MEMORIES: An Autobiography WALTER MACFARREN Ex Ltbris C. K. OGDEN ; THE LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES MEMORIES : AN AUTOBIOGRAPHY MEMORIES: An Autobiography BY WALTER MACFARREN, F.R.A.M. WITH NUMEROUS ILLUSTRATIONS. THE WALTER SCOTT PUBLISHING CO., LTD. LONDON AND FELLING-ON-TYNE NEW YORK: 3 EAST 14 STREET 1905 [All Rights Reserved] Contents. CHAPTER I. 1826-36. Birth Parentage Earliest recollections Family traditions Fathers literary taste and dramatic aspirations Failure of father's theatrical speculation and consequent ruin Various dwelling-places Frederick Goodall, R.A. Wellington House Academy John Hullah W. H. Holmes J. W. Davison Chorister at Westminster Abbey - CHAPTER II. 1836-42. Abbey experiences and associates Minor Canons and Vicars- Choral Death of William IV. and coronation of Queen Victoria Duke of Cambridge and Sir Robert Peel King's College Chapel Passion for sister art of drawing Experi- ment in commerce First meeting with Mendelssohn Duke of Wellington and Charles Lucas Sir John Rogers, Hawes, and Tom Cooke First appearance at R.A.M., 1837 Student in October 1842 Theatrical experiences - v Walter Macfarren CHAPTER III. 1842-46. PAGE Academy studentship Debut as pianist Earliest compositions Concerts of G. A. M. and J. \V. Davison Mendelssohn Ernst W. L. Leitch J. W. Davison's Seances Jessie Morris (Mrs. Kuhe) first pupil Society of British Musicians Sonata in C sharp minor and J. \V. Davison's criticism Southampton adventure - 27 CHAPTER IV. 1846-50. Associate and Assistant-Professor, R.A.M. Earl of Westmore- land Cipriani Potter W. H. Holmes Charles Lucas Sterndale Bennett Charlotte Helen Dolby Reverends F. Hamilton and W. W. Cazalet Production of Elijah at Birmingham Mendelssohn's last visit to this country and performances of Elijah at Exeter Hall Mendelssohn's departure from London Death of Mendelssohn at Leipsic, November /th Full professor at R.A.M. Organist of Harrow School French Revolution of 1848 Frederic Chopin Charles Halle Thalberg Sonata in D for violin and piano Associate of the Philharmonic Chartists' fiasco Visit to Norfolk Broads Jenny Lintl and Elijah Mendelssohn Scholarship Retirement from Harrow School Success in Xovello's Part-Song Competition 46 CHAPTER V. 1851-56. Professional tour (Ireat Exhibition Coup t/'Etat Marriage Frederick Rose E. C>. Monk Samuel Wilberforce, Bishop vi Contents I' AGE of Oxford Sir F. A. Gore Ouseley Abolition of indoor students at R.A.M. Chamber concerts F. Goodall, R.A. Crimean War Val Goold Sir Michael Costa Frederick Westlake First visit to Edinburgh Sterndale Bennett as pianist Madame Schumann Burning of Covent Garden Theatre - 69 CHAPTER VI. 1857-62. Bristol Madrigal Society Stratford-on-Avon Indian Mutiny Handel Centenary Henry Leslie's Concerts at St. Martin's Hall Second visit to Scotland Own choral society G. A. Macfarren's May Day Monday "Pops" Retirement of Cipriani Potter Potter Exhibition Charles Lucas, principal Death of the Earl of Westmoreland E. G. Monk at York Board of professors Interview with Right Honourable W. E. Gladstone Robin Hood Sims Reeves Walmer Concerts in Hanover Square Rooms Alfredo Piatti Third visit to Scotland in company with G. A. Macfarren Sir James Simpson Jubilee Concert of Philharmonic Change of residence - - - - CHAPTER VII. 1863-68. Operatic and theatrical reminiscences First visit to Paris Rossini and Auber Isle of Wight G. A. Macfarren's pro- ductivity Connection with the Oitce/i Gruneison " You Stole my Love" Sir John Goss Pupils' loyalty North Devon and Cornwall John Callow Sterndale Bennett, Principal of the R.A.M. Academy in low water Resigna- tion of committee Disinterested conduct of professors Director and hon. treasurer of Philharmonic Moscheles Charles Dickens 99 vii Walter Macfarren CHAPTER VIII. 1868-73. PAGE Reformation Symphony Philharmonic liberality Visit to Thompsons at Menai Madame Norman-Neruda Elected member of R.A.M. Committee Retirement of Madame Sainton-Dolby "Musical Evenings" Mr. Gladstone at \Valmer Sedan and fall of Napoleon III. Charles Kean and Fechter Centenary of Beethoven's birth at Phil- harmonic Frederick Cowen "More life, more love, more light'" at Crystal Palace Moscheles' quartet " Les Con- trastes " Death of my mother and Cipriani Potter on same clay Sterndale Bennett knighted Subscription to found scholarship and prize in his name Remarkable demonstra- tion in St. James's Hall North Wales Adventure at Bar- mouth in company with \V. H. Monk Conductor of R.A.M. Choir and Orchestra Dinner to Sterndale Bennett Re- cipients of the first Bennett Scholarships and Prizes G. A. Macfarren's St. John the Baptist at Bristol Dr. Hans von Bulow G. A. Macfarren's Violin Concerto Ludwig Straus and Carrodus Elected member of the Arts Club Sterndale Bennett's " Maid of Orleans" Sonata - - 116 CHAPTER IX. 1874-77. Play Bennett's F Minor Concerto at Birmingham Gift of baton by pupils- Fourth visit to Scotland Brahms and Saint- Sacns- Last concert in Hanover Square Rooms Henry R. Eyers Death of Sterndale Bennett Interment in West- minster Abbey G. A. Macfarren elected Principal of the R.A.M. and Professor at Cambridge Academy and Phil- harmonic do honour to Bennett's memory Concerts in St. James's Hall -Enlargement of the Academy Concert-room Scotland again Birmingham and Tlie Resurrection I.landudno Rubinstein Arthur Sullivan's The Pfodi^dl Son Jo.\cf>h at Leeds, and J.adv of the J.n/ce at Glasgow viii Contents CHAPTER X. 1878-81. PAGE Kuhe's Brighton Festival Debut of Nanette Kuhe Pastoral Overture First symptom of sight failure George Critchett and William Bowman Pastoral Overture at Bristol Domestic trouble Sarasate at Academy Frederick West- lake and continental tour Overture "Hero and Leander" Loss of the Princess Alice Henry J. Cockram and Myles Birket Foster Val Goold and Glastonbury Presentation of silver inkstand Sir Henry Irving Symphony in B flat Scotland and Rock Ferry "Hero and Leander" at Phil- harmonic and Brighton Stewart Macpherson Symphony at Bristol Retirement from conductorship at R.A.M. Ventnor Symphony under F. H. Cowen J. W. Davison's last article in the Times "Hero and Leander" at Leeds Lecture-recital at Hull Resignation of the honorary treasurer and director of Philharmonic January iSth, 1881, snowed up between Oxford and London Lecture at Bristol Tom Lamont and George Du Maurier- Sir George Grove Worcester Festival A. C. Mackenzie Randegger con- ductor at Norwich Overture King Henry V. Academy Local Centre Examinations - 155 CHAPTER XL 1882-87. Orchestral concerts in St. James's Hall Joachim Sainton Piatti Santley Lectures at Bristol Death of Richard Wagner Song of the Sunbeam Testimonial to G. A. Macfarren, aged seventy Knighthood of G. A. Macfarren, and opening of the Royal College of Music Dine at Iron- mongers' Co. Earl Roberts Sainton's farewell concert- Autumnal rambles King David at Leeds Vladimir de Pachmann Philharmonic Anton Dvorak Death of Costa ix Walter Macfarren Raclley Lectures at Birmingham G. A. Macfarren's lecture on Handel and Bach Death of Madame Sainton- Dolby Westminster Orchestral Society Demise of Brinley Richards, Julius Benedict, J. W. Davison, and W. H. Holmes \'isit to Buxton Manchester Gold Medals Dr. Franz Liszt and Walter Bache Fanny Davies Liszt scholar- ship F. Lablache Mr. and Mrs. Henry Littleton Lecture at Wallasey The Three Macs G. A. Macfarren's dinner on Mozart's birthday G. A. Macfarren's last birthday Kcnilworth Holiday in North of England with G. A. Macfarren Death of my brother George Funeral in Hampstead, and Memorial Service in Westminster Abbey Interim Triumvirate St. JoJin the Baptist at Academy under Sir Joseph Barnby - 1/9 CHAPTER XII. 1888-93. Invitation to become a candidate for Principalship Support of Mackenzie's candidature, and his election Mr. H. Littleton's dinner -Rose of Sharon Overture, Romeo and Juliet Musical Artists Death of Mr. 11. Littleton Brighton - Messiah at the Abbey West lake's Mass at Oratory Lectures at Westminster Town Hall, Birkbeck, and London Institutions Dr. Speer- Overture, King Henry V.- Dora Britain's recitals Death of \V. H. Monk - Edward German's music to Riclitird III. R.A.M. Club dinner Lecture at Dai wen Charles Sainton Lecture at Clapham Round, Catch, and Canon Club ----- C. M. Widor Reception of Sir Charles and Lady Halle at Broadwood's A. C. White - My three "At Homes" Death of Prosper Sainton Riscley's Concerts Lecture at Leeds Pianoforte method Stratford Festival and Elsie Home -Lecture at Lancaster Mo/art Centenary at Philharmonic Lecture for l.S.M. - SIX-IK er Curweu and Stratford Festival Dora Bright at Philharmonic Henry Lazarus Goring Thomas Memorial Dean Hole - First lecture at K.A.M. Contents CHAPTER XIII. 1893-98. I'AGE J. Spencer Curwen Macfarren Room Agnes Zimmermann George T. Rose Philharmonic Stratford Musical Festival Radley Stewart Macpherson Pagliacci Service in A Testimonial Trinity College Lord Mayor KnilPs dinner G. A. Osborne Lecture at Hull Arts Club dinner Lecture at Scarborough Academy lectures "Symphonic Patetique" Lecture at Croydon Manuel Garcia Com- memoration concert St. Andrew's, Wells Street, and Westminster Abbey Lecture at Trinity College August Manns Dr. Steggall Lectures at the R.A.M. St. Paul's Emil Sauer R.A.M. Club dinner Adelina Patti Royal Academy of Arts banquet St. John the Baptist Lord Leighton Abingdon Purcell Hampstead- Parish Church Dr. E. G. Monk Overture, Othello Dvorak Lewis Thomas William Farren I.S.M. Jubilee dinner to myself Pupils' testimonial Walter Macfarren gold medals Othello at Crystal Palace and Bristol William Dorrell Arts Club- Reception at Bro.id wood's by old pupils Lectures Brynmawr Charlton Speer Prince and Princess of W T ales National Eisteddfod Leschetitzky - 230 CHAPTER XIV. 1898-1902. Broad wood Frederick Westlake Academy lectures Associ- ated Board Aske School Temple Orchestral Society York Bowen Natalie Davenport Royal Society of Musicians Arthur Thompson Alma Mater choir Elijah at the Crystal Palace Sir A. C. and Lady Mackenzie Stock Exchange Orchestral Society St. Paul David Garrick Arthur Sullivan Stewart Macpherson Authors' Club Frankfort Moore Lectures on Beethoven's Sonatas Death of Queen Victoria 7 he Golden Legend Academy lectures Sir Hubert Parry xi Walter Macfarren CHAPTER XV. 1902-1904. I'AI.K 'ishmongers' Hall Alfred Gilbert Manuel Garcia Emile Sauret Mcrrie England King Edward VII. Lyric Vocal Union Metropolitan Examination Resignation of Academy professorship Robertson's Othello Last lectures at the Academy Memoir in the World Marquis of Northampton Prince of Wales Re-election as member of Philharmonic Presentation on my retirement Sir A. C. Mackenzie Pupils' testimonial Tonal Art Club Richard II. \Vilhelm Kuhe Joseph Heming Tonal Art Club concert -- Ben Davies Tonal Art Club dinner John Thomas \Vesselly Quartet Manuel Garcia Joseph Joachim Royal Society of Musicians' dinner Worship- ful Company of Musicians Autograph hunter 271 CHAPTER XVI. Letters G. A. Macfarren Moscheles Cipriani Potter Char- lotte Helen Dolby W. S. Bennett Lord Coleridge Mrs. Anderson John Stainer Joseph Joachim J. W. Davison Manuel Garcia - 296 APPENDIX. WAI.TKR MACFARRKN'S PUIU.ISHKI) WORKS \V\LTI.R MACFARKF.X'S I;NI>UI;LISHKI> WORKS WAI.TKR MACFARRF.N'S PROFESSIONAL PUPILS AT Tin: K.A.M. A\I> Hi.--!. \VHF.RF. - - Xll List of Illustrations. PAGE PORTRAIT OF WALTER MACFARREN . . Frontispiece GEORGE MACFARREN .... 6 ELIZABETH MACFARREN .... 7 FACSIMILE OF WRAPPER OF CORONATION TICKET (1837) . 17 AUTOGRAPH OF TOM COOKE . . . . .21 PEN-AND-INK SKETCH, i;v SIR HENRY THOMPSON . . 29 FACSIMILE OF SONG, AND AUTOGRAPH OF MENDELSSOHN . 33 PEN-AND-INK SKETCH BY W. L. LEITCH . . -35 AUTOGRAPH OF H. W. ERNST ... -36 AUTOGRAPH OF JOSEPH JOACHIM . . . -38 A PORTRAIT OF JOSEPH JOACHIM AT THE AGE OF FOURTEEN 39 AUTOGRAPH OF W. H. WEISS . . . . -5 PORTRAIT OF FELIX MENDELSSOHN BARTHOLDY . . 57 FACSIMILE OF TESTIMONIAL FROM DR. C. J. YAUGHAN . 65 PORTRAIT OF WALTER CECIL MACFARREN (AGED TWENTY- FOUR) ........ 66 PENCIL SKETCHES BY FREDERICK GOODALL, R.A. . . 78 AUTOGRAPH OF CLARA SCHUMANN . . . -83 AUTOGRAPH OF SIMS REEYES . . 93 AUTOGRAPH OF ALFREDO PIATTI . . . -95 AUTOGRAPH OF SIR JOHN Goss . . . 109 AUTOGRAPH OF KATE LODER . . . . .120 PORTRAIT OF WALTER CECIL MACFARREN (AGED FORTY-SIX) 131 xiii Walter Macfarren I'ACK AUTOGRAPH OF JOHN T. CARRODUS . . '34 AUTOGRAPH OF STERNDALE BENNETT . . . .142 AUTOGRAPHS OF THE ARTISTS ENGAGED IN THE PER- FORMANCE OF G. A. MACFARREN'S "JOSEPH" . . 152 AUTOGRAPH OF EDWIN GEORGE MONK, Mus. Doc. . . 173 EXTRACT FROM A SONG SUNG r,v MADAME SAINTON-DOLBY, WITH AUTOGRAPH ...... 195 AUTOGRAPH OF SIR JULIUS BENEDICT . . . .197 PORTRAIT OF GEORGE ALEXANDER MACFARREN . . 208 AUTOGRAPH OF GEORGE ALEXANDER MACFARREN . .210 AUTOGRAPH OF PROSPER SAINTON .... 224 AUTOGRAPH OF VINCENT WALLACE .... 243 WALTER MACFARREN'S Music ROOM .... 253 FRONTISPIECE OF ALBUM PRESENTED IN 1903 . . 281 FACSIMILE OF LETTER FROM M. GARCIA . . . 290 AUTOGRAPH OF BOTTESINI ..... 295 XIV Memories: An Autobiography. CHAPTER I. 1826-36. Birth Parentage Earliest recollections Family traditions Father's literary taste and dramatic aspirations Failure of father's theatrical speculation and consequent ruin Various dwelling- places Frederick Goodall, R.A. Wellington House Academy John Hullah W. H. Holmes J. W. Davison Chorister at Westminster Abbey. UPWARDS of three-quarters of a century's experience has convinced me that this world of ours is not rightly described as a "vale of tears"; for while admitting that Life is fraught with manifold cares, anxieties, and some bitter disappointments, is it not redeemed from this lachrymal description by untold joys, bright hopes, and the sympathy ol " troops of friends "? It is due to the oft-repeated and urgent solici- tation of my intimates, and the invitation of my publishers, that I have undertaken to set down the chief incidents of my career, and I B Walter Macfarren the varied experiences of a life prolonged consider- ably beyond the limit assigned to Man by the Psalmist. There is one, not unimportant, "memory" in connection with my life which I cannot recall; but, according to the family Bible, which records the event with commendable precision, my birth took place on Monday, the 2Sth day of August, 1826, at five minutes past eicrht in the evening so that I o o 1 cannot be said to have first seen the light until the following morning; and this circumstance may per- haps account for my partiality for late hours, for, if I ever picked up the worm, it was certainly not as the "early bird." Although I do not remember any of the circumstances connected with my entrance into the world, I have been told on reliable authority that it occurred at the same house (24 Yilliers Street, Strand) where, thirteen and a half years before, my eldest brother, George Alexander, was born. The O eldest and the youngest of the family, both destined to follow music, came on the scene in the same abode; while my other brothers and sisters were born in different localities. These were: Eliza (1814), who died on the first anniversary of her birth; John (1818-1901), a gifted water-colour artist, who lost his sight in early manhood, and was thus prevented from following his profession; my beloved sister Kllen (1821), who has been for many years and until very recently my right-hand; 2 The Macfarren Family and Basil (1824-37), a promising young musician cut off in the prime of his youth. The selection of Walter as my first name was doubtless due to the enormous popularity of Sir Walter Scott at the period of my birth, and the second name, Cecil, I derived from my godmother, Cecilia Dolan. Villiers Street is one of a cluster of streets off the Strand, built on the site of the palace of that Duke of Buckingham who perished miserably by the hand of the assassin Felton in the year 1628. George Street, Villiers Street, Duke Street, Of Alley, and Buckingham Street perpetuate his memory. In the Duke's day the Thames was really a silvery stream, and the noblemen whose palaces adorned its banks had each their barge, wherein they made pleasant excursions up and down the river, a custom that prevailed until a much later date. Handel composed his Water Music to propitiate George the First on one of these aquatic excursions. The beautiful water-gate, designed for the Duke by Inigo Jones, which is still extant, marks the spot whence his stately barge emerged from his palace. This water-gate stands near the end of Buckingham Street, and a terrace was approached from Villiers Street by a flight of steps. My sister and I well remember in our childhood's days that this terrace, overlooking the river and commanding a view of Inigo Jones's gate, was our favourite walk, and we used there to meet and play 3 Walter Macfarren with the children of Clarkson Stanfield, R.A., who resided in Buckingham Street. I have said that Iniiio Jones's work still remains, and although *_> J Q surrounded by many imposing edifices, it is still discernible; but what a change has taken place in its vicinity since my early childhood! the Thames Embankment, the South-Eastern Terminus and Bridge across the river, the new Westminster Bridge close by, and the adjacent imposing Clock Tower of the Houses of Parliament all have appeared since that period. Many people have imagined that because I have a " Mac " in my name I must necessarily be of Scottish origin. Well, all I can say is, that the de- scent on the paternal side is very remote, as I know that my father and his father were both born in London, in the parish of St. Martin's-in- the- Fields. There is, however, a tradition that the name was originally Macfarlane, and that an ancestor con- cerned in the '45 rebellion found it convenient to change his patronymic, and to turn his face south- wards. The Scottish origin was much nearer on my mother's side, her father whose name, by-the- bye, was Jackson hailing from Glasgow. My grandfather Jackson's cousin, Major Jackson, and his son, Colonel (then Lieutenant) Jackson, were both on the field of Waterloo, and met there under remarkable circumstances. The Major (who was, I believe, in command of the lumber-train) observed 4 Connection with the Jackson Family a young staff-officer riding at full speed, when his horse was shot under him; and on the latter appeal- ing to the Major for his mount, as he was bearing important despatches, father and son mutually recognised one another. Few words passed, and they separated, not to meet again for some years, as Major Jackson, after the battle, returned to England, while his son went with the victorious army to Paris, and afterwards to St. Helena, in Sir Hudson Lowe's suite. Colonel Jackson, every inch the soldier and the gentleman, was one of the last surviving Waterloo officers, and he died at Ross in Herefordshire (whither he had retired) in 1889, at the advanced age of ninety-four. My father, George Macfarren (1788-1843), was educated at Archbishop Tenison's School in Castle Street East, Leicester Square, and amongst his notable schoolfellows was the great tragedian Edmund Kean, and Listen, the original " Paul Pry," was one of the ushers. Subsequently he was articled to the once celebrated Mr. Bishop, Court dancing-master; but, although devoted by his profession to the Muse Terpsichore, my father's real enthusiasm w T as for Thalia and Melpomene, and he wrote a considerable number of dramatic works, which were produced at Drury Lane, the Surrey, and other theatres. These included Malvina, Gil Bias, and Oberon (founded, like Weber's opera, on the poem of Wieland) at the larger house, and 5 Walter Macfarren many successful farces, and the drama of Guy Fawkes (which is, I believe, occasionally performed now) at the smaller ones. My father also wrote the libretto of my brother G. A. Macfarren's two earliest operas, and his strong poetic instinct is, I think, happily manifested in the following extract from a poem dated "Midnight," on the clay of my birth : " Receive, O God, my prayers I' or honour, joy, and genius to my hoy; 6 Father's Literary Work And howsoe'er Thou shalt dispose his mind To arts, to arms, to learning, or to trade Make him an upright man, a faithful friend, A tender heart with an unbending spirit, A pious soul without hypocrisy; Thus wilt Thou bless my son, and blessing him, Give Heaven to all around him!" My father's love of the drama culminated in theatrical speculation, and he took that house in Tottenham Street MMMMMMMMMMMMM_ (designated the "Queen's," in com- '*%""* *\v pliment to Queen Adelaide), in which some thirty years later, under the title of " The Prince of XVales's," the Bancrofts had such a vastly different experi- ence. It was in the month of February 1 83 1 that he opened w r ith a dramatic version of Handel's Acis and Galatea. Clarkson Stanfield, R.A., painted the drop- scene, and there were efficient principals, chorus, and orchestra, Cipriani Potter being the conductor. At this time I was a little four-and-a-half-year-old chap, and having caught up " Acis's " air : EL1 1. A BETH M AC FA K RE X . Walter Macfarren " Where shall I seek the charming fair ? Direct my way, kind genius of the mountain," I was eternally singing it about the house, and I believe this was the earliest indication I gave of a feeling for music. Ads and Galatea had some success, but nothing else prospered, and even the appearance of my father's old school- fellow, Edmund Kean, and of Mesdames Glover, Nesbitt, Hum by, and other popular favourites, failed to draw money to the unlucky theatre. In less than two years its doors were closed, and its unfortunate manager had to play hide-and- seek for some time, then make acquaintance with the King's Bench, bankruptcy, and general ruin. It was at this time that Mr. Lejeune (father of Henry Lejeune, A.R.A., who only recently joined the majority), an intimate friend of my father's, on leaving the house where the latter was secreted, was arrested and lodged in Whitecross Street for the night, in the belief that they had collared my father, for which mistake the sheriffs had to pay dearly. The family now, under very altered circumstances, migrated to a little one-storeyed house in Spring Place, Paddington, immediately adjacent to where now stand the terminus of the Great Western Railway, Eastbourne, Westbourne, and Gloucester Terraces, and all that vast district 8 Father's Theatrical Speculation now known as Tyburnia, none of which existed in 1832. Opposite our little domicile in Spring Place, as far as the eye could see, were only gravel pits and waste land. However, although this was a time of privation, I must admit that the year we passed in this humble abode was to me a very jolly one, by reason of its freedom from lessons, and many hours' play in the open air with my brother Basil; it also included the important incident of my first learning viy notes. In the autumn of the following year (1833) we removed to a more commodious dwelling in Crescent Place (now Mornington Place, Mornington Crescent), in which there were two houses, ours being No. 2. This dwelling was separated only by the garden in the rear from Grove Cottage, the abode of Edward Goodall, the well-known engraver of J. M. \V. Turner's illustrations of Campbell's poems, and other works of the like character. Mr. Goodall, most accomplished of engravers and genial of men, was the father of an artistic family, his eldest son Edward and his youngest son Walter becoming well-known water-colour painters, and another son, Frederick, having by his genius and consummate skill rendered the name of Goodall familiar all over the world. I remember very well the future R.A. (four years my senior) evincing in those early days that natural gift for the art of which 9 Walter Macfarren he became afterwards so perfect a master, and the delight I had in witnessing at an evening party in Grove Cottage the performance of TJie Dragon of }\ 7 antlcy in a toy theatre, the scenes and characters (including "The Dragon!") being the work of his budding genius. At that time the three houses to <~> o which I have referred stood alone, the site of Albert Street and Mornington Road being occupied by an extensive nursery-garden. I well remember also the commencement of the London and Birmingham (now L. and X. YV.) Railway, and the deep cutting to Chalk Farm, upon which an army of navvies was employed within an easy stone's-throw of our house. I now went (a little urchin under eight years) to \Yellington House Academy in the Hampstead Road, that same school immortalised by the fact of Charles Dickens having been some ten years earlier one of its alumni. A Mr. Jones was the head-master of this establishment; but as far as I can remember he took no share in imparting know- ledge to his numerous pupils, but devoted himself exclusively to that which in those days was regarded as all-important the exercise of the ferule, in which he indulged in season, and out of season, with fiendish joy. A Mr. Scott and a Mr. Stanley, his ushers, were capable and kindly masters. Wellington Mouse, its schoolroom, and its extensive playground (where I learned to use my juvenile fists), have all been absorbed by the L. and N. W. Railway, whose 10 Wellington House Academy voracious appetite seems to know no bounds, whole streets having recently been demolished in this neighbourhood to satisfy its craving, like Oliver Twist's, for "more." I may here record my dis- tinct recollection of the burning of the Houses of Parliament in 1834, and my sitting up late into the night observing the flames, which were visible even from that distant point of view. During the two years passed at this day-school, I was cultivating music at home, learning to play the pianoforte, and especially to sing, for it would seem that I was developing a voice, and I remember being taken to the late Earl of Westmorland, the founder of the Royal Academy of Music, to exhibit that juvenile organ, when he condescended to pat me on the head. The late John Hullah (the apostle of the Mainzer system of sight-singing), W. H. Holmes (a brilliant pianist), and J. W. Davison (the afterwards famous musical critic of the Times} were Jiabitids of our house at this period, and I recollect singing to the first-named, and to his satisfaction, his song, " The Cold Hand of Sorrow;" and the last-named took some part in my musical instruction. I was certainly ambitious at this time of being thought a musical composer, for I was in the habit of writing numerous imaginary title-pages of con- certos, sonatas, etc., by myself, never dreaming that in years to come my name would appear so frequently in that character. In 1836 we removed ii Walter Macfarren to No. 9 Camden Street (a house since demolished), and shortly after its occupation I was admitted a chorister in Westminster Abbey, and as this event formed an important epoch in my career, it fitly closes this chapter. 12 CHAPTER II. 1836-42. Abbey experiences and associates Minor Canons and Vicars-Choral Death of William IV. and coronation of Queen Victoria Duke of Cambridge and Sir Robert Peel King's College Chapel Passion for sister art of drawing Experiment in commerce First meeting with Mendelssohn Duke of Wellington and Charles Lucas Sir John Rogers, Hawes, and Tom Cooke First appearance at R.A.M., 1837 Student in October 1842 Theatrical experiences. FROM the days when I first donned the surplice, and became a very humble member of the ecclesiastical institution hight Westminster Abbey, I entered upon an entirely new phase of my existence. Hitherto tied to my mother's apron-strings, I now, barely ten years of age, was suddenly thrown on my own resources, and became a very small man of the world; for be it known there was no school or home for the choir-boys in those days, and I had fre- quently to trudge twice a day backwards and forwards between Camden Town and the Abbey, and besides ofttimes to a City dinner in the even- ing. Dr. Ireland (whom we rarely saw) was Dean at this time, and Lord John Thynne (an amiable and earnest clergyman) Sub- Dean. James Turle (1800-80) was the organist and choirmaster, 13 Walter Macfarren and to him was entrusted the musical education (such as it was) of the boys; general education there was none. The minor canons were two reverend gentlemen named respectively Repton and Butterworth, whose method of intoning was in curious contrast, the former being the most rapid, and the latter the slowest I have ever known. We youngsters greatly rejoiced in the former gentle- man's month of office, for we then left the Abbey at least twenty minutes sooner than when the latter was on duty. The Lay-Clerks, or Vicars-Choral as they are now called, whom I best remember in- cluded J. \V. Hobbs, a little man with a shiny face like a Ribston pippin, who was a really charm- ing vocalist and a source of great attraction, the congregation being very large when his month was on, and he was likely to sing "Comfort ye" and " Every Valley," or Martin Luther's hymn. Mr. Hobbs, I may mention, was the composer of " Phyllis is my Only Joy," and other popular songs of the period, and his daughter is the wife of the accomplished Principal of the Guildhall School of Music, Dr. \V. H. Cummings. Others of these singing gentlemen whom I remember were J. B. Sale, the late Queen's vocal instructor in her girl- hood; Young, an eminent alto, who used to sing "Oh thou that tellest," and "He was despised," at the concerts of the Sacred Harmonic Society, before the contralto voice was in vogue; and Lloyd, the father 14 Abbey Experiences of the retired eminent singer, Edward Lloyd. These Vicars-Choral were also choristers at the Chapel Royal; and as the Abbey service com- menced at ten, and the St. James's function at twelve o'clock, they were enabled to hold dual engagements; so at the end of the Communion service they trooped out from the former in a manner as unusual as it was indecorous. Of my own associates, two only, boys named Herring and Brain, I believe, are still extant. The only other names of mv schoolfellows worth recording are * o James Howe, an excellent singer, who retained his boy's voice to the age of twenty-one; and William and James Coward, the last-named for many years, and until his death, the skilled organist of the Crystal Palace. In my day there were but ten boys and nominally six men in the Abbey choir; I say nominally, because of the latter there were frequently on week-days only three, two, or even one, who put in an appearance. At the present time there is a competent choir of men and boys, and the latter are brought up as young gentlemen; they are housed, fed, and educated; they are not permitted to accept outside engagements, and their personal chastisement is strictly prohibited. Further than this, the musical training of the boys in the hands of the present accomplished organist and choirmaster, Sir Frederick Bridge, is thorough and O 7 O 7 this gentleman is a real friend to the little fellows 15 Walter Macfarren under his control, who regard him with sincere affection. Surely I am justified, then, in saying that the present contrasts favourably with the slip- shod state of things which existed formerly! The first incident of importance after I joined the choir was the death of William IV., which occurred on June 2Oth, 1837, and which, I am ashamed to say, was not the occasion of unmitigated grief to us Abbey boys, music being dispensed with for some months during the preparation for the Coronation of Queen Victoria, which commenced long before the occurrence of that august event, thus occasioning the dismantling of the choir. Service was held on Sundays, however, and in Henry the Seventh's Chapel, where, there being no organ, Mr. Turle used to give us the key on a long wooden pitch-pipe, which produced a very ludicrous effect. The facsimile, on opposite page, of the wrapper which enclosed my ticket of admission, received from Sir George Smart, the director of the music at the Coronation, was a source of great pride to the little boy concerned, and may perhaps be read with amusement by some of his friends at the present day. The Coronation of Queen Victoria was not a brief function, for, although the actual ceremony did not commence until noon, the vocalists and instru- mentalists engaged had to be in the orchestra at 8 A.M., and were not released until 4 P.M. Long as 16 Coronation of Queen Victoria these hours were, however, everything was so new and so enthralling that they passed with me like a dream; and although I will not attempt to describe the varied incidents of that memorable clay they 17 c Walter Macfarren have been delineated by far abler pens than mine I must place on record my deep impression of the central figure, the cynosure of all eyes, on that 28th day of June 1838. The fair and slight young- form of the Queen still dwells in my memory, and I shall never forget the combined grace and dignity of her bearing throughout that long and trying ordeal. I should here record the successful production, in the month of August 18^8, of mv brother's first o *J ' *- opera at the then styled " English Opera House," but more recently the Lyceum Theatre. Although this work was called The Devil's Opera, I ought to say, lest this title should shock the ears of the susceptible, that it had nothing whatever to do with the gentleman with the cloven hoof. My Abbey clays comprise some incidents of which I was at that time reasonably proud; for instance, when at a City dinner at which the Duke of Cambridge (father of the recently deceased fine old soldier) presided, his Royal Highness called me up and presented me with half-a-sovereign to mark his approbation of my singing of Arne's " Where the Bee sucks"; and again, when the great Sir Robert Peel noticed me, walked at my side on two or three occasions after service in the Abbey, and on turning off to his residence in \Yhitehall tipped me with half-crowns, a circumstance which, I have no doubt, at the time weighed with me even more than the 18 Abbey Experiences honour of being accosted by the great statesman. My engagements as a vocalist, apart from the Abbey, comprised, besides many City dinners, the Sacred Harmonic Society, the Festival of Sons of the Clergy at St. Paul's, the "Ancient" and "Vocal" Concerts, and the dinners of the old Madrio-al o Society. Apropos of the "Ancient" Concerts, I have been told the following amusing; anecdote o o respecting the great Duke of Wellington, by the late Charles Lucas, who for many years was the conductor of these functions. It should be pre- mised that the directors of the "Ancient" Concerts were noblemen and gentlemen of exalted rank, who took it in turn to select the programmes, it being a rule that no work should be included in the scheme the author of which had not been dead at least twenty years. Well, it came to the great Duke's turn to select a programme, so he sent for Mr. Lucas and addressed him in the following: o terms: "As I know nothing at all about music, you must arrange this affair for me; but my father, the Earl of Mornington, was, I have heard, some- thing of a composer, and as he has been dead more than twenty years, it would show respect for his memory if I were to include something of his in my programme." He then astonished the con- ductor by saying that he had understood his father once composed a chant ! To which Mr. Lucas re- plied, "That is true, your Grace; but we can do 19 Walter Macfarren better than that, for we can have the Earl's melodious glee, ' Here in Cool Grot.'' An anecdote in connection with the Madrio-al <_> Society, of which Sir John Rogers was the presi- dent, is also worth recording. At one of the dinners of this fine old Society, the president in the chair, Mr. Hawes (master of the Chapel Royal and St. Paul's boys) on his right, and genial Tom Cooke (composer of " Strike the Lyre " and other well- known glees) on his left, the former observed: " My voice, Sir John, is a remarkable one, for I can not only sing very high, but I can sing very low!" "Yes," interposed the witty Tom Cooke, "and also very middling !" The humorous autograph opposite was written when I met its author at Boulogne. My Abbey days came to an end in 1841, owing to the failure of the higher notes of my voice, which, like that of the famous Edward Lloyd, never broke, but orradually i^ot lower. For about a year after I o J o> J left Westminster I was engaged as alto at King's College Chapel, Somerset House, where I met with an intimate friend of after-years in the person of the late YV. H. Monk, editor of Hymns Ancient and Alodcrn. From early days I had the habit of scribbling faces and figures on every scrap of paper I could get hold of, and this habit grew now into a pas- sionate desire to follow the sister art of painting, and to abandon music. With this view, I was per- 20 Enthusiasm for Sister Art Painting mitted to join a night academy, which stood on the site of the present Empire Theatre in Leicester Square, where, under the guidance of a Monsieur 21 Walter Macfarren de Mouchet as instructor, and Mr. George Foggo as lecturer, I consumed a vast amount of Italian chalk and drawing-paper in the delineation of Yenuses, Xiobes, Apollos, Ajaxes, and the like. Although I went on with music to some extent, this drawing craze was strong upon me more or less for a couple of years, and it certainly gave me the power of better appreciating the pictorial art, if nothing else. Towards the end of 1841, there being already two artists in the family, one musical and the other pictorial, my friends thought it advisable that I should turn my attention to some branch of com- merce in which my music would come in. With this view I entered, on a three months' trial, the music and musical instrument warehouse of \Yright & Son (now Potts & Co.), Brighton. There I attended behind the counter, tried piano- fortes for customers in the show-room upstairs, and played accompaniments for singers, amongst whom, I am proud to remember, was the gifted Adelaide Kemble (Madame Sartoris), then at the very zenith of her splendid powers. The winter of 1841-42 was an abnormally severe one. The perpetual colds, chilblains, and drudgery from which I suffered at Brighton disgusted me with commerce, and at the end of my three months' purgatory I returned home and led a purposeless life between music and drawing during several months. I used still to sing amongst the altos in the concerts of the Sacred Harmonic First Meeting with Mendelssohn Society at Exeter Hall. It was at one of these, in April 1842, that I first met Mendelssohn. The concert consisted of anthems and services with organ accompaniment, and Mendelssohn, between the parts, played on the organ Bach's great Fantasia and Fugue in G minor; and on being urged to play a second time, he improvised a Fugue on Handel's so-called " Harmonious Blacksmith," which astonished and delighted every one. I had on this occasion some unimportant part to sing in an anthem, which caused my name to be printed in the programme, and Mendelssohn per- ceiving this, accosted me, inquiring if I was related to G. A. Macfarren, the composer of the Overture Cheiy Chase, which he had recently conducted at one of the Gewandhaus concerts at Leipzig. On my informing him that G. A. M. was my brother, he at once seemed to take an interest in me, asked what I was doing, and urged me to lose no time in deciding my future course of lite. He, in fact, exercised a very important influence on my subse- quent career by his kindness and the earnest tone of his conversation ; he also invited me to attend the rehearsal of his ' Scotch ' Symphony by the Philhar- monic Society in the old Hanover Square Rooms, and I may boast of having been present at the initial trial of that beautiful tone-poem. I retain a vivid impression of his quick, decisive, but ever- patient manner with the band, and the nimble way 23 Walter Macfarren in which he would run up the orchestra to show some of the wind instrument players how he wanted particular passages executed. I heard in this year the celebrated Franz Liszt, who greatly astonished me by the power he threw into his transcription of the Overture to Guillaume Tell, and, I may add, delighted me also by the delicacy of his touch. The foregoing circumstances, and my brother George's strong advice, induced me to leave off coquetting between the sister arts, music and paint- ing, and to devote myself henceforward with real energy to the former, for it must be remembered that for some time I had been in the position of Captain Macheath in the Beggars Opera, and could equally with Gay's hero say, " How happy could I be with either, were t'other dear charmer away." Having, however, resolved to follow my brother's advice, I, in the month of October 1842, entered the Royal Academy of Music as a student, and this important step, as will be seen subsequently, coloured the whole of my future career. Before quitting this period of my life I must record some of my theatrical experiences, as, for instance, Lord Lytton's J^ady of Lyons, in its first run at Covent Garden, with Macready and Helen Faucit (Lady Theodore Martin) as the hero and heroine of that romantic drama; Sheridan Knowles's play Aot'e, at Covent Garden, with Ellen Tree (afterwards Mrs. Charles Kean) and Anderson; 24 Student at Royal Academy of Music Lord Lytton's comedy Money, at the Haymarket, with Macready, Helen Faucit, Priscilla Horton (Mrs. German Reed), the elder Farren, Wrench, and other notabilities of the time in the cast. Then there was Macready's revival of Acis and Galatea at Drury Lane, to the success of which Stanfield's lovely scenery and novel effects largely contributed. I was also present at the first per- formance at Covent Garden of Dion Boucicault's comedy London Assurance, with the following- remarkable cast : Madame Vestris, Mrs. Nesbitt, Mrs. Humby, the elder Farren, Bartley, Charles Mathews, Keeley, and other well-known actors of that period; and I retain a vivid recollection of Mrs. Nesbitt and Keeley as Lady Gay and Mr. Adclphus Spanker, and the former's brilliant hunt speech. I also witnessed the performance at Drury Lane of the tragedy of Othello for Anderson's benefit, that actor taking the part of the Moor, Macready that of lago; while Ward impersonated Brabantio ; F. Vining, Cassio ; Hudson, Roclrigo ; Helen Faucit, Desdemona ; and Mrs. Warner, Emilia ; a cast, I fancy, it would be difficult to equal in the present day. Old Astley's Theatre, too, was at the summit of its glory in my early days, and in the sixpenny gallery, on many occa- sions, I witnessed the mimic Battle of Waterloo, with Gomersall as Napoleon Bonaparte, w y hom he resembled to a nicety. Astley, it is recorded, chid 25 Walter Macfarren a horn-player at rehearsal for not playing", and was met with the answer that he (the performer) "had fifty bars facet;" upon which Astley indignantly replied: "Get out, sir; I don't pay you eighteen shillings a week to be tacct ! " Alas ! Ducrow, the horses, the circus, and all the glories of that whilom unique establishment have passed away, and Astley 's mantle has fallen upon the present Hippodrome. CHAPTER III. 1842-46. Academy studentship Debut as pianist Earliest compositions- Concerts of G. A. M. and J. \V. Davison Mendelssohn Ernst W. L. Leitch J. W. Davison's Seances Jessie Morris (Mrs. Kuhe) first pupil Society of British Musicians Sonata in C sharp minor and J. \V. Davison's criticism Southampton adventure. MY first appearance at the Royal Academy of Music was under singular circumstances. In the month of June 1837, the male students gave an entertainment to their lady associates and the professors, which they called "a farce concert," when the boys were attired in the costume of George II. knee-breeches, bag-wigs, and all; and needing two sopranos to fill the characters of lady vocalists, they enlisted the services of the younger brothers of two of their number. In this way, young Richards became Madame Molly- brownie (Malibran), and young Walter Macfarren, disguised in his sister's frock and a coal-black wig of curls, became Signora Pastorale (Pasta). We comported ourselves in our novel characters so as to elicit roars of laughter from the assembly of professors, their wives, and the lady students. 