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Ella, John. 1802-1888.
English violinist, musical director, critic and lecturer. Studied for the law; became violinist in the King's Theatre in 1822, and afterwards in the orchestras of the Concerts of Ancient Music and of the Philharmonic concerts. Studied under Attwood and Fétis at Paris, 1826 to 1829. He established the Musical Union and Musical Winter Evenings, two series of concerts; was lecturer of music at London Institution, 1855, and directed the Musical Union from 1845 to 1880; he also contributed musical notices to several leading periodicals in London. He is the author of Lectures on Dramatic Music; Musical Education Abroad and at Home; and Musical Sketches Abroad and at Home. From 1845 to 1878 were published the Records of Musical Union, consisting of analytical program notes, biographies, etc. The analytical pro-grams were made up of remarks on the structure of works performed and the periods and rank of the corn-posers, resembling somewhat those of the modern musical club.
Ellerton, John Lodge. 1801-1873.
Amateur composer, who was born in Cheshire, of Irish descent. His father, Adam Lodge, came from Liverpool, and John assumed the name of Ellerton in middle life. He learned by his own efforts to play the piano, when a boy, his father being opposed to Ellerton acquiring a musical education, for which he early showed a strong desire. He was sent to school at Rugby, and later to Ox-, ford, where he graduated with the degree of M. A. in 1828, While in the latter place he studied composition, and even wrote an opera, and a song which was favorably reviewed. After leaving Oxford he studied under Pietro Terriani at Rome, and while there he is said to have composed seven Italian operas. For some time he lived in Germany, where his symphonies were composed, and in Lon-don, where he held quartet meetings with the best artists of his time. His works comprise an oratorio, Paradise Lost; the English opera, Domenica, produced at Drury Lane Theatre in 1838; six anthems; six masses; seven-teen motets; six symphonies; seven Italian operas; two German operas; a number of glees, solos, and duets; quintets, quartets and trios for strings; eight trios and thirteen sonatas for concerted instruments.
Ellicott, Rosalind Frances. 1857-
English composer, who was born at Cambridge and lived principally at Gloucester, where her father, Charles John Ellicott, was Bishop from 1863 to 1905. From her mother, an accomplished musician and vocalist, she inherited her musical talent, beginning to compose at the age of six. Among her early works were settings of Heine's poems, and other German songs, which she composed at seven-teen, the year she entered the Royal Academy of Music. She remained at the Academy for two years, and after-wards studied under Thomas Wing-ham for about seven years. She was several times invited to compose works for the Gloucester Triennial Musical Festivals, and her first marked success, To the Immortals, was sung at one of these festivals, in 1883. Her dramatic overture, produced in 1886, is spoken of as " vigorous, spontaneous, and a great deal fresher and more purposeful than most of the cantatas of her time the themes are striking and well developed and the handling of the orchestra remarkably bold and effective." This was a triumph for Miss Ellicott, who had hitherto been considered an amateur, but was now ranked with professional composers. It is said of her industry and enthusiasm, that with a delicate physique and in circumstances where there was no pressing necessity for work, she studied and worked as if the opposite had been true. Three other overtures and a fantasia for orchestra were all given at different English festivals. Other compositions include the successful contatas, The Birth of Song, Elysium, and Henry of Navarre; and part-songs, chamber-music, and sonatas for piano and strings, which have been often performed in London. She has appeared in concerts frequently, both as pianist and vocalist. In 1901 she organized a series of successful chamber-concerts in Gloucester and Cheltenham, which continued till 1905.
Ellis, Alexander John. 1814-1890.
English writer on Phonetics and Acoustics. He was educated at Shrewsbury, Eton, and Trinity College, and was graduated from Cam-bridge, as B. A., in 1837. He became a fellow of the Royal Society in 1864, and was president of the Philological Society, 1872 to 1874 and 1880 to 1882; and was also a member of several other learned societies. He made a special study of the physical basis of musical sound, and also published some works on pronunciation in singing. He contributed to the Royal Society a number of papers on musical theory in relation to tones and their production, and was awarded a silver medal for each of several papers of inquiry in regard to the history of Musical Pitch, into which subject he made both theoretical and experimental research. He also translated into English, with notes and appendix, Helnholtz's work under the naine of On the Sensations of Tone, as a Physiological Basis for the Theory of Music.
Elsner, Joseph Xaver. 1769-1854.
