Ernest Pike
Encyclopedia
Ernest Pike was an English
tenor
of the early 20th century who recorded under his own name and variously as Herbert Payne, Arthur Brett, Eric Courtland, Arthur Gray, Bernard Moss, Dick Denton, Charles Nelson, Allan Dale and Richard Pembroke; - Herbert Payne being the one most commonly used. His recording repertoire was varied and included Gilbert and Sullivan
operettas, ballads and popular songs of the Edwardian era and World War I
.
“B” Company on tour in 1887 (at the age of 16) as one of the ghosts of the ancestors in Gilbert and Sullivan
’s Ruddigore
. He went on to study at the Guildhall School of Music in London. He married May Stevens in 1900 and they had a daughter Maud who was born in 1901.
for 26 years with his final recordings dating from the mid-1920s. By the 1911 census, his profession was given as that of a professional singer and he was living in Balham, South London. He also held posts at two London churches - Holy Trinity Sloane Street
and The Spanish Church in Spanish Place, but the exact dates and durations for which these posts were held are not known. During the Edwardian era he toured the country singing in many leading towns including concerts at the Queen's Hall
and Royal Albert Hall
in London. In January 1905 he performed for King Edward VII at Chatsworth House
in Derbyshire
for three nights in succession when the King was in residence for a visit to the Devonshire Hospital in Buxton
. The 1917 Zonophone
record catalogue described him as being the "The late King Edward's favourite tenor".
"; this was initially released on single-sided gramophone record
s for the "Gramophone & Typewriter Company" (G&T) which later became HMV
and re-released the recordings on double-sided discs in 1912. He sang the Captain on the first ever recording of the G&S opera “HMS Pinafore
” recorded on eleven Edison cylinders in 1907. In 1999 these early recordings were re-discovered after they been thought lost.
He continued to record light opera, singing Marco in "Gondoliers" (1907 for G&T), Colonel Fairfax in “Yeoman of the Guard” (1907 for G&T), in “Chu Chin Chow
” (1916), in “The Mikado
” (1918, HMV Black Label, under the direction of Rupert D'Oyly Carte
), as Luiz and Marco in “The Gondoliers
” (1919), as Leonard Meryll in “Yeoman of the Guard” (1920, HMV on Black Label) and as the Duke of Dunstable in “Patience
” (1921, HMV, under the direction of Rupert D’oyly Carte). In these recordings, he sang alongside other well-known singers of the period: Peter Dawson, Derek Oldham
, George Baker
, Stanley Kirkby
, Edna Thornton, Robert Radford
and Violet Essex.
In the early recording era, it was accepted practise for recordings to be made by “studio singers” (in this case provided by HMV), i.e not by the singers who would have originally performed in the stage production. This would not have compromised the authenticity of the performances of G&S, as in most cases these were directly overseen by the D’oyly Carte. It has always been believed that Ernest Pike was just such a “studio singer”, but in view of his known stage performances on tour in 1887, it may be that he performed on stage for the D’oyly Carte on other occasions also.
By 1922, D’oyly Carte was insisting that their own singers be allowed to perform in the recordings, a move that prevented Ernest Pike and several others from singing solo parts. In “Iolanthe
” (1922), he was relegated to the chorus. After this, he recorded no further G&S operas.
made in 1909. He made one of the earliest recordings of the famous World War I
ballad Roses of Picardy
recorded just one year after it had been written - in 1917. A selection of some of his most well-known songs are given below:-
He recorded initially on Edison cylinders, then for G&T, then almost exclusively for the Zonophone
label, both single-sided and from 1910 onwards, double-sided (Zonophone “The Twin”) produced by the British Zonophone
Company which was effectively a branch of HMV
. After he ceased to record operatic solos for HMV in 1922, he recorded his popular songs only for Columbia's budget Regal Records. (See also Regal Records (1914). His popular recordings were also released on the following labels: Ariel, Sterling and Twin.
He appears to have made no further recordings of any kind after the mid 1920s. He died of a cerebral haemorrhage on March 4, 1936 in Streatham, South London. His obituary in the Musical Times (of April 1936) consisted of just one line.
