Colin Horsley
Encyclopedia
Colin Horsley OBE is a New Zealand
classical pianist and teacher who has been based in the United Kingdom
all his working life. He had a significant artistic association with the composer Sir Lennox Berkeley
.
, New Zealand
in 1920. From 1936 he studied at the Royal College of Music
in London. There he studied with Herbert Fryer, Angus Morrison, Tobias Matthay
and Irene Scharrer
. His solo debut was in Rachmaninoff
's Piano Concerto No. 3
. In 1946 he premiered Humphrey Searle
's Piano Concerto No. 1, Op. 5.
's Piano Concerto, and he gave the first performances of some of Berkeley's piano works. He also commissioned a Trio for Horn, Violin and Piano from Berkeley, and premiered it in March 1953 at the Victoria and Albert Museum
, with Dennis Brain
and Manoug Parikian. Berkeley's Piano Sonata, Op. 20, was written for and premiered by Clifford Curzon
, but Colin Horsley gave many subsequent performances, and recorded the work in 1959, in close collaboration with the composer. Berkeley dedicated the Concert Study in E-flat to Horsley, who also commissioned a Scherzo as an encore piece to be played after the Six Preludes.
He performed the complete cycle of Beethoven
violin sonatas with Max Rostal
. He worked with Dennis Brain in playing and recording horn trios by Berkeley and Brahms
.
He premiered Nikolai Medtner
's Piano Quintet when the composer was unable to perform it personally, due to illness. After Medtner's 1951 death, his widow asked Horsley to play the composer's Third Piano Concerto at a tribute concert conducted by Anatole Fistoulari
.
After a touring career, Colin Horsley taught at the Royal Manchester College of Music
1964-80, and at the RCM in London 1955-90.
Colin Horsley was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire
in 1963. He is the Patron of the Isle of Man Symphony Orchestra and in retirement he lives on the Isle of Man
, close to where his grandfather was born.
works with the Dennis Brain Wind Ensemble; the Mozart Piano Concerto No. 14
; the Piano Concerto In E-flat by John Ireland
; and with the violinist Max Rostal there are works by Debussy
, Delius
, Elgar
, Schubert
, Schumann
, Stravinsky
and Walton
.
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
classical pianist and teacher who has been based in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
all his working life. He had a significant artistic association with the composer Sir Lennox Berkeley
Lennox Berkeley
Sir Lennox Randal Francis Berkeley was an English composer.- Biography :He was born in Oxford, England, and educated at the Dragon School, Gresham's School and Merton College, Oxford...
.
Biography
Colin Horsley was born in WhanganuiWhanganui
Various places in New Zealand are called Whanganui:*Whanganui, a city at the mouth of the Whanganui River, also often spelled "Wanganui", Manawatu-Wanganui Region*Whanganui District, Manawatu-Wanganui Region*Whanganui Island, Waikato Region...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
in 1920. From 1936 he studied at the Royal College of Music
Royal College of Music
The Royal College of Music is a conservatoire founded by Royal Charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, England.-Background:The first director was Sir George Grove and he was followed by Sir Hubert Parry...
in London. There he studied with Herbert Fryer, Angus Morrison, Tobias Matthay
Tobias Matthay
Tobias Augustus Matthay was an English pianist, teacher, and composer.-Biography:Matthaw as born in London in 1858 to parents who had come from northern Germany and were naturalised British subjects...
and Irene Scharrer
Irene Scharrer
Irene Scharrer was an English classical pianist.Irene Scharrer was born in London and studied at the Royal Academy of Music with Tobias Matthay....
. His solo debut was in Rachmaninoff
Sergei Rachmaninoff
Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one of the last great representatives of Romanticism in Russian classical music...
's Piano Concerto No. 3
Piano Concerto No. 3 (Rachmaninoff)
The Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor, Op. 30, composed in 1909 by Sergei Rachmaninoff is famous for its technical and musical demands on the performer...
. In 1946 he premiered Humphrey Searle
Humphrey Searle
Humphrey Searle was a British composer.-Biography:He was born in Oxford where he was a classics scholar before studying — somewhat hesitantly — with John Ireland at the Royal College of Music in London, after which he went to Vienna on a six month scholarship to become a private pupil of Anton...
's Piano Concerto No. 1, Op. 5.
Work with Lennox Berkeley
In 1948 Colin Horsley gave the first performance of Lennox BerkeleyLennox Berkeley
Sir Lennox Randal Francis Berkeley was an English composer.- Biography :He was born in Oxford, England, and educated at the Dragon School, Gresham's School and Merton College, Oxford...
's Piano Concerto, and he gave the first performances of some of Berkeley's piano works. He also commissioned a Trio for Horn, Violin and Piano from Berkeley, and premiered it in March 1953 at the Victoria and Albert Museum
Victoria and Albert Museum
The Victoria and Albert Museum , set in the Brompton district of The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, England, is the world's largest museum of decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 4.5 million objects...