He was a director, a composer and the teacher of Chopin. Was born in Grottkau, Silesia; was the son of a maker of musical instruments, and was educated for the medical profession; but as choir-boy and after-ward violinist and singer at the Breslau Theatre, he became active in music. Förster, the director at Breslau, gave him some instruction, and on visiting Vienna he became intimate with the best musicians there. In 1791 he became first violinist in the Brünn Theatre, in 1792 director of the theatre in Lemberg, and in 1799 went to Warsaw in a similar capacity. Here he founded a musical society (according to some authorities, a school for organists), which in 1821 expanded into the Warsaw Conservatory, of which he was the first director and professor of composition until 1830, when political disturbances closed the Conservatory. It was reopened in 1834, with Soliva as director. Elsner was a fluent and prolific, though not a highly inspired composer, and his operas were popular in Poland. His works include all the various forms in church music; cantatas; songs; concerts and chamber-music; and two essays on the adaptability of the Polish language to musical composition.
Elson, Louis C. 1848-
Lecturer and writer on musical subjects, and a successful teacher. He is an American of German descent, and was born in Boston. At six years of age he began the study of music, and was a piano pupil of August Hamann, while his teacher in voice, at a later period, was August Kreissmann, the friend of Franz, and a superior interpreter of his songs. Elson's especial interest in songs, many of which he has translated, is due, no doubt, to his association with Kreissmann. He later went to the Leipsic Conservatory for theoretical study.
On his return to this country he began journalistic work on the Vox Humana, a paper published chiefly in the interests of organ music. When this was merged in the Musical Herald, in 1880, he became the editor, and was about the same time chosen musical editor of the Boston Courier. When in Europe he contributed occasional articles to several prominent periodicals in New York and Boston, and in 1888 became musical editor of the Boston Advertiser. His connection with the New England Conservatory of Music dates from 1880, as vocal teacher, and lecturer on orchestra and orchestral instruments and on musical history. From 1881 he also taught musical theory, succeeding to the headship of this department on the death of Stephen Emery. He has acted as choral di-rector on various occasions in Boston, notably a festival in 1886, the pro-grams including music selected all the way from the mediaeval beginnings of the art up to the present time. As a composer, his work is mostly in the smaller forms, including several piano-pieces; three operettas; a volume of songs for children; and other songs. He has also made translations and arrangements of a great number of French, English and Italian songs, and of operas. He is much in demand as a lecturer on musical subjects, and has lectured often at many colleges and institutes, including Vassar, Cornell, The University of Pennsylvania, and other prominent educational institutions. As a vocalist, he has been connected with several of the leading choirs of Boston. As an author, his reputation is fully as wide, and his works in this line comprise The Curiosities on Music; History of German Song; Syllabus of Musical History; The Realm of Music; The Theory of Music; Great Composers and their Works; Our National Music and its Sources; European Reminiscences; German Song and Song-Writers; Shakespeare in Music; A History of American Music, published in 1904; and a Music Dictionary, in 1905; besides contributed articles to the leading music journals of America. Mr. Elson's diction is concise, often humorous, and reveals in every line broad and genuine culture fused with the specialized knowledge of the trained and experienced musician. His distinguished contemporary, W. S. B. Mathews, speaks of it as a " ripe and finished literary style, rarely found outside the ranks of professional authors."
His son, Arthur, is a well-known musical critic and writer. His books, Woman's Work in Music, Orchestral Instruments and Their Use, A Critical History of Opera, Modern Corn-posers of Europe, and frequent contributions to musical periodicals, have added to the lustre of the family name. The two, father and son, de-serve especial mention ;.s representative of the best modern thought concerning the future of the woman musician. They are truly American in their fair-minded recognition of her ability to do more than she has been permitted to do by the foreigner.
Elvey, Sir George Job. 1816-1893.
English organist and composer. Was chorister of Canterbury Cathedral and pupil of the organist, High-more Skeats, also studying under his brother, Stephen Elvey, and later at the Royal Academy of Music under Cipriani Potter and Dr. Crotch. In 1835 he succeeded Highmore Skeats, jr., as organist and chorister at St. George's Chapel, Windsor, continuing in this position until his retirement in 1882. He was graduated from Oxford as Bachelor of Music in 1838 and Doctor of Music in 1840. Was conductor of the Glee and Madrigal Society, and was knighted in 1871. He composed several oratorios; one, The Resurrection and Ascension, was per-formed at Exeter Hall by the Sacred Harmonic Society in 1840, and later given in Boston and Glasgow. He also composed several odes; anthems; a number of hymn-tunes and chants; glees and part-songs; and a Festal March for orchestra, composed for the wedding of the Princess Louise. The majority of his compositions are sacred music.
