Evelyn Barbirolli
Encyclopedia
Evelyn, Lady Barbirolli OBE (24 January 191125 January 2008) was an English oboist
, and wife of the conductor Sir John Barbirolli
.
She was born Evelyn Rothwell, and was known professionally by that name until after she was widowed, when she became known as Evelyn Barbirolli. She rose to fame at a time when there were very few women in orchestra
s except for harp
ists.
, the daughter of a tea dealer in the City of London
. Her mother was related to Charles Reade
, a novelist of the Victorian
era. She did not take up the oboe until she was 17, when she started to learn at her school, Downe House, near Newbury
, under the headship of Olive Willis
. Her father was not supportive of her studying music, but her mother encouraged her to enter the Royal College of Music
. She studied the oboe there with Léon Goossens
. She also learned the piano as a second instrument, and played the cello
and the timpani
. Benjamin Britten
, nearly three years younger, was also a student there and he got her to play through some of his compositions for oboe.
She started her professional career by deputising for Léon Goossens in the Drury Lane Orchestra. She was soon appointed second oboe with the Covent Garden
touring company, which was conducted by John Barbirolli
. Barbirolli was married, although the marriage was not to last. Barbirolli was then made conductor of the Scottish Orchestra (now the Royal Scottish National Orchestra
).
He appointed Evelyn as first oboe in the orchestra. He arranged several works for oboe and orchestra for her, including a concerto
by Handel
. Several of these are on recordings they made. Ralph Vaughan Williams
was particularly pleased with their recording of his Oboe Concerto. Several composers dedicated works to her, including Arnold Cooke
, Stephen Dodgson
, Arthur Benjamin
, Edmund Rubbra
and Elizabeth Maconchy
.
The nature of her work with the Scottish Orchestra allowed her also to play, from 1934 to 1938 in the Glyndebourne Festival
, and from 1935 to 1939 with the London Symphony Orchestra
, where she and her friend Natalie Caine
were the first women woodwind players. Henry Wood
made her first oboist in the New Queen’s Hall Orchestra.
in 1939 after his divorce from his first wife. By this time Barbirolli was conductor of the New York Philharmonic
, where he had succeeded Arturo Toscanini
in 1936. Barbirolli and Evelyn lived in New York until 1943, when they returned to England
so that Barbirolli could take over the conductorship of the Hallé Orchestra
, based in Manchester
. Evelyn occasionally played in the orchestra, although she kept her appearances there to a minimum in order to avoid charges of nepotism
. When the Hallé Orchestra performed in Salzburg
in 1948 she was the soloist in the first performance of Mozart
's Oboe Concerto, K. 314
, a work which at that time was only known in the version arranged for flute
and orchestra. She also appeared in duet with the pianist Iris Loveridge
.
She played the British premiere of Bohuslav Martinů
's Concerto for Oboe and Small Orchestra
, at the Proms on 24 August 1959, after the concerto's creator and dedicatee Jiří Tancibudek
was unable to appear.
In Manchester, Evelyn devoted herself to helping Barbirolli. She was his secretary and chauffeured him everywhere. She was always present at rehearsals and he relied on her advice on matters of balance as she listened in the auditorium. As Barbirolli's health deteriorated she hardly played her oboe but devoted her time to him. She travelled with him to the United States when he became conductor of the Houston Symphony Orchestra. During his last years, Barbirolli's former manager caused them severe financial problems.
, where she was affectionately known as "Lady B". She frequently appeared as adjudicator at music festivals. She wrote the books Oboe Technique and the three-volume Oboist's Companion, and her autobiography Living with Glorious John. She was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire
in 1984. She died the day after her 97th birthday.
Oboe
The oboe is a double reed musical instrument of the woodwind family. In English, prior to 1770, the instrument was called "hautbois" , "hoboy", or "French hoboy". The spelling "oboe" was adopted into English ca...