27 Walter Macfarren \Yhen in 1842 I became a student at the Royal Academy of Music there were indoor as well as out- door students, male and female; and all told they numbered probably about eighty, and of these the boys were in a majority. At the present time there are no indoor students; the number averages be- tween five and six hundred, and the females are in a majority of at least six to one. The pianoforte was my principal study, and my professor, \V. H. Holmes; harmony and composition I took with my brother, G. A. Macfarren, and Cipriani Potter. I also attempted the violin and viola, and was con- sidered very great on the latter instrument when I had a holding note on the open string C. Amongst my fellow-students was Kate Loder, who was twice elected King's Scholar, and whose great talent gained for her a distinguished position in the pro- fession, her amiable character endearing her to a large circle of friends. This accomplished pianist, after playing repeatedly at the Philharmonic Con- certs and elsewhere, retired from public life alter her marriage with the late eminent surgeon, Sir Henry Thompson, Bart., but retained to the last all her old interest in the art of which she was so distinguished a mistress, and her recent demise on August 3Oth, 1904, was a source of deep regret to every one, including myself. Sir Henry Thompson was also an artist, as the sketch on the opposite page will testify. John Thomas (Pencerdd Sir Henry and Lady Thompson Gwalia) was another of my fellow-students in If.: M ifi 1 rftu -i-y.-i .'( iif v / ; /i/.^' "'ft I i ' r i M'v* 1 II; ;,\, ^ ;; the Academy, with \v T hom I have continued on intimate terms to this day. It is almost unneces- 29 Walter Macfarren sary for me to add that this gentleman, by his great talent and indomitable industry, has raised himself to the very summit of his particular branch of the profession, for he is not only harpist to the King, but also facile princeps, the greatest performer on his instrument of the present generation. The Christmas report of my doings by the then Principal, Cipriani Potter, re- corded the gratifying fact that he " was much pleased with Master W. C. Macfarren's progress in the short time that he had been a student." The year 1843 was to me a very important one, as in the month of March I made my debut as a pianist at one of the Chamber Concerts o-iven bv L O ^ G. A. Macfarren and J. W. Davison. These con- certs, by-the-bye, were really the forerunners of the numerous concerts of similar character, including Monday and Saturday " Pops.," which subsequently took so strong a hold of musical London. In this initial performance I was associated with my master, \V. H. Holmes, in Mozart's Duet for two piano- fortes. A facetious reporter in the JMorning Post stated that Master Walter Macfarren (I had then attained sixteen and a half years) ''favoured the audience by taking his lesson in public!" My first published composition was, at the instance of }. \V. Davison, inserted in D' Almaincs Album, and consisted of a setting of Burns's "To Mary in Heaven," and this was 30 Debut as Pianist followed by a pianoforte piece, entitled "Vivace," dedicated to my master, W. H. Holmes. Subse- quently, in this year, I had considerable success in a setting of Lord Byron's words from the Hebrew Melodies, "I saw thee weep," which was sung very much by both sopranos and tenors. In the month of June of this year I played at an Academy con- cert, in the old Hanover Square Rooms, a Trio in C minor of my own composition, a fact which I well remember was recorded in the Morning Herald (now Standard] in the following friendly phrase: "This young composer is evidently possessed of much cesthetical feeling." I must not omit to o record in this year the first performance of Balfe's Bohemian Girl, at which I was present; and although the work is not one of a very exalted type, yet it possesses enduring qualities, which have caused its continued popularity to this day- why, it was only while writing these words that I heard " Then you'll remember me," ground on a street-organ ! It was my pleasing duty (?), some years later, to arrange the whole opera for piano solo. The year 1844 was one of still greater signifi- cance to me, for in that year I renewed my acquaintance with the master-musician, Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, who conducted six of the Philharmonic Concerts, and was consequently in London during several months. As he was a frequent visitor to my brother, with whom I then Walter Macfarren resided, and to J. W. Davison, who was our opposite neighbour in Berners Street, I saw a great deal of the composer of Elijah, played to him and submitted to him my juvenile attempts at composition. I not only admired his brilliant gifts and accomplishments, but his truly modest and amiable character, and grew to love him and look up to him as an elder brother. I think it was due to my intimacy with Mendelssohn that I set up an autographic album, for he promised to write in it something expressly for myself ; but this was deferred from time to time until the very eve of his departure from London, and hearing that he was to be at Cramer's House in Regent Street at a particular hour, I w r aylaid him, book under arm. He at once perceived me, and putting his arm round my neck, said : "I have not forgotten my promise and have something in my mind for you ; give me your book and call upon me to-morrow morning at Mr. Klingemann's house in Eaton Place to say good-bye, and I will have it ready for you." On the following morning I received the book from him neatly tied up in paper cover, together with affectionate adieux, and it was not until I reached home that I found, to my great delight, that a whole page of the album was filled with a little song and an inscription in which my name is associated with that of the great composer, a minia- ture facsimile of which is here reproduced. 32 First Contribution to my Album About this time we were very intimate with that charming water-colour painter, W. L. Leitch, r - ' - ' * . 3; 9-- Ft- * frf L*-3'X K r .^:^v>,A- ; A- 7 /^ ; \ ; , .,' ... , ^:,. ? s,r-44> . $/M'Kfi't~ $. 3 who was the late Queen's instructor in that delightful art, and frequently had the honour of 33 D Walter Macfarren attending her Majesty in her open-air sketching- expeditions in Scotland. Leitch had been scene- painter to my father at the Queen's Theatre, and although no musician, he was an ardent lover of music more particularly of the works of Mozart. He would sit for hours by my side if I would only play the compositions of his idol ; then on leaving me he would exclaim : " Ah ! when I hear such music as that I could lie down on the lloor and kick up my heels like a donkey!" On requesting Leitch to draw some trifle in my album he readily assented, seized pen and ink, and opening the book at the first page, in the course of half-an-hour or so produced an elaborate frame, and then remarked : " \Ye must now have a picture for the frame," and after another half-hour's work, a beautiful Italian landscape appeared, in which "Apollo playing to the three Graces" is the prominent feature. This impromptu pen-and-ink sketch is so charming and so interesting that I am sure my readers will like to make its acquaintance, especially as it forms the frontispiece to the album before mentioned. Another much-valued autograph, that of II. \V. Ernst, the great violinist, is connected in my recol- lection with the first performance in England of Mendelssohn's "Midsummer Night's Dream" music at the Philharmonic, and the striking im- pression it produced. Ernst happened to call on 34 W. L. Leitch the following morning, and of course I was ready with my book and happy in catching another big- 35 Walter Macfarren fish. judge then, O reader! of my amusement when I found that Ernst had inscribed the first ei"'ht bars of the " \Yeddino- March" which had O O been encored by acclamation the previous night, arranged for one fiddle, a facsimile of which is shown above. Another great violinist in the person of Joseph Joseph Joachim Joachim first came to this country in 1844, a little boy of thirteen summers. He brought letters of introduction to my brother, with whom it will be re- membered I was residing at this time, and I saw much of him. We two boys became very intimate, play- ing much together, while I accompanied him at most of his engagements. On May the 2 7th Joseph Joachim played at the Philharmonic Beethoven's Violin Concerto, and took the town by storm, his mastery of his instrument, his phrasing and his reading of the w r ork being, if not quite as powerful, quite as artistic and perfect as in later and maturer years. He wrote me a little scrap of the cadenza which he composed for that occasion, and eighteen years later, on the same page in my album, he inscribed a passage from the cadenza he then intro- duced, which is particularly significant as showing the growth of his musicianship in the interval, and it will interest his admirers (whose name is legion) to contrast the writing and composition of the boy and the man (p. 38). When, at the end of the season, Joachim was leaving London, I accompanied him to Claudet's Daguerreotype Studio, at the old Adelaide Gallery in the Strand, for the purpose of sitting for some portraits, a process which was very different from that we experience in these days of photography, for instead of seconds, the patient or shall I say victim ? had to remain in one position for several 37 Walter Macfarren minutes. Joseph Joachim ^avc me one of these pictures, which, notwithstanding the years that Joseph Joachim have elapsed, is still in perfect preservation, and my readers will rejoice at the opportunity of seeing what this great artist w r as like when he first visited London. My brother, in conjunction with J. \V. Davison, A PORTRAIT OF JOSKI'H JtlAC gave in this year another series of Chamber Con- certs, which took place at the Princess's Concert Room, at the back of the Princess's Theatre, long since disused for musical purposes. At one of these concerts Mendelssohn played his Trio in D minor 39 Walter Macfarren (then little known in this country), and it was my privilege to turn the leaves for him. Later in the evening my second attempt at concerted music, a Trio in E minor, formed an item in the programme, and Mendelssohn insisted on fulfilling- the same office for me, wittily remarking, "One good turn deserves another." The year 1844 was remarkable on account of the assemblage in London of so many musical artists; for not only were Mendelssohn, Ernst, and Joachim here, but the violinists Sivori and Sainton, Piatti the violoncellist, Leopold de Meyer, and a host of other pianists. These musical stars all courted the favour of the English public, and my old friend and whilom instructor, J. \Y. Davison, used to hold levees on Sunday mornings in his rooms in Berners Street, on the site now occupied by the great publishing firm of Novello & Co. It should here be mentioned that, although J. \Y. Davison was not at this time connected with the Times, he was the proprietor of the now defunct Musical } Tor/of, and he was likewise the editor of the extinct ^Musical Examiner^ a class paper pub- lished by \Yessel cv Co. (now Ashclown), and regarded as a critic of authority and influence. '1 his circumstance may account lor the assemblage at these levees of all the musical talent in London. On these occasions Leopold de Meyer was a great star, and his performances excited wonderment by 40 J. W. Davison their astonishing brilliancy, his fluency and alternate power and delicacy being- quite as remarkable as any display of virtuosity I have heard in recent years. Smoking was not prohibited at these stances, and it was indulged in to such an extent that it soon became difficult to distinguish objects a yard off. In the latter part of this year (1844) I com- menced my career as a teacher, and one of my earliest pupils was Miss Jessie Morris, afterwards Mrs. Wilhelm Kuhe, with whom and her excellent husband I have enjoyed a lifelong friendship, the recent demise of that lady being a source of deep regret to me and her laro-e circle of friends. o o About this time I was elected a member of the Society of British Musicians, an institution long since defunct, but which for some twenty years rendered active service to young musicians of native growth. On February I3th, 1845, I played at one of the Society's concerts a Sonata in C sharp minor of my own composition, and it not being the custom to play from memory, J. \V. Davison turned over the leaves of my manuscript, and the following extract from his remarks upon the occasion, which appeared in the Musical World of February 2Oth, will be read perhaps with some little interest at the present time: " We were pleased with the introduction of young Walter Macfarren's Sonata at these soirees for more than 41 Walter Macfarren one reason. In the first place, it is a work of merit; and in the second place, it is a sonata a form of composition nowadays almost entirely neglected; albeit the noblest which pianoforte music can assume. An artist courageous enough to compose a sonata, in defiance of the tyranny of fashion, merits every possible encouragement. His labour is purely one of love gain, in such matters, being alto- gether out of the question. Nor are his efforts addressed to the secondary object of producing an effect, as the term is hare-brain fantasias a la Liszt serving much better for that purpose. Solely, then, as an artist does he write, and as such, if what he produces contain anything out of the common way, he is entitled to respect and legitimate applause. Moreover, the existence of the sonata for piano- forte solo under which nomenclature Beethoven, Mozart, Clementi, and Uussek have invented so many master- pieces hangs upon a thread so slender that, unless all true artists combine to prop it up, nothing can avert its fall; and once down, with the foot of popular caprice upon its neck, it will be hard for it to rise again: only a miracle or a new Beethoven can revive it. Therefore to make short talc when we find a youthful aspirant like Walter Macfarren so zealous for the good old forms of art as to labour in the production of a sonata and a grand sonata too, a symphony to all intents and purposes it should make some of us that are more experienced, if less gifted with natural talent, ashamed to be outdone in wholesome zeal by one of the youngest members of the Society. The Sonata in question, which was played by the composer with the utmost ardour and feeling, if not with absolutely irreproachable mechanism (a quality which our clever young artist has yet to acquire), was received by the audience with unanimous approval. The first movement, 42 J. W. Davison in C sharp minor, Moderate assai appassionato, is very long the themes are developed to the utmost, and the detail minute and elaborate. We find the whole somewhat overspun too much of one character, and too many recurrences to the same idea; to which we may add a word in disfavour of the passages, which display too much of the plain arpeggio a frequent shift with composers not thoroughly accomplished in the resources of the instrument they write for. On the other hand, we must adduce on behalf of the young musician a flow of beauti- ful melody which is unsparingly used, a thorough feeling of rich and uncommon harmony, and a vein of melancholy sentiment which proves how thoroughly un vulgar is the mind whence it emanates. The Scherzo in E major, Allegro Giojoso, is less pretensive, but more complete; it is full of vivacity, and introduces a glimpse of quaint, fresh melody in the form of a trio, which wants no argument but its own declaration of its presence in favour of its beauty. The Romance in A flat has some charming bits of melody and some effective points of harmony, but the whole is deficient in continuity, and a constantly-recurring passage, which recalls the slow movement of Beethoven's C minor to the hearer's mind, robs it of its otherwise original feeling. The best part of the Sonata is assuredly the Finale in C sharp minor, Presto Agitato, which, but for a redundancy of climax and a passage out of one of Sterndale Bennett's concertos, may, without hesitation, be pronounced masterly." Later in this year (1845) I played at one of this Society's concerts another Sonata of my own com- position, in the key of A, and I must also place on 43 Walter Macfarren record the fact of my playing, at the Royal Academy of Music, Sterndale Bennett's Second Concerto in K ilat, and also that in the same key by Beethoven, to which J. B. Cramer gave the grotesque title of ''The Emperor," a nickname which has stuck to the work ever since. My first orchestral composition, an overture to the romantic subject of " Bluebeard," was played at an Academy concert in this year, and I mention the circumstance because it is connected with my first acquaintance with that admirable artist the late Prosper Sainton, who had just taken up his residence in England, and had been appointed pro- fessor and chef dattaqnc of the Academy Orchestra, in which capacity he led in the performance of "Blue- beard." That acquaintance ripened as years rolled by into one of intimate friendship, and when, in the year 1890, that fine musician and eminent violinist Prosper Sainton passed away, I lost a colleague the memory of whose brotherly affection I shall cherish as long as I live. I do not remember if it was in this year or in 1843 that the great pianist Thalberg was in London during the summer months, but I do distinctly remember playing to him his celebrated study on repeated notes in A minor, in the front drawing-room of the old Hanover Square Rooms, and the eminent virtuoso having his hand on my shoulder, indicating by increased pressure when he wanted a crescendo, a ritardando, or any of the other nuances which give to interpretation its 44 Southampton Adventure greatest charm. I was then a mere boy, and knew not nervousness, so perhaps I acquitted myself fairly well. At any rate, at the conclusion of the piece the composer warmly praised me. In the month of October 1845 I went, on the recom- mendation of Sterndale Bennett, to Southampton, with a view to purchasing the connection there of a professor who had recently died. For three weeks I took up his teaching- and his parish organ, but when I ascertained the prohibitive terms on which I was to retain the deceased musician's clientele, I "threw up the sponge" and returned to London and the Royal Academy of Music. While at South- ampton I witnessed a performance at the theatre of Donizetti's Lucia di Laminer}}ioor under remark- able circumstances, the orchestra consisting of one capable violinist (the late E. W. Thomas), who sat in the conductor's chair, one cornet, one flute, one double-bass, and drums, and, as well as I can remember, the chorus was on the same scale of magnificence, the principal performers only occasion- ally in accord with the orchestra, and the tout ensemble decidedly more curious than interesting. This Southampton experiment proved that Fate did not destine me for a provincial life, and I concluded that London was henceforward to be the scene of my actions, whether for better or for worse the subse- quent chapters of this little history will reveal. 45 CHAPTER IV. 1846-50. A^ociate and Assistant-Professor, R.A.M. Fad of Westmoreland --Cipriani I'otter \\". H. Holmes Charles Lucas Sterndale Bennett - Charlotte Helen Dolby Reverends F. Hamilton and W. \\". Ca/alet Production of Elijah at Birmingham Mendelssohn's last visit to this country and performances of Kli/'ih at Fxeter Hall- Mendelssohn's departure from London Death of Mendelssohn at Lcipsic, November 7th Full professor at R.A.M. Organist of Harrow School French Revolution of 1848 Frederick Chopin Charles Halle Thalbery Sonata in I) for violin and piano Associate of the Philharmonic ChartMn' fiasco -- -Vi-it to Norfolk 15 roads Jenny Lind and l-'.lijiili Mendelssohn Scholarship Retirement from Harrow School- Success in Novello's Part-Son;.; Competition. \Vrrii the close ot the year 1^45 also closed the period of my studentship at the Academy; but it was not destined that this should be the: end of my connection with my Alma J/<avison, at the house of Mr. and Mrs. Sartoris. IIis imal appearance in England was at a concert and ball given at the Guildhall in November, for the benefit of Polish refugees, but I was not present on this occasion. It was not so much the perfection 58 Frederic Chopin of his technique as the great variety of his touch, embodying every shade of tone, and his exquisite management of what is known as tempo rubato that impressed me. Some people entertain the notion that Chopin's music must be always played out of time, whereas nothing is farther from the truth, for in his interpretation of his own music, the subtle distinc- tions between rallentando and accelerando were so delicately managed that you never lost the sense of time or rhythm. Frederic Chopin's residence in England and Scotland during several months of an abnormally cold winter did not tend to improve his already shattered health, and he returned to Paris only to die; but he left his mark on the Art, and from comparative obscurity his pianoforte music has by its individuality and refinement come to occupy one of the highest places in popular estimation. Charles Halle, who was also destined to exercise considerable influence on the progress of music in this country, sought our shores to escape from the horrors of the Revolution and that dreadful red June which was put clown by the strong arm and through rivers of blood by Cavaignac. My first meeting with Halle was attended by a curious incident; it took place at an evening reception at Bennett's house in Russell Place, Fitzroy Square, when, on the host inviting me early in the evening to play, I essayed Chopin's Scherzo in B ilat minor, 59 Walter Macfarren then quite a novelty. Two hours later, on the arrival of Charles Halle, Bennett requested him to take his seat at the pianoforte, when, fresh from Paris and his intimacy with Chopin, he said that he believed we knew nothing of the Polish composer, and that he would introduce one of his works to us, and thereupon played that composer's Scherzo in B flat minor ! While thanking Halle, Bennett remarked: "You must not think we are so be- nighted as not to know anything of Chopin, for my young friend Walter Macfarren played that same Scherzo two hours ago !" Thalberg was likewise in London during several months this year (1848), and delighted us all by his wonderful command of the pianoforte, his absolute certainty of execution, and his power of singing on the instrument, which induced his great rival Liszt to say that " Thalberg was the only pianist who could play the violin on the pianoforte." I have recounted before how I made the acquaint- ance of this Grand Seigneur among pianists, and I am proud to record the fact of his having recom- mended me to some pupils. It was in the latter part of this year that my new Sonata in I) for pianoforte and violin was played at a concert of the Society of British Musicians by the late Lindsay Sloper and William \\ atson, and the same work was often subsequently played by myself and Joseph Joachim, with Prosper 60 Charles Halle and Thalberg Sainton, Henry Holmes, Ludwig Straus, Carrodus, and other distinguished violinists. In the year 1847 I was elected an Associate of the time-honoured Philharmonic Society, of which Institution I had been a subscriber since 1843 thus having opportunity of making acquaintance with the great orchestral works of Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Spohr, Mendelssohn, Schumann, and other masters, and of studying the varied and beautiful effects to be realised from different orchestral combinations. The loth of April in the year 1848 was attended with curious experiences; it \vas the day on which the Chartists, headed by Feargus O'Connor, were to present their monster petition to the House of Commons, and to force that constitutional body to grant things then thought revolutionary (most of which, by-the-bye, have since been conceded). London was in a state of siege, business at a stand- still, the Guards quartered in the Bank of England, and also every male adult, including Prince Louis Napoleon, enlisted as a special constable. The whole thing, however, proved a ludicrous failure, and the Radical incendiaries were for the nonce the laughing-stock of all reasonable people. The year 1849 contains few memories of public interest, but I think it was from the summer of this year that I first began to take interest in cricket, the game of games. During a prolonged visit in 61 Walter Macfarren the County of Norfolk, I learned not only to ride, drive, and fish, but I witnessed and had explained to me many good cricket matches. Apropos of the Norfolk Broads, I had a somewhat exciting adventure. With a fellow-visitor it was arranged that we were to drive to one of these inland seas. A boy of twelve, the son of our hostess, entreated his mother to let him accompany us, which she consented to do on condition that we would be responsible for his safety. So we enjoyed our outing and our al fresco luncheon, until the twilight, when we rowed our heavy boat or barge about the lake to see what success had attended our baits, and while we two adults took each an oar, the youth stood, rudder in hand, guiding us, but dancing from one side to the other, in order to gain a view of the " liggers " planted in different directions. Judge of our horror, then, when young John over- balanced himself and plumped into deep water! Well, we managed to fish him out, and liggers, pike, and all were then abandoned. Then we pulled as hard as we could to the lodge, where young John was put to bed while his clothes were dried. On our drive home (some fifteen miles) the youth implored us not to reveal to his mother what had happened; but he had not been home ten minutes before he had told her, to our dismay, the whole adventure. I ought to have recounted the remarkable 62 Mendelssohn Scholarship performance of Elijah, organised in 1848 by Jenny Lind (afterwards Madame Goldschmidt), the proceeds of which were devoted to the foundation of the Mendelssohn Scholarship, which, however, did not come into operation until 1856, when Arthur Sullivan was its first recipient, and this deeply regretted and admirable musician was succeeded by Swinnerton Heap, William Shakespeare, Frederick Corder, and others, who have since attained distinguished positions in their profession. In the latter part of the year 1849, I must call to mind the very successful production, at the Princess Theatre, of my brother's opera, King Charles II., with Louisa Pyne, W. Harrison, H. Corri, and W. H. Weiss in the cast; and E. J. Loder, conductor. At the joint benefit of G. A. Macfarren and E. J. Loder (composer of the " Night Dancers ") a quartet of mine, entitled " La Bouquetiere," for four performers on two pianos, was played, the artists engaged being Julius Benedict, G. A. Osborne, Brinley Richards, and myself. H. R. Allen, the tenor singer, took me to his dressing-room to rouge my cheeks, and my indignation was great when W. Harrison, just before my appearance, pointed out that my cheeks had been adorned with large red lozenges, like unto those of the clown in the pantomime. My salary as organist at Harrow was not munificent, but as my visits were limited to Sundays 63 Walter Macfarren and the vacations were long, ^"50 a year was not, as things go, a very illiberal stipend ; but in the latter part of 1850, Dr. Vaughan increased his demands on my time and sought my attendance on Saints' Days, with which, as I was much occupied in London, I was unable to comply. I therefore resigned the position I had held there for three vears, and received a flattering testimonial from the head-master. Much is said about the progress of musical taste and culture in this country, and a stronger evidence of this truth cannot be educed than the fact I am about to record. When accepting the engagement at Harrow, Dr. Vaughan said that I should surely have pupils amongst the boys, and he repeated this as an inducement to me to continue my services; but, in the course of the three years during which I was organist of Harrow School, I did not have one pupil. The few boys who seemed interested in music, and who visited the organ-loft, would not make a study of music, lest they should be regarded as effeminate by their companions. How different is the state of things, which has happily existed now for many years! for under the late John Farmer and his accomplished successor, my friend, Dr. Faton Failing, music is made a leading feature of the curriculum. There is an organised choir, an Orchestral and Choral Society, and there are so many pupils for pianoforte and violin that the Harrow School TESTIMONIAL FROM DR. C. J. VAUGHAN, HEAD-MASTER OF HARROW SCHOOL, MASTER OF THE TEMPLE, AND DEAN OK I.LANDAFF. Walter Macfarren services of many assistants are called into requisi- tion. During my time at Harrow there was a master who was singularly absent-minded, and ever mentally engaged in the solution of some abstruse problem. This gentleman had to descend a short (light of stairs to his schoolroom, and some naughty boy, aware of his peculiarity, and that his master always rested his hand on the banisters, placed a quantity of mud thereon. The master did not dis- cover the condition of his hand until seated at his desk, and when he was about to mend a pen (steel pens were not then in vogue). He was naturally very in- dignant, and exclaimed, "A sovereign for the boy who did this ! " No one volun- teered to reveal the culprit until, on a repetition of the boy in the first form got I think you had a to say that T.CII. MACl'AKKKN, Ai.l.li 24. offer, a very small up and said, " Please sir, hand in it!" It is almost needless this little fellow received the just reward of his ready wit, and that he retired to his seat richer by one sovereign than when he left it. Dr. \ aughan's sermons were doubtless eloquent, but they were also lengthy, and many a time in the 66 Novello's Part-Song Book winter evenings he kept me on tenter-hooks lest I should lose my last train, a mile and three-quarters away, on the London and North Western Railway (for there was no other line then), and I was obliged to remain to the end to play the boys out, my postlude often being of the briefest. In the course of this year (1850), the eminent publishers, Novello & Co., offered twelve monthly premiums for the best settings of words by Mrs. Newton Crosland as Four-part Songs, the com- petition to be under the usual conditions. My motto for the first was: " Go, little book, from this my solitude, I cast thee on the waters go thy ways ! And if, as I believe, thy vein be good, The world will find thee after many days." Well, the first, second, and third prizes were awarded to me, the part-songs in question being "Harvest Song," "All among the Barley," and "The Emigrant's Song"; but it was thought better to transfer No. 2 to the late Miss Elizabeth Stirling's setting of the words, to avoid any appear- ance of collusion; and after I had been fortunate enough to win the third prize, I was requested by the publishers not to compete again. I may add that the " Harvest Song " was frequently performed by Henry Leslie's choir, and attained considerable 67 Walter Macfarren popularity. The portrait on page 66 dates from this period, when I was twenty-four years of age. It is an example of Talbot-type, which constituted the link between Daguerreotype and photography. The picture, which was a present to my mother, was stippled up and coloured to represent the appearance of a miniature, and pro- duced at the moderate cost of 'five guineas ! 68 CHAPTER V. 1851-56. Professional tour Great Exhibition Coup (PEtat Marriage Frederick Rose E. G. Monk Samuel \Yilberforce, Bishop of Oxford Sir F. A. Gore Ouseley Abolition of indoor students at R.A.M. Chamber concerts F. Goodall, R.A. Crimean War Val Goold Sir Michael Costa Frederick Westlake First visit to Edinburgh Sterndale Bennett as pianist Madame Schumann Burning of Covent Garden Theatre. IN the last days of December 1850 and January 1851, I went on a concert tour with a strong party, consisting of Mrs. Alexander Newton, soprano; Martha Williams, contralto; W. H. Weiss, baritone; Richardson, flautist; Piatti, 'cellist; Arabella God- dard, solo pianist (her first tour) ; and myself, conductor. With such a group of artists, success ought to have been a certainty, but the tour was so badly managed by its entrepreneur, Captain Harry Lee-Carter, that it proved a disastrous failure. Although originally laid out for three months, and embracing the principal towns of England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland in turn, the tour was broken off at the end of a month, and the engagements in the last three named countries cancelled. We began at Brighton with two concerts, afternoon and evening, and from some unaccountable cause 69 Walter Macfarren the former was attended by only seventeen persons, and the latter by thirty-five. We then proceeded to Chichester, the afternoon concert there taking- place on December 23rd, and the attendance was in strong contrast to that dismal one by which we had been greeted at the fashionable watering-place, for at Chichester the small concert-room was packed to repletion. At Reading I slept in a damp bed, which caused a chill and subsequent quinsy sore throat which put me in misery throughout the rest of the time, and obliged me to return home before the tour was finally abandoned. It would be tedious to recount the varied incidents of this uncomfortable experience, but I must call attention to one which was more than usually unpleasant. We travelled from Cheltenham all the wav to Plymouth, not j s arriving there until the hour at which the concert was to commence, and put up at an hotel next door to the theatre in which the performance was to take place. \\ hile the domestics fed us with .sandwiches and helped us to put on our war-paint, we were regaled with the noisy expressions of the audience next door, impatient for the commence- ment of our performance, and when I add that at this time my poor throat was so bad that I could scarcely speak or swallow, it will readily be admitted that I do not exaggerate in describing this experi- ence as singular]}- uncomfortable. 'I lie most memorable event of this year was, 70 Great Exhibition of 1851 of course, the opening of the Great Exhibition in Hyde Park, which brought to London all the world and his wife, and astonished as well as delighted those who were privileged to witness this wonderful storehouse of the richest products of the world There have been many great Exhibitions since that initial one of 1851, including those of Paris, Vienna, and Chicago, but not one of them excited the universal enthusiasm of the Hyde Park Palace, with its fairy glass-house (due to the genius of Sir Joseph Paxton), its picturesque situation, its marvellous display of manufactures of every description and from all parts of the habitable globe, its Koh-i-noor, its Hiram Power's " Greek Slave," and all the other manifold attractions which roused the envy and excited the emulation of Europe and America. It should be borne in mind that the idea of the Great Exhibition emanated from the Prince Consort, to whose fostering care it owed much of its success. The Exhibition was open from May to November, in the course of which time I visited it frequently, and on one occasion when some young ladies were under my care, in my endeavour to obtain luncheon for them from the crowded refreshment bar, I accosted a seeming waiter, who carried out my instructions to the letter, but who, to my confusion, and the uncontrollable laughter of my companions, when I offered to pay, turned out to be no other than a member of "the cloth." Of course my humble Walter Macfarren apologies were tendered to the reverend gentleman, who accepted them with good grace. Another incident of this year which excited intense astonishment and endless controversy was the Coup d' Etat of the 2nd of December, by which the President, Louis Napoleon, confounded his enemies, and virtually made himself master of the situation, and Emperor of France. It would be un- becoming in one so little versed in politics, and so ignorant of the actual circumstances which led to the / Coup d' Etat as myself, to express an opinion as to whether or not it was justifiable ; but I cannot refrain from saying that I consider Paris (which in reality means France) owes an immense deal to the strength of character and artistic taste of this very remarkable man. His Boulogne trcrcestie, and Ham imprisonment and escape, his residence in London and Brighton, his election as President by a huge majority over Cavaignac, his Empire and subsequent downfall at Sedan, and miserable death in exile at Chislehurst, form a chapter of history with which it would be difficult to find a parallel. I had from boyhood always played on Broad- wood's pianofortes, and had formed friendships with the principals and officials of that eminent firm. My association with John Broadwood & Sons was further increased when I took upon me the responsi- bility of housekeeping, and shared No. 58 Albert Street with Mr. Frederick Rose, who was then Marriage only an official, but afterwards became a partner in this old-established and honourable house. This took place early in 1852, when I married Julia, the second daughter of H. A. Fanner, a well accredited artist. My first school engagement dates from this year; and although it was not very lucrative, my outgoings were so much more considerable than they had been that it proved a great boon, and the precursor of other and more profitable work of the same description. At this school in the North of London I received well, no matter what, but it was assuredly a sum which my own pupils nowadays would not think of entertaining. My lessons, four to the hour, were not limited to piano-playing, but (be not horrified, my voice-producing friends of to-day) also singing, and for ten years I was generally occupied on Tuesday and Friday, from 9 A.M. to 7 P.M., at this seminary for young ladies. The lady-principal of this establishment had the peculiar and unpleasant habit of never paying an account in full, so that, like a snowball, the amount of her indebtedness to me went on increasing year by year, and in 1862, when she owed me about ^"200, I was summoned to a meeting of her creditors, and we were, to my amazement, offered a composition of tenpence in the pound, and thus the magnificent sum of ^'8 6s. 8d. constituted the whole of my dividend ! In 1853 I made the acquaintance of Edwin 73 Walter Macfarren George Monk (he was not Doctor then), an acquaintance destined to ripen into friendship of the most intimate character. E. G. Monk was at this time organist and choirmaster of St. Peter's College, Radley, where I visited him in the spring of this year, and had the honour and privilege of meeting Samuel Wilberforce, then Bishop of Oxford, and of hearing him speak in three distinct characters and with equal impressiveness in all. On the Saturday evening he made an after-dinner speech, when the "Warden (Dr. Sewell) proposed his health. On the Sunday he preached in the chapel, and on the Monday, when taking his leave, he made a vale- dictory address to the boys. The Bishop's eloquent words were perhaps the least noteworthy thing in these discourses. It was his voice, his manner, and the happy way in which he adapted himself to these entirely different situations. The bonJiomie of the first, the earnestness of the second, and the kindli- ness of the third being equally remarkable. During this visit to Radley I also met, for the first time, the Reverend Sir F. A. Gore Ouseley, Bart., an amateur musician of great natural gifts, and a clergyman of the most unselfish character, who devoted his large fortune to the foundation of St. Michael's College, Tenbury, over which excellent institution he presided as Warden until his death in i.SSg. Some- eminent musicians had their training at St. Michael's, including the late Sir John Stainer, 74 St. Peter's College, Radley and others connected with Church music ; also F. W. Davenport, the well-known Professor of har- mony and composition at the R.A.M. My brother, G. A. Macfarren, delivered a lecture on Beethoven during this stay at Radley, which I illustrated on the pianoforte before a distinguished audience. In this year I began an engagement of twenty years duration at a ladies' school at Walthamstow of a very different character to the one I spoke of before, where every Wednesday was devoted to the instruc- tion in pianoforte-playing of a vast number of happy girls, many of whom have turned up again in later years; and I record this circumstance in order that I may mention the name of Mrs. Pechey, the lady who presided over this establishment, and who is one of the sweetest characters I ever met I repeat that Mrs. Pechey is, for