, with Dennis Brain
Dennis Brain
Dennis Brain was a British virtuoso horn player and was largely credited for popularizing the horn as a solo classical instrument with the post-war British public...
and Manoug Parikian. Berkeley's Piano Sonata, Op. 20, was written for and premiered by Clifford Curzon
Clifford Curzon
Sir Clifford Michael Curzon, CBE was an English pianist.-Early life:Clifford Michael Siegenberg was born in London to Michael and Constance Mary Siegenberg...
, but Colin Horsley gave many subsequent performances, and recorded the work in 1959, in close collaboration with the composer. Berkeley dedicated the Concert Study in E-flat to Horsley, who also commissioned a Scherzo as an encore piece to be played after the Six Preludes.
He performed the complete cycle of Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of...
violin sonatas with Max Rostal
Max Rostal
Max Rostal was a violinist and a viola player. He was Austrian-born, but later took British citizenship.-Biography:Max Rostal was born in Cieszyn and studied with Carl Flesch. He won the Mendelssohn Scholarship in 1925...
. He worked with Dennis Brain in playing and recording horn trios by Berkeley and Brahms
Johannes Brahms
Johannes Brahms was a German composer and pianist, and one of the leading musicians of the Romantic period. Born in Hamburg, Brahms spent much of his professional life in Vienna, Austria, where he was a leader of the musical scene...
.
He premiered Nikolai Medtner
Nikolai Medtner
Nikolai Karlovich Medtner was a Russian composer and pianist.A younger contemporary of Sergei Rachmaninoff and Alexander Scriabin, he wrote a substantial number of compositions, all of which include the piano...
's Piano Quintet when the composer was unable to perform it personally, due to illness. After Medtner's 1951 death, his widow asked Horsley to play the composer's Third Piano Concerto at a tribute concert conducted by Anatole Fistoulari
Anatole Fistoulari
Anatole Fistoulari was a noted 20th century conductor.Anatole Fistoulari was born in Kiev Ukraine into a musical family...
.
After a touring career, Colin Horsley taught at the Royal Manchester College of Music
Royal Manchester College of Music
The Royal Manchester College of Music was founded in 1893 by Sir Charles Hallé who assumed the role as Principal. For a long period of time Hallé had argued for Manchester's need for a conservatoire to properly train the local talent. The Ducie Street building, just off Oxford Road, was purchased...
1964-80, and at the RCM in London 1955-90.
Colin Horsley was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
in 1963. He is the Patron of the Isle of Man Symphony Orchestra and in retirement he lives on the Isle of Man
Isle of Man
The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...
, close to where his grandfather was born.
Recordings
His currently available recordings include the Berkeley Horn Trio and MozartWolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , baptismal name Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart , was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, piano, operatic, and choral music...
works with the Dennis Brain Wind Ensemble; the Mozart Piano Concerto No. 14
Piano Concerto No. 14 (Mozart)
The Piano Concerto No. 14 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, written in 1784 is a piano concerto in E-flat major catalogued with K. 449.It is the first composition he entered into a notebook of his music he then kept for the next seven years, marking down main themes, dates of completion, and other...
; the Piano Concerto In E-flat by John Ireland
John Ireland (composer)
John Nicholson Ireland was an English composer.- Life :John Ireland was born in Bowdon, near Altrincham, Manchester, into a family of Scottish descent and some cultural distinction. His father, Alexander Ireland, a publisher and newspaper proprietor, was aged 70 at John's birth...
; and with the violinist Max Rostal there are works by Debussy
Claude Debussy
Claude-Achille Debussy was a French composer. Along with Maurice Ravel, he was one of the most prominent figures working within the field of impressionist music, though he himself intensely disliked the term when applied to his compositions...
, Delius
Frederick Delius
Frederick Theodore Albert Delius, CH was an English composer. Born in the north of England to a prosperous mercantile family of German extraction, he resisted attempts to recruit him to commerce...
, Elgar
Edward Elgar
Sir Edward William Elgar, 1st Baronet OM, GCVO was an English composer, many of whose works have entered the British and international classical concert repertoire. Among his best-known compositions are orchestral works including the Enigma Variations, the Pomp and Circumstance Marches, concertos...
, Schubert
Franz Schubert
Franz Peter Schubert was an Austrian composer.Although he died at an early age, Schubert was tremendously prolific. He wrote some 600 Lieder, nine symphonies , liturgical music, operas, some incidental music, and a large body of chamber and solo piano music...
, Schumann
Robert Schumann
Robert Schumann, sometimes known as Robert Alexander Schumann, was a German composer, aesthete and influential music critic. He is regarded as one of the greatest and most representative composers of the Romantic era....
, Stravinsky
Igor Stravinsky
Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ; 6 April 1971) was a Russian, later naturalized French, and then naturalized American composer, pianist, and conductor....
and Walton
William Walton
Sir William Turner Walton OM was an English composer. During a sixty-year career, he wrote music in several classical genres and styles, from film scores to opera...
.