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...
tenor
Tenor
The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
of the early 20th century who recorded under his own name and variously as Herbert Payne, Arthur Brett, Eric Courtland, Arthur Gray, Bernard Moss, Dick Denton, Charles Nelson, Allan Dale and Richard Pembroke; - Herbert Payne being the one most commonly used. His recording repertoire was varied and included Gilbert and Sullivan
Gilbert and Sullivan
Gilbert and Sullivan refers to the Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the librettist W. S. Gilbert and the composer Arthur Sullivan . The two men collaborated on fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which H.M.S...
operettas, ballads and popular songs of the Edwardian era and World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.
Early years
He was born in Pimlico, London, England in 1871 the son of Richard Pike - a builder. His first mention as a singer was as a chorister (Herbert Payne) who performed on stage for The D'Oyly Carte Opera CompanyD'Oyly Carte Opera Company
The D'Oyly Carte Opera Company was a professional light opera company that staged Gilbert and Sullivan's Savoy operas. The company performed nearly year-round in the UK and sometimes toured in Europe, North America and elsewhere, from the 1870s until it closed in 1982. It was revived in 1988 and...
“B” Company on tour in 1887 (at the age of 16) as one of the ghosts of the ancestors in Gilbert and Sullivan
Gilbert and Sullivan
Gilbert and Sullivan refers to the Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the librettist W. S. Gilbert and the composer Arthur Sullivan . The two men collaborated on fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which H.M.S...
’s Ruddigore
Ruddigore
Ruddigore; or, The Witch's Curse, originally called Ruddygore, is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It is one of the Savoy Operas and the tenth of fourteen comic operas written together by Gilbert and Sullivan...
. He went on to study at the Guildhall School of Music in London. He married May Stevens in 1900 and they had a daughter Maud who was born in 1901.
Performing career
His profession in 1900 was listed as being that of a commercial clerk, but it is not known for which organisation he was working in this capacity; however it is known that he recorded for HMVHMV
His Master's Voice is a trademark in the music business, and for many years was the name of a large record label. The name was coined in 1899 as the title of a painting of the dog Nipper listening to a wind-up gramophone...
for 26 years with his final recordings dating from the mid-1920s. By the 1911 census, his profession was given as that of a professional singer and he was living in Balham, South London. He also held posts at two London churches - Holy Trinity Sloane Street
Holy Trinity Sloane Street
Holy Trinity Sloane Street is a London Anglican parish church, built 1888-90 at the south-eastern side of Sloane Street to a striking Arts & Crafts design by the architect John Dando Sedding at the cost of the 5th Earl Cadogan, in whose London estate it lay...
and The Spanish Church in Spanish Place, but the exact dates and durations for which these posts were held are not known. During the Edwardian era he toured the country singing in many leading towns including concerts at the Queen's Hall
Queen's Hall
The Queen's Hall was a concert hall in Langham Place, London, opened in 1893. Designed by the architect T.E. Knightley, it had room for an audience of about 2,500 people. It became London's principal concert venue. From 1895 until 1941, it was the home of the promenade concerts founded by Robert...
and Royal Albert Hall
Royal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall situated on the northern edge of the South Kensington area, in the City of Westminster, London, England, best known for holding the annual summer Proms concerts since 1941....
in London. In January 1905 he performed for King Edward VII at Chatsworth House
Chatsworth House
Chatsworth House is a stately home in North Derbyshire, England, northeast of Bakewell and west of Chesterfield . It is the seat of the Duke of Devonshire, and has been home to his family, the Cavendish family, since Bess of Hardwick settled at Chatsworth in 1549.Standing on the east bank of the...
in Derbyshire
Derbyshire
Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...
for three nights in succession when the King was in residence for a visit to the Devonshire Hospital in Buxton
Buxton
Buxton is a spa town in Derbyshire, England. It has the highest elevation of any market town in England. Located close to the county boundary with Cheshire to the west and Staffordshire to the south, Buxton is described as "the gateway to the Peak District National Park"...