I am happy to say that, although an octogenarian, she still lives, and wrote me recently a charmino- letter. o> Let me here recount the circumstance which led to the abolition of indoor students in Tenterden Street. The British Government, fifty years ago, used to proclaim Fast-days on very slight provo- cation too much or too little rain, as the case might be and the Archbishop of Canterbury composed a prayer suitable to the occasion. On these Fast-clays the boys who were housed and fed at the Academy were treated to salt-fish. In the early part of this year, there having been an unusual number of Fasts, 75 Walter Macfarren and the salt-fish particularly bad and malodoriferous, the boys struck, and led by four of the strongest of their number, they tied the hall-porter in his chair and stormed the larder, bringing up fragments of bacon, cold pudding, eggs, etc. Then, with cans of porter brought from "round the corner" to wash these luxuries down, they made high feast. Swift retri- bution, however, fell upon the four leaders, who were ignominiously expelled, and Academy boarders at Tenterden Street abolished for ever. In the year 1854 I gave my first series of Chamber Concerts, which were destined to be annually repeated, with only one exception, until the year 1877. This first series took place in the Beethoven Rooms in Harley Street, and my pro- grammes included the "Waldstein" and the so-called " Appassionata " Sonatas of Beethoven, and that composer's Trio in D; Mendelssohn's Fantasia in F sharp minor, and Prelude and Fugue in E minor, and the same composer's Trio in D minor and Ouartet in B minor; Sterndale Bennett's Trio in A; and G. A. Macfarren's Quintet in G minor, com- posed expressly for Mr. G. Perkins (Barclay & Perkins), an amateur contra-bassist. In additionto these works, there were of course compositions of my own, including three Sonatas for four hands, which were played by Kate Loder, \V. II. Holmes, and Lindsay Sloper respectively, with myself. I have dilated perhaps at undue length on this initial essay 76 ' Chamber Concerts in concert-giving, but I desire to show of what I was capable at this time, and also to give proof that my menus differed but little from those of the classical concerts of the present day. During another visit to Norfolk let me relate how I was discomfited. Although never having had a gun in my hand before, it happened that I was rather successful at a shooting party, and when vainly boasting on my return of my prowess, an old gentleman tried my skill on the lawn by flinging up a half-crown and daring me to spot it. Unluckily for me, it happened to be riddled with shot, for it tempted me to accept a bet that I would hit the same mark nine times out of twelve. Alas! pride had a fall, for I hit the half-crown only twice out of the twelve. I think it was in this year (1854) that I met again, after long years, my childhood's acquaintance, Frederick Goodall, who by this time had attained to great eminence and was an A.R.A., if not an R.A., and the facsimile of three heads which he kindly contributed to my album, albeit a trifle, shows the complete mastery he had attained over the delineation of the human head and face (p. 78). It is a matter of history that in .this same year commenced that desperate struggle in the Crimea which kept us all in a state of tension for two years, and I have heard from my old friend Val Goold, who was present throughout the whole time, attached to 77 Walter Macfarren the staff of General Filder, graphic accounts of the many exciting- incidents of that terrible time the charge of the "Six Hundred" at Balaclava, of which the French remarked, "C'est magnifique, mais ce n'est pas la guerre;" Inkerman, which has been 4 styled "the soldiers' battle," as it was a hand-to-hand engagement and of many hours' duration, and only brought to its close by the arrival of a French con- tingent under Canrobert, "spick and span," to use my friend's words, "as though they had just turned out of a band-box." Mr. Goold was, I should 78 Crimean Wai- mention, Chief-Constable of Somerset for upwards of twenty years, and one of the most genial of men. In conversation he also told me of the awful muddle and horrible sufferings endured throughout this o o winter and the year 1855 by our brave soldiers, and I myself can recall the tremendous rejoicing and out- pouring of feeling on the conclusion of peace in 1856. The universal illuminations, the fireworks on Prim- rose Hill and elsewhere, the theatres thrown open free to the populace, and each and every individual thanking God in his heart for the termination of that terrible period. Sir Michael Costa having had a difference with o the Philharmonic directors, resigned the conductor- ship of their concerts, and the governing magnates being at a loss to find a fitting successor to that autocrat of the orchestra, in an unlucky moment invited Richard Wagner to assume the vacant post in 1855. I say unlucky, without any wish to express my own opinion respecting Wagner's powers as a conductor or as a musician; but the appointment was eminently unpopular, and I believe I am right in saying that the season 1855 was financially a failure. Although I had been teaching for nine years at the R.A.M., I had not been fortunate enough to have in my class any pupil of distinction; but in this year (1855) a lad of fifteen named Frederick Westlake was placed under my care, and though he 79 Walter Macfarren did not at once exhibit strong musical gifts, and no great promise of technical excellence, yet I soon found he was possessed of good brains and a cultured mind, for he had been at a first-class school, and had sat at the feet of Professor Tyndall. Well, Fred \Vestlake remained with me for some seven years, and greatly distinguished himself- became a Professor of the pianoforte in the Academy, and brought out many admirable pupils. I need hardly add that I was very proud of the position he gained, but I may say that he became one of my most intimate friends, and on an occasion to be referred to hereafter, was to me more like a brother than a mere acquaintance. A memory worth recording is that of my faithful dog Toby. He was a wire-haired terrier with a touch of the "bull" in him; as gentle as a lamb to those whom he trusted, but a dangerous customer to his enemies. Toby was quite a character, and well known to my associates; he would follow me where- soever I went, and return home alone at my bidding. For instance, I would go on one day to Holloway, and on arriving at my destination order him to return; another day across the Regent's and Hyde Parks to Kensington, when in like manner he would find his way back, generally calling upon members of the family en route for contributions. Poor Toby came to an untimely end; he went wrong in his head, and I was obliged to order the "happy 80 First Visit to Edinburgh despatch," but at this distance of time I still recall his friendly companionship with satisfaction. In the year 1856, I for the first time visited what many people still insist on calling my native country, and I signalised this visit by taking a severe chill and quinsy sore throat, which laid me up in Edinburgh for some weeks. Having been brought up on homoeopathy, I felt it my duty to scour the city in search of a disciple of Hahnemann, whose aid was of no avail until he was urged to resort to allopathic treatment. This forced imprisonment prevented me seeing much of the beauties of the country north of the Tweed at this time; but Edin- burgh, with its Arthur's Seat and Salisbury Crags, its Calton Hill, its Castle, and delightful scenery whichsoever way one turned, and with all its deeply interesting historic associations, made an impression upon me which has never been effaced. People seem to think, as I said before, because I have a " Mac" in my name I must of necessity be a Scots- man, and at a dinner of the Scottish University, held in London, the late Sir Eric Ericsson, in pro- posing my health, claimed me as a fellow-countryman. In reply I disclaimed the compliment, but elicited cheers by asserting that doubtless any success I had had in my profession was due to the circum- stance that I was generally regarded as a native of North Britain. On this subject let me record another curious incident which took place at 81 G Walter Macfarren another Scottish dinner, when my own part-song for male voices, the Highland war-song, "Pibroch of Donald Dhu," was set down in the programme as "traditional "! Sterndale Bennett had promised to play with me a duet for two pianofortes at one of my concerts this year ; but he withdrew from the promise, and informed me he never intended to perform in public again a resolution which he suddenly made in consequence of a snarling newspaper criticism on a recent performance. It is possible that there are very few people living who recollect Sterndale Bennett's playing as I do, and I am therefore glad of the opportunity of placing on record the great pleasure his performances afforded me. To a technique sufficient for all purposes, he added a beautiful touch, a tine tone, and a masterful reading of whatever he attempted ; in short, I regarded him as one of the most capable and interesting pianists of the day, and telt that his retirement trom public playing at the age of forty, was a very great loss to the Art. One of Bennett's last public perlormances was when he joined Madame Schumann in the beautiful duet for two pianofortes in B llat (by the husband of this famous pianist), who came to Kngland for the lirst time this year. Madam*; Schumann played twice at the Philharmonic on April i4th, Beethoven's Concerto in V. llat and Mendelssohn's "Variations 82 Madame Schumann Serieuses"; and on the 28th of the same month Mendelssohn's Concerto in D minor. She was < .: -''- *-* l^ : not fully appreciated at this time, but she had her revenge in subsequent years. The autograph of this great artist, with a few bars of Robert 83 Walter Macfarren Schumann's pianoforte concerto from my album, will be interesting to pianists. That same season of the Philharmonic saw Sterndale Bennett in the conductor's seat, and it was also remarkable for the appearance of Madame Jenny Lind Goldschmidt, on June 23rd, in Schumann's Cantata, Paradise and the Peri, it being the first performance of that work in England. Covent Garden Theatre was burned down in the early part of this year (1855) after a bal masque given by the conjurer who called himself Professor Anderson, the "Wizard of the North." This deplorable event occasioned the loss of many valuable autograph scores, including that of Weber's Oberon. 84 CHAPTER VI. 1857-62. Bristol Madrigal Society Stratford-on-Avon Indian Mutiny Handel Centenary Henry Leslie's Concerts at St. Martin's Hall Second visit to Scotland Own choral society G. A. Macfarren's May Day Monday "Pops" Retirement of Cipriani Potter Potter Exhibition Charles Lucas, principal Death of the Earl of Westmoreland E. G. Monk at York Board of professors Interview with Right Honourable W. E Gladstone Robin /food Sims Reeves Walmer Concerts in Hanover Square Rooms Alfredo Piatti Third visit to Scotland in company with G. A. Macfarren Sir James Simpson Jubilee Concert of Philharmonic Change of residence. IN January 1857 I visited Bristol in company with my friend E. G. Monk, and was more than gratified with the excellent performance by the Bristol Madrigal Society of my part-songs, " Up, up, ye Dames!" and "Gentle Summer Rain," the vigour of the first and the refinement of the latter being equally praiseworthy. In the summer of 1857, while on a visit at Leamington, I drove over to Stratford-on-Avon and spent many hours in exploring the little Warwickshire town and its neighbourhood. Of course I went to the house in which it is said the Immortal Bard first saw the light, and inscribed 85 Walter Macfarren my name in the visitors' book ; and I went to the pretty old church and stood with bated breath over the spot where his mortal remains lie, gazed at the quaint and not very flattering- bust of the poet, and trod, with feelings of a kind of awful veneration, the streets hallowed by his footsteps. In the latter part of this year (1857) we were all horrified by the news of that ghastly episode in Indian history by which so many innocent men, women, and children lost their lives in the most cold-blooded manner, and so manv others of our j fellow-creatures endured sufferings almost worse than death. The relief of Lucknow caused a thrill of joyous emotion throughout the length and breadth of the land, and the incident of Mary Brown and the "Campbells are coming" is too well known to need repetition here. Suffice it, that out of evil good has come ; for I believe the organisation of our Indian army is now such that another mutiny of like character could hardly occur. The Sacred Harmonic Society, and especially its honorary treasurer, Mr. Bowley, who was also manager of the Crystal Palace, conceived the idea of celebrating the Centenary of Handel's death by holding a Festival in his honour at the Crystal Palace ; and with the view of trying the possibility of such a scheme, a huge orchestra and organ were erected in that glass-house. A preliminary Festival 86 Handel Festival was held in 1857, at which I was present, under the direction of Sir Michael Costa, and with Madame Clara Novello, Miss Dolby, Sims Reeves, and Formes as the principal vocalists. The works per- formed were The Messiah, Jiidas Maccabaus, and Israel in Egypt, and the success was so greatly beyond what had been anticipated, that there could be entertained no doubt of the propriety of holding the Centenary in 1859 and, in fact, the Handel Festival has become a triennial institution. It would be tedious were I to mention every occasion on which I appeared in public as a pianist, but I am induced to refer to one of these on which I was so much to the fore, and which was so gratify- ing that it was often in mv mind. The occasion in o ^ question was at one of the concerts of Henry Leslie's Choir, in St. Martin's Hall, Long Acre, when I played two solos Mendelssohn's Prelude and Fugue in F minor, and a Nocturne and Valse of my own ; and the choir sang four of my choral compositions "The Harvest Song," the hunting song, "Up, up, ye Dames!" "Love is a Sickness Full of Woe," and "The Curfew Bell" (the last-named having been written for and dedicated to the Choir), each and all of which were received with demonstrations of approval. St. Martin's Hall, by-the-bye, was presented to the late John Hullah in consideration of the eminent services he had rendered to choral 3; Walter Macfarren singing, and there he gave his important concerts until the year 1860, when it was burned to the ground. Subsequently, the Queen's Theatre, under the management of Mr. Labouchere, occupied the same site, which in its turn went back to its original use a carriage factory. In the autumn of 1858 I made a second visit to Scotland, and as I was then in good health, I saw much more of the romantic beauties of Caledonia than on a former occasion ; had the privilege of paying seven shillings for a bed on a billiard table at the Trossachs Hotel ; and on remarking to a o Scotsman, who was my fellow-passenger on a coach, J 1 O on the extraordinary beauty of the scenery, he stolidly replied: "Ye wadna think sae if ye lived here ; we think naething o' it." In the latter part of 1857 I had started a little Choral Society which afforded me keen satisfaction, and useful practice in the art of wielding the baton. This society, of about twenty-five or thirty members, culminated in a little concert in the spring- O f 1858; but the enthusiasm of its members died away in the following year, and although their numbers increased, I was left at some of the meetings perhaps without an alto or a bass, and more times without a tenor, and as there was more long- suffering than pleasure to be obtained from such experience, I abandoned the society after the second year. I gave a little concert of another 88 G. A. Macfarren's "May Day" description, in the autumn of that year, at my own house, when I was assisted by Joseph Joachim and Kate Loder (Lady Thompson), and made the acquaintance of Mrs. Joseph Robinson, of Dublin, a truly admirable pianist and charming lady, whose tragical death some years later was a source of deep regret to her husband and a large circle of friends and admirers. At the Bradford Festival, in 1858, was produced perhaps the best known of my brother's secular works, the cantata May Day, the occasion being also memorable from the circumstance of its being the first public appearance of that excellent artist, Madame Lemmens-Sherrino>ton, who sustained the j ' part of the May Queen so delightfully as to earn the praise of every one, and the gratitude of the composer. The month of January 1859 saw the inaugura- tion of the Monday Popular Concerts at St. James's Hall, due, in a great measure, to J. W. Davison, who, on the comparative failure of some concerts under this title, at which music usually associated with the term "popular" was the sole ingredient, suggested to Messrs. Chappell to try the pulse of music-lovers by giving chamber concerts of a classical character under this title. The result proved that there were a sufficient number of amateurs desirous of making acquaintance with the works of this class by the great masters, to render 89 Walter Macfarren the scheme profitable, and the " Monday Pops " became a permanent institution. Three events of great significance to the Royal Academy of Music occurred in the year 1859. The first of these was the retirement of Cipriani Potter from the office of Principal, which he had held in succession to Dr. Crotch for the long- period of twenty-seven years, with honour to himself and infinite advantage to the institution ; and I am not exceeding the truth in stating that he was beloved and respected by every one with whom he came in contact. Charles Lucas, of whom I have spoken in a former chapter, was appointed Potter's successor, and he held also the post of Conductor of the choir and orchestra, continuing in this dual position until failing health compelled his retirement in 1866. The founder of the Academy, the Karl of \Yest- moreland, died in the late autumn of 1859, and was succeeded in the position of President by the Earl of Wilton, who took the chair on the occasion of the presentation of a testimonial to Cipriani Potter. This testimonial took the form of an Exhibition, to be called the " Potter Exhibition " (competed for annually in the Academy), and of a service of plate, both of which were raised by the willing subscrip- tions of his iriends and admirers. I had in this year again the advantage of the co-operation of foseph Joachim at one of my Right Hon. W. E. Gladstone concerts, when he played with me Beethoven's Kreutzer Sonata, and my own Sonata in D. My friend, the late Dr. E. G. Monk, was elected organist and choirmaster of York Minster in 1859, a circumstance which led to my frequent sojourn in the old city of Ebor, and I recall with pleasure the many delightful associations connected with it, and with my friend's career there. After the death of the Earl of Westmoreland, the attenuated committee of the Academy consisted of three elderly gentlemen Sir George Clarke, Sir Andrew Barnard, and Sir John Campbell, who doubtless meant well, but who rarely met, and the affairs of the Academy were consequently often at a standstill. At this juncture Lucas, the Principal, obtained the sanction, in 1860, of the Committee to the establishment of a Board of Professors, with a modest salary. This Board consisted of the Principal, Sir John Goss, Henry Blagrove, George and Walter Macfarren, who met once a week, and for five years virtually managed the Institution. It was during this year that three members of the Board (Lucas, George Macfarren, and myself) were received as a deputation by Mr. Gladstone, then Chancellor of the Exchequer, the result of which interview was that the Minister gave the Academy a small subsidy ^500 a year and this modest amount has been continued annuall, with Walter Macfarren the exception of the short period during which Mr. Disraeli (the Earl of Beaconsfield) was Chancellor of the Exchequer. At this interview with Mr. Gladstone, the readiness with which that great statesman and remarkable personality grasped the situation, his keen glance, and his rapid mode of settling the business in hand, greatly impressed me ; and this impression was confirmed when, shortly afterwards, I occupied a seat in the Strangers' Gallery at the House of Commons. On this occasion little was to be heard for some time but a constant buzz of conversation, and cries of " 'Vide, 'vide," or "Hear, hear"; but when Gladstone rose in answer to some question, the House was hushed into such silence that you might have heard a pin fall, and the wonderful trumpet tones of the great orator's voice penetrated every corner of the building. My brother's greatest operatic success, Robin Hood, was produced at Her Majesty's Theatre, then under the management of E. T. Smith, in the autumn of this year, with Madame Lemmens- Sherrington, Sims Reeves, Santley, and the late George Honey in the cast. It proved such a "draw" that it became a by-word that the title should not be " Robin Hood," but " Robbing Harrison " the contemporary Pyne and Harrison Operatic Company, at Covent Garden, playing to empty benches. A curious contretemps happened 92 " Robin Hood " and Sims Reeves m m JY-" .V "S V 93 Walter Macfarren at one of the performances of Robin Hood, when Maid Marian (Madame Lemmens-Sherrington) rushed from the back of the stage into the arms of Robin Hood (Sims Reeves), and did so with such prodigious energy that both fell over and rolled clown to the footlights, to the great amuse- ment of the audience, who acknowledged the situa- tion by thunders of applause. The autograph (p. 93) of the great tenor will recall to those who heard it his splendid singing of the Handelian passage quoted. My holiday in 1860 was passed at \Yalmer, to which place I took such a fancy that it became very nearly my yearly resort, and for a time boating was my chief occupation, this leading to a more or less intimate association with the boatmen of Deal and Walmer, a rough but honest and courageous class of men. In 1861 I gave for the hrst time my annual concerts in the old Hanover Square Rooms, and one of these is especially memorable to me from its being the occasion of the first performance of my Sonata for piano and 'cello, in which I had the inestimable advantage of Alfredo Piatti's delightful o o co-operation, whose autograph in my album, now that the great artist is no more, will be regarded with much interest. At another of my concerts this season I played the Variations and I ; ugue of Beethoven in K flat, on 94 Alfredo Piatti f Mi A .iti! f i a :4* H* U ^HH" T **t \ 3 V k X 95 Walter Macfarren the theme which forms so important a feature in the Eroica Symphony, and J. \V. Davison, in his notice of the concert in the Times, remarked that he believed it was the first occasion on which this remarkable work had been heard in public. My holidays this year (1861) were passed in Scotland, and thither my brother George accom- panied me. We stayed firstly in Edinburgh, then in Linlithgow (the old palace reminding one of Mary Queen of Scots), thence to Glasgow and the Caledonian Canal up to Inverness, climbing Ben Nevis en route, at the summit of which we were enveloped in a dense mist and saw nothing. At Eort William, there beino- no vacant bed o in the hotels, we were accommodated in a clean but homely cottage, in which I discovered an old square pianoforte, which bore the inscription "Tschudi and Broadwood, 1788." I had the temerity to touch the keys of this venerable instrument, to the great horror and indignation of the "gucle " woman of the house, who reminded me that it was profanation to make music on the Sabbath. On returning to Edinburgh I made the acquaintance of the late Sir James Simpson, a statue of whom now ornaments the Princes Street Gardens, and I heard on all hands of the enormous sums he received from aristocratic patients, and of his extraordinary liberality and kindness to those in a less exalted position. 96 Jubilee of the Philharmonic The Jubilee Concert in St. James's Hall of the Philharmonic Society occurred in the year 1862, and was memorable for several circumstances, apart from the significance of its being- the fiftieth year of the existence of the " Phil." In the first place, Joseph Joachim played superbly Spohr's Concerto in E minor; then Mrs. Anderson (the instructress of Queen Victoria and most of her children) played Beethoven's Choral Fantasia, and notwithstanding it being her seventy-fifth year, she played with astonishing vigour and perfect mastery; finally, it was the first performance of William Sterndale Bennett s picturesque Overture, " Paradise and the Peri," which he had composed expressly for the occasion. In the year 1862 I left Albert Street and took a house which was then No. i Osnaburgh Street, the chief inducement to this being a large room at the back of the house, which had been built on the garden, and which I believed I could utilise for concert-giving. As a matter of fact, I did give one concert in that room, at which I was assisted by Joachim and Piatti, and in the midst of the serious slow movement of Beethoven's Trio in D, we were disturbed by the children of the Convent School adjoining rushing out and shouting, " Girls and boys come out to play," one of my attendants having to get on the roof and frighten the children away by wild gesticulations. The gentleman who let me this 97 H Walter Macfarren house (he was a clergyman, by the way) assured me that the flooring of this large room was in perfect condition, that the drainage was of the latest im- provement, and that no chimney in the house smoked. My experience during two years' tenancy proved the exact reverse of all that this reverend gentleman had said. The floor of the large room gave way under the weight of my grand pianoforte, every chimney in the house smoked, and the drain- age was equally objectionable, its renovation costing me a handsome sum. However, this was all for- gotten when, after the season's toil, I was once more at my favourite Walmer. CHAPTER VII. 1863-68. Operatic and theatrical reminiscences First visit to Paris Rossini and Auber Isle of Wight G. A. Macfarren's productivity Connection with the Queen Gruneison "You Stole my Love" Sir John Goss Pupil's loyalty North Devon and Corn- wall John Callow Sterndale Bennett, Principal of the R.A.M. Academy in low water -Resignation of committee Dis- interested conduct of professors Director and hon. treasurer of Philharmonic Moscheles Charles Dickens. PREVIOUS to entering upon another year, let me pause for a moment, gentle reader, to record my operatic and theatrical experience in the 'forties and 'fifties. The earliest of these were at Pier Majesty's Theatre during the Lumley regime, and consisted of the delightful singing and acting of Grisi, Tam- burini, and Lablache, and the sweet warbling of Mario in Donizetti's charming opera-buffo Don Pasquale; also the first-named artist's grand im- personation of Bellini's Norma. Then, at the same theatre and under the same management, there was the tremendous furore about Jenny Lind, and the rush and struggle to gain a hearing of that world- renowned vocalist. I was privileged to witness two of her impersonations Alice in Meyerbeer's 99 Walter Macfarren Roberto il Diai'olo* and Amina in Bellini's Sonnam- bula; and die freshness, originality, and refinement of her conceptions of these characters made an impression upon me which time has not effaced. Then, at the rival house, Covent Garden, there were Grisi and Alboni in Rossini's Semiramide, and the last-named exquisite singer in the same com- poser's early opera L 1 Italiani in Algicri ; Grisi and Mario in Meyerbeer's Huguenots, and Viardot- Garcia and Mario in that composer's PropJiete ; and the never-to-be-forgotten admirable perform- ances of Auber's sparkling Jllasanicllo, with the real Neapolitans who were brought over to dance the Tarantella, which they did with a vengeance. Neither must I forget the debut in the same o theatre, under Julien's brief reign, of Sims Reeves as Edgar in Lucia di Lamwermoor, and the imme- diate mark this great artist made in popular estimation. Then, turning to the drama pure and simple, shall I ever forget the farewell performances at the Haymarket of that great actor Macready ? Two of his characters in very different style, King Lear and I ago, particularly struck me, the one by its sublime pathos, the other by its light comedy touch and firm grasp; but his Hamlet, Macbeth, Virginius (in Sheridan Knowles's play of that name), Bulwer Lytton's Richelieu, and many another character, were all great impersonations. When the curtain finally descended on the last 100 Gounod's " Faust " manifestation of his genius, every one felt that the stage had lost one of its greatest ornaments. Enough, however, of this digression, and let me turn to the events of 1863. In the Easter holiday of this year I paid my first visit to Paris, under very favourable circumstances, for an American friend, a resident in the French capital, put me up to every- thing, from the Grande Opera to the Jardins Mabille. The Emperor Napoleon III. and his beautiful Empress Eugenie were at this time at the height of their glory, and I saw them frequently riding and driving, and their little son, Prince Louis Napoleon, driving about in a miniature carriage drawn by four pretty long- tailed ponies, and driven by a diminu- tive coachman. I attended two performances of Gounod's Fa^tst at the Theatre Lyrique, with Madame Miolan-Carvalho (the original representa- tive) as Marguerite; and on my return to London I everywhere expressed my opinion that the work was destined to become famous. However, English o managers were coy, and it was not until a year later that Faust was produced at Her Majesty's Theatre, with Titiens (grand singer, but unsuited to the part) and Giucdini (one of nature's singers with L / O O an exquisite voice) in the cast, and with the success which has since attended its every performance. One other performance of Gounod's opera I must note, on account of its remarkable cast, consisting of Adelina Patti as Marguerite, Mario as Faust O 101 Walter Macfarren (handsome and charming as ever, but without a voice), and Charles Santley as Valentine a truly great impersonation. While in Paris I was introduced to that gran maestro Rossini, the composer of Guillaume Tell and innumerable other operas which were at one time all the rage. Countless stories are told ot Rossini's caustic humour, one of which at least is so original as to merit repetition. This was of a young musician who sought Rossini's opinion of a Funeral March he had composed on the death of Cherubini, which elicited from Rossini the remark that "he would have preferred that his young visitor had died and that Cherubini had composed the march." I also saw old Auber, although I had not the honour of being introduced to him; but I looked upon his intelligent countenance with veneration, and felt a glow of pleasure on beholding the man whose delightful music had afforded me so much pleasure. After the season's work and my annual concert, I betook me to the Isle of Wight for my holiday. There is an old conundrum in which the question is asked, "Why the island is not an agreeable place of residence?" the answer to which, most readers will remember, is: "Because it has Needles you J cannot thread, Freshwater you cannot drink, New Port you cannot bottle, and Cowes you cannot milk.'' The island certainly did not prove an agreeable place of residence to me, for I took the 102 Isle of Wight small-pox, and was laid up at Ventnor for nearly two months, although it is but just to the tight little island to admit that I believe I contracted that abominable complaint on the mainland. There were some laughable circumstances connected with this wretched time, for it was given out in the hotel, a wing of which I occupied, that I had gone off my head; and when, in the convalescent stage, I took my first drive, the waiters and other domestics stared at me from every window as though I had been a wild beast. It was during this period of the illness, and when my face did not present a very engaging aspect, that my doctor, Mr. Martin, asked me if I knew a musician named Thalberg, and on my replying in the affirmative, he went on to say that that gentleman was o-ivincf a recital in the town o o o that evening, and suggested the propriety of asking him to call upon me ! a suggestion, it is almost needless to say, of which I did not avail myself. Apropos of Thalberg, I recall the fact that this was the last year in which he visited our shores, when he was playing with all his old perfection of tone, touch, and phrasing, and with his former marvellous certainty; but rheumatic gout seized upon the pianist's hands, and he was heard no more in public after the tour made in this year. In taking- leave of this eminent artist, I would acid that he seemed to me the very type of an English gentle- man, for he spoke our vernacular like a Briton, and 103 Walter Macfarren I always think of him as a "grand seigneur sans peur et sans reproche" My unfortunate lay-up was disastrous to me, for my doctor in London would not sanction my resuming work until Christmas, thus entailing a serious loss. In the year 1864 my endurance of No. i Osnaburgh Street reached its utmost limit, and perceiving that No. 3 Osnaburgh Terrace was to let (regardless of the fact that I had some years of the lease of the former still to run), I took the house in which I am now writing, and which has thus been for upwards of forty years my home. In a thoroughly renovated condition, I let the house in Osnaburgh Street to another clergyman, of a very different type from the one who induced me originally to take the lease off his hands; and in due course I became intimate with the Reverend F. Perry, and do not be surprised, reader in the course of time I became his churchwarden! I was much concerned this autumn by the death of a favourite pupil a young man who posed as T. Waldstein. This young fellow's real name was Walker, but his friend Balfe told him he could never hope to do anything with such a name; and as he was at the time studying Beethoven's "\Yald- stein " Sonata, he suggested that he should adopt the patronymic by which he was afterwards known, and under which he gave promise of success that was arrested by his too early demise. 104 The "Queen" Newspaper My brother, G. A. Macfarren, was extraordinarily productive in this and the previous year. In 1863 he produced his three-act opera, She Stoops to Conquer (founded on Goldsmith's charming comedy) at Covent Garden, and the operetta Jessy Lea at German Reed's Gallery, with that splendid artist Louisa Pyne in the former, and the late Edith Wynne and the happily still-living Miss Poole (Mrs. Bacon) in the latter. In 1864 was produced his four-act grand opera, Helvellyn, at Covent Garden, with Madame Lemmens - Sherrinsfton and the late Madame o Parepa-Rosa both in the cast; and at Reed's Gallery a second operetta, The Soldier s Legacy (with Robertine Henderson as the heroine) a fair amount of work for a man to accomplish in two years, who had to dictate every note to an amanuensis ! I must here recount my connection with the Queen, the lady's newspaper, which came about in the following manner: The proprietors, in the year 1864, concluded that a review of new music ought to be a feature of the periodical, and referred the matter to their musical reporter, the late Mr. Gruneison, who having declined to undertake this additional duty, the editor applied to the late Madame Sainton- Dolby. That lady expressed a wish to me that I should undertake the task, which I did in the year that I am now speaking of, and 105 Walter Macfarren have continued to do ever since, few weeks being without my modest contribution to the paper. In the course of this long' association with the Queen, almost every new publication has come under my notice, and the newspaper itself has risen from com- parative obscurity to be regarded unquestionably as the leading journal of its class. The Mr. Gruneison of whom I have just now spoken was correspondent for the Morning Post during the Civil War in Spain, and owed his life on an occasion to the fact of his being a Freemason. He was taken prisoner by the Carlists, tried at drumhead court-martial, and sentenced to imme- diate death as a spy. He saw a party of soldiers brought out to fire, was placed in position, blind- folded, and heard the word of command, " Make ready present!" and in momentary expectation of the word "Fire!" he involuntarily made some sign on his forehead which Masons understand, and then the officer commanding the firing-party ordered them to "ground arms." He approached Gruneison, asked why he did not say he was a Mason before, and eventually saved his life. By-the-bye, this well-known journalist wrote such an illegible hand that it is said (I don't vouch lor the truth of this) when he departed this life, the compositors of the various journals for which he wrote, gave a dinner to celebrate the event! 'I he summer vacation was again passed at 1 06 "You Stole my Love" Walmer, and great excitement was created in the neighbourhood of the house I occupied by some twenty boatmen hauling up the piano which Broad- wood's had sent me, through the first floor window, the staircase being too narrow to admit of its being- carried in that more usual way. The origin of my popular part-song, "You Stole my Love," was as follows. The late Mr. Henry Littleton, the head of the firm of Novello & Co., commissioned me to set to music as part-songs for mixed voices, four poems by Mrs. Cowden Clarke on the Seasons, and having completed these, the question of terms arose, and Mr. Littleton said : "Well, let us have two more to make a set of six, and I will give you so much." Respecting words for the two extra part-songs, he took down from a shelf a volume of Percy s Relics, observing that I should find what I wanted there, and that very night I composed and set down the music of "You Stole my Love" and " Dainty Love," the former of which has travelled all over the world, while the latter, for which I had more affection, has never achieved distinction, which shows how difficult it is to gauge public taste. Mr. Joseph Heming, of Conduit Street, an admirable amateur alto, was the first to take up "You Stole my Love," and he introduced it at the London Institution by a little choir of which he was the conductor. It was Henry Leslie, however, who made the song famous by the 107 Walter Macfarren magnificent rendering it received from his choir, with which its success is identified. It may be well to say here that ''You Stole my Love" was one of the trial pieces sung in the Albert Hall to test the acoustical properties of this large concert-room, the song being in quick time and requiring rapid articulation. In 1865 some new blood was infused into the Academy Committee, consisting of the late Messrs. Kellow Pye, Walter Broadwood, and Major Blake. These gentlemen considered the Board of Professors an unnecessary luxury, and dispensed with our services. I will venture to say, however, that the Board, in the course of its five years' existence, initiated many useful reforms. I cannot pass over this period without an expression of the regret I felt on severing the intercourse our meetings afforded me with my colleagues. Of Lucas and my own brother I have often spoken; of Henry Blagrove I will only say, that though a talented and estimable individual, his temperament, like his violin-playing, was decidedly cold. Of Goss, I cannot find words in which to express my admiration of his lovable character and disposition, and his beautiful genius, which has enriched the service of the Church of England with so many choice works. I felt, as I stood beside his grave in Kensal Green, in iSSo, that it would be difficult to point to his equal for sweetness and genuineness. This extract from his 1 08 Sir John Goss AUTOGRAPH OF SIR JOHN GOSS. anthem, "Praise the Lord, O my Soul," which he wrote in my album, will, I am sure, be interesting to many of my readers. 