, and wife of the conductor Sir John Barbirolli
John Barbirolli
Sir John Barbirolli, CH was an English conductor and cellist. Born in London, of Italian and French parentage, he grew up in a family of professional musicians. His father and grandfather were violinists...
.
She was born Evelyn Rothwell, and was known professionally by that name until after she was widowed, when she became known as Evelyn Barbirolli. She rose to fame at a time when there were very few women in orchestra
Orchestra
An orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
s except for harp
Harp
The harp is a multi-stringed instrument which has the plane of its strings positioned perpendicularly to the soundboard. Organologically, it is in the general category of chordophones and has its own sub category . All harps have a neck, resonator and strings...
ists.
Early years
Evelyn Rothwell was born in Wallingford-on-Thames, BerkshireBerkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
, the daughter of a tea dealer in the City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
. Her mother was related to Charles Reade
Charles Reade
Charles Reade was an English novelist and dramatist, best known for The Cloister and the Hearth.-Life:Charles Reade was born at Ipsden, Oxfordshire to John Reade and Anne Marie Scott-Waring; William Winwood Reade the influential historian , was his nephew. He studied at Magdalen College, Oxford,...
, a novelist of the Victorian
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
era. She did not take up the oboe until she was 17, when she started to learn at her school, Downe House, near Newbury
Newbury, Berkshire
Newbury is a civil parish and the principal town in the west of the county of Berkshire in England. It is situated on the River Kennet and the Kennet and Avon Canal, and has a town centre containing many 17th century buildings. Newbury is best known for its racecourse and the adjoining former USAF...
, under the headship of Olive Willis
Olive Willis
Olive Margaret Willis was an English educationist and headmistress. She founded Downe House School and was its head for nearly forty years, from 1907 to 1946.-Early life:...
. Her father was not supportive of her studying music, but her mother encouraged her to enter 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...
. She studied the oboe there with Léon Goossens
Léon Goossens
Léon Jean Goossens CBE, FRCM was a British oboist.He was born in Liverpool and studied at the Royal College of Music...
. She also learned the piano as a second instrument, and played the cello
Cello
The cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
and the timpani
Timpani
Timpani, or kettledrums, are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum, they consist of a skin called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionally made of copper. They are played by striking the head with a specialized drum stick called a timpani stick or timpani mallet...
. Benjamin Britten
Benjamin Britten
Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten, OM CH was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He showed talent from an early age, and first came to public attention with the a cappella choral work A Boy Was Born in 1934. With the premiere of his opera Peter Grimes in 1945, he leapt to...
, nearly three years younger, was also a student there and he got her to play through some of his compositions for oboe.
She started her professional career by deputising for Léon Goossens in the Drury Lane Orchestra. She was soon appointed second oboe with the Covent Garden
Royal Opera House
The Royal Opera House is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply "Covent Garden", after a previous use of the site of the opera house's original construction in 1732. It is the home of The Royal Opera, The...
touring company, which was conducted by John Barbirolli
John Barbirolli
Sir John Barbirolli, CH was an English conductor and cellist. Born in London, of Italian and French parentage, he grew up in a family of professional musicians. His father and grandfather were violinists...
. Barbirolli was married, although the marriage was not to last. Barbirolli was then made conductor of the Scottish Orchestra (now the Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Royal Scottish National Orchestra
The Royal Scottish National Orchestra is Scotland's national symphony orchestra. Based in Glasgow, the 89-member professional orchestra also regularly performs in Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Dundee, and abroad. Formed in 1891 as the Scottish Orchestra, the company has performed full-time since 1950,...
).
He appointed Evelyn as first oboe in the orchestra. He arranged several works for oboe and orchestra for her, including a concerto
Concerto
A concerto is a musical work usually composed in three parts or movements, in which one solo instrument is accompanied by an orchestra.The etymology is uncertain, but the word seems to have originated from the conjunction of the two Latin words...
by Handel
George Frideric Handel
George Frideric Handel was a German-British Baroque composer, famous for his operas, oratorios, anthems and organ concertos. Handel was born in 1685, in a family indifferent to music...