. The 1917 Zonophone
Zonophone
Zonophone, early on also rendered as Zon-O-Phone was a record label founded in 1899 in Camden, New Jersey by Frank Seaman. The Zonophone name was not that of the company, but was applied to the records and machines sold by Seaman from 1899-1900 to 1903...
record catalogue described him as being the "The late King Edward's favourite tenor".
Operatic Recordings
His early career as a professional singer coincided with the first developments in sound recording technology. In December 1906, he was part of the cast (as Nanki-Poo) of the first recording of "The MikadoThe Mikado
The Mikado; or, The Town of Titipu is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert, their ninth of fourteen operatic collaborations...
"; this was initially released on single-sided gramophone record
Gramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
s for the "Gramophone & Typewriter Company" (G&T) which later became HMV
HMV
His Master's Voice is a trademark in the music business, and for many years was the name of a large record label. The name was coined in 1899 as the title of a painting of the dog Nipper listening to a wind-up gramophone...
and re-released the recordings on double-sided discs in 1912. He sang the Captain on the first ever recording of the G&S opera “HMS Pinafore
HMS Pinafore
H.M.S. Pinafore; or, The Lass That Loved a Sailor is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and a libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It opened at the Opera Comique in London, England, on 25 May 1878 and ran for 571 performances, which was the second-longest run of any musical...
” recorded on eleven Edison cylinders in 1907. In 1999 these early recordings were re-discovered after they been thought lost.
He continued to record light opera, singing Marco in "Gondoliers" (1907 for G&T), Colonel Fairfax in “Yeoman of the Guard” (1907 for G&T), in “Chu Chin Chow
Chu Chin Chow
Chu Chin Chow is a musical comedy written, produced and directed by Oscar Asche, with music by Frederic Norton, based on the story of Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves...
” (1916), in “The Mikado
The Mikado
The Mikado; or, The Town of Titipu is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert, their ninth of fourteen operatic collaborations...
” (1918, HMV Black Label, under the direction of Rupert D'Oyly Carte
Rupert D'Oyly Carte
Rupert D'Oyly Carte was an English hotelier, theatre owner and impresario, best known as proprietor of the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company and Savoy Hotel from 1913 to 1948....
), as Luiz and Marco in “The Gondoliers
The Gondoliers
The Gondoliers; or, The King of Barataria is a Savoy Opera, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It premiered at the Savoy Theatre on 7 December 1889 and ran for a very successful 554 performances , closing on 30 June 1891...
” (1919), as Leonard Meryll in “Yeoman of the Guard” (1920, HMV on Black Label) and as the Duke of Dunstable in “Patience
Patience
Patience is the state of endurance under difficult circumstances, which can mean persevering in the face of delay or provocation without acting on annoyance/anger in a negative way; or exhibiting forbearance when under strain, especially when faced with longer-term difficulties. Patience is the...
” (1921, HMV, under the direction of Rupert D’oyly Carte). In these recordings, he sang alongside other well-known singers of the period: Peter Dawson, Derek Oldham
Derek Oldham
Derek Oldham was an English singer and actor, best known for his performances in the tenor roles of the Savoy Operas with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company....
, George Baker
George Baker
George Baker may refer to:*George Baker , English surgeon*Sir George Baker, 1st Baronet , British physician*George Baker...
, Stanley Kirkby
Stanley Kirkby
Stanley Kirkby was a British music hall singer at the beginning of the twentieth century. He was particularly well-known for a series of songs he sang during the First World War, such as "Boys of the Dardanelles", a patriotic song, "Tell my Daddy to come home again", a sentimental treatment of how...
, Edna Thornton, Robert Radford
Robert Radford
Robert Radford was a British bass singer who made his career entirely in the United Kingdom, participating in concerts and becoming one of the foremost performers of oratorios and other sacred music...
and Violet Essex.
In the early recording era, it was accepted practise for recordings to be made by “studio singers” (in this case provided by HMV), i.e not by the singers who would have originally performed in the stage production. This would not have compromised the authenticity of the performances of G&S, as in most cases these were directly overseen by the D’oyly Carte. It has always been believed that Ernest Pike was just such a “studio singer”, but in view of his known stage performances on tour in 1887, it may be that he performed on stage for the D’oyly Carte on other occasions also.