109 Walter Macfarren One of the arbitrary acts of the re-constituted Committee was to remove a pupil from my class, in order to make a class for a new professor. This act she resented, and I resigned my class. My pupils (some fifteen in number) were nominated for other classes, but they one and all stoutly refused to go to any other professor than myself, and after some unpleasant correspondence, the Committee, finding there was a deadlock, requested me to withdraw my resignation, which I did; and to celebrate the loyalty of my pupils, I gave them a dance, at which Lady Thompson and myself played most of the music. In 1866 I was elected a Member of the Phil- harmonic Society, of which I had already been an Associate for nearly twenty years, and in which grand old Institution my interest has remained unabated to the present time. I rambled through North Devonshire and Corn- wall during my summer conge, and at Ilfracombe met with a curious experience. In the hotel where I stayed for about a week, I met a water-colour painter, with whom I became more or less intimate, and as my old artistic instincts still held me, I was interested to accompany him in his sketching expe- ditions. On the night before my departure we were walking together by moonlight, and I expressed a desire that our acquaintance should continue, and ottered to give my companion my card. He declined this, saying he knew very well who I was, no William Sterndale Bennett mentioning my name; and he then asked: "Do you not know who I am ?" On my replying in the negative, he ejaculated, "Why, I am your land- lord ! " My readers will wonder how such a contingency could take place, but this is readily explained, for when I took the house I still inhabit it was through the agents, to whom my rent was duly paid, and I had never until now met John Callow, the gentleman who thus proclaimed himself my landlord. To make a long story short, I may as well say here that on the death of Sir Robert Smirke in 1868, I purchased of his executors the lease held by him under the Crown of No. 3 Osnaburgh Terrace, and thus became my own landlord. Owing to failing health, Lucas resigned the position of Principal of the Academy in 1866, and he was succeeded by his old fellow-student, William Sterndale Bennett ; and my happily still living friend Otto Goldschmidt was appointed Vice- Principal, for the school was to be entirely re- constructed. With this view the institution was closed for six months, and all the professors dismissed ; at the same time four new scholarships were opened to competition, and I may add that two of these were awarded to Linda Scales (Mrs. Charles Yates) and Stephen Kemp pupils of my own. In 1867 the Academy was reopened, and some in Walter Macfarren of its former professors, including myself, were invited to resume their teaching, but lady professors, I am ashamed to say, were abolished. A novel feature was the appointment of principal professors in various departments, with salaries independent of their teaching- ; but one and all admitted that they were ignorant of the functions attaching 1 to their o o office. Well, in little more than twelve months, the Committee having- exhausted all the available funds at their disposal, sought to avoid personal responsi- bility bv throwing up the Charter granted to the J J O I O Academy by George IV. But they reckoned without their host, for, in the first place, the Home Secretary informed them that the Charter could not be done away with unless every member of the "body politic and corporate" consented, and in the next place the professors under Sterndale Bennett stoutly declined to allow 7 the annihilation of the R.A.M., offering to become members by subscrip- tion, and continue their teaching at a personal sacrifice to avert such a disaster. The Committee resigned in a body, their last act consisting of the appointment of Sterndale Bennett as chairman, and some of the senior professors as members of the new committee. From that moment, although musicians are said to be such bad men of business, the fact remains that the fortunes of the Academy steadily rose. At the autumn general meeting of the Phil- 112 Royal Academy of Music harmonic Society in 1867, I was elected one of the directors of that honourable Institution, in which capacity I was re-elected for thirteen con- secutive years, during the last five of which I was Honorary Treasurer. The veteran pianist and composer, Ignaz Moscheles revisited England this year, and while staying at the house of his son-in-law, Mr. Roche, in Sloane Street, I called upon my old friend, and passed with him a very interesting hour, in the course of which he expressed his difficulty in entirely appreciating the music of Schumann, but modestly attributed this to his long-established ideas with regard to music. Although at this time seventy- three years of age, Moscheles was full of vigour, and was busy with his pen. I had the privilege of reading with him some interesting pianoforte duets in manuscript, and I recalled in his strenuous and clear playing the remarkable exhibition of his talent on June 24th, 1861, when he played his fine Concerto in G minor at the Philharmonic with astonishing power and fire. A memorable event in the year 1867 was the complimentary dinner in honour of Charles Dickens, at the Freemasons' Tavern, Great Queen Street, on November 2nd, which was given as a send-off to the great novelist on the eve of his departure on a second visit to America. I was present on the occasion, and recall every incident of the evening as 113 i Walter Macfarren though it had taken place only last week. Lord > '\ A ^' J- 1 - ^- Jj | ! : ^ j"l i : 11 1 ii ::N ^ - \ v t i i v 1 V 1 l''j fl if T" ? fe ,. s 1 '..,. -i ; Ji k I -ii S L J } :1 - 1 /M^L4 : i ;,. i J'! '"If"! fill I " '". 'ft! [ - r (; */? }T /" ' ';. - f i-ittf F ! i Li ;' fr-i . ' j J] i Pal~ - r T 'i < > Pl|f<:?> j ' 1 ^ , '.- \ : 1 ' '' ' . ttifT .^- cj^i - c I2O Madame Sainton-Dolby refined ideas that are thoroughly representative of their author. In the year 1870 I was appointed a member of the Royal Academy of Music Committee, a position I am proud to say I have retained to the present day, and in the course of these thirty-four years have seen the institution ever moving upwards, and now, in this year of grace 1905, more than ever prosperous. My dear old friend, Madame Sainton-Dolby, who from earliest times had been a constant help to me in my career, was in this year compelled, by a succession of bronchial colds, to retire from public singing. She gave a farewell concert in St. James's Hall in the month of June, at which I enjoyed the privilege of playing with her \vorthy helpmate, Prosper Sainton, my " Four Romances," which are dedicated to that admirable artist and best of fellows. Madame Sainton-Dolby was a universal favourite, and her abandonment of the platform was a source of keen regret, not only to her friends but to the public, and her appearance on the orchestra was hailed with prolonged and deafening applause. I had become by this time an ardent admirer of Schumann, and at my three concerts this year I introduced, in association with Sainton and Piatti, the three pianoforte Trios of that master, the first of which, in the key of D minor, is the only one which can be regarded as representative of his genius ; the 121 Walter Macfarren second, in the key of F, being much lighter; and the third, in G major, decidedly weak. In conjunction with Mr. Henry Holmes, I started a series of autumn chamber concerts in St. George's Hall, which were styled " Musical Evenings," and which continued for some years with considerable success. The quartet party con- sisted of Mr. Holmes, Mr. Amor, Mr. Burnett, and Signor Pezzi ; and the pianists, Miss Agnes Zimmermann, Mr. Lindsay Sloper, myself, and others. We introduced works by contemporary composers, as well as those of the classical masters. At Walmer this year (1870) I was constantly meeting with distinguished visitors on my walks, lor, as every one knows, it was the year of the Franco-German war, and Mr. Gladstone (then Prime Minister), doubtless feeling it desirable to be in touch with his Foreign Secretary, the Farl of Granville (Warden of the Cinque Ports), stayed with him for many weeks at Walmer Castle, and there I heard him read the lessons at the pretty village church. After the morning service, on one occasion, as I was crossing a field leading to the <_> o> Castle, I observed the great statesman, who was some fifty yards in advance of me, pick up a little girl who had stumbled, and taking her by the hand, walk with her as far as the gate. When he delivered her to her father, who was only a humble country- man, I was near enough to hear the latter say to his 122 Franco-German Wai- three or four-year-old girl, "Remember to your clying day that you have just taken a walk with the Prime Minister of England." I saw the same illustrious gentleman, together with the Countess of Granville and her children, Lord Cardwell, and other notabilities, at Sanger's Circus, and was tickled to observe the amusement of the stern Prime Minister at the tricks of a Japanese juggler with a pea-shooter and a feather, the latter of which he w r ould send into the air through the former and catch in its descent on the back of his neck, on his forehead, on his nose, or any other part of his anatomy. The intense interest about the war and its issue was at its height when, on September 6th, I was walking up the Drum Hill leading to Upper Walmer, with my sister, when a gentleman, a perfect stranger, pulled up his horse beside me and ejaculated in excited tones, " Have you heard the news, sir? Sedan has fallen!" This news proved to be true, and that on September 5th not only had Sedan fallen, but the star of the Emperor Napoleon III. had set for ever. Three things in connection with the Drama stand out prominently in my memory. Charles Kean's management of the Princess's Theatre and his grand revivals of King John, King Richard II., of Lord Byron's Sardanapalus, and his own fine acting in Louis XI. and the Corsican Brothers; 123 Walter Macfarren besides that of his accomplished wife and himself in Lovell's thrilling play, The Wife's Secret. Charles Fechter's impersonation of Hamlet in a flaxen wig was entirely unlike anything we had seen before, and was so fresh and characteristic that it could not fail to make a deep impression on me. Coming away from one of these performances, I met Charles Santley in the lobby, who expressed himself in enthusiastic terms of Fechter's Hamlet, and told me he had come up from Manchester expressly to see him for the tenth or twelfth time. Santley went on to say : " I've discovered that the name of Hamlet's father was Thomas!" and in answer to my look of astonishment he went on : " Have you not heard the words Hamlet addressed to his father's ghost ? 'Speak, Tommy!' "(to me). This unusual pro- nunciation, it is needless to say, was due to the actor's slight foreign accent, which was soon forgotten in the enthralling- interest excited by his o o J impersonation. Another great performance in quite a different way was Jefferson's Rip van }Vinklc, which stood out as the very embodiment of the kindly, good-natured, drunken vagabond that he was. The year 1870 being the centenary of the birth of Beethoven, the Philharmonic Society signalised the event by giving the nine Symphonies in the course of its season, the programme of the final concert consisting entirely of works by the immortal 124 Fechter's Hamlet tone-poet, which will be read with interest, as it represents the different styles of the master at several stages of his career : Symphony No. I. in C ... ... op. 21. (1800.) Dervishes' Chorus (Ruins of Athens), op. 113. (1811.) Terzetto: " Tremate, empi, tremate," op. 116. (1801.) Miss A rabclla Smythc, Mr. W. H. Cummings, and Mr. S ant ley. Choral Fantasia for Pianoforte, with Voices and Orchestra ... ... ... op. So. (1808.) Miss Arabella Goddard. ScenaedAria: "Ah! perfido " ... op. 65. (1796.) Mdlle. Christine Nilsson. Overture (Leonora No. 3) ... ... op. 72. (1806.) Choral Symphony in D minor ... op. 125. (1825.) The solo parts by Miss Arabella Smythe, Miss Julia Elton, Mr. W. H. Cummings, and Mr. Santley. Conductor: Mr. W. G. Cusins. It is interesting to record also that on the 6th of June, in this year 1870, Frederick Cowen, the accomplished composer and admirable conductor, then a youth of nineteen years of age, played at the Philharmonic Concert on that date Mendelssohn's Rondo Brillante in B minor, showing that although he has abandoned the piano for the baton, he was in those early days able to hold his own on the household instrument. On the 9th of June we were all startled and shocked by the announcement of the sudden death of Charles Dickens, which made a profound im- 125 Walter Macfarren pression on me, as I had met him at dinner exactly four weeks before at the house of Sir Henry Thompson, on which occasion there were also present Browning, Joachim, and Madame Schumann, and it grieved me to see how jaded and worn the great novelist appeared. In 1871 I composed the four-part song, "More life, more love, more light," at the suggestion of John Hullah, for performance at the Crystal Palace by 5000 voices under his direction. I have never been able to discover the authorship of the charming- words of this little work, which I had cut out of a periodical many years before. If these lines should happen to meet the eye of the poet in question, I here gratefully make my acknowledgments to him or her. At my friend, Adolphe Schloesser's concert this season, an item in the programme was Moscheles' capital quartet, "Les Contrastes," for four performers on two pianofortes, a circumstance to which I refer on account of my being associated in the interpreta- tion of the work with those hue artists Eduard Dannreuther, Oscar Beringer, and Adolphe Schloesser a fact to which allusion has often been made by my confreres. My old master, Cipriani Potter, used to meet my mother at Osnaburgh Terrace, and finding that they were born in the same year (1792), it was a frequent remark of the former, "When you go I 126 Sterndale Bennett Scholarship must quake," he being nine months her junior. It was, then, a remarkable circumstance that they should both have passed away on the same clay- Tuesday, September 26th, 1871. It was a sad week for me, and the interment of my tenderly loved mother at Highgate on Saturday, and loved master at Kensal Green on Monday, left me much depressed. In 1872 Sterndale Bennett was knio-hted. To * o celebrate the event a subscription was initiated, of which I was the honorary treasurer, and Henry R. Eyers the honorary secretary, with the object of perpetuating his name in connection with the Royal Academy of Music. This was responded to so liberally that \ve were enabled to form the 'Sterndale Bennett Scholarship for Males, and the Sterndale Bennett Prize for Females. A demonstra- tion of a very remarkable and unusual character took place in St. James's Hall, to congratulate the recipient of these honours. At this meeting, which occurred on Friday, April iQth, 1872, Sir John Duke Coleridge (afterwards Lord Coleridge) presided, and in a felicitous speech (delivered in his customary charming manner) he briefly summed up the career of the hero of the day. The Philharmonic Orchestra, under the conductorship of W. G. Cusins, played Bennett's delightful Overture, "The Naiads," and Henry Leslie's choir, grouped in the opposite balcony, sang the same composer's part-songs, 127 AValter Macfarren "Come dwell with me and be my love," and "Sweet Stream," in their best style. There were other speeches from my brother and self, and from William Sterndale Bennett, who, always retiring and diffident, was on this occasion painfully nervous and agitated, and expressed himself afterwards as heartily glad the whole thing was over. St. James's Hall was crowded in every part, with an enthusiastic audience comprising the dlite of the musical and artistic professions, and it was remarked to me by Charles Halle that it was the warmest expression of feeling that he had witnessed in England. My summer holiday in 1872 was again passed in North Wales, and Llangollen became my headquarters, where I was busily engaged in preparing for publication my Sonata in D for pianoforte and violin. Again I visited many of the most interesting spots in this portion of the Principality, and saw the veritable house inhabited by the two romantic ladies of Llangollen, who left their homes in Ireland so that they might devote themselves entirely to each other until the end of their days. At Barmouth I met my old friend W. H. Monk and his wife, at the Cors-y-ged-al Hotel. After breakfast one morning we three walked out together and enjoyed the beauties of nature so much that we passed over the luncheon-hour, and continued our rambles until late in the afternoon. When it 128 Adventure with the Monks was time to retrace our steps, in order to be in time for six o'clock dinner, we were utterly at a loss which way to turn, and only met with one human being, from whom we could obtain no information, as she did not understand a word of our vernacular. Well, to make a long story short, we were through- out the whole night on the hills about Barmouth. When daylight appeared we discovered some cottages, at one of which we obtained the most O ' delicious draught of milk I have ever tasted in my life, for at that time we had been fasting at least eighteen hours, and the good house-wife called up her boy to accompany us on our home- ward journey. We arrived at the hotel by seven o'clock in the morning, and found all the visitors in a state of anxiety respecting our safety, searchers havinsf been sent after us in all directions. How- o ever, "all's well that ends well," and after a very disagreeable and anxious night, we made a prodigious breakfast, and felt well satisfied with ourselves. While on the subject of this adventure I must place on record the courage with which the lady (who, like her worthy husband, has passed away), bore herself throughout this unique situation. It is a little curious that I should have been lost in company with my other friend Monk (E. G.), on the 6th of January, 1859, in Newnham Park, where, for some six or seven hours, we wandered in recently ploughed land, out of which we only 129 K Walter Macfarren emerged at eleven o'clock at nio-ht, arriving at i> O O Monk's house in Abingdon at twelve, somewhat late, it must be admitted, for a six o'clock dinner. When some months after the Barmouth episode, I wrote for Hymns Ancient and Modern the hymn- tune which appears as number six, "At thy feet, O Christ, we lay," the editor, \Y. H. Monk, gave it the name of " Barmouth," to commemorate the adventure I have just recorded. Mr. \Y. G. Cusins held the baton at the Academy for about a year, and was succeeded by Mr. John Hullah, who resigned the position in the early part of 1873, when Sir Sternclale Bennett invited me to assume the office, which I accepted with enthusiasm, but also with some anxiety, as I had only on rare occasions at the old Society of British Musicians conducted an orchestra. However, I was installed in the responsible office of conductor of the orchestra and choir of the R.A. M. after the Easter vacation, and before Christmas in that year I led the students through successful performances of Handel's ^Icis and Galatea, Haydn's Imperial Mass in I) minor, Bennett's W'oman of Samaria, Mendelssohn's Lcntda Zion, and Bach's Christmas Oratorio, besides many motets and part-songs, as well as my brother's " Songs in a Cornfield " for the choir alone. To commemorate the inauguration of the Bennett Scholarship and Prize, I gave a dinner 130 R.A.M. Choir and Orchestra at my house, on which occasion twenty-one sat down, almost all of whom, alas ! have joined the \YAI.TKK CKClt, MACFAKKKX, AC.KI) 46. majority. Here is a list of these: Sir \Y. S. Bennett and his son Charles Bennett,* Messrs. Walter Macfarren \Y. G. Cusins, Frank Cox, Lamborn Cock, J. Case, William Dorrell, Henry R. Eyers,* Henry Fanner, F. B. Jevvson, Henry Leslie, F. Low, \V. H. Monk, G. A. Macfarren, G. A. Osborne, G. T. Rose (Broad wood's), Alberto Randegger,* Charles Steg- gall,* Prosper Sainton, Frederick Westlake, and myself, of whom only those marked with an asterisk survive. The first Bennett Scholarship was awarded to Tobias Matthay, who shortly afterwards became my pupil, remaining with me three years. The second Bennett Scholarship was awarded to my pupil Charlton Speer, who continued under my care for some eight years. The first Bennett Prize resulted in a tie between Miss Baglehole (a pupil of W. H. Holmes) and Miss Green (a pupil of mine), and the prize was eventually given to the former. The second Bennett Prize was awarded to my pupil Miss Annie Martin (now Mrs. Russell-Starr, F. R.A.M.), who for upwards of twenty years has held a leading- position as a teacher in Hull, and who only the other day manifested her attachment to her old master by giving a lecture on his life and works at the Royal Institution, Hull. G. A. Macfarren's first oratorio, S/. John the Baptist, was composed for the Gloucester Festival of 1872; but as the committee declined to accede to Santley's terms, that great artist, for whom the part of St. John had been expressly written, was not 132 "St. John the Baptist" engaged, and my brother withdrew the work. He was, however, invited to produce it at the first Bristol Festival, which took place in October 1873, and on the 23rd of that month it was performed with unbounded success. Charles Halle (to whom the work is appropriately dedicated) conducted, and Madame Lenimens-Sherrington, Madame Patey, Mr. Edward Lloyd, and Mr. Santley were the vocalists, Mr. George Riseley presiding at the organ. On the morning after the performance, the Festival Committee sent my brother a cheque for 100 guineas as a small acknowledgment of the brilliant reception accorded to his oratorio. Why, having so safe a card, they never should have repeated St. John the Baptist at any subsequent Festival is to me unaccountable. The Professors of the Academy, together with their Principal, Sterndale Bennett, sent to my brother an address congratulating him on his success in a new field of composition, w r hich address, with its forty-four auto- graph signatures, hangs in the room in which I write. At the Philharmonic Concert on April 28th, in the year 1873, that great artist and remarkable man, the late Hans von Biilow, made his first appearance, playing Beethoven's E flat Concerto and Bach's Chromatic Fantasia and Fugue. Many anecdotes are told of Von Btilow's caustic wit, but none are more pointed than that respecting the 133 Walter Macfarren Meiningen Orchestra, of which he was at the time the conductor. Having in a moment of irritation declared that the performers under his direction were not fit for a circus band, he incurred the displeasure of the highest authorities, and at the next rehearsal he addressed the orchestra, saying that, understanding he had given offence by his former remark, he now withdrew it, and begged to say that in his opinion "the performers lucre fit for a circus band." fjju-&ri*-t-^~ ^ -e- ()n the.- 1 2th of May the Philharmonic pro- gramme included a manuscript Concerto in G minor which had been composed by my brother for that excellent violinist the late Ludwig Straus, who repeated the work subsequently, and it has also been played by that fine English artist, the late John T. Carrodus, at the Crystal Palace and elsewhere. I should mention that in the spring of this year (1^73) I was elected a member of the Arts Club, The Arts Club with which homely and friendly institution I have been associated ever since, and where I have been brought into more or less intimate relations with many distinguished artists in literature, painting, architecture, and sculpture, and lovers of the arts, amongst whom I recall the names of the eminent physician Dr. Buzzard (excellent chairman of com- mittee), and his genial successor, Val Prinsep, R.A., whose recent demise we are all deeply regretting. Also Luke Fildes, R.A., David Murray, A.R.A. (now R.A.), the late Sir Edward Blomfield, R.A., Stacey Marks, R.A., Archibald Forbes (war corre- spondent of the Daily News], and many another well-known figure in the Art world. Before quitting the year 1873, I must record with some pride the circumstance that by Sir Sterndale Bennett's own wish I played his newly- composed sonata, "The Maid of Orleans," at one of the " Musical Evenings " of which I have before o spoken ; at Oxford, and at Cambridge (whither he himself accompanied me), at a concert given by the Fitzwilliam Musical Society. Besides the sonata in question, I played solos of my own, and the choir of the Society sang a new part-song composed expressly for them by myself, entitled " Bells across the Sea." 135 CHAPTER IX. 1874-77. Play Bennett's F Minor Concerto at Birmingham Gift of baton by pupils Fourth visit to Scotland Brahms and Saint-Sacins Last concert in Hanover Square Rooms Henry R. Eyers Death of Sterndale Bennett Interment in Westminster Abbey G. A. Macfarren elected Principal of the R.A.M. and Professor at Cambridge Academy and Philharmonic do honour to Bennett's memory Concerts in St. James's Hall Enlargement of the Academy Concert-room Scotland again Birmingham and The Resurrection Llandudno Rubinstein Arthur Sullivan's The Prodigal Son Joseph at Leeds, and Lady of tJte Lake at Glasgow. IN March 1874 I played Bennett's Concerto in F minor at Birmingham, when the composer was to have conducted that work, as well as his Sacred Cantata, TJie Woman of Samaria, but at the last moment illness deprived me of the pleasure of his company and Birmingham of his presence. In May of the same year my lady pupils at the Academy presented me with an ivory and gold baton, in recognition of what they were pleased to call "my great success" as conductor. This stick bears the names of its fifteen generous donors, and was used by me for a brief spell on one occasion ; but although too heavy for general use, 136 Gift of Baton I value it much, and show it to my friends as one of my priceless treasures. In my summer rambles this year (1874) I visited Salisbury, and was impressed, as every- body invariably is, with the unique beauty of its cathedral exterior. Later on, I wended my foot- steps again to the "land of cakes," and inhaled the usual invigorative influence of its air. At Blair Athol, when passing through the Duke's grounds, the guide with whom I conversed cajoled me into the belief that his name was the same as my own, and claimed me as a member of his clan, by means of which he extracted from me two half-crowns. Lackaclay for the frailty of human confidence! when I visited the spot five years later, I learned that there was no guide, and never had been one, of my name ; but that there was a George Mac- farlane, and I left the grounds a sadder but a wiser man. Two features of unusual interest in the Philharmonic season of this year (1874) must be recorded. On June 2Qth was performed the Serenade in A, for small orchestra, by Brahms, an early but remarkable work of this great musician, which must have been composed as an experiment, for in the string department there are no violins, and in the wind no brass. There is another work by this composer of somewhat similar character in the key of D, but for full 137 Walter Macfarren orchestra ; and as I had been well acquainted with this and its companion in pianoforte-duet form, I was very much interested in their performance. The other item to which I would refer was the first appearance at a Philharmonic Concert of the highly accomplished musician Saint-Saens, who on this occasion played Beethoven's Concerto in G with fluency and artistic insight ; although he did not efface from my memory the rendering of that beautiful work by Mendelssohn, or, in my opinion, equal the refinement of Charles Halle in this particular composition. It was announced by Messrs. Robert Cocks & Co., the proprietors of the old Hanover Square Rooms, that they had disposed of the property to a club; but they offered the Academy the opportunity of giving a final concert in these historic rooms, so intimately associated with the great names of Haydn, Spohr, Weber, Mendelssohn, and our own Sterndale Bennett. This offer was gladly accepted, and on the 20th of December I had the honour of conducting the very last performance ever given in this most beautiful of concert-rooms. The programme included my brother's cantata, Christmas, which went admirably; and piano- forte solos by Miss Alice Curtis (Mrs. Alfred Gibson), who played Mendelssohn's Rondo Brillante in E flat ; my own pupil, Miss Kate Steel, who played Bennett's Impromptu in E 138 Hanover Square Rooms and Allegro Grazioso in A; and another of my pupils, Walter Fitton, who played Schumann's Concertstiick in G. Sterndale Bennett was present during the early part of this concert, but the illness which terminated fatally a few weeks later was already wearing him out. I well remember his pathetic look when he expressed his regret to me at being obliged to leave at the end of the first part. There was another circumstance in connection with that very "last" concert which was more curious than agreeable. There had been a heavy thaw in the clay, which had covered the streets with wet slime ; but when we came out, after the concert, a sharp frost had set in, and the road and pavement everywhere was like a sheet of glass, and the lady students in their thin shoes had a very disagreeable experience in reaching their suburban homes. The last doings of Bennett in connection with the Academy, when he was really unfit to be out of his bed, are to me intensely affecting. The ever-increasino- number of students rendered o increased accommodation necessary, but our search for new premises always ended in the same result ; for Bennett loved the old place so much, that he used frequently to spend the greater part of Sunday in the Academy, and constantly brought down portraits and engravings from his own collection to adorn its walls. He could not bear 139 Walter Macfarren the thought of leaving the tenement in which he o o had passed ten years from childhood to manhood, and so we continued in our old locale. It was during the month of January 1875 that the Principal, Bennett, consented to the establishment of sight- singing classes on the same principle as the sol- feggi classes in Continental schools, and to my friend Henry R. Eyers was entrusted the direction of this important branch of study. I am glad of the opportunity this affords me of saying with what singular success he has directed these classes up to the present time, and what excellent progress has resulted from his patient and capable teaching. I accepted an engagement at a large school at Southgate on the retirement of Bennett, who had taught there for many years; and on learning that my first visit there was to be at the beginning of February, he expressed a wish to accompany me on that occasion. Alas ! when the clay arrived he was no more, having passed away peacefully on the ist of that month. When I saw him for the last time, which was after death, in place of the haggard appearance of the previous months, his much-loved face had resumed its former sweetness of expres- sion. My brother exerted himself strenuously to obtain for all that was left of Bennett a last resting- place in our national Walhalla, and the liberal- minded Dean Stanley being then in authority, granted to my brother that permission which his 140 Death of Sterndale Bennett successor, Dean Bradley, twelve years later, refused to accord for my brother himself, although urged thereto by an extensive and influentially-signed requisition. The funeral of Sterndale Bennett in the Abbey was attended by an extensive concourse of people who had known him in life, and who admired his character and genius, and the rendering of his unaccompanied quartet, "God is a Spirit," and Dean Stanley's solemn utterances over the grave (which is adjacent to that of Henry Purcell) were deeply impressive. The death of Bennett threw a great deal of remunerative teaching into my hands; and what with my conducting and the necessary preparation for the Academy Concerts, together with my own large teaching con- nection, it will be readily understood I was pretty busy, often out of my house at 7.30 A.M., and not retiring to rest until i A.M. the following day. It is perhaps not wonderful that this abnormal state of things, together with the excitement induced by many public appearances, told upon my health, and a little later on upon my eyesight. The characteristic Prelude on the next page was afterwards included in the composer's " Preludes and Lessons." On the day-week following Bennett's interment, G. A. Macfarren was elected as his successor in the office of Principal and Chairman of the Committee of the R.A.M., and a few weeks later he was also 141 Walter Macfarren elected to succeed his old friend and fellow-student in the Chair of Music in the University of Cambridge. He was proud of these two appoint- ments, and to the end he much preferred the title of Professor to that of the Knighthood; the latter honour he twice declined, and it was finally forced upon his acceptance. 142 New R.A.M. Principal The concerts of the R.A.M. were, in consequence of the Hanover Square Rooms being closed, re- moved in this year (1875) to St. James's Hall, and at the first of these the program me consisted entirely of works from the pen of its late Principal, including the Sacred Cantata, The Woman of Samaria, the Symphony in G minor, the Concerto in C minor, and the poetical Overture, The Naiads. The Philharmonic Society, at its first concert this season on March iSth, 1875, a ^ so P< u 'd tribute to the memory of Sterndale Bennett by devoting the first part of its programme to his compositions, which comprised a manuscript Prelude and Funeral March from the unfinished music to Sophocles's Ajax, and The Woman of Samaria, the soloists in which were Edith Wynne, Madame Patey, W. H. Cummings, and Santley. At the last concert of the season was performed an Idyll in Memory of Sterndale Bennett, composed by G. A. Macfarren expressly for the Society. I was again at Walmer this year, and had a very pleasant cottage in the upper village. On arrival there I observed a crack at one corner of the slate slab outside the French window of the drawing-room, which opened on to the lawn, and I noticed with some curiosity ants making their way in and out of this crack. Before very long they became an intolerable nuisance, so I sent for a kettle of boiling water, which I poured into the said 143 Walter Macfarren aperture, and for a brief space all was still; but during the evening these little creatures swarmed into the drawing-room, so that we had to desert the room, and contemplated giving up the house. Strange to relate, however, during the night they departed, and never in our two months' residence there did we ao-ain see an ant. If I were an o entymologist I should be able to describe this incident in appropriate terms, but as an ignoramus I can only say that it appears to me that at first consternation seized the multitude which had its residence under the slate slab; then came orders to prepare for departure, and hence the commotion which reigned amongst them throughout the even- ing. Finally, the whole insect population emigrated as by one consent, and never again sought the spot which had brought such devastation amoncrst their O O numbers. During this stay I was occupied by the composition of my " First Suite" for Pianoforte, and it was at this house I enjoyed a visit from my brother G. A. Macfarren, in the course of which I wrote down at his dictation two or three numbers of his cantata, r fke Lady of the Lake. Mention has been made of my love for the noble game of cricket, and whenever staying at Walmer I invariably drove over to Canterbury during the cricket week, and revelled in the doings of \V. G. Grace, then at his best, also of Alfred Shaw, Morley (the left-handed bowler), and other heroes 144 Life at Walmer of the bat and ball. Although I have not been able for years to watch the game, I still follow it on paper with keen interest. On the closing- o f the Hanover Square Rooms, I had transferred my annual concerts to Willis's Rooms, and in 1876 migrated to the larger arena of St. James's Hall. As this was really the last of my chamber concerts (which for various reasons I had to abandon), I must record the principal items in the final programme. These consisted of Sterndale Bennett's fine Sextett in F? minor for pianoforte and strings, in which I was associated with Sainton, Amor, A. Burnett, Pezze, and the late eminent contra-bassist, A. C. White, whose familiar figure in opera and Philharmonic and festival orchestras is still greatly missed. In Mozart's beautiful Trio for piano, clarionet, and viola I had for my confreres the late prince of clarionetists, Henry Lazarus, and that excellent violist Alfred Burnett. Then I played my recently published Violin Sonata in D, with Sainton, and my " First Suite," before men- tioned; and Mendelssohn's beautiful Allegro Bril- lante in A was played on two pianos by my talented pupil, Miss Kate Steel, and myself. In addition to these instrumental items, my friend Alberto Ran- degger conducted some part-songs for female voices, which provided contrast to the more serious numbers. This is an appropriate place to record the 145 L Walter Macfarren erection of the new concert-room of the R.A.M., which having- acquired No. 5 in addition to our quarters, No. 4 Tenterden Street the architect, Mr. Porter, very cleverly constructed, by a process which I have described before as being like slicing off the top of a half-quartern loaf, scooping out the whole of the crumb, and then replacing the roof. This concert-room and its orchestra (of my design) was inaugurated early in 1876, and used subsequently not only for our own rehearsals and fortnightly concerts (the latter beino- at the suQfo-estion of \ <_> o o Alberto Ranclegger), but, being licensed, for many outside concerts, including quartet parties of Joachim, Ries, Straus, and Piatti. At the end of July I went to Edinburgh for rest and quiet, and to study the score of my brother's oratorio, The Resurrection, which I was to con- duct at the approaching Birmingham Festival. My rooms in the Queen's Gardens overlooked the Forth and the distant mountains, and the weather being delightful, I enjoyed many rides and drives in the neighbourhood of the Scottish capital. On Saturday, August 26th, 1 went to Birming- ham, had a choral rehearsal in the afternoon, and some practice in the Town Hall with Santley and the organist, the late Mr. Stimpson, in the evening. On the Sunday I dined with Santley and Maybrick at their comfortable old-fashioned hostelry at Fclg- baston, and had a very jolly afternoon and evening " The Resurrection " with them. The performance of 77/6' Resurrection came off on Wednesday, August 3oth ; and on the morning of the previous Monday (my 5oth birthday) I received a charming letter from my brother, offer- ing me the dedication of the work as a birthday gift, which touched me greatly. I was appointed to be at the Town Hall for rehearsal at 9 o'clock, and half-an-hour before that time the imperious con- ductor, Sir Michael Costa, sent to me uro-ing mv o o * immediate attendance ; but as the rain poured down in torrents, which is not an unfrequent experience in that manufacturing district, there was much <_> difficulty in obtaining a cab. However, I arrived before the appointed hour, and found Sainton and all the orchestra in a state of revolt, declaring that as the seats and desks were arranged they had no elbow-room ; Costa was furious, and summoned the carpenters. The arrangement of the seats, etc., had to be entirely altered, and the rehearsal did not really commence until 10 o'clock ; then I was continually ur^ed to oret on faster and faster by Sir Michael, but, same; but, alas! for the vanity of human wishes, the wine was all gone, and we had to put up with some- thing of a very inferior character. From Lucerne we had a long journey to Paris, but broke the monotony by staying- at a thoroughly French town for a night; this was Troyes, where we feel luxuriously, and slept less continuously than we should have done without the unwelcome com- pany which forced itself on our attention. In this town is a grand specimen of Gothic architecture an old church or cathedral so far too large for the necessities of the population that religious worship is carried on in a corner of the building. Towards the middle of September we arrived in Paris, which, it being the year of one of their great exhibitions, was even more gay than usual, and the week we remained there was replete with interest, our meeting with my old friend Parry (Ashdown & Parry) adding zest to our enjoyment. We crossed the channel from Boulogne in a gale, and were 161 M Walter Macfarren about the only passengers who escaped the mal de mer; but even we were very glad to reach the terra firma of Folkestone, whence we took rail to Dover, and coached to my old haunt, Walmer, where, promising ourselves a good English repast at the principal inn in Deal, we were somewhat disappointed, for it being Harvest Thanksgiving, all the shops were closed, and at this royally- named hotel we had to put up with underdone fresh-killed chops, and one-and-sixpenny "fruity" port. Throughout this foreign ramble, extending over some nine weeks, my companion, F. Westlake, was like a brother to me. I shall never forget his un- tiring devotion and endless attention; but it must have been gratifying to him that the result of the complete change I had had was most satisfactory. My sight, which in the month of June had failed more and more day by dav, seemed by mainc to j j ' j o have been arrested in its downward progress, and I regained courage and hope. We were met at Charing Cross in right royal fashion by the late Stanley Lucas (then Secretary of the Philharmonic Society) and Henry R. Eyers, who accompanied me home and only left me after a more generous repast than that we had not enjoyed at Deal. Now, I resumed all my old work, directing my mind to composition so as to leave no time for bitter reflection. The earliest result of this fresh 162 "Hero and Leander" start was the overture, " Hero and Leander." I had long before been attracted by Leigh Hunt's poem on this subject, and I now bent all my energy to its musical illustration, with what success it is not for me to say; but without vanity I may point to the many occasions of its performance. It was first given at Bristol, in December, and early in the following year at Kuhe's Brighton Festival (both under my direction) ; then it was performed by the Philharmonic at its first concert on February 5th, 1880 (under the direction of Cusins); at the Leeds Festival of that year (composer conducting); at the Crystal Palace, 1881 (conducted by August Manns); at the Worcester Festival, 1881 (conducted by my- self); at one of my own orchestral concerts in St. James's Hall, 1882; at the Westminster Orchestral Society (under my old pupil, Stewart Macpherson); and on many less important occasions. The disastrous collision which occasioned the loss of the Princess Alice steamboat, the news of which reached me at Lucerne, was a source of deep sorrow to me, my highly- promising young pupil, Henry J. Cockram being among its victims. This little fellow, who was only fourteen years of age at the time of his death, had been twice elected Sterndale Bennett Scholar, and we all regarded his future career with brightest hope. In connection with this sad event, my good friend Myles Birket Foster, who was then a student at the R.A.M., 163 Walter Macfarren composed a beautiful choral piece in memory of his lost friend, to whom he was much attached, a per- formance of which took place at one of the orchestral concerts of the R.A.M. I have another association with that terrible accident, for twelve girls, pupils of the Queen's College, Tufnell Park, whose parents ''*-' C" ' 1 w T ere in India or Australia, had been left at school throughout the holidays, and as a little treat, two governesses accompanied them to Rosherville by the Princess Alice, where they did spend a happy day. On their return voyage, when within sight of Blackwall Pier, the collision occurred, and only one out of these fourteen souls escaped to tell the tale, she being dragged into a row-boat more dead than alive. This was Miss Randal, who recounted to me personally her awful experience. This Christmas installed an annual visit to my friend the late Yal Goold and his charming- family, at Glastonbury, the interesting features of \vhich place, its ruined abbey and its adjacent cathedral at Wells, constitute to me a very pleasant memory. Before quitting the memories of this year, I must, at flic risk of being thought unduly egotistical, record one more memory of strong interest to my- self. It was in the month of July no doubt as an expression of sympathy that I was presented with a massive silver inkstand, which bears the following inscription :-~ 164 Presentation " Presented to WALTER CECIL MACFARREN, Esq., Professor and Conductor of the Royal Academy of Music, by his Pupils and the Members of the Choir, in token of their sincere regard. July 1878." The album which accompanied this gift contains 105 autograph signatures, amongst which the following will be recognised by most people in the world of music: Margaret Bucknall (Mrs. Alfred Eyre), Walter Fitton, Tobias Matthay, Mary Lock, Margaret Gyde, Mary Forty (Mrs. Frank Lawson), Henry R. Rose, Kate Steel, Annie Martin (Mrs. Russell-Starr), Ada Hazard, Maude Valerie White, Harvey Lohr, Clara Samuell, Amy Hare, Mary Davies, Alfred Eyre, Robert Acldison, Eaton Faning, Oliveria Prescott, F. W. Arnold, A. J. Greenish, W. G. Wood, H. A. J. Campbell, W. Brereton, and Arthur Goring Thomas. At the final concert of the Philharmonic in 1879, two events occurred which are worthy of mention. The first was the production of G. A. Macfarren's Symphony in E minor, and the other was the ap- pearance of Saint-Saens in the dual capacity of pianist and organist. In the former work, the Serenade (slow movement) and the Gavotte, in place of the usual Scherzo, attracted much notice, and by his performance of his own pianoforte Concerto in G minor (with its delightful Scherzo), and of Bach's Prelude and Fugue in A minor, Saint-Saens proved himself a consummate master of both instruments. 