Maurice Cole (pianist)
Encyclopedia
Maurice Cole was an English pianist
, teacher and adjudicator
who studied privately and at the Guildhall School of Music
with Arthur De Greef
.
Maurice Cole was born in London, England. He was the first pianist to broadcast a recital
on the BBC
and went on to perform, amongst many other compositions, both books of Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier
on the BBC Third Programme. He was professor at the Guildhall School of Music from 1953, was appointed Professor of Piano
forte at the School on two occasions and was a member of the Incorporated Society of Musicians
. He was married with Doris Allen.
During the Second World War, he was a member of ENSA
and entertained the forces, both in London and abroad. In 1958, he went on an extensive performance tour to Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and other countries.
Maurice Cole recorded extensively in the 1920s and 1930s for release on 78 rpm for Vocalion
, for Hyperion
during the late 1940s, and for Classics Club Records during the late 1950s (later reissued by Saga Records). He was also one of the first pianists to broadcast from the Marconi House Studio in 1922 and also broadcast from Savoy Hill.
, John Hollingsworth, Constance Shacklock
(contralto
), Nicanor Zabaleta
(harp
), Maurice Cole (piano)
The Well-Tempered Clavier
, book II in Gramophone Magazine, June 1963.
"…unfailing musicality, control of partplaying, complete accuracy, admirably firm rhythm, and an avoidance of all posturing and pretentiousness (would that the same could be said for all other Bach players!)" Review of Cole's recording of Bach's
Well-Tempered Clavier book I in Gramophone Magazine, November 1962.
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
, teacher and adjudicator
Adjudicator
An adjudicator is someone who presides, judges and arbitrates during a formal dispute. The term adjudicator essentially means a judge, without invoking the legal term. An ombudsman is a type of adjudicator in local government in the United Kingdom....
who studied privately and at the Guildhall School of Music
Guildhall School of Music and Drama
Guildhall School of Music and Drama is an independent music and dramatic arts school which was founded in 1880 in London, England. Students can pursue courses in Music, Opera, Drama and Technical Theatre Arts.-History:...
with Arthur De Greef
Arthur De Greef
Arthur De Greef was a Belgian pianist and composer.Born in Louvain, he won first prize in a local music composition when he was only 11, and subsequently enrolled at the Brussels Conservatoire...
.
Maurice Cole was born in London, England. He was the first pianist to broadcast a recital
Recital
A recital is a musical performance. It can highlight a single performer, sometimes accompanied by piano, or a performance of the works of a single composer.The invention of the solo piano recital has been attributed to Franz Liszt....
on the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
and went on to perform, amongst many other compositions, both books of Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier
The Well-Tempered Clavier
The Well-Tempered Clavier , BWV 846–893, is a collection of solo keyboard music composed by Johann Sebastian Bach...
on the BBC Third Programme. He was professor at the Guildhall School of Music from 1953, was appointed Professor of Piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
forte at the School on two occasions and was a member of the Incorporated Society of Musicians
Incorporated Society of Musicians
Incorporated Society of Musicians is the UK's professional body for musicians. It champions the importance of music and protects the rights of those working within music through a range of services, campaigns, support and practical advice...
. He was married with Doris Allen.
During the Second World War, he was a member of ENSA
ENSA
ENSA may refer to:* ENSA, the Entertainments National Service Association* ENSA * École Nationale des Sciences Appliquées d'Oujda, an engineering school in Morocco* EC-Council Network Security Administrator...
and entertained the forces, both in London and abroad. In 1958, he went on an extensive performance tour to Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and other countries.
Maurice Cole recorded extensively in the 1920s and 1930s for release on 78 rpm for Vocalion
Vocalion Records
Vocalion Records is a record label active for many years in the United States and in the United Kingdom.-History:Vocalion was founded in 1916 by the Aeolian Piano Company of New York City, which introduced a retail line of phonographs at the same time. The name was derived from one of their...
, for Hyperion
Hyperion Records
Hyperion Records is an independent British classical record label.-History:The company was named after Hyperion, one of the Titans of Greek mythology. It was founded by George Edward Perry, widely known as "Ted", in 1980. Early LP releases included rarely recorded 20th century British music by...
during the late 1940s, and for Classics Club Records during the late 1950s (later reissued by Saga Records). He was also one of the first pianists to broadcast from the Marconi House Studio in 1922 and also broadcast from Savoy Hill.
