William Ifor Jones
Encyclopedia
William Ifor Jones was a Welsh
conductor and organist. Born into a large coal-mining
family and raised in Merthyr Tydfil
, Jones studied at the Royal Academy of Music
in London from 1920 to 1925. He studied the organ with Sir Stanley Marchant at St. Paul's Cathedral, London; orchestral Conducting with Sir Henry Wood
and Ernest Read
; and harmony with Benjamin Dale. He was for a time organist at the Welsh Baptist Church in Castle Street, London, worked at the Royal Opera House
, Covent Garden, and assisted with the British National Opera Company in the role of prompter.
Jones emigrated to the United States in early 1930. He conducted the New Chamber Orchestra in Philadelphia, and The Tudor Singers in Bethlehem, PA. He taught at the Peabody Conservatory of Music
in Baltimore, MD, and at Rutgers University
- Douglas College in New Brunswick, NJ. While at Rutgers, he formed a
glee club and also performed the complete Organ Works of Johann Sebastian Bach
.
At the Union Theological Seminary
School of Sacred Music, New York City, he led conducting courses for choirmasters. He was involved with the Berkshire Music Festival at Tanglewood
, and taught many Summer School Workshops, Clinics and Seminars.
He was at various times organist at the Presbyterian Church in Bound Brook, New Jersey, at the Broadway Tabernacle in New York City, and at the Central Moravian Church in Bethlehem, PA. He also worked with the Handel Choir in Westfield, NJ, at the Bach Youth Chorale in Bethlehem, PA, and led the Cantata Singers in Quakertown, PA.
In 1939, he made his debut as the third Conductor of The Bach Choir of Bethlehem
. On February 18, 1946, at Carnegie Hall
, the choir performed Bach's Mass in B minor with Ifor Jones, conductor; Ruth Diehl, soprano; Lilian Knowles, contralto; Lucius Metz, tenor; Calvin Marsh, baritone; Edwin Steffe, bass; E. Power Biggs
, organ; The Philadelphia Orchestra. In the following year, an estimated 9,200 people attended a performance of The Mass in B Minor at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York. Ifor Jones conducted The Choir and members of The Philadelphia Orchestra.
The Bach Choir of Bethlehem with Ifor Jones, conductor; Phyllis Curtin
, soprano; Eunice Alberts
, contralto; John McCollum
, tenor; Mack Harrell
, bass; Vernon De Tar, organ; The Philadelphia Orchestra
.
In October 1965, the Choir sang at the International Choral Festival, commemorating the 150th anniversary of the Handel and Haydn Society in Symphony Hall, Boston.
His only known television appearance with the choir was on The Bell Telephone Hour, conducting "Going to Bethlehem"
Ifor Jones retired in 1969, and died at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
.
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
conductor and organist. Born into a large coal-mining
Mining in Wales
Mining in Wales provided a significant source of income to the economy of Wales throughout the nineteenth century and early twentieth century....
family and raised in Merthyr Tydfil
Merthyr Tydfil
Merthyr Tydfil is a town in Wales, with a population of about 30,000. Although once the largest town in Wales, it is now ranked as the 15th largest urban area in Wales. It also gives its name to a county borough, which has a population of around 55,000. It is located in the historic county of...
, Jones studied at the Royal Academy of Music
Royal 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...
in London from 1920 to 1925. He studied the organ with Sir Stanley Marchant at St. Paul's Cathedral, London; orchestral Conducting with Sir Henry Wood
Henry Wood (conductor)
Sir Henry Joseph Wood, CH was an English conductor best known for his association with London's annual series of promenade concerts, known as the Proms. He conducted them for nearly half a century, introducing hundreds of new works to British audiences...
and Ernest Read
Ernest Read
Ernest Read was an English conductor, organist, and music educator. He had a profound impact on the development of music education within England during the first half of the 20th century, and published several books on music pedagogy...
; and harmony with Benjamin Dale. He was for a time organist at the Welsh Baptist Church in Castle Street, London, worked at the Royal Opera House
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...
, Covent Garden, and assisted with the British National Opera Company in the role of prompter.
Jones emigrated to the United States in early 1930. He conducted the New Chamber Orchestra in Philadelphia, and The Tudor Singers in Bethlehem, PA. He taught at the Peabody Conservatory of Music
Peabody Institute
The Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University is a renowned conservatory and preparatory school located in the Mount Vernon neighborhood of Baltimore, Maryland at the corner of Charles and Monument Streets at Mount Vernon Place.-History:...
in Baltimore, MD, and at Rutgers University
Rutgers University
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey , is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey, United States. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American...
- Douglas College in New Brunswick, NJ. While at Rutgers, he formed a
glee club and also performed the complete Organ Works of Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque period and brought it to its ultimate maturity...
.