165 Walter Macfarren It is some time since I referred to my theatrical experiences, and this is a fitting opportunity to allude to the brilliant career of Sir Henry Irving, at whose first appearance in London in the Belle s Stratagem, at the St. James's Theatre (then under the management of Miss Herbert), I assisted. I was under the impression that this event occurred as early as 1863, but Sir Henry recently assured me that it was in 1867. However, the date is not so important as the fact that he made his mark at once, and deepened the impression he then made by his subsequent performances at the same theatre. At the Vaudeville his " Digby Grand " in Albery's charming piece, The Two Roses, his " Ne'er-do- weel " in Dearer than Life, and his " Bill Sykes " at the Queen's Theatre in Long Acre, fore- shadowed his pre-eminence. Thus, under the Bateman management his phenomenal success as " Mathias " in The Bells, his truthful portrait of "Charles I.," and his "Hamlet" raised him to the front rank of his profession. In all these performances Henry Irving evinced a power of characterisation, a mobility of expression, and a variety of style which have proclaimed him a great actor. When Sir Henry distributed the prizes at the annual Royal Academy of Music meeting, in the Queen's Hall, he stated that he was no musician and knew nothing about the art ; but 1 66 Sir Henry Irving if no musician, he nevertheless had the good taste to engage eminent composers to write special music for the dramas produced under his management at the Lyceum Theatre Sir A. C. Mackenzie's music to Ravenswood, and Edward German's to Henry VIII., will be in everybody's recollection. My domestic anxiety and my impaired sight left me only two courses either to give way altogether and subside into nothingness, or to defy Fate and fight a sea of troubles. I embraced the latter resolve, continued my conducting at the Academy, learning everything by heart, even down to the student's compositions, directing in this manner successful performances of works by Eaton Failing, Myles Birket Foster, and the late Goring Thomas. As a teacher, I was still abundantly occupied, and in the field of composition I became more active than I had been for many years, " Hero and Leander " being succeeded by my first and only Symphony, which engrossed my thoughts through- out the year 1879. When I say "engrossed my thoughts," I mean that it was the principal factor in keeping me from the "blues"; but many smaller productions date from this period as, for instance, the little pianoforte piece, " Rondino Grazioso," "The Linnet Song," and "Awake, O Heart," besides many other bagatelles. The summer holidays of this year were passed at Folkestone and Rock Ferry, near Birkenhead, 167 Walter Macfarren the latter being the hospitable house of Mr. Robert Steel, whose talented and much regretted wife furnished me with the words of the aforesaid and many other lyrics ; and in company with that lady and her sister (my pupil) Kate Steel, I made another enjoyable tour in Scotland, visiting many of the old scenes and some fresh ones with keen relish. On the 5th of February, 1880, my overture, " Hero and Leander," was given at the Philharmonic as before mentioned, and my Symphony in B flat was produced at Kuhe's Brighton Festival on the 24th of the same month, and hence it has been nicknamed "The Brighton Symphony." Many of the orchestral professors engaged at the Academy were likewise in Mr. Kuhe's Band, and others, as well as the leading students, volunteered to go down to Brighton, and thus increase the orchestra in support of their conductor, and the occasion was marked by great enthusiasm. My dinner-party at the "Old Ship" (where I was located) was augmented by the arrival of my dear brother G. A. Macfarren, accompanied by his then secretary, the late Windy er Clark, both of whom had travelled down expressly to hear the Symphony, and returned the same night. The examination for the Bennett Scholarship on April 2ist was remarkable from its having been gained by a youth of some fourteen summers, night 1 68 Symphony in B flat Stewart Macpherson, to whom I took such a liking that I requested the Principal to place him in my class, and thus commenced an association which ripened into fast friendship of the most intimate character. Stewart Macpherson's progress at the Academy was singularly rapid and uniformly suc- cessful, and the prizes and scholarships which fell to his lot need not be here recounted, for they all appear in the published records of the Institution; but I may say that far from regretting the Principal's compliance with my request, I am proud of the high position in his profession which has been achieved by my whilom pupil. On May 24th I went down to Bristol, and there conducted my Symphony at one of Riseley's Orchestral Popular Concerts in the Colston Hall, which was demolished by fire in 1898 ; and I take this opportunity of recording the hospitable treat- ment I have enjoyed on many occasions from the said George Riseley, who has proved by his direc- tion of two recent Bristol Festivals, his right to be placed in the front rank among conductors. On June 9th in this year I conducted an Academy Orchestral Concert for the last time. Since the commencement of my eye trouble I had been doing my work as director of the choir and orchestra under difficulties, and finding the strain O> upon my memory, together with my ever-increasing occupation as teacher, editor, etc., taxing my powers 169 Walter Macfarren unduly, I determined upon what the Japanese call the " happy despatch," and with great reluctance relinquished the position which for eight years had been a source of great pleasure to me, and handed in my resignation on June i6th. Of course I con- tinued in office until the end of the term, and a memory never to be forgotten is that of the ovation which met me on my last appearance at the prize- giving on the 24th of July. After a long and trying term, a visit of some weeks to the late Dr. Speer at Ventnor greatly refreshed me, and I had many drives and walks throughout that beautiful island with his son, my pupil, Charlton Speer. This visit was memorable from the wonderful astronomic display I witnessed one evening, when for several hours the heavens were lit up with comets and shooting stars in all manner of shapes, which I can only liken to a display of fireworks on a tremendous scale, and these successive coruscations did not subside until daylight. On the 1 2th of August I left Ventnor not for grouse shooting, which is not in my line, but to attend the rehearsal of my Symphony, that was played at the Promenade Concert at Covent Garden on the night of the i3th, under the direction of my friend Frederic H. Cowen (now Dr.), who has since achieved such marked success in the role of conductor, and I may add that the very last article I/O Davison's last "Times" article the late J. W. Davison contributed to the Times was a notice of this performance. After another week in the Island, and a pleasant month with my friends the Steels, at Rock Ferry, I was back in London and in harness on September 2 I St. I travelled to Leeds on October I ith in company with J. W. Davison and Joseph Bennett, the former being the guest of the latter, and not engaged in official capacity. My visit to Leeds was mainly to conduct my overture, " Hero and Leander," at the Festival on the i4th. On this occasion, having the ill-luck to catch my baton on the desk before me with the first stroke, the largest portion of it broke and flew off into the auditorium, and I had to conduct that enormous orchestra with the three or four inches that remained ; but the overture went right well, and I had a handsome recall and hearty congratulation from Arthur Sullivan, the conductor of the Festival. During this Festival I was staying at the house of friends, and while there received a mysterious parcel. Do not be alarmed, fair reader ! it was not dynamite, but the lost part of my baton, which some kind friend had picked up and thus restored it to its owner ; subsequently the two pieces were welded together \vith a silver band, and it was used on many succeeding occasions. I have now to speak of a new phase of my career which commenced this autumn, and became 171 Walter Macfarren a prominent feature in my life for upwards of twenty years. My first Lecture-Recitals occurred at Hull, on November 3Oth and December ist, the subject being " The History of the Pianoforte," w r hich I myself illustrated. On these and all my subsequent appearances as lecturer I was unassisted by note of any kind, and whether or not I have a good delivery, as some of my too partial triends aver, I think I may say without being unduly egotistical, that I possess that quality to which these reminiscences may be ascribed memory. At a meeting of the Philharmonic Committee in o December, the principal actors in which have nearly all departed, unfortunate discussion arose which resulted in my resignation of the office of Honorary Treasurer and Director, and following my example, Dr. \V. H. Cummings, the late Sir Julius Benedict, and Sir Charles Halle also retired from the direction. Of the remaining three directors only one, who shall be nameless, still lives. The season 1881 was such a disastrous one, that the guarantors were called upon to repair a considerable loss, and in a moment of irritation, on having to bleed heavily, I resigned membership of the Society. The Christmas of this year was again spent with my genial friends the Goolds at Glastonbury, and then I proceeded i'id Bristol to York, where I passed the last of many well-remembered visits to my late friend, Dr. K. G. Monk, who, together 172 Lecture-Recitals at Hull with his charming; lady, alas! lies in the little churchyard at Radley. *ST- - f~_ "- "T ' jjt-- -"" - ~---4-*-*t. AUTOGRAFH OF EDWIN GEORCK MONK, MUS. DOC., ORGANIST OF YORK MINSTER, FROM MY ALBUM. On Tuesday, January iSth, 1881, I had a very uncomfortable experience, for leaving Birkenhead 173 Walter Macfarren at 11.30 A.M., with the expectation of arriving at Paddington at 5.30 P.M., and attending an important meeting in the evening, I did not actually reach London until midnight on Thursday, 2Oth. To make a long story short, it snowed on leaving Birkenhead, and on reaching Oxford it not only snowed but blew a hurricane. If the Great Western officials had told us the truth that the line was blocked with snow a little farther on, we might have had accommodation at Oxford, and been spared the really terrible trial we under- went that night and the two following clays. The train proceeded more and more slowly until a few yards beyond Radley Station it came to a stand- still ; there w r e were detained prisoners through- out the night, and only released in the morning to wade knee-deep through snow, to find neither food nor warmth at the little hostelry hard by. The late Dean of Christ Church, Dr. Liddell, was amongst the passengers, and was taken in at a neighbouring house ; and a small party of us, guided by a country yokel, proceeded to Abingdon over fields, through snow that was always knee-deep, and sometimes more, and then after a toilsome and very moist journey of two miles and a half, which took us three or four hours, we put up at the " Oueen's Arms." Evil fate pursued us even there, for the landlord was unfortunately in the very act of departing this life, and the whole establishment was attending his O 174 Snowed Up death-bed. However, the landlady presently looked after our wants, which were not a few, for we were wet through, and had not tasted food for thirty hours. My most intimate friends would hardly have recognised me in the costume provided for me while my own was being dried. If the clothes furnished me were those of the deceased landlord, he must have been a tall and broad person, for they were many sizes too large, and I moved about as though I was encased in sacks. We continued at Abingdon until Thursday afternoon, 2Oth, when, learning that a special train would endeavour to make its way from Oxford, a party, including myself, waded again through snow (which had never ceased) to Radley Station, and thence by train, consisting of four engines and five carriages, we made a dreary journey, which lasted until midnight. Strange to say, I suffered nothing in health from this disaster, but lost some of my impedimenta, which the Great Western Railway declined to make o;ood on the "round that it was o & < such a conspicuous feature in PnncJi. Mis singing' of French chansons, to his own accompaniment, was an experience I can never forget. In the summer of this year I met for the hrst time the late Sir George Grove, at a meeting convened for the purpose of raising a testimonial to the genial and enthusiastic August Manns, who had rendered such service to the Art, by his direc- tion of the Crystal Palace Concerts, and by his encouragement of native musicians. Sir George greeted me with the exclamation, "Oh! so you are the great unknown," to which I rejoined, "No; I am the little known." The friendship thus com- 176 "King Henry V." Overture menced resulted in many pleasant passages with the future Director of the Royal College of Music, and we were so thoroughly in sympathy in our views about music that we had pleasant talks and correspondence. I met Sir George again at the Worcester Festival in September of this year, when I also renewed my acquaintance with Alexander Campbell Mackenzie, whom I had not seen since he was a boy in the Academy, and had the satisfaction of hearing the initial performance of his cantata The Bride, which first brought him into prominent notice. My share in the Festival was a humble one, and consisted in conducting " Hero and Leander." Alberto Randegger assumed the conductorship of the Norwich Festival, in succession to Julius Benedict, in this year, and he invited me to compose an orchestral piece for that event, which resulted in the production of my Overture to King Henry V. I went down to conduct it on October I3th, returning to town on the following day in such a tornado that I expected the train would topple over, and when I reached London I saw chimney- pots and balustrades in the roadway, and had to pick my way with circumspection to avoid personal spoliation. It is worthy of record that the Local Centre Examinations of the Royal Academy of Music were commenced in the early part of this year. 177 N Walter Macfarren Seeing to what huge proportions they have grown, especially in connection with the Royal College of Music as the Associated Board, it is curious to remember that the initial entries, all told, only occupied the attention of two examiners, who were the late Brinley Richards (the kindly composer of "God bless the Prince of Wales") and myself, my share being limited to the pupils of the Ladies' College at Cheltenham. 178 CHAPTER XI. 1882-87. Orchestral concerts in St. James's Hall Joachim Sainton Piatti- Santley Lectures at Bristol Death of Richard Wagner SOH^~ of the Sunbeam Testimonial to G. A. Macfarren, aged seventy Knighthood of G. A. Macfarren, and opening of the Royal College of Music Dine at Ironmongers' Co. Earl Roberts Sainton's farewell concert Autumnal rambles AV;/^ David at Leeds Vladimir de Pachmann Philharmonic Anton Dvorak Death of Costa Radley Lectures at Birmingham G. A. Mac- farren's lecture on Handel and Bach Death of Madame Sainton- Dolby Westminster Orchestral Society Demise of Brinley Richards, Julius Benedict, J. W. Davison, and W. H. Holmes Visit to Buxton Manchester Gold Medals Dr. Franz Liszt and Walter Bache Fanny Davies Liszt scholarship F. Lablache- Mr. and Mrs. Henry Littleton Lecture at Wallasey The Three Macs G. A. Macfarren's dinner on Mozart's birthday G. A. Macfarren's last birthday Kcnilwortli Holiday in North of England with G. A. Macfarren Death of my brother George Funeral in Hampsteacl, and Memorial Service in Westminster Abbey Interim Triumvirate St. Jo/in the Jlaptist at Academy under Sir Joseph Barnby. AT the beginning- of 1882 I determined to try my luck with some orchestral concerts, and I set about this project with all the energy I could muster. I had two motives in undertaking this experiment. One was to ascertain if a remunerative audience could be attracted at moderate prices by a first-rate orchestra and good artists ; the other motive was to show the world that although I had resigned the o o 179 Walter Macfarren Academy conductorship, I was not quite cjjctc, I therefore booked St. James's Hall for three Satur- day evenings, engaged a splendid band of eighty performers, with Sainton as chef d'attaque, first-rate soloists vocal and instrumental and made my prices of admission as follows: stalls, /s. ; balcony, Ss. and 2s. 6d. ; area and tiallerv. is. Then, to >J O s ' render myself equal to the occasion, I studied and committed to memory the scores of all the works, vocal and instrumental, to be included in my pro- o-rammes, as I intended to conduct them all without o book. The first of these concerts took place on the evening of Februarv 2^th; and Mendelssohn's Over- o ^ %_" ture to Rny Bias, the first item in the scheme, was encored with acclamation. Beethoven's C minor Symphony, Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto (with Prosper .Sainton as soloist), my own "Concertstuck" for pianoforte (my talented pupil, Miss Margaret Gyde, being the soloist), and my Overture to King Henry V. were the other instrumental items. The only vocalist was Charles Santley, a tower of strength in himself, and he sang, with all his accustomed fire, pathos, humour, and beauty of voice, Handel's "O ruddier than the Cherry" and Mozart's " Xon piu andra'f." The second concert took place on March iith, when the programme comprised my " Pastoral Overture"; Spohr's Sym- phony, "Die Weihe der Tone"; Beethoven's Overture, " Leonora," No. 3 ; Sterndale Bennett's 180 Orchestral Concerts Concerto in C minor (with one of the Sterndale Bennett scholars, my pupil, Charlton Speer, at the pianoforte) ; a new Concertino for violoncello by Alfredo Piatti, that great artist himself taking the solo part ; and the Overture, Nocturne, Scherzo, and the glorious Wedding March from Mendels- sohn's Midsummer Nights Dream. The vocalist was the late Madame Patey, who sang Gluck's "Che faro," and "Lay of the imprisoned Hunts- man," from my brother's cantata, The Lady of the Lake. The third concert, on the evening of the 25th of March, opened with Mozart's Overture "Die Zauberflote," then followed Schumann's Pianoforte Concerto (my pupil, Annie Cantelo, being the soloist), Beethoven's Violin Concerto (Joseph Joachim in the solo part), my own Symphony in B flat, and Overtures " Hero and Leander " and "King Henry V.," repeated by request. The vocalist was Miss Mary Davies, who sang " I rejoice in my youth," from G. A. Macfarren's St. John the Baptist, and Spohr's " Rose softly blooming." These three concerts were experimental, and had they been financially successful I should have continued them; but the British public has only lately awakened to the attraction of orchestral music, and although the hall was well filled, my balance was on the wrong side and I was a considerable loser. As the amount was as much as I could afford to spend for my amusement, I gave no more orchestral concerts. 181 Walter Macfarren The rehearsals for these concerts took place on Thursday mornings, and as Dr. Joachim played in Edinburgh on Wednesday night and returned to o ./ o London only in time for Saturday evening's con- cert, I could not have a proper rehearsal of Beet- hoven's Concerto ; so my pupil, Miss Kate Steel, on the Sunday previous, accompanied me to Henry Joachim's house, where his brother was staying ; and while she represented the orchestra on the piano, he played the solo part, and I was occupied as a " chiel takin' notes." I remember, too, that on this occasion the great artist, Herkomer, was a delighted listener. At the rehearsal on the fol- lowing Thursday, Miss Steel sustained the violin part on the pianoforte, a remarkable feat which is probably without a parallel. My dear old friend, Prosper Sainton, not only played, with consummate skill, Mendelssohn's Concerto, but he rendered me yeoman service as my chef cCattaque at these con- certs. So, as I could not induce him to name terms, I called upon him on Sunday, the 26th of March, and begged him to accept a cheque I placed in his hand, as a very slight acknowledgment of his aid. I shall never forget the expression of his face as he put the bit of paper in the fire, and then, placing his arm on my shoulder, asked : " \Yould you not accept this small service out of my great love for you ?" Delicacy forbids my saying what was the amount of that cheque which my friend declined to 182 Beethoven as a Pianoforte Composer accept, but I know that if he had, my balance on the wrong side would have been much heavier than it was. I must not leave unrecorded the generosity of another great artist in connection with this speculation, for when I asked my old friend Charles Santley to name his terms, he ejaculated : " Pooh ! I am going to sing for you, and that's all about it." At the Philharmonic Concert on March Qth an interesting item w r as the Overture to Ossian by Frederic Corder, which \vas performed under the composer's direction. On the 23rd of that same month, Madame Schumann played Mendelssohn's Concerto in G minor, it being the fiftieth anniversary of its first performance by the author, at the Phil- harmonic Concert on the same elate in 1832. On January 3Oth, 1883, I lectured at the Bristol Museum on " Beethoven as a Pianoforte Writer," illustrating my remarks with many examples from his works. I was then on a visit to the late Dr. Swayne, in whose hospitable house I have passed many happy days with my genial host and his charming sister and daughter. With that party I attended, on February ist, the "Ladies' Night" of the Bristol Madrigal Society, and, under the able direction of Mr. D. Rootham, I heard some admirable performances of old and new part-songs, including some of my own contributions to that class of music. I may add that in the year of grace 1904 my part-songs "The Curfew" and "Gentle 183 Walter Macfarren Summer Rain" were performed by the same ex- cellent Society, and under the same direction, Mr. Rootham writing to inform me of this fact, and o mentioning that he conducted from copies bearing my autograph, and presented to the former con- ductor, Mr. Corfe, fifty years ago. Richard Wagner died on February i3th in this year, and the Philharmonic Society very properly paid respect to his memory by devoting the first part of their concert on March i5th to works from his pen. Curiously enough, in the same programme was included the brilliant overture to Ruy JJ/as, by that composer whom the author of Tannhanscr affected to despise ; and, stranger still to say, although it was the last item of the programme, it produced a more marked effect than anything in the Wagner selection. On May gth, Alexander C. Mackenzie produced his Overture, " La Belle Dame sans Merci," a happy musical illustration of Keats's strangely mysterious poem, which the Scotch composer had written expressly for the Society, and which he conducted in person. At the request of my dear friend the late Madame Sainton-Dolby, I composed a short can- tata for female voices, to words by a W. Stewart, who posed under the curious anagram " Wet Star," and The Xong of flic Sunbeam was suc- cessfully introduced to the public at a concert given by Madame Sainton's vocal class in Steinway 184 G. A. Macfarren Testimonial Hall, on April igth. This little work, on which I have the magnificent royalty of one penny each copy, has been a source of very limited income to me ever since. A very remarkable incident was that which occurred on March 3rd, the day following the seventieth anniversary of my brother G. A. Macfarren's birth, of which I must give a short account. Alberto Ranclegger and Henry R. Eyers initiated a subscription for the purpose of present- ing the then Principal of the Royal Academy of Music with a little cheque in recognition of his services to the institution, to which he had devoted himself with unceasing energy, but with utterly inadequate remuneration. The time was short, but these friends, and especially the last-named, w r orked with such will that in the course of a fortnight a handsome sum had been realised. On March 2nd, my brother dined with me, and, as had been arranged, Randegger and Eyers called in the evening and requested the Principal to meet a few friends on the following day at the Academy. As may be supposed, he was curious as to what was the object of this meeting, and endeavoured unsuccessfully to draw me. On the next clay, the Academy concert-room was crowded with friends and admirers, and when the late Sir Julius Benedict (who kindly took the chair on the occasion) mounted the platform, accompanied by my brother, there was 185 Walter Macfarren a tumultuous sreetino- for them. Benedict addressed o o my brother, and in a few graceful words informed him that his friends desired to mark the occasion of his reaching his three-score years and ten by tendering him a o-ift as a slight acknowledgment of _> O C? the invaluable service he had rendered the art of music throughout his life, and he ended by presenting him with a small cheque value ^850 the amount of which when stated seemed to completely overcome its recipient, who was only able to express his thanks in a few and tremulous words. I may as well take this opportunity of recording the hand- some letter in which Mr. Gladstone, then Prime Minister, informed my brother that the Queen was willing to confer upon him the honour of knight- hood an honour he had declined some years pre- viously, and now T respectfully again declined. His astonishment, then, was great when, at the meeting to inaugurate the Royal College of Music, H.R.H. the Prince of Wales announced that her Majesty had been graciously pleased to confer the honour of knighthood on George Macfarren, Arthur Sullivan, and George Grove. All music lovers were proud of the: tribute paid to English musicians, but my brother never took kindly to the title, and valued more highly that of Professor of Music in the University of Cambridge and Principal of the Royal Academy of Music. On June 2Oth I dined as a guest with the 1 86 G. A. Macfarren Knighted Ironmongers' Company at their hall in Fenchurch Street, a circumstance which I mention because Lord (now Earl) Roberts was also a guest on the occasion, and delivered a very powerful and con- clusive argument against the proposition of Sir Edw^ard Watkin to construct a tunnel under the English Channel. Since then, Sir Edward has O been engaged in other and almost equally futile projects, and has now disappeared from the scene altogether. On the other hand, Lord Roberts has again earned the gratitude of his countrymen by his brilliant command of the army in South Africa ; although it must be admitted that when at Cape Town, in the early part of 1901, he averred that the war was virtually over, he left his successor, Lord Kitchener, to carry out some of the most difficult and arduous work in connection with the campaign. On June 25th in this year, Prosper Sainton took his leave of the public at a farewell concert in the Albert Hall, which was somewhat denuded of its attraction by reason of the absence through illness of Madame Patti and Sims Reeves ; but which was nevertheless a very memorable affair, on account of his own admirable performance of Mendelssohn's Concerto, and of his wife's re- appearance on the platform on this special occasion. I was represented at this concert by two talented pupils, Annie Cantelo and Margaret 187 Walter Macfarren Gyde, who played Schumann's beautiful Variations, for two pianofortes, with great success. My holiday \vas of a most varied character, and began by a fortnight's stay at Loversall Hall with my friends the Popes, thence to Kirk Ella to my old friend James Gough, then across the country to Sir T. and Lady Storey, who had for the season the beautiful house and grounds belonging to the Earl of Denbigh, and whose eldest daughter had been my pupil for some years. My next move was to Bristol, and after a brief stay with friends there, I made a journey farther west to Falmouth, and there I passed a pleasant fortnight with Commander Harvey and his lady (a former pupil of mine). I greatly enjoyed their society and the scenery of the neighbourhood, especially the river Fal. Commander Harvey's ship Ganges was stationed at the mouth of the river, and it being a training- ship, I saw with interest much of the system by which A.B.s are educated. The Commander was bound to sleep on board ship two or three times a week, and on these occasions a rowing-boat came to the strand to fetch him after dinner ; and on one evening he left a large party of us with regret, "as duty called, and he must e'en obey." Our surprise was considerable, however, an hour or two after- wards, when he again made his appearance, ex- plaining that as he was about to enter the ship his boatswain reminded him he was in private dress, 1 88 Vladimir de Pachmann and he had to come all the way back for his uniform, which he had entirely forgotten. Passing- through Bristol on my return, I stayed with George Riseley a night or two, and heard him play in masterly fashion on the Colston Hall organ, so unfortunately destroyed in the fire of 1898. My brother's last oratorio. King David, was produced at Leeds, on October i2th, with Mes- dames Albani, Patey, and Trebelli, Messrs. Lloycl and Santley. Thither I went to hear it, and spent an enjoyable week. The second hearing of the work was due to the Sacred Harmonic Society, and took place in St. James's Hall, on December iith, the cast, with two exceptions, being the same as before. As Santley was otherwise engaged, Fred King undertook the title-role, and acquitted himself right well. Edward Lloyd was ill, and at the last moment William Shakespeare came to the rescue, and showed consummate musicianship by rendering the part so effectively as to make one forget that it was a prima vista. I must mention the visit Vladimir de Pachmann paid us at the Academy on the evening of Novem- ber 28th, when he delighted us all with his finished performance of works by Weber, Mendelssohn, Chopin, and Henselt, his reading of the hitter's " Si Oiseau j'etais," entirely staccato throughout, being a marvel of technical dexterity. In January 1884 I repaired to Bristol on a visit 189 Walter Macfarren to my old friends, the McArthurs, and it was during this stay that I was once more a visitor on the "Ladies' Night" of the Bristol Madrigal Society, O C5 * ' again hearing some perfect performances of ancient and modern part-music. On March i jth I played my Concertstiick at one of Riseley's Orchestral Concerts, and on the iSth I once more gave a lecture-recital, the subject being " Pianoforte Music, Ancient and Modern," in the Museum Institute in the same city. The late Mr. (afterwards Sir) \Y. G. Cusins having retired from the office of conductor, the O Philharmonic Society adopted a new policy, the responsible position ot conductor being under- taken by a succession of musicians, Mr. George Mount holding the baton at the first concert. Dr. (now Sir) Yilliers Stanford the second, Mr. }. V. Barnett the third, Mr. G. Mount again the fourth, and Mr. (now Dr.) F. II. Cowen the fifth and sixth. The season was noteworthy from its being the first occasion on which the late Anton Dvorak appeared in person, and he, on March 2Oth, conducted his Over- ture, Hiisitska, his Symphony in 1), and Rhapsodic S/ai'isc/ic. The Society paid a fitting tribute to the memory of Sir Michael Costa, whose death took place on April 29th, by commencing their concert on May 7th with the Dead March in Sail/. Sir Michael was the conductor of the .Society's concerts lor nine years, from 1846 to 1^54 inclusive, and 190 J. W. Davison although opinions differed respecting his reading of familiar classical works, there could be no doubt of the greater efficiency of the orchestra under his firm control, and the advantage derived from the musical direction being for the first time placed in the hands of one individual. At a little dinner I gave to some of my intimates at the Arts Club, the late J. \V. Davison was among those who had accepted the invitation, and after waiting his arrival for upwards of an hour and the waiter having announced the dinner was being ruined, Mr. Joseph Bennett (another of my guests) asked if I was waiting for Davison, and on being answered in the affirmative, he said, " I left him fast asleep in his easy-chair two hours ago, and he is not likely to wake until the early hours of to-morrow." However, the ex-critic of the 7^'mes did put in an appearance at 1 1 o'clock when all was over. Speak- ing of meetings with old friends, I am reminded by my diary of a delightful visit the late Madame Sainton and her husband paid me one Sunday afternoon about this time, when the latter played with Stewart Macpherson Brahms' recondite Sonata in E ; also two manuscript sonatas of my brother's, he and my sister of course being present. My summer rambles included visits to Loversall Hall, Doncaster, where I met a very merry party, including Mr. (now Sir) Henry Bergne and his lady; to Hull, Leeds, Radley, and Clifton. Dr. E. G. 191 Walter Macfarren Monk having resigned his appointment at York, had retired to the little village of Radley, where in former days he had passed many years as music- master at the boys' college, and my visit to him was the first of many such, East Cottage and its beautiful garden forming one of my most agreeable memories. A successful performance of "Heroand Leander," under my direction, occurred on October ist at the Promenade Concert, Covent Garden, and on the same occasion the late eminent violinist, J. T. Carrodus, performed my brother's violin Concerto with his accustomed fine tone and brilliant execu- tion. On the 1 3th of the same month I took my usual quarters at the Queen's Hotel, Birmingham, and on that evening gave my lecture-recital at the adjoining suburb, Edgbaston ; repeating it on the 1 4th at Harborne, on the i5th at Walsall, and on the 1 6th at Moseley. I had addressed the Secretary of the Walsall Institute at that town as "near Birmingham," a circumstance which incensed that gentleman, who assured me that a hundred years earlier it was "Birmingham near Walsall"; but although the first-named place had increased more rapidly than the latter, yet I found Walsall a very populous and thriving town, and had there a very enthusiastic audience. I must record with pride the brilliant perform- ance at the last Academy Chamber Concert of the 192 Handel and Bach year of Moscheles' capital quartet for two piano- fortes, "Les Contrastes," by my accomplished pupils, Kate Steel, Ethel Goolcl, Margaret Bucknall (Mrs. Eyre), and the late Alice Heathcote, which created something like a sensation. My brother gave a very interesting lecture on January ^th, iS8> at the Musical Association, the J * ^ *J subject being " Handel and Bach," in which he pointed out the many resemblances in the career of these two great musicians born in the same year (1685) and within a few miles of one another, both composers and executants of the highest calibre, both blind in their later years, and both destined to live for ever by their works. Yet they never met, and in those slow times probably knew nothing of one another's doings ; while in many respects their careers were widely different, for Handel was a traveller and a man ot the world, and he became a naturalised Englishman. Bach, on the one hand, was content to abide in his humble birthplace, Eisenach, and afterwards in the adjacent little town (then hardly more than a village) of Leipsic. Handel's works were all published in his lifetime, while those of Bach have very gradually become known to the world. Handel never sought the consolation of matrimony; whereas, on the other hand, Bach was married twice and had nineteen children, three at least of whom achieved distinction in the art of which their father was so great a 193 o Walter Macfarren master; these were \Yilhelm Friedmann, Carl Philip Emanuel, and John Christian, known as the "English" Bach from his long- residence here. Charles Santley shortly afterwards gave a lecture in connection with the same Society on the art of which he himself is so consummate a master a lecture which, although concise, was full of inter- esting and valuable information. To my inexpressible grief, my old friend Madame Sainton- Dolby passed away on Wednes- day, February :8th, and on the following Monday her remains were interred in Highgate Cemetery, the funeral being attended by crowds of friends and admirers who had known and loved this great artist in life. A meeting was held at the Academy on the 2 8th, for the purpose of inviting subscriptions towards raising some memorial to perpetuate the name of Charlotte Helen Sainton-Dolby, in connec- tion with the institution which had fostered her talents in bygone days. This resulted in the estab- lishing of the Sainton-Dolby Scholarship and Prize. It was at the end of this term that the eminent organist, Edwin Lemare, who was a pupil of mine for pianoforte, gave a successful reading of my Concertstuck. I again performed the same work at Bristol in the following week, where I was engaged in the Local Examinations, and relieved O O the monotony of this task by lecturing on " Beethoven," in the Bristol Museum. Earl in Madame Sainton-Dolby the next month I was examining in Wolverhampton and Birmingham, and in the latter-named town once more played my ConcertsUick in the fine hall of the Midland Institute, at a concert of the Birmingham Orchestral Society. The Westminster Orchestral Society was insti- tuted in this year, and owes its origin to the energy 195 Walter Macfarren and enthusiasm of its Hon. Sec., Mr. Algernon Rose. This gentleman consulted me as to whom the Society should invite to become its conductor, stating at the same time that a young man of talent, not greedy for high terms, might Imd the position advantageous to his interest. I at once recom- mended my pupil Stewart Macpherson (then in his twentieth year), and I think 1 may say, without exaggeration, that he made the Societv. and that the OO - ' Society made him. The vear iSSs is fraught with painful memories > w O 1 to me, for in this year not only did I lose my old and valued friend Madame Sainton- Dolby, but my friend and colleague, Brinley Richards, who passed away at the beginning of May; and another intimate associate, Sir Julius Benedict, left this world of mingled cares and joys early in June. At the funeral of the Welsh musician on May 7th, in the Brompton Cemetery, the open-air singing of hymns in the \\ elsh tongue by a choir of compatriots, led by Mary Davies, was infinitely touching; while the funeral of Benedict on [une 9th, at Kensal Green, attended by an immense concourse of people, was equally affecting. Sir Julius had been a kind friend to me from my boyhood, and one of my earliest compositions is dedicated to him. In the year 1879 he married my pupil, Miss Forty (now Mrs. Frank Lawson), so that there was a strong link snapped by his departure. 