1087
Everyone wanted to know who Beethoven’s favourite composer was.
Ludwig van Beethoven is unquestionably one of the greatest and most influential of all composers, and it was natural that visitors wanted to know whose music he admired most. Towards the end of a tragic life afflicted by deafness, loneliness and financial worries, one composer’s music brought him more solace than any other.
Picture: By Friedrich August von Kloeber (1793-1864), Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.. Source.
Posted July 13 2017
1088
In 1837 William Sterndale Bennett, then regarded as England’s most exciting young composer, made history in quite another... field.
German club cricket began in 1858, courtesy of British and American expatriates living in Berlin. But there is a much earlier game on record, played in Leipzig on June 10th, 1837. One of the participants was William Sterndale Bennett, a young and promising composer, and inevitably perhaps, a Yorkshireman.
Picture: Unknown Artist, via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.. Source.
Posted July 11 2017
1089
Sir James Melville eavesdrops on Queen Elizabeth I’s music practice, and incurs Her Majesty’s displeasure.
In 1564, Mary Queen of Scots had recently returned to Edinburgh after the death of her husband King Francis II of France. Meanwhile down in London, her cousin Queen Elizabeth I kept asking Mary’s visiting courtier, Sir James Melville, which of the two Queens was the taller, the prettier, and the more musical?
Picture: By Steven van der Meulen (d. 1568), via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.. Source.
Posted July 10 2017
1090
Acclaimed in Germany as a composer on a par with Mendelssohn himself, Bennett sacrificed his life and talents for music in Britain.
The young William Sterndale Bennett (1816-1875) was expected by many, including Felix Mendelssohn and Robert Schumann, to take his place as one of Europe’s most accomplished composers. Today he is almost unknown, a consequence of the sacrifices he made for the careers and talents of others.
Picture: From an engraving by DJ Pound, via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domaon. Source.
Posted July 8 2017
1091
The great British public leaves a German tourist speechless during a county match at the Oval in London.
A German tourist spoke to K. S. Ranjitsinhji, the great Indian batsman, about his impressions of the Victorians and their fascination with sport. It was a county cricket match between Surrey and Nottinghamshire at the Oval which truly opened his eyes.
Picture: © Tmx468, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC-BY-SA 4.0.. Source.
Posted July 7 2017
1092
Stylish batting in cricket is about variety, invention and frankly anything that works, and we have Dr W.G. Grace to thank for it.
K. S. Ranjitsinhji, the great Indian batsman, gives his assessment of the significance of Dr W. G. Grace in the history of cricket. For the good Doctor, batting was not about a narrowly perfect style but about getting runs, making batting more inventive and exciting to watch.
Picture: Photo by Herbert Rose Barraud (1845-1896), Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.. Source.
Posted July 7 2017