. Several of these are on recordings they made. Ralph Vaughan Williams
Ralph Vaughan Williams
Ralph Vaughan Williams OM was an English composer of symphonies, chamber music, opera, choral music, and film scores. He was also a collector of English folk music and song: this activity both influenced his editorial approach to the English Hymnal, beginning in 1904, in which he included many...
was particularly pleased with their recording of his Oboe Concerto. Several composers dedicated works to her, including Arnold Cooke
Arnold Cooke
Arnold Atkinson Cooke was a British composer.-Career:He was born at Gomersal, West Yorkshire into a family of carpet manufacturers. He was educated at Repton School and at Gonville & Caius College, Cambridge, where he read History, but he was already attracted to a career in music...
, Stephen Dodgson
Stephen Dodgson
Stephen Dodgson is a British composer and broadcaster.- Biography :During World War II, he served in the Royal Navy. From 1947 to 1949, Dodgson studied at the Royal College of Music, where he later taught composition. In 1950, he visited Italy on a travelling scholarship, after which he taught in...
, Arthur Benjamin
Arthur Benjamin
Arthur Leslie Benjamin was an Australian composer, pianist, conductor and teacher. He is best known as the composer of Jamaican Rhumba, composed in 1938.-Biography:...
, Edmund Rubbra
Edmund Rubbra
Edmund Rubbra was a British composer. He composed both instrumental and vocal works for soloists, chamber groups and full choruses and orchestras. He was greatly esteemed by fellow musicians and was at the peak of his fame in the mid-20th century. The most famous of his pieces are his eleven...
and Elizabeth Maconchy
Elizabeth Maconchy
Dame Elizabeth Violet Maconchy Le Fanu DBE was an English composer, most noted for her cycle of thirteen string quartets.-Biography:...
.
The nature of her work with the Scottish Orchestra allowed her also to play, from 1934 to 1938 in the Glyndebourne Festival
Glyndebourne Festival Opera
Glyndebourne Festival Opera is an English opera festival held at Glyndebourne, an English country house near Lewes, in East Sussex, England.-History:...
, and from 1935 to 1939 with the London Symphony Orchestra
London Symphony Orchestra
The London Symphony Orchestra is a major orchestra of the United Kingdom, as well as one of the best-known orchestras in the world. Since 1982, the LSO has been based in London's Barbican Centre.-History:...
, where she and her friend Natalie Caine
Natalie Caine
Natalie Caine, was one of the first female woodwind players to establish themselves in leading British orchestras. She is frequently referred to by her married name Natalie James....
were the first women woodwind players. Henry Wood
Henry Wood
Henry Wood was a British conductor.Henry Wood may also refer to:* Henry C. Wood , American Civil War Medal of Honor recipient* Henry Wood , English cricketer...
made her first oboist in the New Queen’s Hall Orchestra.
Years of marriage
Evelyn Rothwell married John BarbirolliJohn Barbirolli
Sir John Barbirolli, CH was an English conductor and cellist. Born in London, of Italian and French parentage, he grew up in a family of professional musicians. His father and grandfather were violinists...
in 1939 after his divorce from his first wife. By this time Barbirolli was conductor of the New York Philharmonic
New York Philharmonic
The New York Philharmonic is a symphony orchestra based in New York City in the United States. It is one of the American orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five"...
, where he had succeeded Arturo Toscanini
Arturo Toscanini
Arturo Toscanini was an Italian conductor. One of the most acclaimed musicians of the late 19th and 20th century, he was renowned for his intensity, his perfectionism, his ear for orchestral detail and sonority, and his photographic memory...
in 1936. Barbirolli and Evelyn lived in New York until 1943, when they returned to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
so that Barbirolli could take over the conductorship of the Hallé Orchestra
The Hallé
The Hallé is a symphony orchestra based in Manchester, England. It is the UK's oldest extant symphony orchestra , supports a choir, youth choir and a youth orchestra, and releases its recordings on its own record label, though it has occasionally released recordings on Angel Records and EMI...