196 Sir Julius Benedict \ V f i j kit 44,j J I CiT m lAn si \ v "v, V, Si Time passes so quickly, and events follow one another with such rapidity, that the name of this 197 Walter Macfarren excellent musician and prominent public man is likely to be forgotten by those who knew him, and his name to be unfamiliar to the rising generation ; and therefore I desire to place on record the very high estimation in which I held him as a man and a musician. His private benevolence was unbounded, and the composer of S/. Peter and the Lily of Killarney was an artist in every sense of the word. In this year I had also to regret the death of one of my old masters, W. H. Holmes, and of a colleague, Harold Thomas. Another, and still older friend whom I had known from early childhood, also passed away in this fatal year; this was the once- powerful musical critic of the Times, James William Davison, w T ho in early years had done much to influence my future career, and to create in me enthusiasm for the art of which I have been an earnest disciple. These events and the strain of hard work told on my health, but a visit of many weeks' duration to Buxton, with the tine air of the Peak district, did me more good than doctors. During my residence there I much enjoyed a brief turn with the baton, for there was an excellent little orchestra attached to the Gardens of that place, and the conductor frequently handed me the stick, my name often figuring in the programmes. I must not omit to express the pleasure and valuable information I derived from the lecture 198 Dr. Franz Liszt delivered by my late friend, Alfred J. Hipkins, at South Kensington, on October 2 3rd. It was really remarkable that this worthy and kind- hearted gentleman, in the midst of a very busy life, should have gathered from all sources such authentic particulars concerning ancient musical instruments, a subject on which he came to be regarded as one of the first of living authorities. o o A short visit to Manchester to adjudicate the gold medals generously given by citizens of Cottonopolis, and a second performance of my Violin Sonata with Mr. G. H. Betjemann, at a concert given by the latter at Highgate, finished the record of this year. In the early part of 1886 I was again busy at Bristol, playing my Concertsttick at one of Riseley's Orchestral Concerts on March i5th, lecturing at the Bristol Museum on the i6th, and examining for the Royal Academy of Music day by clay up to the 24th, when I went on to Cheltenham, where I fulfilled a similar duty, and while there adjudicated the prize vase at the Boys' College for the best choral singing, and met at the house of Dr. Kynaston, the then head-master, Prince Adolphus of Teck. Dr. Franz Liszt had not re- visited England since 1842, and he was in this year, on the invitation of the late Mr. Henry Littleton, of the firm of Novello & Co., induced once more to set foot on our shores. On April 31x1 Mr. Littleton gave, 199 Walter Macfarren at his palatial residence at Sydenham, a grand reception, when amongst his guests were numbered almost every one of note in the artistic world not only musicians, but literary men, painters, sculptors, etc., and the great Abbe, in his clerical costume, was the cynosure of all eyes. Subsequently, I met Dr. Liszt at the reception given him by my late friend, Walter Bache, who idolised his whilom master, and annually gave concerts to bring forward his works, which the public did not greatly care to hear, but which drained his hero-worshipper's pocket. Liszt also visited us at the Academy, and on this occasion and that last referred to, he w r as induced to give an exhibition of his virtuosity on the pianoforte. It will be remembered that I heard the great pianist in the year 1842, and the forty-four years which had elapsed had not impaired his powers, but, on the contrary, as it appeared to me, he had greatly refined his style and touch, both of which can only be described as masterly. His death in August of the same year caused regret to the many friends he had made during his visit here. That talented pianist, Fanny Davies, made her debut at the Philharmonic on April i5th in this year, and as an Englishwoman, she chose appropriately enough, Sterndale Bennett's fine Concerto in C minor for her initial performance. I was away examining at the time, but I had my revenge at 200 Liszt Scholarship Birmingham on the 2oth of the month, when I attended the recital she gave in her native town. I have been gratified in following this admirable artist's career from one success to another, and to know that she is acknowledged to be one of a very select party of eminent virtuosi. Local Examinations and a short visit to Don- caster, and I was once more back to my old occupations in Tenterclen Street and elsewhere. On May i8th I attended a meeting, which re- sulted in the formation of a committee, and the issue of invitations to subscribe to a fund, for the purpose of founding a scholarship at the Royal Academy of Music to perpetuate the memory of Franz Liszt. That this was eventually accomplished it is needless to say ; but it should be mentioned that his ardent disciple, Walter Bache, whose too early demise occurred not very long after that of his master, left by his will a sum of money to further enrich this scholarship, which is at present worthily held by Miss Winifred Christie. If I refer to the performance of Frederick Lablache's little Requiem, composed on the occasion of the death of his daughter, it is not on account of the merit of the work, which was simple and unpretentious, but to record my regard for an excellent professor and estimable gentleman, a worthy son of his great father. Another pleasant memory of this period is that 2OI Walter Macfarren of the late Stacey Shirks, R.A., a capital painter, many of whose works may be seen in art galleries to attest the fact, and whose Denial humour is reflected on most of his canvases. Holiday time this year was spent in various parts of England, and commenced with a month in my favourite haunt Yentnor; and later, a few clays passed under the hospitable roof of my old friends, Mr. and Mrs. Henry R. Eyers, the former in his bucolic character being thoroughly genial and hearty, and the latter as ever charming. Einally, I spent a week with dear old Dr. Monk at Radley, especially memorable to me from my having met on that occasion the late Mr. and Mrs. Henry Littleton, the former of whom used to sit up with me till the small hours of the morning, recounting his varied experiences ; about his iirst coming to London, his engagement at Alfred Xovello's, the growth of that remarkable firm (of which he became the chief subsequently), and the curious circumstances that led to his acquirement of the business of Ewer (S: Co., which he amalgamated with that of Xovello. I think the very last occasion on which I took a hand at whist (not that attenuated tiling called progressive whist, but the real thing, clear to the heart ot Mrs. 1 kittle), was with these worthy people and the Doctor. I had previously had many business transactions with Mr. Henry Littleton, but this was the first occasion on which Lecture-Recital at Bristol I had met him in social intercourse, and I found him singularly bright and genial. I was more than ever impressed by his keen and intelligent view of things in general, and little thought that in less than two years this active and apparently healthy man would have passed away. On the 1 6th of November I once more gave a lecture-recital at the Bristol Museum, and during this visit I accepted a commission from the Orpheus Society to compose a part-song for male voices, specially applicable to Queen Victoria's approaching Jubilee. My old pupil Stephen Kemp scored a success at his concert on the 26th of this month, which highly gratified me; and on December ist, the late Charles Fowler (a protege of the Baroness Burclett- Coutts, and an old fellow-student of my own) gave a concert in Prince's Hall in my honour, the pro- gramme bearing my portrait, and being selected entirely from my works. This was a well-meant but somewhat premature compliment, the like of which is usually reserved as a posthumous tribute. On December i6th, 1886, I went to Liverpool, with Stewart Macpherson as my companion, and gave a lecture-recital on the other side of the Mersey at Wallasey, at the institute of which place I had been immediately preceded by Stanley, the African explorer and discoverer of Livingstone. This calls to mind the pithy remark of a great 203 Walter Macfarren scientist, Sir Humphry Davy, who, on being- asked what was his greatest discovery, replied, "Oh, my greatest discovery was Michael Faraday!" On my return to the North- Western Hotel, I had for my companions at supper Macpherson and Mackinlay, the secretary, so that we were three " Macs." But it would have been in vain that we uttered the question of the witches in Macbeth, " When shall we three meet again ?" for that event has not transpired, and is never likely to occur. However, we hobnobbed in merry fashion, and two of the three were destined very often, but I trow not too often, to meet again. On the 2/th of January 1887, the anniversary of Mozart's birth, G. A. Macfarren gave a dinner at the Holborn Restaurant to the Academy professors, and although in very indifferent health, he delivered a speech, bidding us drink to the immortal memory of that illustrious musician, which those who heard it will never forget. On February i6th I went to Bristol, and played at the concert of my highly-esteemed pupil. Miss Mary Lock, A.R.A.M.; and on the i 7th conducted at the concert of the Orpheus Society the new part-song I had composed for them in honour of Queen Victoria's Jubilee. On the iSth I returned to town. The 2nd of March, my brother's seventy-fourth and last birthday, was celebrated at my house by a 204 G. A. Macfarren's Birthday very select party of intimates, consisting of my late brother John and his wife ; my late friend, A. J. Hipkins ; and my pupils, Stewart Macpherson, Kate Steel, Dora Brig-ht, Ethel Boyce, and Edith Young-, the three last-named playing the three movements of my Second Suite, which are dedicated to them respectively. On this well-re- membered occasion, my brother addressed us in a manner which, under the circumstances, made a very deep impression upon all who heard him. At the annual meeting of the Westminster Orchestral Society my brother made a thoroughly genial and humorous speech, although at the time his health was fast failing. Speaking of West- minster and its various historical associations, I remember one touch which produced roars of laughter it was when he referred to Whitehall as being' in Westminster, and where Charles I. had his head taken off, perhaps because he was too tall ! I do not think I have mentioned that at Madame Albani's request my brother undertook to compose an opera for the Italian Opera, Covent Garden, and that this work, on the subject of Kenilworth^ the result of some eighteen months' incessant thought, through some business misunderstanding, never saw the light. The overture, however, was played at the Philharmonic Concert of June ijth, under the direction of Arthur Sullivan, but, owing to 205 Walter Macfarren unavoidable mischance, was not rehearsed, and con- sequently went but indifferently. I have confidence, however, in the work, and firmly believe that there is a future for it, and others of my brother's un- known compositions. At the end of July my sister accompanied me on a visit to Loversall Hall, near Doncaster, and from thence on August loth we made a very long- drive to Buxton, stopping en route at Sheffield, and through the most romantic scenery on to our final destination, which we did not reach until late in the evening. At Buxton we were joined by my brother, G. A. Macfarren, whose health had rapidly declined from the early part of the year, and we hoped that as the line air of Derbyshire suited him so well two years before, that it would prove beneficial now. It did so temporarily, but being with him day by day, I could not but realise how weak he had become. The news of the death of poor Francis Ralph (violinist) greatly affected him, and on his return to London shortly after this event, he would have attended the obsequies of this young and talented professor but for our good friend Randegger, who took upon him- self kindly to insist on his remaining at home. Alas ! we little thought that the like ceremony was to take place so shortly in which the then Principal of the R.A.M. was to be the central figure. \Ve persuaded him to have medical advice, which he had hitherto rejected, and the late Dr. Leslie Ogilvy reported 206 Death of G. A. Macfarren to me that my brother was suffering from chronic bronchitis and a weak heart, and if the former should become acute it might go hard with him. Nevertheless my brother stuck to his work, never absenting himself from any Academy function. He was present at the fortnightly concert on October 2910, driving home in company with T. B. Knott (his assistant), who told me that the Principal was even brighter and more jocose than usual. It was the last time on which I saw him alive. On the following Monday Lady Thompson drove to my house, having called at Hamilton Terrace to inquire after my brother's health, and she brought to me the terrible news of his demise on the afternoon of the 3 1 st I will not dwell on this painful theme, except to say that to me it was one of the greatest, if not the greatest loss I ever sustained, for my brother George was, being so much my senior, a father as well as a brother to me; he was a man of singular purity and integrity, and one of the least selfish persons I have ever known. That his high char- acter as a man and a musician were appreciated at their worth, was shown in the immense concourse of musicians, artists, and literary men who assembled in the Hampstead Cemetery, on November 5th, and in Westminster Abbey on the afternoon of that day, at the memorial service held in his honour, when the dead composer's service in E Hat, his anthem, ''The Lord is my Shepherd," and his 207 Walter Macfarren Funeral March from the music to slja.v (com- posed for Cambridge University), which was 208 Interment of G. A. Macfarren impressively played by Sir Frederick Bridge, formed the musical features of the occasion. The late Dean Bradley in feelinof terms referred. / O in his little address from the altar steps, to the remarkable achievements of the deceased under one of the greatest afflictions (loss of sight) to which man is subject. At the same time the Dean alluded to the recent decease of that great vocal artist, Madame Goldschmidt (Jenny Lind). Canon Duck- worth, assisted bv the Rev. W. S. Ste^will, read J O O the service at Hampstead, the Canon gracefully tnvino- to the younger man (who was the son of a O O / O friend of my brother) the duty of reading the im- portant chapter from St. Paul to the Corinthians, but reserving to himself the solemn office of com- mitting the mortal remains to the earth. This he did in such an impressive manner that I shall never forget it. At a meeting of the Committee of the Academy, held shortly after these events, the three senior professors were appointed to carry out the duties of Principal, pending the election of a successor to my brother; these were Charles Steggall, Mus. Doc., Prosper Sainton, and myself, and we continued in office for six months. There is little else to say respecting the remaining weeks of this year, except to record the memorial performance by the Academy Choir and Orchestra of G. A. Macfarren's oratorio, St. John the Baptist, preceded by the composer's 209 p Walter Macfarren Funeral March from Ajax, which took place, under the direction of the late Sir Joseph Barnby, at the Christmas Concert of the R.A.M. in St. James's Hall, on December iQth, 1887. A special interest attaches to the following facsimile of the slight piece my brother inscribed in my album, since so very little of his own handwriting is in existence : - ~. ;:,"Z-.J:._ w ,'j:.;; ; .yrr"."zr v-tt.irr" "zri-TT 2IO CHAPTER XII. 1888-93. Invitation to become a Candidate for Principalship Support of Mackenzie's candidature, and his election Mr. H. Littleton's dinner Rose of Sharon Overture, ROJUCO and Juliet Musical Artists Death of Mr. H. Littleton Brighton Messiah at the Abbey Westlake's Mass at Oratory Lectures at West- minster Town Hall, Birkbeck, and London Institutions Dr. Speer Overture, King Henry V. Dora Bright's Recitals Death of W. H. Monk Edward German's Music to Richard III. R.A.M. Club Dinner Lecture at Darwen Charles Sainton Lecture at Clapham Round, Catch, and Canon Club C. M. Widor Reception of Sir Charles and Lady Halle at Broad- wood's A. C. White My three "At Homes" Death of Prosper Sainton Riseley : s Concerts Lecture at Leeds Pianoforte method Stratford Festival and Elsie Home Lecture at Lan- caster Mozart Centenary at Philharmonic Lecture for I.S.M. Spencer Curwen and Stratford Festival Dora Bright at Phil- harmonic Henry Lazarus Goring Thomas Memorial Dean Hole First lecture at R.A.M. MUCH interest, and even excitement, was occasioned in the early part of 1888 by the consideration of who was to succeed my brother in the office of Principal of the Royal Academy of Music. Some newspapers took the question up as though it had been one of political import, and canvassed the merits and demerits of the possible candidates for the office with an amount of freedom which would hardly have been justifiable if the question had been 211 Walter Macfarren the selection of a Prime Minister. The election, in accordance with the terms of the Charter, was in the hands of the Committee of Management a limited quantity at most, and rendered more circumscribed by the death of one of its members (G. A. Macfarren) and the absence of another on the Continent. An important section of this body waited upon me, and offering me their support, urged rne to become a candidate for the vacant office. My age (61), my indifferent sight, and the consideration that possible o defeat would tarnish my academic career, induced me to decline this flattering and tempting invitation; and having determined to support the candidature of Alexander Campbell Mackenzie, I induced the friends who would have supported my claims to transfer their votes to that eminent musician, with the result that on the 22nd of February he was elected Principal, or, as the wording of the Charter has it, "principal Professor" of the Royal Academy of Music. This office he has retained ever since, with advantage to the school, the continued prosperity of which is the best evidence of his successful tenure of that responsible position. Meanwhile, the interim triumvirate (Sainton, Steggall, and \Y. Macfarren) continued to exercise the functions committed to their charge until the ist of May, on which clay the new Principal entered upon the duties of his office^ On the 2 /th of February, Mackenzie was appointed conductor of the choir and orchestra, in succession 212 A. C. Mackenzie to the late Sir Joseph Barnby; and on the 28th the late Mr. Henry Littleton gave a banquet at his princely house at Syclenham in honour of the recently elected Principal, whose health it fell to my lot to propose. On the 1 3th of March, a fine performance at St. James's Hall of The Rose of Sharon afforded opportunity for giving its composer a highly en- couraging reception ; and on the iQth of April the Philharmonic Society did honour to its late member, G. A. Macfarren, by giving a performance of his romantic Overture to Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, in the rehearsal of which Frederic H. Cowen, the conductor, manifested much interest and artistic painstaking. In this year I joined the Musical Artists' Society, a little institution designed to afford opportunity for the public hearing of chamber works by resident musicians, and to it I gave what support was in my power until its dissolution in 1900. I cannot, in connection with this subject, refrain from recording the zeal and untiring care of its honorary secretary and treasurer, my late friend Alfred Gilbert, the father of the eminent sculptor, Alfred Gilbert, R. A. The somewhat sudden death of Mr. Henry Littleton, at the age of 65, created painful surprise, and his funeral on the i6th of May was attended by a huge assemblage of notabilities in the art- world. The passing away of this remarkable 213 Walter Macfarren man, who had, by his enterprise, tact, and dis- crimination, raised the firm of Xovello, Ewer & Company to a position of the greatest eminence, demands something more than mere passing com- O 1 O merit. Although not a great scholar, he possessed bright intelligence, and a keen perception of what the public required. He was the pioneer of cheap music, and, altogether, accomplished a very great deal towards the cultivation of the art in this country. My summer holiday this year was passed ior the first time at Brighton, or, to speak more correctly, at Aldrington, the extreme western part of what was then called West Brighton, but which de- nomination is now regarded as offensive by the Hoveites ; and there, with the companionship of my sister, many pupils, and friends, I had a good time. Westbourne Villas, where the house was situate which I occupied for six successive summers, was then the extreme end of the habitable west of this locality, and at that time we could see Portslade from the windows at the back of the house. Such is the rage, however, for west-end accommodation, that nearly the whole of what was then waste land is now covered by bricks and mortar. The performance, on the 2Qth of November in this year, by the Royal Society of Musicians, of the Jfc'ssia//, in that venerable fane in which lie the mortal remains of its immortal composer, was a 214 "Messiah" in Westminster Abbey deeply impressive event, and the effect produced on me by the choruses in that sacred edifice, where fifty years before I had been a little singing cherub, I can never forget; the singing by Madame Albani of " I know that my Redeemer liveth " also moved me powerfully. I should mention here that the Westminster Orchestral Society elected me their president for the ensuing year, and as my pupil Stewart Macpherson was the conductor, and my friend Algernon Rose the secretary, I had much pleasure in accepting this office, and in exerting what in- fluence I possessed on behalf of this rising amateur society. On the 3rd of February, 1889, I was greatly impressed by the performance of my old pupil and friend Frederick Westlake's Mass, at the Brompton Oratory, which was admirably rendered, and very moving. The funeral of my late friend Dr. Templeman Speer, on the i3th, at the Hampsteacl Cemetery, was impressive from another point of view, it being a bitter day between frost and thaw, and when we arrived at the chapel, through some misunderstanding, there was no clergyman, and we had to wait for an hour in the chapel, which was like an ice-well, until some one in holy orders could be found to read the office for the Burial of the Dead. In other respects the service was carried out 215 Walter Macfarren under difficulties, for the rain came down in torrents. However, I was full of regret at the loss of a genial and kind-hearted friend, the father of my old pupil Charlton Speer. On the 1 6th of the same month I gave my lecture-recital, " Pianoforte Music, Ancient and Modern," at the Westminster Town Hall, on behalf of the Westminster Orchestral Society, which was so successful as to lead to its repetition in many other places. A performance of my Overture, A7//' Henry I 7 ., on the 2oth, by that great amateur body of instrumentalists, the Stock Exchange Orchestral Society, which 1 conducted in person, satisfied me that its members were not entirely absorbed by "bulls" and "bears," but that they must have devoted much time to the study of their respective instruments. The first of three Pianoforte Recitals by my pupil Miss Dora Bright took place on the 2/th, at Prince's Hall, when she played, amongst other things, with admirable effect the whole of my first set of Twelve Studies, of which she had been the amanuensis, and which are dedicated to her. William Henry Monk, the companion of my Barmouth adventure, with whom I was lost on the hills throughout one entire night, passed away in the first week of March in this year. As the editor of JIvnins Ancient and Modern, and the organist of St. Matthias, Stoke Xewington, and also 216 Lecture-Recitals of King's College, London, he occupied a prominent position in connection with the music of the Church of England, and his funeral in Highgate Cemetery on the 7th of March (a villainous day, by-the-bye) was an imposing function, and largely attended by clergy and musicians. The success of my lecture-recital for the West- minster Orchestral Society led me, on the iSth, to repeat the experiment "on my own hook," and in the same locale the Westminster Town Hall. This venture was not entirely unfruitful, for, as well as I can remember, I made by it, after expenses of advertisements, agents, rent of Town Hall, etc. (tell it not in Gath, gentle reader), a profit of two- and-sixpence! The Birkbeck Institute was a new field for my labours as a lecturer, and on the i /th of April I made my first and only appear- ance there to an enthusiastic audience, in my lecture-recital, " Pianoforte Music, Ancient and Modern." It is said that the wise men come from the East, but in travelling down to the Standard Theatre, in Bishopsgate Street Without, to hear a performance of my brother's opera, Robin Hood, on the 2nd of May, I neither acquired wisdom nor derived satisfaction ; for with the exception of the male chorus and "The Jolly Eat Sumptner," I never heard a more shady exhibition ; indeed, the only word by which I 217 Walter Macfarren can describe the very limited orchestra, is ''execrable." A very different representation was that on the 9th, at the Globe Theatre, when I witnessed Mr. Mansfield's very powerful perform- ance of Richard III., which completely carried one away from first to last by its strength and reality; I was also delighted by Edward German's characteristic overture and incidental music to the tragedy, which he himself directed with unfailing- nerve and spirit. The initial dinner of the R.A.M. Club occurred on the 27th of July, when Dr. (now Sir) A. C. Mackenzie took the chair, and all present enjoyed an agreeable evening, the forerunner of many another such, for the affair became annual. Another initial meeting which afterwards became annual, was that of the Lyric Vocal Union, of which I accepted the presidency, and which took place at St. James's Hall on Friday, October iSth, and consisted of some very capable choral singing, interspersed with solos and comic recitations. On the 22nd of October I gave one of my lecture-recitals at Darwen in Lancashire, the first of a course, generously bestowed upon the literary institution of that town by one of its magnates. Admission being free, the hall was crammed, and a more attentive or enthusiastic auditory - almost exclusively of factory hands I never addressed. On the following day I travelled to 218 R.A. Club Manchester to adjudicate, for the second time, the Gold Medal Competition in Cottonopolis, and returned to town on the 25th. The silver-point drawings of Charles Sainton, the son of my old friends Prosper and Charlotte Sainton, attracted at this time much attention, and the exhibition of these beautifully-finished drawings on the 3Oth of November was largely attended, and I believe that there was not one left on the walls unsold ; that which I possess is much admired. On the 5th of December, I carried my lecture- recital over the water, and found the inhabitants of Clapham quite as appreciative as those on the Middlesex side ; this lecture-recital was under the auspices of my pupil Walter Mackway, and like other things of which I have spoken, it be- came an annual affair. A lecture on December 9th, at the London Institution on "Orthography, and the Derivation of Words," by a learned lecturer -whose name, I am ashamed to say, I forget was most interesting and instructive, and afforded me insight into our vernacular which has been of great value to me and stored in my memory ever since. A supper at Broadwood's to inaugurate the assumption by my old friend Frederick Rose (now, alas ! no more) of the chief position in the firm, and at w r hich the principal employes clerks, foremen, etc. were present, was a very gratifying 219 Walter Macfarren affair, and exhibited the head of the feast in the happiest light ; not the least pleasing- incident of the evening being the proposal of my health in all too flattering terms by my old friend Alfred J. Hipkins. On the 1 8th of January, 1890, I made my first visit to the Round, Catch, and Canon Club, on the invitation of my genial friend Fred Walker, and greatly enjoyed the singing of my brother's " King- Canute " and my own "You Stole my Love"; and I have since frequently enjoyed the privilege of attending these delightful reunions on the invitation of one of its lay members, my friend Mr. Alfred Jackson. On the 3oth of the same month, I lectured to a crowded audience at the London Institution on "Mendelssohn, and his Licdcr o/nic Jlor/c," illus- trating my remarks with numerous excerpts from that delightful bouquet of melodies, and I found it difficult to leave the platform at its conclusion in consequence of the prolonged applause with which I was cheered. The Westminster Orchestral Society gave a capital performance of my Symphony in I flat, under my direction, on the 12th of March; and on the i4th, I made the acquaintance of the celebrated organist and composer, Carl Marie Widor, who crave on that afternoon a recital to <_5 the students in the Academy concert-room, in the course of which he played his difficult "Toccata" from his Fifth Symphony lor the 220 Sir Charles and Lady Halle Organ, and I was much impressed by his remark- able staccato, and by his clever use of the swell- peclal for accentuation. On the 2nd of April, the firm of John Broadwoocl & Sons gave a great reception in honour of Sir Charles and Lady Halle, it being the eve of their departure for Australia ; and there was such an immense throng of musicians, friends, and admirers, that something nearly approaching a very serious catastrophe occurred, and the incident of the Black Hole of Calcutta was never more nearly realised. On Thursday evening, the ist of -May, there was a capital performance, which I personally directed, of my Symphony in B flat at one of Douglas Redman's Orchestral Concerts in the Town Hall, Brixton ; especially memorable to me from the circumstance that owing to some mis- understanding there was only one double-bass (contra-basso), and that one being no other than that redoubtable performer the late A. C. White, he wrought with such astonishing power and precision as to be literally a "host in himself." At my own residence, 3 Osnaburgh Terrace, on the 2nd, i6th, and 3Oth of June, I was "at home " to a very large number of friends and musical people, on which occasions much music was made by Clara Samuell, Mary Willis, Walter Mackway, Fred King, the late Henry Lazarus, 221 Walter Macfarren Maud Valerie White, and others of my pupils, each little programme terminating with a short manifestation of my own pianism. The 4th of July was also a notable "at home," when the late Rev. H. R. Haweis and his lady received a large circle of friends, and provided for them an interesting musical programme, in which I took a very humble part simply accompanying Miss Kate Steel in a couple of my songs. . Ipropos of this reverend gentleman, although in some respects eccentric, I can testify to his goodness of heart and kind solicitude on behalf of suffering humanity. The ceremony of laying the foundation-stone of the building provided for the Royal College of Music by the late Mr. Sampson Fox, was an imposing affair, in which the King (then Prince of Wales) took the principal role with his usual grace and distinction. A couple of months at my old quarters, Westbourne Villas, Brighton, were agreeably passed in the society of numerous friends and pupils, and the tenure of another house in Tisbury Road for three months enabled me to enjoy what is called a " week-end " from Saturday afternoon to Tuesday morning during that period. The death of one of my oldest, dearest, and most intimate friends, Prosper Sainton, on the iSth of October, greatly affected me; for, although a Frenchman by birth, he had been since the year Death of Prosper Sainton 1845 resident in England, and possessed the best qualities of both nationalities he had the courtesy, the fire, and the enthusiasm of the Frenchman, as well as the geniality, the reliability, and the domestic habits of the Englishman. The funeral of Sainton, who was laid beside his wife in Highgate, on the 23rd, was an affecting ceremony, attended bv a crowd of notabilities. J On November ist I went to Bristol, and on the 3ist conducted one of my own compositions at Riseley's Orchestral Concert in the Colston Hall. On December 8th I conducted my Overture, " Hero and Leander," at a concert of Macpherson's Streatham Choral Society, and on the following evening my Overture, " King Henry V.," at the Stock Exchange Society's Orchestral Concert in St. James's Hall. I delivered my lecture on "Mendelssohn, and his Liedcr ohne Worte" to a crowded audience at the Leeds Church Institute, on the 29th January 1891, being most hospitably housed by my old friend Mr. Fred Barr. My Pianoforte Method now greatly engrossed my attention, and my visit to the photographer, Walery's Gallery in Regent Street, in company with my publisher, Mr. Robert Cocks (grandson of the founder of the firm Robert Cocks & Co.), for the various portraits which shall I say, dis- figure that publication, was an amusing incident, 223 Walter Macfarren 224 Stratford Musical Festival and the carrying" of a pianoforte to the roof of the house that I might be seen seated at the keyboard was, to say the least of it, a perilous operation. At the Philharmonic Concert on the 5th of March in this year, two items deserve special mention the Prelude and Entr'actes to Ravens- wood, by A. C. Mackenzie, and the Overture to The Tempest, by Benedict, the former being powerfully stirring movements, and the latter re- plete with poetic feeling. On the invitation of Mr. Spencer Curwen, I, on the 3Oth of April, presented the prizes to the successful competitors in the annual Stratford Musical Festival, a function instituted by that gentleman in imitation of the Welsh Eisteddfod well remembered, because I handed several of these coveted tokens to a little girl who afterwards became my distinguished pupil Elsie Home, A.R.A.M. The late Sir Arthur Sullivan was to have presided at the annual dinner of the R. A.M. Club on the 2Qth of July, but being prevented by illness, I was invited to act as his locum tenens, when a full attendance of members gave me a cordial reception. I have nothing of any note to recall until the 1 4th of December, when I delivered one of my lecture-recitals at Lancaster, in the beautiful new building presented to the town by the late Sir Thomas Storey, who kindly entertained me, and 225 Q Walter Macfarren whose daughter had been a pupil of mine, when she accomplished the remarkable feat of playing the whole of Bach's forty-eight Preludes and Fugues, and the whole of Beethoven's thirty-two Sonatas. The 25th of January, 1892, saw me once again at Clapham with a new lecture-recital. The Philharmonic Society honoured the memory of Mozart, and itself in so doing, by devoting the first concert of this season, on the loth of March, entirely to works from that immortal musician's pen, amongst which the beautiful Concerto in C minor, played by that admirable Belgian pianist M. De Greef, especially dwells in my memory. The occasion was also notable for the recitation, by the able elocutionist Mr. Charles Fry, of an appropriate ode, written expressly by Mr. Joseph Bennett. The Society of Professional Musicians (now known as the Incorporated Society of Musicians) induced me to give them one of my lecture-recitals, which event took place in the Academy concert-room, on the evening of the 1 4th of March, the subject being the favourite one of " Mendelssohn, and his Licdcr o/nic ll'orle" at the conclusion of which the late Mr. E. Barnes (who was in the chair) said that I had " taken the cake," a fact of which I was totally unaware, for to tell the truth I was very hungry and should have been glad of even that refreshment. 226 Henry Lazarus At the instance of Mr. J. Spencer Curwen, I undertook the examination in pianoforte play- ing at the annual Stratford Festival (Eisteddfod), which function went off bravely, with the assist- ance of my excellent pupils, Maude E. Wilson and George Aitken, both of whom are now Associates of the R.A.M., and the latter the highly- esteemed organist and choirmaster of Hampstead Parish Church. My favourite resort, Brighton, afforded me a very agreeable month's cessation from work, and enabled me to return to London with renewed vigour. o The iith of May was a red-letter day for me and my gifted pupil Dora Bright, for at the Philharmonic Concert of that date she played a Fantasia, with orchestral accompaniment, of her own composition with much success ; and at the same concert Fraulein Wietrowetz made a suc- cessful ddbut in Mendelssohn's delightful Violin Concerto. The farewell concert of my old friend, the famous clarinettist, Henry Lazarus, was a brilliant and at the same time a sad affair, for on that occasion this great artist made his final appearance on the plat- form which he had graced so many, many times, and his regretted death took place not long after- wards. The Goring Thomas Memorial Concert, which 227 Walter Macfarren occurred on the I3th of July, was also a very notable event, most of the great vocalists of the day, in- cluding Melba, Calve, Ravogli, Plancon, and others, evincing their sympathy with the object in view, and helping materially to raise the fund which has perpetuated the name of this gifted but unfortunate musician in the Goring Thomas Scholarship at the R.A.M., of which institution he was for several years a distinguished student. I attended the annual dinner of the Associated Board on the following clay, and recollect the enthusiasm, in which I shared, occasioned by the beautiful speech of the late Dean Hole, an oration that was distinguished by dignity, grace, an occa- sional touch of humour, a perfect delivery, and which was in truth a model of its kind. On the 23rd of July I presided, in my own right, at the annual dinner of the R.A.M. Club, a function I was called upon to fulfil so frequently that I began to think I was to the "manner born." On the 1 6th of November I commenced a course of six lectures, which became annual, at the R.A.M. , my subject on this occasion being "The History of the Pianoforte." This I illustrated with excerpts from the works of Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Weber, Mendelssohn, Schumann, and Sterndale Bennett. Another function that became annual was my examination in pianoforte playing at the Croydon F. W. W. Bampfylde Conservatoire, of which for some years I had been the President, and this brought me into renewed contact with my late much-valued pupil F. W. \V. Bampfylde, whose subsequent early death was a o-reat sorrow to his brother artists. O 229 CHAPTER XIII. 1893-98. J. Spencer Cimven Macfarren Room Agnes Zimmermann George T. Rose Philharmonic Stratford Musical Festival Radley Stewart Macpherson Pa^liacci Service in A Testimonial Trinity College Lord Mayor Knill's dinner G. A. Osborne - Lecture at Hull Arts Club dinner Lecture at Scarborough Academy Lectures " Symphonic Patdtique" Lecture at Croydon Manuel Garcia Commemoration concert St. Andrew's, Wells Street, and Westminster Abbey Lecture at Trinity College August Manns Dr. Steggall Lectures at the R. A.M. St. Paul's Emil Sauer R.A.M. Club dinner Adelina Patti Royal Academy of Arts banquet St. John the Baptist Lord Leighton Abingdon Purcell Hampstead Parish Church Dr. E. G. Monk Overture, Othello Dvorak Lewis Thomas William Farren I.S.M. Jubilee dinner to myself Pupils' testimonial Walter Macfarren gold medals Othello at Crystal Palace and Bristol William Dorrell Arts Club Reception at Broadwood's by old pupils Lectures Brynmawr Charlton Speer Prince and Princess of Wales National Eisteddfod Leschetitzky. A PLEASANT visit on the i 2th of February from Mr. J. Spencer Curwen, resulted in a friendly memoir of myself in his monthly paper, the Musical Herald, in which he spoke of me as bein^ one of the last links with the ^reat musician, Mendelssohn. Messrs. Broadwood i^'ave, on the 2nd of March, the anniversary of G. A. Macfarren's birth, a expressed his disappointment that he was not let off. The other notable speeches on that occasion were those of Lord Rosebery, Sir A. C. Mackenzie, and Mr. Pinero ; and \vhen I was, after dinner, wandering about amongst the pictures, a gentleman addressed me by name and shook hands, and when I said that he had the advantage of me, he orave o o me his name, which was that of the lamented Duke of Saxe-Cobura"-Gotha, whom, in the uncertain lio-ht, o o I had not recognised. o On the 6th of May, Stewart Macpherson gave a capital performance of my brother's St. John the Baptist, at Streatham, his choral society there sustaining, with great efficiency, the choral part of the work, while Miss Williams (soprano), Greta Williams (contralto), Edward Branscombe (tenor), and Arthur Oswald (bass), in the title-role, gave a good account of the solo parts. The Royal Academy of Arts Soiree on the 4th of July is fixed in my memory, from the circumstance of its being the last occasion on which I saw the then President of that Teat institu- o 245 Walter Macfarren tion, Lord Leighton, whose courteous reception and handshake will ever dwell in my memory. My vacation this year was passed in the quaint old town of Abingdon, where I tenanted a charming house and grounds for a couple of months, and had many pleasant trips on the river. On the 2 2nd of November, the Philharmonic devoted the whole programme of a concert given on that date to the music of Henry Purcell, in cele- bration of the bi-centenary of that great English musician's death. For my own part I dislike the custom of celebrating the death of great men, and would much rather that the day of their entrance into the world should be signalised. On the 27th of November I renewed my annual course of six lectures at the Royal Academy of Music. The performance of Sheridan's inimitable comedy The Rivals, at the Court Theatre, on the 3Oth, was noteworthy for the capital interpretation of the character of Mrs. Malaprop, by that admirable actress Mrs. John Wood, who kept us in fits of laughter whenever she was on the stage. My old pupil, George Aitken, having become the organist and choirmaster of Hampstead Parish Church, I was much interested in visiting that sacred edifice on the 2oth of December, to hear a performance of Spohr's J^ast Judgment, which was most impressively given. ' 246 An Accident The last occasion on which I ever saw my very intimate friend Dr. E. G. Monk, was on the 2^rd \j of December, when I made a flying visit to Radley, and passed the night at East Cottage. I was a good deal distressed on finding that accomplished and amiable gentleman greatly changed by the illness which, although he survived until January 1900, rendered the rest of his life painful to himself and a source of anxiety to his friends. The year 1896 did not open auspiciously for me, as on the evening of the loth of January I was nearly knocked into a cocked hat by a cyclist in that short turning- between Chandos Street and > Portland Place, which was attended by the usual concomitants of an accident a crowd, a police- man, name and address of the offending party, etc. On my reaching home in a cab, I w r as still nearly speechless, and as my head had come in collision with the curbstone, I concluded, like Jack in the nursery rhyme, that I had "cracked my crown " ; that I did not do so, is proof of the thickness of my skull. It was a nasty accident, from the effects of which I more or less suffered for years afterwards ; the handle of the villainous machine having struck me on my side, and, I believe, bent some of my ribs. That I was not permanently injured, was due to the assiduous care and attention of my friend and neighbour, Dr. Mason. 