John Field (1782-1837) was an Irishman whose career was launched by his mentor, London-based pianist, composer and instrument-maker Muzio Clementi. Field made a highly successful debut in Paris the following year, and in 1812 he settled in St Petersburg, where he became a much sought-after teacher and may be credited with helping to lay the foundations of Russia’s remarkable tradition of piano music; Glinka was one of his pupils, and at the age of nine Mussorgsky performed one of his concertos. He nevertheless continued to perform in Western Europe and in England, where his music influenced Brahms, Liszt, Mendelssohn and Schumann. Field’s collection of Nocturnes was the first of its kind, and prompted Chopin to compose his own. See my post A Touch of Silk.

This short piece comes from Field’s first Piano Sonata, Sonata in E-flat, which was composed in 1801. The Sonata has two movements, of which this is the second, Rondo allegretto, a crowd-pleaser that showed off Field’s deft touch at the keyboard, the envy of Europe’s pianists. It is performed here by John O’Conor in a recording provided to YouTube by Universal Music Group.

Sussex-born Thomas Weelkes (1576-1623) was organist at Winchester College and then at Chichester cathedral. This piece of music is a setting of the Evensong canticle known in Latin as the Nunc Dimittis, and also as the Song of Simeon. According to St Luke’s Gospel, Simeon had waited for many years in the Temple at Jerusalem, in the belief that God had promised he would not die before he saw the promised Christ or Messiah, the heir of King David who would bring to fulfilment the prophecies of Isaiah and other Old Testament seers. When Mary and Joseph brought their infant son Jesus there, Simeon apparently saw something special in him, and taking him into his arms he sang this song.

LORD, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace,
According to thy word;
For mine eyes have seen thy salvation,
Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people:
To be a light to lighten the gentiles
And to be the glory of thy people, Israel.

The choir sings ‘salvation’ as sal-va-si-on, ‘prepared’ as pre-pare-ed and ‘Israel’ as Is-ra-el, which is correct for church music of this period. The translation is from the Book of Common Prayer, first published in 1549.

The canticle is performed here by the Choir of St John’s College, Cambridge, conducted by Andrew Nethsingha.

Recording provided to YouTube by The Orchard Enterprises.

George Pinto (1785-1806) was a promising talent on the violin and the piano, and an innovative composer exciting the admiration of some of the country’s most prominent musicians. His early death robbed England of a rare talent.

This the closing movement of his Sonata No. 3 for Piano and Violin, in B-flat. It is performed here by Kenji Fujimura (piano) and Elizabeth Sellars (violin).

Recording provided to YouTube by NAXOS of America.

This is the theme music from the Ealing comedy The Song of the Maggie (1954), composed by John Addison (1920-1998). The film tells the story of Alex Mackenzie, the veteran skipper of a near-derelict ‘puffer’ (a small steam-powered freighter) on the River Clyde in Scotland, and its crew of two, the Mate and Dougie, the wee boy.

Mackenzie needs money to repair the Maggie, so he tricks a hapless English shipping agent into loading a consignment of furniture onto his rickety tub instead of a much grander freighter. The owner of the wayward cargo, a bullying American businessman named Calvin B. Marshall, races after his belongings — he is fitting up a house in the romantic Scottish isles as a peace-offering for his estranged wife, who is on her way to join him — but Mackenzie always manages to stay one step ahead, and the pursuit teaches Mr Marshall some important life lessons.

It is played here by BBC Concert Orchestra, conducted by Rumon Gamba, in a recording supplied to YouTube by Universal Music Group.

This short anthem for unaccompanied choir is by Orlando Gibbons (1583-1625). The text is the Collect for the Third Sunday after Epiphany.

ALMIGHTY and everlasting God,
mercifully look upon our infirmities,
and in all our dangers and necessities
stretch forth thy right hand to help and defend us,
through Christ our Lord. Amen.

It is sung here by the Oxford Camerata in a recording supplied to YouTube by Universal Music Group.

This short piano piece is entitled Motu perpetuo, and forms the third movement of York Bowen’s Suite Mignonne, Op. 39, published in 1915. York Bowen (1884-1961) was Professor of Piano at the Royal Academy of Music, an acclaimed composer and conductor, and one of the outstanding pianists of his day.

It is played here by Stephen Hough in a recording supplied to YouTube by Universal Music Group.