 1964 British comedy film directed by Andrew L. Stone and starring Pat Boone, Milo O'Shea, Fidelma Murphy and Reginald Beckwith. Plot While in Ireland, an insurance executive learns that somebody else has been p ...
'' (1964), ''
Khartoum Khartoum or Khartum ( ; ar, الخرطوم, Al-Khurṭūm, din, Kaartuɔ̈m) is the capital of Sudan. With a population of 5,274,321, its metropolitan area is the largest in Sudan. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile, flowing n ...
'' (1966), '' Mosquito Squadron'' (1969), ''
Ring of Bright Water ''Ring of Bright Water'' is a book by Gavin Maxwell about his life in a remote house in coastal Scotland where he kept several wild otters as pets. First published in 1960, it became a best seller and is considered a literary masterpiece, event ...
'' (1969), '' Hell Boats'' (1970), '' Cromwell'' (1970), ''
Trial by Combat Trial by combat (also wager of battle, trial by battle or judicial duel) was a method of Germanic law to settle accusations in the absence of witnesses or a confession in which two parties in dispute fought in single combat; the winner of the ...
'' (1976), and ''
God Told Me To ''God Told Me To'' (released in some theatrical markets as ''Demon'') is a 1976 science fiction horror film written, directed, and produced by Larry Cohen. Like many of Cohen's films, it is shot on location in New York City and incorporates aspe ...
'' (US: ''Demon'', 1976). Between his film scores Cordell wrote concert hall works including the ''Concerto for Cello'', the ''Concerto for Horn'', a wind quartet entitled ''Interplay''; also pieces for saxophone quartet, ''Gestures and Patterns'', and mood miniatures such as ''Production Drive''. He wrote choral music for the Choir of
King's College, Cambridge King's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Formally The King's College of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge, the college lies beside the River Cam and faces out onto King's Parade in the centre of the cit ...
; and an arrangement for strings of the English air "Oh Dear, What Can the Matter Be", available on Guild GED5104. He was nominated for the
Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
and Golden Globe Award for his feature film score of ''Cromwell'', 1970. Cordell was involved in several experimental and documentary films. These included a surrealist film made in
Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
in 1957 with McHale and his three sons and Arnold Bittleman the
Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...
trained artist. Cordell also wrote the score for the documentary film '' Tiger Tiger'' (1977). He appeared in the ''Fathers of Pop'' interviewed by Reyner Banham in a 1970s TV documentary on the origins of British pop art. Cordell also wrote two significant scores for brass band: ''Spirals'' (1977) and ''Movements'' (1981).


Later years

Cordell retired with his wife and son to their sheep farm in the English countryside, where they kept open house to many of Britain's leading artists and musicians including
The Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developmen ...
. Cordell died in
Hastings Hastings () is a large seaside town and borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England, east to the county town of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to the north-west ...
in 1980, and his original manuscripts now reside in the archives at the Trinity College of Music in London.


References


Bibliography

*Musiker, Reuben and Naomi. ''Conductors and Composers of Popular Orchestral Music: A Biographical and Discographical Sourcebook''. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1998.


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cordell, Frank 1918 births 1980 deaths Royal Air Force personnel of World War II People from Kingston upon Thames English conductors (music) British male conductors (music) English music arrangers 20th-century British conductors (music) 20th-century English composers 20th-century British male musicians British film score composers British male film score composers Royal Air Force airmen