247 Walter Macfarren I had been invited by George Riseley to com- pose some work for the Bristol Festival, which he was to conduct for the first time ; but some cause or other postponed that great meeting- for another year ; and the overture to Othello being- left on my hands, I offered it to the Stock Exchange Orchestral Society, which, on the iSth of February, gave a capital account of the work at its concert in the Queen's Hall under my direction. The Philharmonic Concert of the igth of March was notable for the appearance in the conductor's rostrum of the late Anton Dvorak, who directed the performance of a symphony, five Biblical songs, and a new violoncello concerto, the solo part being taken by Leo Stern, and this occasion is to be remembered as the last on which the Bohemian composer came amongst us. I have to record here also, with regret, the death, on the I4th of June, of that excellent vocal artist, my old friend Lewis Thomas, whose funeral on the 1 7th, at Finchley, I attended in company with Dr. Cummings (who, by-the-bye, had just been elected Principal of the Guildhall School of Music), when the service was most impressively read by Dr. Edgar Sheppard, Sub-Dean of his Majesty's Chapels Royal. On the ist of July I witnessed a performance of Sheridan's perennial comedy, 77/6' School jor Scandal, at the Lyceum Theatre, which was remarkable for the truly admirable Sir Peter of 248 Jubilee Mr. William Farren, whose father I am old enough to have seen in the same character, which my friend his son now sustains in such a delightfully natural manner. On the evening" of the iith of July I had undertaken to play some of my compositions at a conversazione of the Incorporated Society of Musicians, and I put in an appearance according to promise, but had an unlucky fall down some six or seven steps, which I had not observed, and although I did not break any bones, I received something of a shock. Nevertheless, I carried out my promise, and after my performance was glad enough to get away home. The following evening, Sunday, July i2th, is a very memorable one to me, for the Principal and my brother professors of the R.A.M. on that occasion celebrated at a dinner at the Arts Club, the jubilee of my professorship at the Academy. Sir A. C. Mackenzie, in a very genial speech, proposed my health, to which I responded as \vell as my strong emotion would allow. The dinner passed off brilliantly, and the speeches of Emile Sauret and Randegger were well worth recording, but as we had no shorthand writer, they have unfortunately been lost to the world. However, the address with which I was presented on this occasion hangs in my study, and it runs as follows: " We offer you our sincerely cordial congratulations upon the unique position to which you have attained 249 Walter Macfarren among the Professors of the Royal Academy of Music. Fifty years' service in its best and highest interest de- serves thanks thanks, indeed, much more public than we a handful of your friends may offer you at this moment. " But we do desire to assure you of our high admira- tion of your gifts shown in the artist, the teacher, and the man \Yalter Macfarren, the major part of whose life has been spent in that school which is certainly not the only bond of attachment between us, your colleagues and friends." The pupils at this time in my class at the R.A.M. presented me, as a mark of their appre- ciation of my work and their affection for me, with a revolving- bookcase accompanied by an address, my senior pupil and sub-professor at this time (Miss Edith Pratt) acting as their mouthpiece. To celebrate my Jubilee, I sank between four and five hundred pounds to found two Annual Gold Medals, to be awarded respectively to a male and a female student who, as pianists, should have already gained all the possible awards obtainable in the Academic curriculum. The first of these competi- tions for the Walter Macfarren Gold Medals took place in 1897, and they will be continued annually in perpetuity. My attainment of the three-score years and ten allotted to mankind by the Psalmist was coincident with my Academy Jubilee, and it was celebrated by two pleasant little dinner-parties ; the one given by my old friend and pupil, 250 Death of William Dorrell Fred Westlake, at the hotel at Hassocks, where he was staying, on the 26th of August (two clays before the event), and the other at my own residence at Brighton, on the 29th (one day after the event). The same friends assisted on both occasions. The Overture Othello, to which reference has been made before, had several hearings in the latter part of this year. On the loth of October at the Crystal Palace, where I conducted a capital perform- ance, and was honoured with a double recall. On the 1 3th of October I travelled to Bristol, and greatly enjoyed a magnificent rendering of Elijah on the evening of that clay, under the direction of George Riseley, whose assumption of the conductor- ship of the Bristol Festival was the theme of general rejoicing. On the evening of the I4th my Othello Overture was again heard as on the last occasion, under my own direction, and with the same pleasant result; and on the I5th, I returned to London and my ordinary work. On the 22nd of November I called on my old friend William Dorrell, whom I then saw for the last time, his death occurring t\vo or three weeks subsequently, when I heard, to my great surprise, that he had left me ^100 as a souvenir of our long acquaintance. Dorrell was a sterling musician, and a pianist of more than ordinary attainment, who, as professor of the instrument of which he was a 251 Walter Macfarren master, did excellent work at the R.A.M. until his retirement at the close of the year 1874. The Overture Othello was again to the fore on the 3 his father, the late Gambier Parry, harmony lessons when I was scarcely out of my teens, and that Sir Hubert had received some lessons from my brother, G. A. Macfarren, on the same subject. 270 CHAPTER XV. 1902-1904. Fishmongers' Hall Alfred Gilbert Manuel Garcia Emile Sauret Merrie England King" Edward VII. Lyric Vocal Union Metropolitan Examination Resignation of Academy professor- ship Robertson's Othello Last lectures at the Academy Memoir in the World Marquis of Northampton Prince of Wales Re-election as member of Philharmonic Presentation on my retirement Sir A. C. Mackenzie Pupils' testimonial Tonal Art Club Richard II. Wilhelm Kuhe Joseph Heming Tonal Art Club concert Ben Davies Tonal Art Club Dinner John Thomas Wesselly Quartet Manuel Garcia Joseph Joachim Royal Society of Musicians' dinner Worshipful Com- pany of Musicians Autograph hunter. A DINNER at the Fishmongers' Hall, whither I went in company with Alberto Randegger, reminded me of a similar function which I at- tended some twenty years earlier with my late brother, when I met the late Sir John Stainer and the late Frank Buckland, the latter of whom made us all roar with laughter when he said that if we wanted to keep up the supply of oysters we should preserve the baby oysters, and not sacrifice their innocent young lives to our greedy appetites. My late friend Alfred Gilbert was to have lectured on " Mendelssohn " at the " Society for the Encouragement of the Fine Arts" on the 6th of 271 Walter Macfarren February, but serious illness preventing the fulfil- ment of his promise, I was requested to take his place, and received from his son, Alfred Gilbert, R.A., the sad intelligence of my friend's demise as I was entering the room to commence my address. In the acknowledgment of my annual congratula- tions, the veteran Manuel Garcia wrote me a charm- ing letter, in which he apologised for having left my missive so long unanswered, as he had been to Egypt! pretty well for a youngster entering, on the i 7th of March, his ninety-eighth year. The great violinist, Emile Sauret, celebrated his fiftieth birthday by assembling his friends and ad- mirers at the Great Central Hotel on the 22nd of this month, in the large hall of which he afforded them an interesting programme, which however lacked any exhibition of his own inimitable talent; but he invited me to play with his excellent pupil Margaret Sutton my Romance for pianoforte and violin, " Angelus " (dedicated to himself), which was received in the kindest manner. Sunday the ist of June is memorable to me in this year (1902) from the performance in Brixton Church of my Symphony in H flat, by a capital band of some thirty professionals, under the able direction of my old pupil Douglas Redman. While waiting for the commencement of the programme, another pupil regaled an immense assemblage of listeners with copious extracts from my J^orty 272 King Edward VII. Preludes, which, although written for the piano- forte, came out, under Welton Hickin's capable fingers and feet, with good effect on the organ. On the 7th of June, in Broadwood's Concert Room in Great Pulteney Street, a very interest- ing little performance took place, on the invitation of May Wheldon and Margaret Sutton, these two young artists being heard to great advantage in works of Beethoven and Mendelssohn, and the latter joining me again in my little piece " Angelus." I greatly enjoyed, on the I3th of this month, Edward German's bright and fresh Merrie England at the Savoy Theatre, the individuality of which I found as striking as the admirable art exhibited in its composition. I was at a concert of the Tonal Art Club on the 1 7th, whereat Emile Sauret was presented with silver candlesticks and an address, which was read by the vice-president of the club, Mr. Van der Straeten. At this concert I accompanied Clara Samuell once again in a successful performance of my two songs, "Awake, O Heart!" and "The Linnet Song"; and on the 29th I was present at the annual dinner of the Society for Promoting the Fine Arts, at which Lord Saye and Scale presided, and I had to orate. It is matter of history that the intended Corona- tion of King Edward the Seventh on the 26th was cancelled, in consequence of his Majesty's serious illness, but I may record the deep regret which that 273 T Walter Macfarren unfortunate contretemps caused, and at the same time express my heartfelt gratification at his Majesty's recovery, for he is ever foremost in pro- moting every philanthropic movement; he en- courages the advance of Science and Art, he o shares in our amusements and recreations, he makes himself known to his subjects throughout the length and breadth of the land, and, in a word, he is one of the most public-spirited and consti- tutional monarchs that ever sat on the throne of this great country. Speaking of royalty, it is appropriate to note my visit, as a member of the Associated Board, to St. James's Palace, when we and the local representatives were received at the annual meeting of that important institution by H.R.H. the Prince ot Wales, its president. My annual conge at Brighton was this year (1902) rendered more than usually enjoyable by the presence there of my old pupil Linda Scates (Mrs. Charles Yates), who, with her husband, are excellent company, and joined us in many an agree- able afternoon. I presided at the annual " Ladies' Night" of the Lyric Vocal Union, when, amongst other items, the programme contained my Romance "Angelus" (Margaret Sutton and myself) and my humorous part-song, "Old King Cole," both of which had a tremendous reception. On the 22nd of December commenced the 274 Metropolitan Examinations annual Metropolitan Examination of the R.A.M., and as this was the last of many similar functions with which I had been associated, I am particular to note its date, and to state that my associates on the Board were Carlo Albanesi, Henry R. Eyers, and on several days, Stewart Macpherson. The year 1903 found me still at work on the Metropolitan Examination, which did not terminate until the loth of January, and that my reader may understand the nature of the work I had on hand, I should say that for eighteen consecutive days I was engaged at the Academy in practical examination, eight hours on each clay, and after a brief interval for dinner in the evening, I was occupied until midnight in examining the theory papers in connection with the examination. Small wonder then that I was completely exhausted, and that an unfortunate attack of bronchitis finding me o in weakly condition, I was quite prostrated. During my enforced imprisonment for some three weeks I made up my mind, first, that I would have no more to do with "exams.," and, second, that I ought to give myself more liberty. With this fixed resolve in my mind, I wrote to the committee of the R.A.M. ex- pressing my intention to receive no new pupils, and to let my class die out ; but the committee were of opinion that this would be undignified, and unsuited to the position I had for so many years held in the Academy, and it was therefore decided that I should 275 Walter Macfarren continue my professorship until the end of the academic year, and then definitely retire. I ought to mention that in the midst of my heavy work I indulged in the relaxation of a visit to the theatre, and on the 3rd of January I witnessed Mr. Forbes Robertson's very powerful impersona- tion of Othello, Miss Gertrude Elliott (his wife) sustaining' the character of Desdemona with all requisite gentleness and grace. My annual course of lectures was to have com- menced on the 4th of February, but on that date I was still confined to my room, and the initial lecture had to be deferred until the iith, on which date I opened the subject of " Musical Forms." As this must stand as the last occasion on which I shall everappear on the platform as a lecturer, I will describe the subject more particularly than usual. The first lecture treated of "Ancient Fugue," and my illustra- tions consisted of Scarlatti's ''Cat's Fugue" (the subject of which is said to have been suggested by a poor puss walking over the keyboard of the com- poser's harpsichord), Handel's Fugue in F minor, Bach's two-part Fugue in E minor and five-part Fugue in B flat minor, and Mo/art's Fugue in C, in the performance of which I was assisted by Ismay Connelly (a pupil of Stewart Macpherson) and my own pupil Dorothy Felce. The second lecture (iSth of February) was on "Modern Fugue," and the illustrations consisted of Beethoven's Fugue in 276 Course of Lectures A flat op. 110, Mendelssohn's Prelude and Fugue in E minor op. 35, Raff's Prelude and Fugue in E minor op. 72, and Brahms's Fugue in B flat op. 24, which were performed by my pupils Isabel Clark and Minnie Moss. "Sonata Form" was that dealt with at the third lecture on the 25th of February, and the illustrations consisted of the Alleo-ro from o> Haydn's Sonata in E flat, the Allegro from Mozart's Sonata in F (that in common time), the Adagio in B minor of Mozart, the Allegretto in A flat from Sonata op. 31, and the Allegro from that in C op. 53 of Beethoven, the whole of which were performed by my pupil Mabel Colyer. The fourth lecture (4th of March) was devoted to '' Ancient and Modern Rondo," the illustrations comprising the Allegretto from Sonata in G, Haydn, Rondo in A minor, Mozart, Rondo in G op. 51, Beethoven, Rondo in E flat, Weber, and Capriccio in E minor op. 16, Mendelssohn, which were performed by my pupil and great-nephew Herbert Macfarren. The fifth and last lecture, on the iith of March, was on the subject of "Ancient and Modern Dance Forms," the illustrations comprising Bach's Gavotte and Musette in D minor, Polacca in E, Weber, Polonaise in C sharp minor, Chopin, " Invitation pour la Valse," Weber, Mazurka in F sharp minor, Chopin, and Valse in E op. 32, Moskowski, the performers being my pupils Dorothy Forster and Florence Reeves. A vote of thanks at the conclusion was 277 Walter Macfarren moved in flattering terms by my old pupil Walter Fitton, and I then made my final bow as lecturer at the R.A.M. On the i Qth of May (1903) I was visited by Mr. Kalisch, for the purpose of an interview in con- nection with the article on myself which appeared in the World on July 28th, under the title: " Mr. Walter Macfarren at 3 Osnaburgh Terrace," it being one of the series of articles in that paper entitled "Celebrities at Home," and I take this opportunity of expressing- my acknowledgment to that gentleman for the kindly spirit in which this brochure was written, and my admiration of the article as a literary accomplishment. I was much struck with the able chairmanship of the Marquis of Northampton at the dinner of the Royal Society of Musicians on the 26th of June, his speech on proposing the toast of the evening' being one of the best I remember to have heard at these gatherings ; and at the annual meeting of the Associated Board at Marlborough House on the 8th of July, under the presidency of H.R.H. the Prince of \\ ales, I was also struck by the clear, genial, and business-like manner in which the Heir- Apparent conducted the proceedings. On the i 2th of July (1903) my old friend and fellow-student John 'I homas called upon me to give me two items of gratifying personal news. The first of these- was, that on the previous evening Retirement the Philharmonic Society had re-electecl me a member of that historic association a position I had, in a moment of heat, resigned twenty years previously and I am not ashamed to admit that this spontaneous compliment afforded me the very highest gratification. The second piece of intel- ligence was that the Committee and Professors of the Academy were going to make some demonstra- tion on the occasion of my retirement, and that they desired to give me something as a souvenir, they having entrusted him with the delicate task of ascertaining if there was anything in particular that I coveted. The nature of my reply will be gathered from the account of the proceedings, which took place on the 23rd of the same month. On that day I was invited to attend in the concert- room of the Academy, and on appearing on the platform, I was greeted with such overwhelming applause as very nearly overcame me, by an assembly of members of the committee and professorial staff. My valued old friend Alberto Randegger was voted to the chair, and he was supported on the platform by Mr. Thomas Threlfall, by my colleagues Sir A. C. Mac- kenzie, Oscar Beringer, John Thomas, and Mr. F. \V. Renaut (the secretary). After a few genial words from the chairman, my old ''school and form-fellow " John Thomas (Pencerdd Gwalia) acted as the mouthpiece of the assembly and 2/9 Walter Macfarren presented me with that which I most coveted an English gold minute-repeater watch, and the promise (when completed) of an album containing an address which Mr. Threlfall read, and of which, I have since learned, he was the author. (This album has since come to completion, and is a very imposing affair about eighteen inches by fourteen in size, bound in scarlet morocco, inscribed with my initials and the date. Following the address are O the autograph signatures of the committee of management, the professors, the official staff, and the domestics. The book is beautifully illuminated, and the first page contains little water-colour drawings of the room and chair I had occupied for so many years, the grand staircase, and the entrance-door, all of which are clue to the highly artistic skill and taste of Mr. W. E. Renaut, the eldest son of the Academy's esteemed secretary, Mr. E. W. Renaut.) The address ran as fol- lows :- "To WALTER CECIL MACEARREX, F.R.A.M. "We, the undersigned Committcemen, Professors, and Officials of the Royal Academy of Music, on the occasion of your retirement from your professorship of this royal and national institution, \\ith \vhich successively as student, professor, conductor, lecturer, director, and member of the Committee of Management you have been uninterruptedly and honourably connected for no less than sixty-one years, ask your acceptance from us, 280 Presentation Album of t t- f i f ('' t Tj-t.tt.t-f fww y^ a^ d rf^f" ff *^' fs^g*** ^ ~^*-f -*~- ^ '- *> ^ , ri'- 1 1 f^e fesealTj*^ wami '^^j^ji *K'jg** fi |> O compositions, and the delicacy and exquisite finish of his faces and hands. On the 23rd of this month I presided for the first time at the annual dinner of the Tonal Art Club, on which occasion I was supported on my right by Agnes Zimmermann and Mrs. H. R. Eyers, and on my left by my own old pupil May Wheldon, and by Carl Weber, the son of an ancient and highly esteemed acquaintance, the organist of the German Chapel Royal. The Ides of March bring with them the thought of my old friend John Thomas who was born on St. David's Day (the first of that month) and ought surely to have been christened after his patron saint 288 and according to immemorial custom I greeted him with the respect due to a senior by nearly six months. I say this with no desire to boast of my juvenility, but rather as it affords me opportunity of expressing wonderment at the lightness with which time has dealt with the Chief Minstrel of the Principality, who is the youngest man of his years of my acquaintance. I must mention the high gratification I derived from the performances of the Hans Wesselly Quartet, w r hich, under the able direction of that eminent violinist, approach very nearly to perfection, and on the 1 6th of March the performance of Mozart's lovely Quintet in G minor was worthy of the music, the very highest praise I can accord to it; also on the same occasion the Quartet of J. B. McEwen made a strong impression on me. The concerts of the Alma Mater Choir, under the direction of my friend Henry R. Eyers, one of which took place on the i / th, have been most interesting, and I am glad the choir is making a name for itself. The mention of the i/th of March reminds me that, having had the honour to address the grand old man Manuel Garcia on his entrance upon the ninetieth anniversary of his birth, I was now called upon to write an address apropos of his entrance upon his hundredth year, and this address was signed by all the professors of the R.A.M. and the 289 u Walter Macfarren R.C.M., and forwarded to him on the morning of the auspicious day. I also wrote to my ancient colleague privately on this remarkable occasion, and received in reply the autograph letter which is here facsimiled: - The old and honoured house of John Broaclwood & Sons, after an experience of over one hundred and seventy years in Great Pulteney Street, having changed its locale to Conduit Street, I visited the new premises with great interest, and the Exhibition 290 Joseph Joachim of Ancient and Modern Stringed Instruments quite fascinated me. It is curious to reflect that when this eminent firm of pianoforte-makers was founded in the year 1/32, Great Pulteney Street and Golden Square were fashionable suburbs of the Court of St. James's, and I am led to wonder whether Conduit Street will have, in accordance with the natural course of events, in another hundred years to give place to a still more westerly site. Previous to the presentation to Dr. Joachim of his portrait by J. S. Sargent, on the i6th of May, in the Queen's Hall, I had the pleasure of shaking hands with the hero of the day, when I remarked to him that I doubted if there was another subscriber present who had also witnessed his performance of Beethoven's Violin Concerto at the Philharmonic on May 27th, 1844, under the direction of Mendels- sohn. I have since learned, however, that there was one lady present who had also enjoyed that privilege. The Right Honourable Arthur Balfour made the presentation in a graceful speech, and Sir Hubert Parry, Bart., read the address. Joseph Joachim replied in a speech which was marked by feeling, good taste, and humour, and he after- wards delighted us by an interpretation of the Beethoven Concerto, which was an intellectual treat of the very highest order. On receiving the invitation of its Court of Assistants to preside for the second time at the 291 Walter Macfarren annual Festival of the Royal Society of Musicians, I doubted if in the interest of that institution I was justified in its acceptance; but when I reflected that not to speak of royalty Charles Dickens, William Sterndale Bennett, Arthur Sullivan, and many another, distinguished in literature, science, and art, had occupied that position, I felt that it was a great compliment, not so much to myself personally, as to the profession of which I am a humble member. I also reflected that music had not only been the source of my livelihood, but a solace and comfort in time of trouble and anxiety. It had added joy in moments of success, and had proved a constant companion throughout my life of unvarying sweetness. I felt, therefore, that music having done so much for me, it would have been ungrateful to refuse to render this little service on behalf of music ; so I accepted the honourable position, and on June 25th presided over a very laro-e assemblaq-e of musicians and music-lovers. I o o proposed the toast of the evening in a speech which elicited from the Rev. Dr. Edgar Sheppard, the Sub- Dean of His Majesty's Chapels Royal, who was on my left, the single word "Excellent!" which touched me almost more than the prolonged applause of my large auditory. On that occasion, my old friend Dr. \V. H. Cummings, the hon. treasurer of the society, proposed my health with his customary eloquence and such heartiness as to assure me the 292 Loan Exhibition task was not a disagreeable one, and the hearty vote of thanks I received, later, from the Court of Assistants was accompanied by the gratifying assurance that the attendance at the dinner was one of the largest on record, and that the donations and subscriptions had considerably exceeded those of the previous year. The last memory I have to record is my presence at the inauguration of the Loan Exhibition of Musical Instruments, Portraits, and Autographs, by the Worshipful Company of Musicians, in the Fish- mongers' Hall, kindly lent for the occasion by that worshipful Company. Their Royal Highnesses the Prince and Princess of Wales opened the exhibition, which was attended by the elite of the musical pro- fession ; and, in connection with this event, I may add that I had the pleasure of lending the portrait of Mendelssohn, by Magnus of Berlin; and that of my brother, Sir G. A. Macfarren, by Mrs'. Goodman. A few days later I attended in the same hall a very interesting and well-delivered lecture by Algernon Rose on the subject of "Dances of Bygone Days." Old persons whose names are familiar to the public are liable to the importunity of autograph hunters, and I have not been exempt from this species of mild persecution, but the following is one of the most original examples of the genus I ever received : 293 Walter Macfarren " ETON COLLEGE, "13/6/03. " DEAR SIR, Could you, unless you totally disapprove of it, send me your autograph for my collection, if it can as yet be called so? I should be awfully grateful ! If you do disapprove, all I can do is to express tjje hope that you will have already forgiven the audacity of Your obedient, yet budding, 'friend/ H. J. F R." To which epistle I replied, signing myself "your obedient but full-blown friend." One more pleasant memory is that of my acquaintance with the great contra-bassist and eminent musician, G. Bottesini, whose unique talent was not more remarkable than his modesty. 294 G. Bottesini 295 CHAPTER XVI. Letters G. A. Macfarren Moscheles Cipriani Potter Charlotte Helen Dolby W. S. Bennett Lord Coleridge Mrs. Anderson John Stainer Joseph Joachim J. \V. Davison Manuel Garcia. Now that my " Memories " are all recorded, and my readers' patience, I fear, well- nigh exhausted, it has occurred to me that I might have spared them the trouble of wading through these pages, as many of the particulars contained therein concerning myself have been already told by Mr. J. Spencer Curwen in the Musical Herald, in the year 1894; by Mr. F. G. Edwards in the Musical Times (1896); by myself in M.A.P., in 1901; by Mr. Kalisch in the World (1903); and by Mr. Tann in the Musical Age (1903). Still, these recollections do not refer exclusively to myself, and the matters personal will perhaps be more acceptable in my own words than in those of another; but I avail myself of this oppor- tunity of expressing my acknowledgments to the gentlemen above named, who have one and all dealt with me in the kindliest spirit, and given me credit for much more than I deserve. It has been my practice for many years to destroy letters, the mass of correspondence in which 296 Letters I have been engaged rendering this proceeding necessary, unless I would devote a room especially to their retention, and a special secretary to tabulate them. This habit, however, has its inconveniences, and these I feel at the present moment when I should like to submit to those who do me the honour to read these pages interesting communications from many eminent men, but in searching my various receptacles I can discover only a few of these which are suitable for the purpose. The earliest in point of date is from my brother, G. A. Macfarren, written in the Isle of Man, and it may be as well to explain that the Mr. Stanfield mentioned therein was the great marine painter, Clarkson Stanfield, R.A. Basil was a brother nearly three years my senior, who died in 1837. The new master spoken of was J. W. Davison. " DOUGLAS, ''December 2Oth, 1836. " MY DEAR WALTER, A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you. I hope they will let you off at the Abbey on Sunday before the pudding be cold, and that you will enjoy a right roystering rumpus in the even- ing. You must be very good and kind to mamma, for you know this is the best indeed the only way to make her happy. I suppose you will go to Mr. Stanfield's. Would you not be very much surprised to see me in the midst of you playing showman to Mr. Adcock's Punch ? Indeed I should ; and even more pleased than astonished, as I 297 Walter Macfarren do not think there is much chance of this delightful accident coming to pass. I hereby engage Basil and you as my deputies, to take my turn to be funny between you, and as a recompense I give you my share of the enjoyment (which if I were there would not be a little one) in addition to your own, and I desire you to kiss mamma and Ellen for my sake; of course you will begin by kissing each other. The people here do not seem to know what Christmas means (poor creatures!), for they think more of going to church than making merry. If I do not get a pleasant invitation for Christmas Day, I am taking a long walk to see the ruins of Peel Castle, a famous old place about which many strange stories are told, and I shall very likely pass the night there. " I am thinking very anxiously about Basil and his examination at the Academy, which I understand takes place to-day. Poor Basil ! I hope he has been pegging hard, for that is the only thing to put him in good spirits about it. And you, my master, must not be idle. You must be attentive to your lessons at school and to your practice at home, or you will never be a man. I trust that when next I hear you play I shall find you much improved, and that you do credit to your new music master. Mind everything mamma says to you, and be very kind to Ellen and Basil, and you will be sure to be happy and to make them so. Your affectionate brother. ' GKORC.K. " P.S. How do you manage with the puddles on your way to Westminster? You would not get on well here, for this is the dirtiest, crookedest, rainiest, windiest place I ever saw. G. A. M." The following extract from a letter of Ignaz 298 Letters Moscheles was addressed to me during my brother's absence in America, and it explains itself: " LEIPSIC, "6th December, 1848. " To W. C. MACFARREN, ESQ. " MY DEAR SIR, In answer to your note dated 23rd November, I will give you information about your brother's Quintett, which is still in my possession yet unpublished. When I first made proposals to several publishers of Leipsic they found objections in the usual way, viz.: 'Due respect to the merit of the work, but we have so many things in hand (works on account of the authors), and dramatic works in fashion, arrangements therefrom, a Quintett is a serious heavy work, etc.,' they said. Then the political events operated such a standstill of the Arts on the Continent, that a total change of public affairs must be expected before the publishers may gain confidence to publish greater works. How much I still suffer under these circumstances you may easily imagine. " In expectation of better times, which seem to approach, I will seize the first opportunity to begin new negotiations about the Quintett. Should your brother, on his return to England, wish to have the MS. returned, it might be easily done, or a copy of it sent, or I would most willingly keep it till a favourable chance offers. . . . " My dear sir, yours very truly, " I. MOSCHELES.'' Cipriani Potter's last appearance in public was at a concert of mine in March 1857, and in reply to my letter of thanks he wrote as follows : 299 Walter Macfarren " INVERNESS TERRACE, " BAYSWATER, "March 2jth, 1857. " DEAR MACFARREN, I thank you for your kind note, and beg to assure you that the gratification was quite mutual as regards the performance of the duet by Mozart; my regard for you and your talents induced me readily to acquiesce to your wishes. " Your performance on Monday was excellent in every respect, it was nicely subdued, and you produced an excellent tone, and your playing highly successful. Believe me, with much esteem, yours faithfully, " CIPRIANI POTTER. " P.S. I was delighted with the Sonata." The following letter from Charlotte Helen Dolby was in acknowledgment of my little gift on her marriage with Prosper Sainton : "February yd, 1860. "Mv DEAR MR. MACFARREN, I was far from im- agining you would feel sufficient interest in my welfare to induce you to remember me in so very generous a manner; thank you then from my heart for the handsome gift I have just received. You will be glad to hear that Campbell is the only one of the English poets whose works I have not received in a collected form, so that yours is a most appropriate gift. A thousand thanks then, dear Mr. Macfarren, and ever believe me your sincere friend, " CHARLOTTE H. DOLBY." 300 Letters The following letter from Sir William Sterndale o Bennett speaks for itself: " 50 INVERNESS TERRACE, " KENSINGTON GARDENS, "July 2ist, 1863. " MY DEAR WALTER MACFARREN, I am very much gratified by the compliment you have paid me in dedicating your ' Elaine ' to me. I hope to play it very often myself, and to hear it played very often by others. It is very melodious and clear in its construction, and I assure you has given me much pleasure even to look at it. When my holidays come (in a few days) I hope to realise it. Ever yours sincerely, " WILLIAM STERNDALE BENNETT." Here is another charming letter from my old master, Cipriani Potter, in reference to one of my concerts : " April loth, 1870. " MY DEAR MACFARREN, I heard your Sonata for the third time, and never enjoyed it so much; it went off most beautifully good things one cannot hear too often. I was obliged to leave after your Sonata for the Royal Society of Musicians' dinner. Mozart's Trio was delightful; you all did your duty. Hummel's Duet was well played. The two songs pleased me very much, as well as the audience. With kind regards, believe me, yours sincerely, " CIPRIANI POTTER." The annexed letter of the late Lord Coleridge 301 Walter Macfarren (then Sir John Duke Coleridge) was addressed to me as honorary treasurer of the Sterndale Bennett Testimonial Fund : " HEATH'S COURT, " OTTEKY SAINT MARY, " October yd, 1871. "SiR, I enclose you with much pleasure two guineas towards the Sterndale Bennett Exhibition. I have the highest respect and regard for the great musician in whose honour it is to be founded, and I only regret that through some inadvertence of my own I have not sent my name long since to be added to the list of con- tributors. I am, sir, your obedient servant, "JOHN DUKE COLERIDGE. " \V. Macfarren, Esq." The following letter from Mrs. Anderson will be read with interest by those old enough to remember her stately figure, and by a younger generation on learning something of her remarkable career. Mrs. Anderson was a native of Bath, and as Miss Philpot achieved a great reputation as a pianist in that fashionable city before coming to London, where she had the honour of instructing the future Oueen Victoria in pianoforte playing, and subsequently married Mr. G. F. Anderson (master of Oueen Victoria's private band). This admirable pianist and musician was also the instructress, I believe, of all Queen Victoria's children, and was respected, and I may say beloved by the Royal Family. She 302 Letters played much in public, and annually at the Philhar- monic, and at that society's jubilee she played Beethoven's Choral Fantasia, being at the time seventy-five years of age; she survived her husband, and did not leave us until she had become a nono- genarian. As a corollary to the foregoing remarks I may mention that Mrs. Anderson's niece, Kate Loder (Lady Thompson), played Mendelssohn's Second Concerto (dedicated to Mrs. Anderson) at a concert of her aunt and teacher in the concert- room of Her Majesty's Theatre in the presence of the composer, who expressed high admiration for the young pianist's talent. " 54 NOTTINGHAM PLACE, W., " March tfh, 1870. " MY DEAR SIR, Pray accept my best thanks for your polite attention in sending me a copy of your Sonata ; there is so little music of this sort written now, that it forms a welcome addition to my library. Hoping I may soon have an opportunity of hearing it, Believe me, with our united kind compliments, yours very truly, " LUCY ANDERSON." The letter which follows was an acknowledg- ment by Sir William Sterndale Bennett of the part I had taken as honorary treasurer in connection with the foundation of the scholarship and prize which perpetuate his name at the Royal Academy of Music : 303 Walter Macfarren " 24 QUEENSBOROUGH TERRACE. " MY DEAR WALTER MACFARREN, Many sincere thanks for your most kind letter, which I shall ever remember. Sincerely yours, " WILLIAM STERNDALE BENNETT." The following letter from the late Sir John Stainer was in reply to one of mine asking him to arrange so as to let the orchestral players off timely for a concert of my own : "7 UPPER MONTAGUE PLACE, W. " DEAR SIR, Unfortunately I am prevented from beginning my rehearsal before 12, owing to the morn- ing service in the Cathedral, which will not close till then. The only thing I can do will be to rehearse the day before; but I cannot definitely decide on this until I have seen our clerk of the works and found out whether he can arrange our platforms, etc., before morning service on Monday, 3oth. I think you had better not delay your concert as under no circumstances could my band get through the rehearsal and up to the Hanover Square Rooms in two hours. Evidently I must alter the day of rehearsal and shall do so with great pleasure, rather than interfere in any way with your work. Believe me, yours faithfully, "JOHN STAINER." The annexed letter from Dr. Joseph Joachim tells its own story: " 25 PHILLIMORE GARDENS, W. " MY DEAR MACFARREN, To my great sorrow I must say I cannot come to your concert to-morrow (excuse the 304 Letters rhyme!). I must go to Windsor in the evening to play at the Castle; the day cannot be changed, as it is for the birthday of Princess Louise that the musical party is arranged. I look forward to the Tuesday appointed by you with great interest. In great haste, and ever sincerely yours, " JOSEPH JOACHIM. "March i8th, 1876.'' A notice of the performance of my Symphony in B flat having appeared in the Times, I wrote to the eminent musical critic of that journal, asking- if I was right in attributing this kindly reference to my work to the hand of my old friend and early teacher, J. \V. Davison, and I received the following reply : " 36 TAVISTOCK PLACE, W., "August 2.\th, 1880. " MY DEAR OLD FRIEND, The hand was the hand you surmise always ready to give a hearty grip whenever it may be allowed the opportunity. Believe me, yours as ever, "J. W. D." The two following letters from the almost centenarian, Manuel Garcia, were in response to my annual congratulations: " MON ABRI, " CRICKLEWOOD, "Mai i, i go i. " MON CHER AMI, Permettez inoi de repondre en Frangais a votre lettre. Comme vous, je garde vivante la 305 x Walter Macfarren memoire des principaux accidents qui ont eu lieu durant ma carriere a 1'A.R. de M. Un entr'autres, memorable pour moi, fut la presentation du 'Testimonial.' Charge de cette tache difficile, vous sutes en faire un texte rlatteur pour moi. " Actuellement vous trouvez une autre occasion de m'addresser Texpression de sentiments sympatiques. . . . C'est un nouveau tribut de reconnaissance que je vous dois. Le retard de ces lignes vous sera explique par mon sejour en Egypte pendant 1'hiver. Yotre sincere " M. GARCIA." ' \YETIIEREIEED, CAMBEREEY. "DEAR FRIEND. ! accept with pleasure, from an old friend and comrade, words of felicitation, meaning less in some people's mouths, but in yours I feel their value, for they are in harmony with my own feeling towards you. Wishing you health, which is the desideratum of men advancing in age, Believe me, very sincerely yours, " M. GARCIA." I like not taking leave, and my last words will therefore be very brief; but I cannot close this volume without expressing my satisfaction at the unabated prosperity of my Alma Mafcr- the Royal Academy of Music, the grand old Philharmonic Society, and the great philanthropic Royal Society of Musicians, three institutions with which I have been more or less associated throughout the greater part of my life, and which have my earnest and sincere good wishes. I must also place on record 306 Conclusion my deep indebtedness to my old friend and pub- lisher of many of my works, Edwin Ashdown, and likewise to old pupils, who, since the commencement of my sight-failure, have rendered me invaluable service as amanuenses. In mentioning the names of Kate Steel, Dora Bright, Maude Wilson, George Aitken, my niece Julia Macfarren, and May Wheldon, I have not words in which to duly express my obligations. The last-named especially, who is now my adopted daughter, has been most helpful in this work, it having been her pen which has inscribed the greater part of the foregoing pages. In conclusion, while taking leave of those who have honoured me so long with their attention, I would express the hope that no word has escaped me in the course of these pages calculated to pain the living or retlect on those who have passed away. At the same time I would also venture to express the hope that the readers who have followed me in this attempt to narrate some of the incidents, experiences, and vicissitudes of a long life, will have derived at least some little of the interest I have had in recalling- and placing o I o them on record. 