At the Union Theological Seminary
Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York
Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York is a preeminent independent graduate school of theology, located in Manhattan between Claremont Avenue and Broadway, 120th to 122nd Streets. The seminary was founded in 1836 under the Presbyterian Church, and is affiliated with nearby Columbia...
School of Sacred Music, New York City, he led conducting courses for choirmasters. He was involved with the Berkshire Music Festival at Tanglewood
Tanglewood
Tanglewood is an estate and music venue in Lenox and Stockbridge, Massachusetts. It is the home of the annual summer Tanglewood Music Festival and the Tanglewood Jazz Festival, and has been the Boston Symphony Orchestra's summer home since 1937. It was the venue of the Berkshire Festival.- History...
, and taught many Summer School Workshops, Clinics and Seminars.
He was at various times organist at the Presbyterian Church in Bound Brook, New Jersey, at the Broadway Tabernacle in New York City, and at the Central Moravian Church in Bethlehem, PA. He also worked with the Handel Choir in Westfield, NJ, at the Bach Youth Chorale in Bethlehem, PA, and led the Cantata Singers in Quakertown, PA.
In 1939, he made his debut as the third Conductor of The Bach Choir of Bethlehem
The Bach Choir of Bethlehem
The Bach Choir of Bethlehem is the oldest Bach choir in America. They have been a choir for over 110 years and are based in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, USA....
. On February 18, 1946, at Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States, located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park....
, the choir performed Bach's Mass in B minor with Ifor Jones, conductor; Ruth Diehl, soprano; Lilian Knowles, contralto; Lucius Metz, tenor; Calvin Marsh, baritone; Edwin Steffe, bass; E. Power Biggs
E. Power Biggs
Edward George Power Biggs , more familiarly known as E. Power Biggs, was a British-born American concert organist and recording artist.-Biography:...
, organ; The Philadelphia Orchestra. In the following year, an estimated 9,200 people attended a performance of The Mass in B Minor at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York. Ifor Jones conducted The Choir and members of The Philadelphia Orchestra.
- 1948 - The Choir records Cantata #78 for Victor Records.
- 1956 - March 27, Carnegie Hall. Johann Sebastian Bach - Mass in b minor
The Bach Choir of Bethlehem with Ifor Jones, conductor; Phyllis Curtin
Phyllis Curtin
Phyllis Curtin is an American classical soprano who had an active career in operas and concerts from the early 1950s through the 1980s. She was known for her creation of new roles such as the title role in the Carlisle Floyd opera Susannah, Catherine Earnshaw in Floyd's Wuthering Heights, and in...
, soprano; Eunice Alberts
Eunice Alberts
Eunice Alberts is an American contralto who had an active career as a concert soloist and opera singer during the 1950s through the 1980s. She began her career as a concert soloist with the Boston Symphony Orchestra at the young age of 19 and quickly became a lauded oratorio singer during the late...
, contralto; John McCollum
John McCollum
John McCollum is an American tenor who had an active singing career in operas, concerts, and recitals during the 1950s through the 1970s. As an opera singer he performed with companies throughout North America, mostly working with second tier opera houses...
, tenor; Mack Harrell
Mack Harrell
Mack Harrell was an American baritone who was regarded as one of the greatest concert singers of his generation....
, bass; Vernon De Tar, organ; The Philadelphia Orchestra
Philadelphia Orchestra
The Philadelphia Orchestra is a symphony orchestra based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States. One of the "Big Five" American orchestras, it was founded in 1900...
.
- 1957 - The 50th Bach Festival is held. Ifor Jones opens the Thursday evening rehearsal to the community.
- 1959 - The Bach Festival Orchestra premieres at the May Festival, replacing the Philadelphia Orchestra.
- 1962 - The 55th Bach Festival is dedicated to Albert SchweitzerAlbert SchweitzerAlbert Schweitzer OM was a German theologian, organist, philosopher, physician, and medical missionary. He was born in Kaysersberg in the province of Alsace-Lorraine, at that time part of the German Empire...
, with a letter from Schweitzer printed in the program.
In October 1965, the Choir sang at the International Choral Festival, commemorating the 150th anniversary of the Handel and Haydn Society in Symphony Hall, Boston.
- 1969 - Ifor Jones retires as Conductor of the Choir.
His only known television appearance with the choir was on The Bell Telephone Hour, conducting "Going to Bethlehem"
Publications
- Bach Cantatas (G. Schirmer, NY)
- Bach 'Missa Brevis' in G (H.W. Gray, NY)
- Brahms Part Songs, (C. Fischer, NY)
- Original Pieces for Female and Men's Voices (Kalmus)
Honors
- Associate of the Royal Academy of Music, London
- Fellow of the Royal Academy of Music, London
Honorary Doctorates
- The American Conservatory of Music, Chicago, IL
- Moravian College, Bethlehem, PA
Ifor Jones retired in 1969, and died at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
.