Elvyn, Myrtle. 1886-
Talented young American pianist, who after a number of years of study in Europe and several successful concert appearances there, returned in 1907 to her native country, making her American debut with the Theodore Thomas Orchestra at Orchestral Hall, Chicago, in October. Miss Elvyn was born in Sherman, Texas, and when a child of two years was brought to Chicago by her parents and continued to reside there for several years.
As a child she showed unusual talent and was brought to the attention of the late Carl Wolfsohn, the teacher of Mme. Bloomfield-Zeisler and Augusta Cottlow. He was so much impressed by the young girl's precocity that after teaching her him-self for a number of years he sent her to study in Europe with Leopold Godowsky. Under that famous teacher's instruction she made a fine record. She developed great power as a performer, gained a most fluent technique and is already, at the age of twenty-two, considered an artist. Ten years ago Mr. Wolfsohn declared that Miss Elvyn was the most talented person he had ever met, and he predicted great triumphs for her in the near future. She remained a pupil of Godowsky five years and in 1904 made her debut as a pianist in Berlin. Musical critics praised her in the highest terms, declared her possessed of great musical gifts and intelligence, and her first recital was all that she could wish. She then studied composition for a time with Hugo Kann and her talent in this direction was such that he advised her to give up piano-playing and devote herself exclusively to developing her gift for composing.
Since 1904 Miss Elvyn has made various tours through Europe and has played in most of the leading cities with many famous orchestras. She has been heard in London and is well liked there, and in Berlin is classed by musicians and music-lovers among the great pianists. She plays the difficult passages in the most ponderous works with the greatest ease, has a soft tone, a splendid technique and wonderful understanding and intelligence.
In a set of eleven variations on an original theme which Miss Elvyn composed and gave at several of her concerts, she showed herself to be the possessor of a good deal of inventive power, the work being highly original and characteristic. Miss Elvyn appeared the past season before the Emperor and Empress of Germany and the royal family, and so pleased them that the Emperor publicly complimented her and presented her with a diamond pendant. She has also appeared before the Grand Duke and Duchess of Mecklenburg and the Imperial Crown Prince and Princess of Germany, all of whom were lavish in their praise of the young artist.
Miss Elvyn is remarkably beautiful, being tall and graceful in appearance, with a lovely face, and a most attractive and winning personality.
Eiwart (ël'-värt), Antoine Aimable Elie. 1808-1877.
Was born in Paris, of Polish parentage, and was when a boy of ten, chorister in the Church of St. Eustache. Being apprenticed to a mechanic at thirteen, he ran away and joined the orchestra of a small theatre. He entered the Paris Conservatory in 1852, where he started a series of competitive concerts among the students, which continued six years, and afforded excellent practice for both composition and solo work. In 1831. he received first prize for composition, and in 1834 the Grand Prize of Rome. From 1832 to 1834 he was assistant professor of composition, and on his return from Rome two years later, took up this work again, becoming professor of harmony in 1840. He was also director of the St. Cecilia Society concerts. He resigned his post in the Conservatory in 1871 and died six years later. His compositions include the oratorios, Noah and La Naissance d'Eve; several operas, Les Catalans being the only one performed; the music for Euripides' Alcestis; also some overtures, symphonies, chamber - music and church-music. But his reputation rests principally on his writings, theoretical and literary. including Theorie Musicale; Traits due contrepoint et de la fugue; and Le Chanteur accompagnateur; and Historie de la Société des Concerts. He also contributed musical articles to Paris periodicals.
Emerson, Luther Orlando. 1820-
Was born in Parsonsfield, Mass., has conducted many musical conventions over the United States, and written some church music. He has compiled a number of collections of songs for Sunday-school and church use, which have been very popular. The Romberg Collection was first published in 1853 and was followed by The Golden Wreath, The Sabbath Harmony, Jubilate, and others.
Emery, Stephen Albert. 1841-1891.