, based in Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
. Evelyn occasionally played in the orchestra, although she kept her appearances there to a minimum in order to avoid charges of nepotism
Nepotism
Nepotism is favoritism granted to relatives regardless of merit. The word nepotism is from the Latin word nepos, nepotis , from which modern Romanian nepot and Italian nipote, "nephew" or "grandchild" are also descended....
. When the Hallé Orchestra performed in Salzburg
Salzburg
-Population development:In 1935, the population significantly increased when Salzburg absorbed adjacent municipalities. After World War II, numerous refugees found a new home in the city. New residential space was created for American soldiers of the postwar Occupation, and could be used for...
in 1948 she was the soloist in the first performance of Mozart
Wolfgang 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...
's Oboe Concerto, K. 314
Oboe Concerto (Mozart)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Oboe Concerto in C major, K. 314 was originally composed in Spring or Summer 1777 for oboist Giuseppe Ferlendis from Bergamo, then reworked by the composer as a concerto for flute in D major in 1778...
, a work which at that time was only known in the version arranged for flute
Flute
The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
and orchestra. She also appeared in duet with the pianist Iris Loveridge
Iris Loveridge
Iris Gwendolyne M. Loveridge was an English classical pianist.Born in West Ham, London, she attended the Royal College of Music, and later the Royal Academy. She specialised in British contemporary music, including piano sonatas by Arnold Bax, Gordon Jacob , E.J. Moeran and Edmund Rubbra...
.
She played the British premiere of Bohuslav Martinů
Bohuslav Martinu
Bohuslav Martinů was a prolific Czech composer of modern classical music. He was of Czech and Rumanian ancestry. Martinů wrote six symphonies, 15 operas, 14 ballet scores and a large body of orchestral, chamber, vocal and instrumental works. Martinů became a violinist in the Czech Philharmonic...
's Concerto for Oboe and Small Orchestra
Concerto for Oboe and Small Orchestra (Martinů)
Bohuslav Martinů's Concerto for Oboe and Small Orchestra, H. 353, was written in 1955 for the Czech-born Australian oboist Jiří Tancibudek.The work was commissioned by the Sydney Daily Telegraph newspaper, in celebration of the 1956 Olympic Games in Melbourne.Jiří Tancibudek gave the world premiere...
, at the Proms on 24 August 1959, after the concerto's creator and dedicatee Jiří Tancibudek
Jiří Tancibudek
Jiří Tancibudek AM was a Czech-born Australian oboist, conductor and teacher of great renown in his adopted country and elsewhere. His obituary in the Adelaide Review, titled "Prince of the oboe", said of his playing:-Biography:...
was unable to appear.
In Manchester, Evelyn devoted herself to helping Barbirolli. She was his secretary and chauffeured him everywhere. She was always present at rehearsals and he relied on her advice on matters of balance as she listened in the auditorium. As Barbirolli's health deteriorated she hardly played her oboe but devoted her time to him. She travelled with him to the United States when he became conductor of the Houston Symphony Orchestra. During his last years, Barbirolli's former manager caused them severe financial problems.
After John Barbirolli's death
After her husband's death in 1970, Evelyn started to play her oboe again. She taught at the Royal Academy of MusicRoyal Academy of Music
The Royal Academy of Music in London, England, is a conservatoire, Britain's oldest degree-granting music school and a constituent college of the University of London since 1999. The Academy was founded by Lord Burghersh in 1822 with the help and ideas of the French harpist and composer Nicolas...
, where she was affectionately known as "Lady B". She frequently appeared as adjudicator at music festivals. She wrote the books Oboe Technique and the three-volume Oboist's Companion, and her autobiography Living with Glorious John. She 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 1984. She died the day after her 97th birthday.