307 APPENDIX. Walter Macfarren's Published Works. INSTRUMENTAL. Sonata (No. i) in F, Pianoforte and Violin. Dedicated to Henry Holmes. Sonata (No. 2) in D, Pianoforte and Violin. Dedicated to G. A. Macfarren. Sonata in E minor, Pianoforte and Violoncello. Dedicated to J. F. H. Read. Eour Romances for Pianoforte and Violin. Dedicated to Prosper Sainton. Romance, " Angelus," for Pianoforte and Violin. Dedicated to Emile Sauret. Scherzo in E minor, for Pianoforte and Violin. Dedicated to Margaret Sutton. Concertstiick for Pianoforte and Orchestra. Dedicated to Nanette Kuhe. Twelve Studies for Pianoforte, in Style and Technique (first set). Dedicated to Dora Bright. Twelve Studies for Pianoforte, in Style and Technique (second set). Dedicated to A. J. Hipkins. Forty Preludes for Pianoforte. Dedicated to Maude \\ilson. Andante and Bolero Pianoforte Duet. Dedicated to Lady Thompson. 38 Appendix Andante and Scherzo Pianoforte Duet. L'Appassionata ,, La Gracieuse ,, La Fete d'Hiver ,, La Bouquetiere ,, Two Pianofortes and four Performers. First Suite de Pieces (D minor), Pianoforte Solo. Dedicated to Kate Steel. Second Suite de Pieces (E flat). Dedicated to Ethel Boyce, Edith Young, and Dora Bright. Third Suite de Pieces (in C), Pianoforte. Dedicated to George Riseley. Suite Ancienne (No. 4) in A, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Henry R. Eyers. Suite des Roses (No. 5) in G, Pianoforte. Dedicated to May Wheldon. Caprice (No. i) in G, Pianoforte. Caprice (No. 2) in F sharp minor, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Carlo Albanesi. Allegro Appassionata in A minor, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Cipriani Potter. Allegro Cantabile in B, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Mary Lock. Scherzo (No. i) in G, Pianoforte. Scherzo (No. 2) in A minor Dedicated to Charlton T. Speer. Scherzo (No. 3) in F, Pianoforte. Dedicated to May Wheldon. Polonaise (No. i) in D flat, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Lindsay Sloper. Polonaise (No. 2) in G minor, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Frederick Westlake. Polonaise (No. 3) in A, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Mabel Colyer. 309 Walter Macfarren Polonaise (No. 4) in D minor, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Florence Reeves. Impromptu (No. i) in A ("Mountain Stream"), Pianoforte. Impromptu (No. 2) in B flat (" Sul Mare"), Pianoforte. Dedicated to Mrs. Joseph Robinson. Impromptu (No. 3) in E flat, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Stewart Macpherson. Impromptu (No. 4) in G minor, Pianoforte (" Chanson d' Amour "). Dedicated to Ada Hazard. Impromptu Gavotte in A minor, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Brinley Richards. Cappriccio in B flat, Pianoforte. Rondo-Caprice in A (" May Morn"). Rondeau a la Berceuse, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Oscar Beringer. Rondoletto in A (" La Primavera ''), Pianoforte. Rondino Grazioso in G, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Mrs. Robert Bruce Steel. Rondino Espressivo in F, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Annie Cantelo. Rondino Patetico in A minor, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Stewart Macpherson. Rondino Scherzando in C, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Arthur O'Leary. Barcarolle in F sharp, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Carlo Albanesi. Barcarolle in B flat ("II dolce far niente"), Pianoforte. Barcarolle in B flat ("The Fairy Boat"), Pianoforte. Yalse Brillante ("The Skylark"), Pianoforte. Valse Impromptu in E flat, Pianoforte. Dedicated to W. J. Kipps. Valse-Caprice in D flat, Pianoforte. Valse de Concert in E flat, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Emma Buer. 310 Appendix Valse Romanesque in E flat ("La Bien-aimee "), Piano- forte. Valse in E flat (" La Joyeuse "), Pianoforte. Dedicated to Linda Scates. Valse Romanesque ("Titania"), Pianoforte. Valse Romanesque in D, Pianoforte Solo. Dedicated to Oscar Beringer. Valse Brillante in E flat (" La Rossignol "), Pianoforte. Dedicated to \V. H. Holmes. Valse Romanesque in G minor ("Elise"), Pianoforte. Dedicated to Miss Esner. Tarantella (No. i) in G, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Wilhelm Kuhe. Tarantella (No. 2) in C minor, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Agnes Zimmermann. Tarantella (No. 3) in F minor, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Lady Thompson. Tarantella (No. 4) in E flat, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Adolph Schloesser. Tarantella (No. 5) in B flat, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Edith Young Tarantella (No. 6) in A minor, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Mary Philpot. Gavotte (No. i) in D, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Miss Caroline Lane Fox. Gavotte (No. 2) in E flat, Pianoforte. Gavotte (No. 3) in G, Pianoforte. Gavotte Moderne (No. 4) in C, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Margaret Gyde. Romance Tenerezza (No. i) in B flat, Pianoforte. Romance (No. 2) in E (" Madeline "), Pianoforte. Romance (No. 3) in D ("Bianca"), Pianoforte. Romance (No. 4) in F sharp minor (" Mariana "), Pianoforte. Romance (No. 5) in F ("Elaine"), for Pianoforte. Dedicated to William Sterndale Bennett. Walter Macfarren Romance (No. 6) ("Carina'*), for Pianoforte. Romance (No. 7) in A flat ('' Eleanore''), for Pianoforte. Romance (Xo. 8) in B flat ("' La Gondola ''), for Pianoforte. Romance (No. 9) in E (" Parmi les Montagnes "), for Pianoforte. Two Nocturnes in E minor and E major, for Pianoforte. Nocturne in A minor (" Music on the Lake''), for Piano- forte. Dedicated to E. G. Monk, Mus. Doc. Nocturne in C sharp minor (''Twilight"), for Pianoforte. Dedicated to Miss Emily Burrell. Nocturne-Caprice in E flat (" Daydream "), for Pianoforte. Berceuse in G (" Golden Slumbers"), for Pianoforte. Berceuse (" Cradle Song "), for Pianoforte. Dedicated to Lady Burrell. Nocturne in D flat (" La Penserosa"), for Pianoforte. Dedicated to Mrs. J. F. H. Reed. Spinning Song in C, for Pianoforte. Dedicated to Lady Trevelyan. Spring Song in A, for Pianoforte. Dedicated to Maude Wilson. Autumn Song in A minor, for Pianoforte. The Naiad's Song in B, for Pianoforte. Morning Song in G, for Pianoforte. Dedicated to Mary Taylor. Evening Song in C, for Pianoforte. Dedicated to Annie Taylor. Two Bourrees in C minor and C major, for Pianoforte. Dedicated to Walter Fitton. Bourree Nouvelle in G, for Pianoforte. Dedicated to Mrs. Harvey. Bourree in C minor, for Pianoforte. Marche de Concert in A flat, for Pianoforte. Dedicated to Sidney Smith. 312 Appendix Galop de Concert in E flat, for Pianoforte. Galop Brillante in E flat (" Le Reveil "), for Pianoforte. Galop in D flat (" Les Etincelles "), for Pianoforte. Galop di Bravura ("Will o' the Wisp"), for Pianoforte. Dedicated to Mrs. Joseph Robinson. Mazurka Caracteristique in F minor (" Hyacinthe "), for Pianoforte. Second Mazurka Caracteristique in F, for Pianoforte. Third Mazurka Caracteristique in A flat (" Perdita "), for Pianoforte. Two Mazurkas in B flat minor and F major, for Piano- forte. Dedicated to Nanette Kuhe. Fourth Mazurka in A (" Zephyrus "), for Pianoforte. Fifth Mazurka Caracteristique in D minor, for Pianoforte. Saltarella in A minor, for Pianoforte. Dedicated to Arabella Goddard. Melody in F ("A Wild Rose "), for Pianoforte. Dedicated to Alice Hart. Melody in D flat ("Alpine Rose"), for Pianoforte. Melody in E flat ("Two Buds"), for Pianoforte. Melody in G ("Jessamine"), for Pianoforte. Marche Joyeuse in C, for Pianoforte. First Menuetto in E flat, for Pianoforte. Dedicated to Stephen Kemp. Arabesque in F, for Pianoforte. Dedicated to Agnes Zimmermann. Vivace in D, for Pianoforte. Dedicated to W. H. Holmes. Sarabande in D minor, for Pianoforte. Serenade in E major. Sarabande in C, for Pianoforte. Dedicated to Mrs. Clippingdale. 313 Walter Macfarren La Spirituelle in C, for Pianoforte. Dedicated to Cecelia Lachlan. Bourree in D, Pianoforte. Dedicated to Miss Macirone. Ballade in A, for Pianoforte. Second Ballade in B flat, for Pianoforte. La Fete d'Ete in B flat (" Bohemienne "), for Pianoforte. Polka de Concert in B flat, for Pianoforte. Dedicated to Mrs. Kuhe. Canzonetta in C, for Pianoforte. Venezia in A minor, for Pianoforte. Fleur de Luce in A flat (" Reverie"). Sylvia in B flat (" Pastorale"), for Pianoforte. Dedicated to J. Baptiste Calkin. Album Leaf in A. Dedicated to Mrs. Woodin. La Reveillee in D (" Morceau Militaire "), for Pianoforte. Tendresse in G ("Album Leaf"). Dedicated to H. A. J. Campbell. La Danoise in D flat ("Galop Brillante"), for Pianoforte. Three Sonatinas in C, G minor, and D, for Pianoforte. Dedicated to George Aitken. Reverie in A, for Pianoforte. Dedicated to Mrs. Russell-Starr. Fantasia on G. A. Macfarren's Opera " Don Quixote." Dedicated to Julius Benedict. Fantasia on G. A. Macfarren's Opera " She Stoops to Conquer." Fantasia on G. A. Macfarren's Opera "Jessie Lea." Fantasia on G. A. Macfarren's Opera " The Soldier's Legacy." Fantasia on G. A. Macfarren's Opera " Robin Hood." Fantasia on Balfe's Opera "The Bondman." Fantasia on Balfe's Opera "The Maid of Honour." Appendix Transcription of T. Barnby's Part-song " Sweet and Low." Method for the Pianoforte, including thirty-six original little pieces. Comprehensive Scale and Arpeggio Manual. Prelude in G, for the Organ. VOCAL. Morning and Evening Service in A: Te Deum, Bene- dictus, Jubilate, Kyrie Eleison, Magnificat, and Nunc Dimittis. Morning and Evening Service in C: Te Deum, Jubilate, Kyrie, Sanctus, Magnificat, and Nunc Dimittis. Evening Service: Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis in C. The Song of the Sunbeam (cantata for female voices, with piano accompaniment). Spring (four-part song). Summer ,, Autumn ,, Winter You Stole my Love (four-part song). Dainty Love ,, Hunting Song ., Summer Song (" Gentle Summer Rain "). The Curfew Bell (four-part song). The Warrior ,, Love's Heigh ho Good night, good rest (madrigal). The Fairies (four-part song). Cradle Song Morning Song ,, Go, Pretty Birds ,, 315 Walter Macfarren More Life, more Love, more Light (four-part song). Sweet Content Lad}', leave thy Silken Thread Lovers' Parting Shepherds all and Maidens fair ., Night, Sable Goddess ,, Hence, all you Vain Delights ,, Swallow, Swallow, hither Wing ,, Harvest Song ,, An Emigrant's Song ,, Sylvia (four-part song). Daybreak ,, Two Stars ,, Bells across the Sea (four-part song). Old King Cole (four-part song for male voices). Victoria's Year of Jubilee (four-part song for male voices). Sea Song ,, ,, The Stars are with the Voyager ., ,, Autumn ,, ,, Highland War Song (" Pibroch o' Donal' Dhu ") ,, Shortest and Longest (four-part song for male voices). Windlass Song ,, ,, 1 Saw thee Weep (song). \Vhere is my Lover ? (song). 'Tis Sweet when the Breeze is Swelling (song). Heart! Heart be Gay (song). Song of the Minstrel Boy (song). She Wept when Last we Parted (song). Flow down, Cold Rivulet, to the Sea,, Take, O take those Lips away ,, Love's Trial ,, The Sea hath its Pearls ,, 316 Appendix The Hemlock Tree (song). A Widow Bird sat Mourning ,, O Love, arise ! ., Art Dreaming, Sweet ? ,, Sail Swiftly, O my Soul ., Awake, O Heart! ,, The Linnet Song ., Ne'er to Meet Again ,, O were my Love yon Lilac fair ,, The Water Lady ,, Welcome Spring ,, While my Lady Sleepeth ,, Coming o'er the Sea ,, All along the Valley. ,, The Willow Tree. ,, Life's Seasons. ,, Songs and Smiles. ,, The Voice of the Sea. ,, The Lord is my Shepherd (sacred song). Lord, rebuke me not ,, 1 will praise Thee, O Lord ,, Let the words of my mouth ,, O sing unto the Lord ,, Unto Thee, O Lord ,, EDITORIAL WORKS. Mozart's Pianoforte Sonatas (20 Nos.). Mozart's Miscellaneous Works (30 Nos.). Beethoven's Pianoforte Sonatas (35 Nos.). Sterndale Bennett's Pianoforte Works (51 Nos.). Morceaux Classiques (40 Nos.). 317 Walter Macfarren Excerpts from Great Masters (24 Xos.). Popular Classics (240 Xos.). WALTER MACFARREX'S UNPUBLISHED WORKS. Concerto in B minor for Pianoforte and Orchestra (1845). Overture (" Blue Beard") for Orchestra (1845). ,, to Shakespeare's "Winter's Tale," for Orchestra (1845). Overture to Shakespeare's "Othello" (Xo. i), for Orchestra (1845). Overture to Lord Byron's " Beppo," for Orchestra (1846). ,, to Shakespeare's ''Taming of the Shrew," for Orchestra (1847). Overture in A (" Pastoral"), for Orchestra (1878). ,, to Leigh Hunt's ''' Hero and Leander," for Orchestra (1878). Symphony in B flat, for Orchestra (1879-80). Overture to Shakespeare's " King Henry V.," for Orchestra (1881). Overture to Shakespeare's "Othello" (Xo. 2), for Orchestra (1895). Sonata in F, pianoforte solo (1843). ,, in C sharp minor, pianoforte solo (1844). in A ,, (1845). Trio in C minor, pianoforte, violin, and 'cello (1843). ,, in E minor ,, ,, ,, (1844). ,, in C sharp minor ,, ,, (1848). Songs, Hymn Tunes, Chants, etc. Professional Pupils at the R.A.M. and elsewhere 1848. H. Weist Hill, F. R.A.M. First Principal of Guildhall School of Music. Thomas A. Walhvorth. 1849. Fred. Folkes. William Egerton. Oliver Johnson. 1852. Amy Dolby. George Dolby. Laura Banks. 1855- Frederick Westlake, F.R.A.M. Professor and Committee-man, R.A.M. I8 5 6. John Radcliffe, A.R.A.M. Principal Flautist, Royal Italian Opera. 1857. Jane Bailey. Jane Meagan. 1858. Mina Wyatt, A.R.A.M. (Mrs. Hardie). 1859. E. Robertine Henderson, F.R.A.M. John P. Hill. King's Scholar 1860. John Anderson. 1861. Ridley Prentice, A.R.A.M. Thomas Walstein. 1862. George E. Bambridge, F.R.A.M. Josephine Williams (Mrs. Blake), A.R.A.M. 1863. Emma Buer, A.R.A.M. Westmoreland Scholar 1865. I86 5 . Stephen Kemp, F.R.A.M. Extra Royal Academy Scholar 1866, and Professor R.A. M. 319 Walter Macfarren 1866. Linda Scates, A.R.A.M. (Mrs. Charles Yates). Extra Royal Academy Scholar 1866. l868. Mary Taylor, A.R.A.M. Organist of Charterhouse. Nessie Goode, A.R.A.M. 1869. Annie Martin (Mrs. Russell- Starr), F.R.A.M. Sterndale Bennett Prize 1874. Florence Newman. 1870. Ethel Gregory (Mrs. Bennett) Julia Macfarren 1871. Walter Fitton, A.R.A.M. Potler Exhibition 1873, Professor R.A.M. Jena Goode. 1872. F. \V. Bampfylde, A.R.A.M. Professor R. A. M. Fllen Holmes. 1873. Julia Chute. Mary Boole. Charlton T. Specr, A.R.A.M. Sterndale Bennett Scholar 1874, and late Professor R.A..M. Emily Brown. Louisa Greenhill. 1874. Ethel Goold, A.R.A.M. Lady Goldsmid Scholar 1876. Kate Steel, A.R.A.M. I'otter Exhibition and Sterndale Bennett Prize 1874, Professor R.A.M. Helen Hancock. Ada Hazard, A.R.A.M. Jane Brown. Mary Lock, A.R.A.M. M. Robertson. Clara Lilwall. Florence Anwl. Tobias Matthay, F.R.A.M. Eirst Sterndale Bennett Scholar 1872, Professor R.A.M. Thomas Silver. Sterndale Bennett Scholar iS/6. Mary Frost. Alice Heathcote. Eirst Thalberg Scholar 1877. Margaret Bucknall, A.R.A.M. (Mrs. Eyre). 1876. Jessie Berry. Mary Wyeth. Henry R. Rose, F.R.A.M. Professor R. A. M. E. Elvey. Clara Fischel. J20 Appendix Ellen Crummack. Florence Taylor, L.R.A.M. (Mrs. Jamieson). 1877. Emily Latter, A.R.A.M. Mary Goodwin. Henry J. Cockram. Twice Sterndale Bennett Scholar 1877-78. Marian Lobb. Margaret Gyde, A.R.A.M. Sterndale Bennett Prize 1879, Potter Exhibition 1880, Lady Goldsmid Scholar 1881, Thalberg Scholar 1882. Mary Robinson. Elizabeth Foskett. 1878. Mary Forty (Mrs. Frank Lawson). Maude Valerie White, F.R.A.M. Mendelssohn Scholar 1879. Thomas B. Knott, F.R.A.M. Professor R.A.M. Amy Cell. Annie Scates. E. Darby. - I nee. Kate Lever. - Nicholls. Mary Grist. Kate Bishop. Ralph Wilkinson. Young. 1879. - Moore. Annie Cantelo, A.R.A.M. (Mrs. Cox). Sterndale Bennett Prize 1881, Lady Goldsmid Scholar and Potter Exhibitor 1882. H. Inwards. J. Bayley. - Powell. 1880. J. Foalstone. B. Davis. Emily Spark. M. Josephs. Mary Dyer. Stewart Macpherson, F.R.A.M. Sterndale Bennett Scholar 1880, Balfe Scholar 1882, Lucas Medal 1884, Potter Exhibition 1885, Professor R.A.M. Maude Willett. Jean Ridout. Kate Cahill. Lily Goodchild. Douglas Redman, A.R.A.M. Organist and Choirmaster Brixton Parish Church. Arthur Dace, A.R.A.M. 1881. Edith L. Young, A.R.A.M. Lady Goldsmid Scholar 1887, Sterndale Bennett Prize 1888. R. C. Mauley. Walter Macfarren iSSi. E. Sharp. Mary Pope. Mary Moore. Dora E. Bright. A.R.A.M. (Mrs. Knatchbull). Porter Exhibition 1884, Lady Golcl- smid Scholar 1886, Sterndale Bennett Prize 1887, Lucas Prize 1888. Henrietta Gilder. Annie Taylor, L.R.A.M. A. Dacre. N. Webb. Mary Garland. E. Thompson. Ethel M. Boyce, A.R.A.M. Lady Goldsmid Scholar 1885, Potter Exhibition 1886, Stern- dale Bennett Prize 1886, Lucas Prize 1889. Lucia Corbett. Helen Pamphillon. Lotty Butler (Mrs. Leonard). Mary East. 1882. Marian Dudeney. Jane Prichard. Oldfield Marshall. Albert Eox, A.R.A.M. Hine Gift 1883, Balfe Scholar 1884, Sterndale Bennett Scholar 1886, Heathcote Long Prize 1886. Walter Mackway, A.R.A.M. Professor R.A.M. ' Edwin H. Lemare, E.R.A.M. Sir [ohn Goss Scholar 1878, late Professor K.A..M. Margaret Driscoll. A. Borer. Mary Bull. 1883. Lucy Hann. Marie James, A.R.A.M. Thalberg Scholar, 1885. H. G \vynne. William J. Kipps, A.R.A.M. Henry Smart Scholar 1884, Potter Exhibition 1887, Santley Prize 1887, Heathcote Lonj; Prize 1888, Professor K.A.M. Emma Warren. George John Bennett. Mus. Doc. Cantab., E.R.A.M., Organist of Lincoln Cathedral, Balfe Scholar 1878-80. Catherine Kingston. - Sunning. - Sutton. 1884. H. R. A. Robinson, A.R.A.M. Medora Gunning. L. Harrison. E. Cooper. J. Drink water. Edith Faraday. I John Williams. 322 Appendix 1884. G. Richards. Kate Mortimer. Edith Plomer. Dora Robinson. Sterndale Bennett Prize 1882. E. Hoby. Maude E. Wilson, A.R.A.M. E. Garcia. E. Simon. Meta Scott. M. Hawkins. Helen Coldwell. T. Harris. Eleanor Quick. 1885. Margaret Ford, A.R.A.M. Sterndale Bennett Prize, 1890. Alice Schloesser. A. Campbell. Florence Easton. George Aitken, A.R.A.M. Organist and Choirmaster Hamp- stead Parish Church, Robert Cocks Prize, 1895. Theodore Ward. Alfred Izard, A.R.A.M. Professor R.A. M., Heathcote Long Prize 1884. Henry A. Hurdle, A.R.A.M. Annie Gilbert. Ada Tunks, A.R.A.M. Hine Gift, 1889. S. Adam. 1886. J. Hart. M. Kynaston. A. Heifer. Ellen Glanville. J. T. Williams. Florence Flecher G. Poulter. M. Biffen. Charlotte Walters. Florence Heathcote. Henrietta Wells. Maud Mason. M. Cobham. E. Cocks. C. Dunlop. E. Moore. 1887. J. Caddell. E. Macrae. A. Kingdon. Alice White. A. Martin. Edith Barnes. Llewela Davies, A.R.A.M. John Thomas Welsh Scholar 1887, Macfarren Scholar 1892, Stern- dale Bennett Prize 1891, Louisa Hopkins Prize 1892, Musicians' Company's Medal 1893, Charles Lucas Prize 1894. Ethel Larking. Gilbert Grummitt. - Phillips. 323 Walter Macfarren 1887. Henry J. Wood, F.R.A.M. Conductor Queen's Hall Orchestra. Jane Wilkinson. Maud Brown. Mary Barnard. Edith Dean. Emily Russell. Ethel Beaver. 1888. Mary Lovett. Alice Scott (Mrs. Flack). - Tufnell. E. Hoare. - Thorn. Eliza Brooks. E. Bourner (Mrs. Clement Hann). Mary Parsey, L.R.A.M. 1889. Oceana Hinton. Eva Dunham. Anne Hargraves. Georgiana Ascough. Lucy Godwin. Edith Pratt, A.R.A.M. Grace Armitage. Amy Goslin. 1890. Lucy Bell. Joseph Marsh. Kate Igglesden, L.R.A.M. Rebecca Mander (Mrs. Fox). M. Hollow. Beatrice Waddington. H. Stothert. Blanche Thomas. Laura G. Lemon. 1891. Ethel Savage. Maud Bennett. Beatrice Macdonald. Bernard Flanders, A.R.A.M. Robert Cocks Prize 1894, Walter Macfarren Gold Medal 1898. Helen Claxton. Isabel Mackenzie. Henry Jenkins. 1892. John Clarke, L.R.A.M. Harry Maclean. Harold E. Macpherson, A.R.A.M. Robert Cocks Prize and Heathcote Lon^ Prize, 1893. Mary Wilkes. Herbert L. Cooke. Organist and Choirmaster St. Luke's, Kentish Town. Mary Plaskett. Grace lerson, L.R.A.M., A.R.C.M. Ellen Bowick. May Wheldon, L.R.A.M. 2 -\ Appendix 1892. Alice Andrews, L.R.A.M. L. Maries Thomas. Mary Philpot, L.R.A.M. Constance Riseley. Hannah Smith, L.R.A.M. Welton Hickin, A.R.A.M. Robert Cocks Prize 1896, Charles Mortimer Prize 1898. Esther Caine. 1893. Clare Powell. Percy Harmon. Stanislaus Szczepanowski. Hine Prize, Sterndale Bennett Scholar 1892. E. Haskett Smith. Robert Neville Flux, A.R.A.M. Hine Prize 1894, Potter Exhibition 1896, Sir Michael Costa Scholar 1897, Walter Macfarren Gold Medal looo, Bandmaster of the Royal Engineers. Claude Pollard, A.R.A.M. Professor R.A.M., Thalberg Scho- lar and Heathcote Long Prize 1895, Walter Macfarren Gold Medal 1897. Leta Edwards. 1894. Mabel Colyer, A.R.A.M. Potter Exhibition 1898, Walter Macfarren Gold Medal 1900. Mary Davies. Elsie E. Home, A.R.A.M. Thalberg Scholar and Sterndale Bennett Prize 1897, Louisa Hopkins Prize 1899, Agnes Zim- mermann Prize 1899. May Walker. Isabel Macfarren. Robin Finch. Marion Railton. Elsie Foster. Minnie Pettigrew. 1895. Kate Rooney. Rose Phillips. Octavia de Ward. M. Aldrich. 1896. Rose Joyner. May Savage, L.R.A.M. Minnie Prendergast. Florence Kirk. Ethel Travis Kirk, L.R.A.M. Annie Ross. Ellen Crowe. Kathleen Redmond. Annie Smallpage. Gerald F. Kahn. Heathcote Long Prize 1898. Rachel Sniders. Muriel Rusden. Madeline Campbell. 325 Walter Macfarren 1896. L. Woods. - Broadhurst. Cecelia Gary. Dorothy Forster. l8 97- Winifred Helby. Margaret Biggam. ! Jeanie Ellison. Violet Haymes, L.R.A.M. j Muriel Carne. Herbert Macfarren, A. R.A.M. j Margaret Reid. F. M. Underwood. Gertrude Saunders. Olivia Upcott-Gill. A. J. Hjmt. F. M. Partridge, L.R.A.M. 1898. Gertrude Brooks. Florence I. Reeves, L.R.A.M. Sterndale Bennett Prize and Walter Macfarren Gold Medal 1902. Ethel Winifred Rose. Ethel Beverley. Regina Druiff (Mrs. Grunt- wag). Liszt Scholar 1897. Horace Bowen. Associated Board Scholar 1897. M. Wigley. May Davis (Mrs. Abrahams), L.R.A.M. Molly Ames, L.R.A.M. Gladys Law. Frederick Westlake Prize 1904. 1899. Phyllis Caldicott. E. Ouehen. Constance Jones. Margaret Bennett. Associated Board Scholar 1899. 1900. Isabel Clarke, L.R.A.M. Margaret Martin. Violet Rumsey. Florence Bonner. Dorothy Felce. Georgia Urban-Smith. Lucy Thompson. Linda Bradley. Lucy Holeyman. M. Kempe. May Kennett. Hannah Koppenhagen. 1901. Henry Brown. Constance V. Hunter. Minnie Moss, L.R.A.M. Winifred Vinson. Edith Jackson. Florence E.Axtens, L.R.A.M. Marjorie Fleming. 326 Appendix 1902. D. Haydn Richards. O. L. Blakemore. May L. Thompson. Henrietta Morgan. C. Mary Pellatt. Linda Chesterman. Eva M. Andrew. Victoria Fox. Thomas, Mrs. Joy Guerrier, L.R.A.M. Catherine Bennett. Lilian Honiss. Gertrude Cotter. 327 NDEX. A. ABINGDON, 174, 175, 246 Academy, Royal, of Music, n, 24, 27, 28, 31, 44, 45, 46, 47, 49, 56, 75, 79, 90, 91, 107, no, in, 112, 118, 121, 127, 130, 133, 136, 138, 139, 141, 143, 146, 149, 150, 157, 163, 164, 165, 166, 167, 168, 169, 170, 177, 180, 185, 186, 192, 194, 199, 200, 201, 204, 206, 209, 211, 220, 226, 228, 234, 236, 237, 238, 240, 246, 249, 252, 255, 259, 26l, 263, 264, 266, 268, 275, 289, 306 Royal, of Arts, 244, 245, 288 " Academy March," 49 Acts and Galatea, 7, 8, 25 Addison, Robert, 165 Agnew, Philip, 261 Aigle, 159 Aitken, George, 227, 232, 246, 254, 256, 286, 307 Albanesi, Carlo, 257, 275 Albani, Madame, 151, 189,205,215, 263 Albert Hall, 107 Street, 10, 52, 72, 79 Albert, B., 287 Alboni, 100 Allan, Madame Caradori, 51 Allen, H. R., 63 Alma Mater Choir, 263, 289 "Ancient" Concerts, 19 Anderson, Mrs., 96, 302, 303 - James, 24, 25 Arnold, F. \V., 165 Arts Club, 134, 191, 235, 249, 252 Ashdown, Edwin, 40, 234, 307 Aske's School, 260 Associated Board, 178, 228, 260, 274 Astley's Theatre, 25 Auber, 100, 102 Authors' Club, 267 Autographic album, 32, 34, 37, 77, 94, 1 08 B. BACH, 23, 54, 130, 133, 165, 193 Bache, Walter, 200, 201 Balfe, M. W., 31, 104, 149 Balfour, the Right Hon. Arthur, 291 Bamfylde, F. \V. W., 229 Bancroft, 7 Barmouth, 128, 129 Barnby, Sir Joseph, 210, 213 Barnett, J. F., 190 Barr, Fred, 223 Bartholomew, Mr. and Mrs., 54 Hartley, 25 Basle, 1 59 Beethoven, 37, 44, 53, 61, 75, 76, 82, 91, 94, 96, 97, 124, 133, ij3, 15, 158, 180, 181, 183, 194, 236, 268, 291, 301, 303 Bellini, 99, too Benedict, Sir Julius, 50, 63, 172, 177, 185, 1 86, 196, 197, 225 Bennett, William Sterndale, 44, 45, 48, 56, 59, 60, 76, 82, 84, 96, in, 112, 115, 117, 119, 127, 128, 130, iji, 133, 135, '36, 138, 139, MI, 142, 143, 145, 163, 168, i So, 200, 233, 238, 292 Charles, 131 - Joseph, 156, 171, 191 Berger, Francesco, 244 Bergne, Sir Henry and Lady, 191 Beringer, Oscar, 126, 279 Berne, 159 329 Walter Macfarren Betjemann, G., 199 Birkbeck Institute, 217 Birmingham, 51, 53, 146, 148, 192, 195, 201 Bishop, 5 Black, J., 58 Bkickheath Conservatoire, 261 Blagrove, Henry, 91, 108 Blomfield, Sir Edward, R.A., 235 Board of Professors, 91 Bohemian Gir/, 31 Bottesini, 294 Boucicault, Dion, 25 Bowen, York, 261 Bowley, 86 Bowman, Sir William, 156 Boyce, Ethel, 205, 231 Bradford Festival, 89 Bradley, Dean, 141, 209 Brahms, 137, 191 Branscombe, Edward, 245 Brereton, \V., 165 Bridge, Sir Frederick, 15, 209, 237, 265 Bright, Dora (Mrs. Knatchbull), 205, 216, 227, 231, 268, 287, 306 Brighton, 22, 69, 155, 163, 168, 214, 222, 227, 254, 261, 262, 264, 270 Bristol, 85, 156, 157, 163, 169, 176, 183, 1 88, 189, 194, 199, 203, 204, 223, 251 Festival, 133, 169 - Madrigal Society, 183. 189 British Musicians, Society of, 41, 43, 52, 54, 60, 130 Broad wood, 58, 72, 97, 106, 219, 221, 230, 252, 257, 273, 290 Browning, Robert, 126 Bruch, Max, 233 Brussels, 158 Brynmawr, 254 Buckingham, Duke of, 3 Buckland. Frank, 271 Bucknall. Margaret (Mrs. Eyre\ 165, 193 Buckstone, 1 1 5 Billow, Hans von, 133, 154 Burnett, Alfred, 122, 145 Butler, the Rev. Dr., 160 Butt, Clara, 256, 263 Buxton, Mr., 55 Buxton, 198, 206 Buzzard, Dr., 135 Byron, Lord, 123 C. CALLOW, John, 1 1 1 Cambridge, 135, 142, 186, 208 Duke of, 1 8 Camden Street, 12 Campbell, H. A. J., 165 Canrobert, 78 Cantelo, Annie, 181, 187, 268 Carrodus, John T., 6l, 134, 192 Carvalho, Madame Miolan, 101 Case, J., 132 Cavaignac, 58, 59, 72 Cazalet, the Rev. W. \V., 49 Cecil, 3 Chamber Concerts, 76, 145 Chapel Royal, i 5, 20 Chappell & Co., 89 Charter, 112, 212 Chartists, 61 Cheltenham, 70; Ladies 1 College, 178, 199 Cherubini, 102 " Chevy Chase," 23 Chichester, 70 Chopin, Frederic, 58, 59, 60, 189 Chorister, 12, 13 Clark, Isabel, 277 Windyer, Clarke, Cowden, 107 I Cock, Lamborn, 132 j Cockburn, Sir Alexander, 114 Cockram, Henry J., 163 Coleridge, Lord, 127,300 Cologne, 158 Colyer, Mabel, 277, 284 Connolly, Miss, 260 Cooke, Tom, 20, 21, 242 Corder, Frederick, 63, 183, 238, 282 Coronation, 16, 17 Corn, H., 63 Costa, Sir Michael, 53, 79, 87, 147, 148, 153, 190 Coitf) ({' I'ltrtt, 72 Cove, Kate, 231 Covent (iarden, 24, 25, 84, 100, 104, 170, 192, 205 330 Index Coward, James, 15 Cowen, Frederic, 125, 170, 190, 213, 232 Cox, Frank, 132 Cramer, J. B., 44 Crescent Place, 9, 52 Cricket, 61 144 Crimea, 77 Critchett, George and Sir Anderson, 156 Crosland, Mrs. Newton, 67 Crotch, Dr., 90 Croydon Conservatoire, 229, 237, 264 Crystal Palace, 15, 5, 126, 134, 163, 176, 240, 251,269 Cummings, Dr. W. H., 14, 125, 143, 172, 244, 248, 262, 292 Curtis, Miss Alice (Mrs. Alfred Gibson), 138 Curwen, Spencer, 225, 227, 230, 296 Cusins, Sir W. G., 115, 125, 127, 130, 132, 163, 190 D. Daily Telegraph, 159 Uannreuther, 126 Darwen, 218 Davenport, F. W., 75 Natalie, 261 Davies, Ben., 256, 263, 287 Fanny, 200 Ffrangcon, 256 Llewela, 257, 268, 270 - Mrs. Mary, 149, 165, 181, 196, 238 Davison, J. W., n, 30, 32, 39, 40, 41, 51, 58, 89, 96, 171, 191, 198, 296, 304 Davy, Sir Humphry, 204 Deal, 162 De Greef, 226 De Lucia, 233 Devil's Opera, 18 Dickens, Charles, 10, 113, 114, 115, 125, 292 Disraeli, 92 Docker, F. W., 233 Donizetti, 99 Don Quixote, 50 Dorrell, William, 132, 251 Dover, 162 Dragon of Wantlcy, 10 Drury Lane Theatre, 5, 25, 50 Duckworth, Canon, 209 Du Maurier, G., 176, 235 Dvordk, Anton, 190, 248 E. EDINBURGH, 81, 96, 146 Edwards, F. G., 296 Elijah, 32, 51, 52, 54, 63, 256, 257, 263 "Emperor" Concerto, 44 Empire Theatre, 21 English Opera House, 18 Ericsson, Sir Eric, Si Ernst, H. W., 34, 3 6 , 4 Ewer & Co., 55, 202 Exeter Hall, 52, 53 Eyers, Henry R., 127, 132, 140, 162, '185, 202,263, 275,289 - Mrs., 288 Eyre, Alfred, 165, 239 F. FALMOUTH, 188 Faning, Eaton, 64, 165, 167 Fanner, H. A., 73 Faraday, Michael, 204 Farce Concert, 27 Farmer, John, 64, 160 Fan-en, W., 25, 249, 265 Fancit, Helen (Lady Martin), 24, 25 Faust, 101 Fechter, Charles, 124 Felce, Dorothy, 276 Felton, 3 Fildes, Luke, R.A., 135 Fishmongers' Hall, 271, 293 Fitton, Walter, 139, 165, 268, 270, 278 Foh, 151, 153 Dolby, Charlotte Helen, 48, 53, Forbes, Archibald, 135 87, 184 Formes, 87 331 Walter Macfarren Forster, Dorothy, 277 Fort William, 96 Forty, Mary (Mrs. Frank Lawson), 165, 196 Foster, Myles Birket, 163, 167 Franco-German War, 122, 123 French Revolution, 57, 58, 59 Fry, Charles, 226 G. GARCIA, Manuel, 237, 272, 289, 290, 305 George I., 3 - IV., 112 German, Edward, 167, 218, 238, 273 Gewandhaus, 23 Gilbert, Alfred, R.A., 213, 271 Gil Bias, 5 Giuglini, 101 Gladstone, the Right Hon. W. E., 91, 92, 122, 186 Glasgow, 4, 153 Glastonbury, 164, 172 Glover, Mrs., 8 Goddard, Arabella, 69, 117 Goetz, Angelina, 284 Goldschmidt, 1 1 1 Goodall family, 9 - Frederick, R.A., 9, 10, 77, 78 Goold, Ethel, 193 - Val, 77, 78, 164 Gorski, 230 Goss, Sir John, 91, 108, 109 Gough, James, 188 Gounod, 101 Grace, W. G., 144 Granville, Earl of, 122 Great Exhibition, 71 Greenish, Dr. , 165 Gnsi, 99 Grove, Sir George, 1/6, 186, 239, 244 Gruneison, 105, 106 Guy Fawkes, 6 Gyde, Margaret, 165, 180, 187,268, 270 H. HAI.LK, Charles, 59, 60, 118, 128, '33, 138, 172, 221, 239 Hampstead Cemetery, 207 Handel, 3, 7, 23, 130,' 193 Centenary, 86 Hanover Square Rooms, 23, 31, 44, 51, 94, 138, 143, 145 Hare, Amy, 165 Harrison, W., 63, 92 Harrow School, 56, 57, 63, 64, 65, 66 Harvey, Commander and Mrs., 1 88 Hastings, 286 Havard, 1 19 Haweis, Rev. H., 222 Hawes, Miss Maria B., 51 Mr., 20, 51 Haydn, 61, 130, 138, 288 Haymarket, 25, 100 Hazard. Ada, 165 Heap, Swinnerton, 63 Heathcote, Alice, 193 Heming, Joseph, 107, 287 Henderson, Robertine, 105 Henselt, 189 Herkomer, 182 Her Majesty's Theatre, 92, 99, 101 Hickin, Welton, 273 Hobbs, J. W., 14 Holmes, Henry, 61, 122 - W. H., 11, 28, 30, 31, 47, 76, 198 Honey, George, 92 Hopkins, Alfred J., 199, 205, 229, 259 Home, Elsie, 225, 268, 270 Horsley, Charles, 54 Horton, Priscilla, 25 Hudson, 25 Hull, 172, 191, 235 Hullah, John, 11, 87, 126, 130 Humby, Mrs., 8, 25 Hymns Ancient und Modern, 20, 130, 216 I. ILFRACOMBE, 1 10 Incorporated Society of Musicians, 226, 236, 249, 258 Indian Mutiny, 86 Index Interlaken, 159, 160 Ireland, Dean, 13 Ironmongers' Company, 187 Irvine, Duncan, 235 Irving, Sir Henry, 165 " I saw thee vveep, ;! 31 Isle of Wight, 1 02 J- JACKSON, 4 Alfred, 220 Colonel, 4, 5 - Major, 4, 5 Jefferson, 124 Joachim, Joseph, 37, 38, 39, 40, 60, 89, 90, 96, 97, 126, 146, 181, 182, 291, 305 Jones, Imgo, 3, 4 Julien, 100 Jungfrau, 159 K. KALISCH, F., 278, 296 Kean, Charles, 123, 285 Edmund, 5, 8 - Mrs. Charles, 24 Keeley, 25 Kemble, Adelaide, 22 Kemp, Stephen, 111, 203 Kenilivorth, 205 King Charles II., 63 Edward VII., 255, 265, 273 Fred, 189, 221 King's College Chapel, 20 Kipps, W. J., 254, 270 Kitchener, Lord, 187 Knill, Lord Mayor, 234 Knott, T. B., 207 Knowles, Sheridan, 24, 100 Kuhe, Mrs., 41 Wilhelm, 41, 155, 168, 286 L. LABLACHE, 99 Frederick, 201 Lady of Lyons, 24 La Martine, 58 Lament, Tom, 176 Lancaster, 225 Lawrence, Sir Thomas, 288 Lazarus, Henry, 145, 221, 227 Lecture-recitals, 172, 190, 192, 194, 203, 216, 217, 218, 219, 225, 226, 228, 235, 236, 237, 239, 240, 254, 262, 276 Ledru-Rollin, 58 Leeds, 151, 163, 171, 189, 223 Leighton, Lord, 244, 246 Leitch, W. L., 33, 34, 35 Lejeune, Henry, A.R.A., 8 Lemare, Edwin, 194, 262 Lemmens - Sherrington, Madame, 89, 92, 94, 105, 133, 148 Leoncavallo, 233 Leoni, Franco, 287 Leschetitzky, 257 Leslie, Henry, 67, 87, 107, 127 Lever, Kate, 261 " Lieder ohne Worte," 55 Lind, Jenny, 54, 63, 84, 99, 100, 209 Liston, 5 Liszt, Franz, 24, 60, 199, 200, 201 Littleton, Henry, 107, 199, 202, 213 Liverpool, 203 Lloyd, Edward, 15, 20, 133, 148, 151, 189 Loan Exhibition, 293 Lock, Miss Mary, 164, 204 Lockey, Charles, 51 Loder, E. J., 63 Kate (Lady Thompson), 28, 76, 89, no, 1 1 8, 119, 120, 207, 303 London Assurance, 25 London Institution, 107, 219, 220 Louis Napoleon III., 61, 72, 101, 123 - Philippe, 57, 38 Lovell, 124 Low, F., 132 Lowe, Sir Hudson, 5 Lucas, Charles, 19, 48, 90, 91, 108, in, 1 18 Stanley, 162 Lucerne, )6o, 161 Lucia di Lamniermoor, 45 Lumley, 99 Lyceum Theatre, 18, 167 333 Walter Macfarren Lyric Vocal Union, 218, 264, 268, '274 Lytton, Lord Bulwer, 24, 25, 100, '114 L. & N. \V. Railway, 10, n, 67 M. ' MAC," 4, 8 r Macfarren, Basil, 3, 9, 297 Ellen, 2, 51, 191, 206, 214 Eliza, 2 - Elizabeth, 4, 7, 51, 126 George, 5, 7, 8 George Alexander, 2, 6, 24, 28, 30, 37, 39, 48, 50- 54 63, 75, 76, 8 9, 9 r > 92, 96, 1 08, 128, 130, 132, 133, 138, 140, 141, 142, 143, 144, 147, 148, 1 51, 165, 168, 181, 1 86, 189, 191, 192, 193, 204, 206, 207, 208, 210, 211, 212, 217, 220, 230, 231, 238, 245, 270, 293, 297 Herbert, 277 John, 2, 205 Julia, 307 - J; ,56, 105, '34, 140, I8 5 , 205, 213, 259, Macfarlane, 4 Mackenzie, Sir A. C., 167, 184, 212, 218, 225, 232, 235, 245, 249, 256, 257, 264, 279, : Mackway, Walter, 219, 221, 266 Macpherson, Stewart, 163, 169, 191, 196,203,205,215, 231, 232, 236, 245, 266, 268, 2/0, 275 Macready, 24, 25, 100 Madrigal Society. 19, 20, 266 Magnus, 56 Malibran, 27 Malvina, 5 Manchester, 199, 219 Manns, August, 156, 176, 240, 263, 269 Mansfield, Richard, 218 M.A.I 1 ., 296 Mario, 99, 100, 101 Marks, Stacey, R.A., 135, 202 Martin, Sir George, 241 Mason, Dr., 247 1 68, Mathews, Charles, 25 Matthay, T., 132, 165 Maybrick, 146 May Day, 89 McEwen, J. 15., 289 Mendelssohn, 23, 24, 31, 32, 33 39, 40, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56 61, 63, 76, 82, 87, 117, 125, 138, 145, 157, 1 68, 172, 176, 1 8 1, 183, 187, 189, 220, 223, 242, 252, 257, 265, 266, 291, 2 Meyer, Leopold de, 40 Meyerbeer, 99, loo Midsummer NigJifs Dream, 34 Millais, Sir John Everett, 244 Monday " Pops,"' 30, 89, 90 Money, 25 Monk, E. G., 74, 85, 91, 129, 151, 172, 173, 192, 202, 232, 240, 247 - \V. H., 20, 128, 132, 216 Moore, Frankfort, 267 Morning Post, 1 06 Mornington, Earl of, 19, 20 Morris, Jessie, 41 Moscheles, Ignaz, 54, 55, 113. 193, 299 Moss, Katie, 287 Minnie, 277 Mount, George, 190 Mo/art, 30, 34, 61, 145, 181, 226, 254, 266, 300 Murin, I 59, 160 Murray, David, R.A., 135 Musical A^'c, 296 Examiner, 40 } feral d, 230, 296 Times, 296 - World, 40, 41, 42, 43 Musical artists, 213 Association, 193, 270 Evenings, 122, 135 N. NATIONAL Eisteddfod, 256 Nesbitt, Mrs., 8, 25 Neufchatel, 159 Newport, Mon., 256 Newton, Mrs. Alexander, 69 New York, 56 34, 57' '3, 1 80, 230, 93 334 Index "Night Dancers," 63 Nilsson, Christine, 118, 125 Norfolk, 62, 77 Norman-Neruda, Madame (Lady Halle), 1 19, 221 Northampton, Marquis of, 278 Norwich, 177 Novello, Madame Clara, 97 & Co., 40, 67, 107, 199, 202, o. O be ran, 5, 84 Ogilvy, Leslie, 206 O'Leary, Arthur, 285 Orchestral Concerts, 163, 179, 181 Osborne, G. A., 63, 132, 234 Osnaburgh Street, 97, 104 -Terrace, 104, in, 126, 221 Oswald, Arthur, 245 Othello, 25 Ouseley, the Rev. Sir F. A. Gore, 74 Oxford, 119, 135, 174, 175 1'. PACHMANX, Vladimir de, 189 Paradise a7td the Peri, 84 Parepa-Rosa, 105 Paris, 72, 101, 161 Parliament, Houses of, 4 Parratt, Sir Walter, 260 Parry, Gambier, 270 Sir Hubert, 232, 260, 270, 291 Pasta, 29 Patey, Madame, 133, 143, 148, 151, 181, 189 Patti, Adelina, 101, 187, 243 Paxton, Sir Joseph, 71 Payne, Arthur, 261, 265 Pechey, Mrs., 75 Peel, Sir Robert, 18 Perkins, G., 76 Perry, the Rev. F., 104 Pezzi, Signer, 122, 145 Philharmonic Society, 23, 28, 31, 34, 37, 53, 61, 79, 82, 96, no, 113, 115, 116, 118, 119, 124, 127, 133, 134, 137, 138, 143, 160, 165, 184, 190, 200, 205, 213, 225, 226, 227, 232, 233, 236, 238, 2 4 0, 242, 246, 248, 279, 292, 303, 306 Phillips, Henry, 53 Lovell, 54 Phonograph, 262 Pianoforte Metliod, 223 Piatti, Alfredo, 40. 69, 94, 95, 97, 121. 146, 181 Pinero, 245 Plymouth, 70 Poem, August 28th, 6 Pollard, Claude, 255, 268 Poole, Miss (Mrs. Bacon), 105 Potter, Cipriani, 28, 30, 47, 126, 300, 301 Exhibition, 90 Powell, Sir Francis, 235 Power, Hiram, 71 Pratt, Edith, 250 Prescott, Oliveria, 165 Prince Consort, 52, 53, 55, 71 of Wales, 274, 278, 293 Theatre, 7 Princess's Theatre, 39, 123, 285 Prinsep, Val, R.A., 134, 235 Purcell, Henry, 161 Pyne, Louisa, 63, 105 0. 54, 55, 96, 203, 204, 242, 255, 265, 269, 302 Queen newspaper, 105 Queen's College, Tufnell Park, 164, 186 Hall, 236, 252 Theatre, 7, 8, 34 R. RADLEY, 74, 173, 174, 175, 191, 192, 232, 240, 247 Ralph, Francis, 206 R.A.M. Club, 218, 225, 226, 240, 241 Randegger, Alberto, 132, 145, 146, 177, 185, 206, 241, 249, 252, 257, 271, 279 335 Walter Macfarren Reading, 70 Redman, Douglas, 221, 272 Reed, Mrs. German, 25 Reeves, Florence, 277 Sims, 87, 92, 93, 100, 147, 187 Reformation Symphony, 117 Renaut, F. W., 279 \V. E., 280 Richards, Brinley, 63, 178, 196 Richardson, 69 Sir Benjamin, 235 Ries, Ludwig, 146 Rigi, 1 60 Riseley, George, 133, 156, 169, 189, 199, 223, 248, 251 Roberts, Earl, 187 Robertson, Forbes, 276 Robin Hood, 92, 94, 217 Robinson, Mrs. Joseph, 89 Rock Ferry, 168, 171 Rogers, Sir John, 20 Rootham, D., 183, 184 Rose, Algernon, 196, 215, 267, 293 Frederick, 72, 219, 234 G. T, 132,231 Henry R., 165 Rosebery, Lord, 245 Rossini, 100, 102 Round, Catch, and Canon Club, 220 Salisbury, 137 Samuell, Clara, 165, 221, 238, 239, 263, 273 Santley, Charles, 92, 102, 118, 124, 125/132, 133, 143, 146, 148, 151, 153, i So, 183, 189, 194, 263 Sarasate, 157 Sargent, J. S., 291 Sartoris, Madame, 22, 58 Saner, Emil, 240 Sauret, Emile, 249, 272, 273, 285 Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, Duke of, 238, 239, 244, 245 Scates, Linda (Mrs. Charles Yates), in, 274 Schloesser, Adolphe, 126 Schubert, 1 16 Schumann, 61, 84, 113, 116, 121, 122, 139, 155, l8l, 187 Madame, 82, 83, 116, 126, 183 "Scotch Symphony," 23, 53 Scotland, 88, 96, 137, 168 Shakespeare, William, 63, 189, 255 Sheppard, the Rev. Dr. Edgar, 248, 292 Simpson, Sir James, 97 Sivori, Camillo, 40 Sloper, Lindsay, 60, 76, 122 Smart, Sir George, 16, 17, 242 Royal College of Music, 177, 178, j Smirke, Sir Robert, in 186, 222, 289 Snou-don, 118 Society of Musicians, 214, 257, 262, 269, 292, 306 Rubinstein, 150 Russell-Starr, Mrs. (Annie Martin), Society for the Encouragement of the Fine Arts, 271 Sothern, 265 Southampton, 45 Speer, Charlton, 132, 170, 181. 216, 255 132, 165 Ryan, Desmond, 119 Spohr, 61, 117, 138, 180, 181 S. Spring Place, Paddington, 8 Stainer, Sir John, 74, 271, 304 SACKKD Harmonic, 14, 19, 22, 52, ' Stanfield, Clarkson, R.A., 4, 86, 189, 265 Saint Andrew's, Wells Street, 233, 239 Sainton, Prosper, 40, 44, 48, 6 1, 121, 132, 145, 147, 180, 182, 187, 191, 209, 212, 219, 222, 22j, 224 Madame, 48, 105, 121, 187, 191, 194, 195, 196, 219, 300 Saint-Sacns, 138, 165,233 Sale. J. 1)., 14 Stanford, Sir Charles Villiers, 190, Stanley, Dean, 140, 141 II. M., 203 Staudigl, 5 i Steel, Kate, 138, 145, 165, 168, 182, 336 Index Steggall, Reginald, 240 W. S., 209 St. Helena, 5 St. James's Hall, 127, 143, 145, 163, 180, 189, 210, 213, 218, 236, 255, 269, 282 St. Martin's Hall, 87 St. Martin's-in-the-Fields, 4 St. Michael's College, Tenbury, 74 St. Paul's Cathedral, 19, 20, 241, 255,288 Stirling, Miss Elizabeth, 67 Stock Exchange Orchestral Society, 248, 265 Storey, Sir T. and Lady, iSS, 225 Strasburg, 158 Stratford Musical Festival, 225, 226, 232 Stratford- on- Avon, 85 Straus, Ludwig, 61, 134, 146 Sullivan, Arthur, 63, 150, 171, 186, 205, 225, 238, 266, 269, 292 Surrey Theatre, 5 Sutton, Margaret, 266, 272, 274 Swayne, Dr., 183 T. TAU50T-TYPE, 68 Tambourini, 99 Tann, R., 296 Tarantella, 100 Taylor, Franklin, 260 Teck, Prince Adolphus, 199 Tenison, Archbishop, 5 Tenniel, Sir John, 235 Thalberg, Sigismund, 44, 54, 60, 103 Thames, 3, 4 Theatre Lyrique, 101 The Temple, 260 Thomas, Arthur Goring, 165, 167, 227 E. W, 45 Harold, 198 John, 28, 29, 30, 278, 2? Lewis, 248 Thompson, Arthur, 262, 284, 287 Sir Henry, Bart., 28, 29, nS, 119, 125 Threlfall, Mr. and Mrs., 239, 255, 279 Thynne, Lord John, 13 Times, 11, 40, 51, 96, 171, 191, 198, 34 Titiens, 101, 1 18 Toby, 80 Tonal Art Club, 273, 285, 287, 288 Trebelli, 189 Tree, Beerbohm, 285 Ellen, 24 Trinity College, 234, 239 Trio in D minor, 39 Troyes, 161 Tschaikovsky, 233, 236 Turle, James, 13, 1 6 Turpin, Dr. E. H., 239 Tyburnia, 9 Tyndall, Professor, 80 VAN der Straeten, 273 Vaughan, Dr. C. J., 56, 57, 64, 65, 66 Ventnor, 170, 202 Vestris, Madame, 25 Vezin, Hermann, 265 Viardot, Garcia, 100 Villiers Street, 2, 3 Vining, F., 25 WAGNER, Richard, 79, 184 Wales, 1 1 8, 128, 149 Walker, 104 Fred., 220, 282 Wallace, Vincent, 242, 243 Walmer, 94, 98, 106, 122, 143, 162 Walter, 3 Macfarren Gold Medal, 250, 261 Ward, 25 Warner, 25 Water Music, 3 Gate, 3 Waterloo, 4, 5, 25, 49 Watkins, Sir Edward, 187 Watson, William, 60 Weber, Carl Maria, 5, 84, 138, 189, 241 337 Walter Macfarren Weber, Carl, 288 Webster, Sir Benjamin, 115 " Wedding March," 36 Weisbaden, 158 Weiss, W. H., 50, 63, 69, 242 Wells, 164 Wellington, Duke of, 19 House Academy, 10 Wesselly, Hans, 289 Westminster Abbey, 12, 13, 14, 15, 1 6, 1 8, 19, 20, 141, 207, 214, 239 Orchestral Society, 163, 195, 205, 215, 217, 220, 232, 236, 254, 267 Westlake, Frederick, 79, 80, 132, 158, 159, 162, 215, 241, 251, 252, 259, 260 Westmoreland, Earl of, 1 1 , 46, 47, 90, 91 Wheldon, May, 254, 268, 288, 306 White, A. C., 145, 221 Maude Valerie, 165, 222 Wietrowetz, Fraulein, 227 Widor, Carl Marie, 220 Wilberforce, Samuel. 74 William IV., death of, 16 Williams, Martha, 69 Williams, Greta, 231, 245 Willis's Rooms, 145 Willis, Mary, 222 Wilson, Maude, 227, 234, 268, 306 i Hilda, 238 Wilton, Earl of, 90 Wood, W. G., 165 Mrs. John, 246 Worcester, 163, 177 j World, 278, 295 Wrench, 25 i Wyndham, Sir Charles, 265 i Wynne, Edith, 105, 143, 151 YATES, Edmund, 235 York, 91, 172, 191 Young, Edith, 205 - Thomas, 14 "You Stole my Love," 106, 107, icS, 220 ZlMMERMANN, Miss AgllCS, 122, 231,238,268,288 THE END. THE WALTER SCO IT rUlil.ISHING CO., LTD., FBLLIN(,-ON-TYNK. UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY Los Angeles This book is DUE on the last date stamped below. Form L9-30m-ll, '58 (,)2G8b4)444 410 Memories: an 410 ::i5m UC SOUTHERN REGIONAL LIBRARY FACILITY AA 000021 806 5