By 1922, D’oyly Carte was insisting that their own singers be allowed to perform in the recordings, a move that prevented Ernest Pike and several others from singing solo parts. In “Iolanthe
Iolanthe
Iolanthe; or, The Peer and the Peri is a comic opera with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It is one of the Savoy operas and is the seventh collaboration of the fourteen between Gilbert and Sullivan....
” (1922), he was relegated to the chorus. After this, he recorded no further G&S operas.
Popular Recordings
Ernest Pike is probably best remembered for his prolific output of the popular songs of his day. Between the early 1900s and the mid-1920s, he recorded more than 2,400 matrixes (takes) for HMV at Room 1, Hayes, Middlesex. Assuming an average of three takes per song, this would equate to approximately 400 double-sided 78rpm records. He collaborated with other well-known artists of his day e.g with Peter Dawson in their recording of The Lost ChordThe Lost Chord
"The Lost Chord" is a song composed by Arthur Sullivan in 1877 at the bedside of his brother Fred during Fred's last illness. The manuscript is dated 13 January 1877; Fred Sullivan died five days later...
made in 1909. He made one of the earliest recordings of the famous World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
ballad Roses of Picardy
Roses of Picardy
Roses of Picardy is a wartime ballad written by lyricist Frederick Weatherly while he was an army officer in 1916. Set to music by Haydn Wood, it was one of the most famous songs from World War I....
recorded just one year after it had been written - in 1917. A selection of some of his most well-known songs are given below:-
- I'll sing thee songs of Araby, recorded 1906
- Sleep and forget, recorded 25-May-1906
- In my aeroplane for two, recorded c.1907
- Killarney, recorded 28-Jan-1908
- The Lost ChordThe Lost Chord"The Lost Chord" is a song composed by Arthur Sullivan in 1877 at the bedside of his brother Fred during Fred's last illness. The manuscript is dated 13 January 1877; Fred Sullivan died five days later...
, recorded 17-June-1909 (with Peter Dawson) - The trail of the lonesome pine, recorded 27-May-1913
- The sunshine of your smile, recorded 19-Dec-1914
- Down in Bom-bom-bay, recorded 25-Aug-1915
- If you were the only girl in the world, recorded 1915 (with Louie Brooks)
- When the war is over mother dear, recorded 24-Sep-1915
- Blighty for me, recorded 9-Oct-1916
- Roses of PicardyRoses of PicardyRoses of Picardy is a wartime ballad written by lyricist Frederick Weatherly while he was an army officer in 1916. Set to music by Haydn Wood, it was one of the most famous songs from World War I....
, recorded c.1917 - Hello New York, recorded 7-Mar-1918
He recorded initially on Edison cylinders, then for G&T, then almost exclusively for the Zonophone
Zonophone
Zonophone, early on also rendered as Zon-O-Phone was a record label founded in 1899 in Camden, New Jersey by Frank Seaman. The Zonophone name was not that of the company, but was applied to the records and machines sold by Seaman from 1899-1900 to 1903...
label, both single-sided and from 1910 onwards, double-sided (Zonophone “The Twin”) produced by the British Zonophone
Zonophone
Zonophone, early on also rendered as Zon-O-Phone was a record label founded in 1899 in Camden, New Jersey by Frank Seaman. The Zonophone name was not that of the company, but was applied to the records and machines sold by Seaman from 1899-1900 to 1903...
Company which was effectively a branch of HMV
HMV
His Master's Voice is a trademark in the music business, and for many years was the name of a large record label. The name was coined in 1899 as the title of a painting of the dog Nipper listening to a wind-up gramophone...
. After he ceased to record operatic solos for HMV in 1922, he recorded his popular songs only for Columbia's budget Regal Records. (See also Regal Records (1914). His popular recordings were also released on the following labels: Ariel, Sterling and Twin.
He appears to have made no further recordings of any kind after the mid 1920s. He died of a cerebral haemorrhage on March 4, 1936 in Streatham, South London. His obituary in the Musical Times (of April 1936) consisted of just one line.