American composer, writer, and pianist. Was born in Paris, Maine, receiving his early musical education in his native state, and later going to Leipsic, where he studied the piano under Plaidy and Papperitz, and harmony and counterpoint with Richter and Hauptmann, afterwards studying the piano under Spindler in Dresden. Returning to America, he re-moved to Boston in 1866, where the following year he was engaged to teach in the New England Conservatory, just opened. When the College of Music of Boston University was founded he was appointed professor of harmony and counterpoint in that institution also, and became assistant editor of the Musical Herald. His works as composer, lecturer and writer are of a high order, his text-book on Elements of Harmony being the best-known and most widely used. He wrote also Foundation Studies in Piano Playing, string quartets, songs and piano-pieces.
Encke (ënk'-é), Heinrich. 1811-1859.
Heinrich Encke, born in Neustadt, Bavaria, was a pianist, the pupil of Hummel, and a minor composer of études. He has also made excellent arrangements of classical compositions for four hands, but his instructive works for the piano are considered his best. He was highly regarded as a teacher of piano in Jena and Leipsic. He died at the latter place.
Engel, Carl. 1818-1882.
Writer on musical subjects and authority on musical history and musical incidents. He was a pupil of Enckhausen, a Hanover organist, and of Hummel in piano; and was musician for some time in the family of Herr von Schlabendorf, a Pomeranian nobleman. When about twenty-six years old he went to England, where he began piano teaching at Manchester, but soon moved to London, where he became interested in research work, collecting musical instruments and books, reading, writing, and familiarizing himself with the scores of modern composers, and in time acquiring collections equaled by few, and surpassed only by some of the larger public libraries and museums. His earlier works include a sonata and also some instructive works for the piano, and Reflections on Church Music. His researches soon enabled him to produce The Music of the Most Ancient Nations, and An Introduction to the Study of National Music. After these publications he became connected with the South Kensington Museum, which profited by his wide knowledge. A number of valuable works were published during the rest of his life, among which were a Descriptive Catalog of the Musical Institute in South Kensington Museum, Musical Myths and Facts, and Researches into the Early History of the Violin Family. Two works, a collection of national airs, and an immense work, designed to comprise descriptions of all known musical instruments, remain in manuscript. His library was sold at public auction in 1881, after which he visited Germany, returning to Kensington the following year, in which he died.
Engel, Gustav Edward. 1823-1895.
Born at Königsberg, he is known as a writer, teacher of singing, and critic for German periodicals. He first appears as a student of philosophy in Berlin, where he studied musical science and singing, and was a member of the Cathedral choir and of the singing society. His time was divided between teaching vocal music and writing articles on the scientific and philosophical aspects of music. He was engaged at different times as critic for two Berlin periodicals; taught in Kullak's Academy, and in the Hochschule in Berlin.
Enna, August. 1860-
Composer and violinist; born in Denmark. He was of mixed parent-age, his grandfather, an Italian soldier in Napoleon's army, having married a German woman and settled in Denmark. When he was ten years old the family moved to Copenhagen, where the boy, August, attended the free schools and learned to play the piano without a teacher. At seventeen he received a few lessons from mediocre teachers in theory and violin, but persisted in solitary study of harmony and instrumentation. He desired to enter the Copenhagen Orchestra, but not being competent to play in this joined a little traveling orchestra on a trip to Finland. At the end of a six months' tour he returned to Copenhagen, and composed an operetta. The Village Tale, which was given in several small theatres. During this time he eked out his living by playing for dancing lessons, often improvising his own music, and teaching piano at about twelve cents a lesson. In 1883 he became conductor for a small troupe, writing the music for their performances and composing several overtures. His present in-come enabled him to publish some songs and piano-music, an orchestral suite, and a symphony. This latter attracted the attention of Gade, who aided Enna in securing the Ancker scholarship for composers, enabling him to study a year in Germany. Shortly after he wrote an opera, The Witch, which was produced at the Royal Opera House in Copenhagen with a success unprecedented among Danish composers. His next opera, Cleopatra, was not so immediately popular, but rose into high favor the succeeding year. Still greater was the success of Aucassin and Nicolette, given at Copenhagen in 1896 and in Hamburg in 1897. Besides these larger works, he has published a violin concerto in D major and other smaller compositions. Of recent years he has given much attention to the fairy opera, drawing his material for librettos from the tales of the well-known Hans Christian Andersen. The Little Matchgirl, one of these, has been successful in the principal European countries, as well as Den-mark, Enna being the only Danish operatic composer known outside of his own country. Yet, in common with a number of greater composers, his life was for years a series of all but overwhelming struggles with poverty, it being said that one opera was lost through his having been forced to use the manuscript for fuel.
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