78 rpm
- Frédéric ChopinFrédéric ChopinFrédéric François Chopin was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist. He is considered one of the great masters of Romantic music and has been called "the poet of the piano"....
– Ballade No. 1, Broadcast Twelve 5076, Recorded: c. 1929 - Cécile ChaminadeCécile ChaminadeCécile Louise Stéphanie Chaminade was a French composer and pianist.-Biography:Born in Paris, she studied at first with her mother, then with Félix Le Couppey, Marie Gabriel Augustin Savard, Martin Pierre Marsick and Benjamin Godard, but not officially, since her father disapproved of her musical...
, Danse Creole/Pierrette, ACO, G15331 - John IrelandJohn 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...
, The Island Spell/Rachmaninoff, Prelude in C-sharp minor, ACO G15523 - Sergei RachmaninoffSergei RachmaninoffSergei 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...
, Prelude in C-sharp minor/LisztFranz LisztFranz Liszt ; ), was a 19th-century Hungarian composer, pianist, conductor, and teacher.Liszt became renowned in Europe during the nineteenth century for his virtuosic skill as a pianist. He was said by his contemporaries to have been the most technically advanced pianist of his age...
, Liebesträume, Broadcast Twelve 5008 - Cécile ChaminadeCécile ChaminadeCécile Louise Stéphanie Chaminade was a French composer and pianist.-Biography:Born in Paris, she studied at first with her mother, then with Félix Le Couppey, Marie Gabriel Augustin Savard, Martin Pierre Marsick and Benjamin Godard, but not officially, since her father disapproved of her musical...
, Automne, Grieg Little bird, SindingSindingSinding can refer to the brothers:*Christian Sinding , Norwegian composer*Otto Sinding , Norwegian painter*Stephan Sinding , Norwegian sculptoror*Tore Sinding, pianist and composer....
Rustle of spring, Broadcast Twelve 5009 - Edvard GriegEdvard GriegEdvard Hagerup Grieg was a Norwegian composer and pianist. He is best known for his Piano Concerto in A minor, for his incidental music to Henrik Ibsen's play Peer Gynt , and for his collection of piano miniatures Lyric Pieces.-Biography:Edvard Hagerup Grieg was born in...
, Concerto in A minor, Broadcast F 4011, F 4012, F 4013 (electrical recording)
33 rpm
- J. S. Bach "Concerto In The Italian Style / Overture In The French Manner", Saga Records
- J.S. Bach – Das Wohltemperirte Klavier, Book I and II (The Well-Tempered Clavier) Saga Records
- Brahms selected piano pieces, Classics Club
- FranckFranck- People :* César Franck , Belgian composer of the Romantic era* George Franck , University of Minnesota & New York Giant* Harry A...
Prélude, Choral et Fugue, Classics Club
St. Peter's Hall
- 28 November 1942, Recital by Maurice Cole (piano), Harold Fairhurst (violin) and Margaret Bissett (alto), in aid of the Linen Guild of the Royal Victoria and West Hants Hospital
Bournemouth Chamber Music Society
4 February 1950, Frederick Fuller (baritone), Maurice Cole (piano)- Paganini-LisztFranz LisztFranz Liszt ; ), was a 19th-century Hungarian composer, pianist, conductor, and teacher.Liszt became renowned in Europe during the nineteenth century for his virtuosic skill as a pianist. He was said by his contemporaries to have been the most technically advanced pianist of his age...
, Study no. 2 in E-flat - Stanford, An Irish Idyll (six miniatures)
- Schubert, "Der Musensohn" (The Son of the Muses)
- BaxArnold BaxSir Arnold Edward Trevor Bax, KCVO was an English composer and poet. His musical style blended elements of romanticism and impressionism, often with influences from Irish literature and landscape. His orchestral scores are noted for their complexity and colourful instrumentation...
, Hill Tune - Khatchaturian, Toccata
- Beethoven, Sonata in A-flat major, Op. 110
- Schubert, "Heidenröslein" (Wild Rose)
- Schubert, "Am Meer" (By the Sea)
- Schubert, "Fischerweise" (Fisherman's Song)
- Schubert, "Nachtstück" (Night Piece)
- ScarlattiDomenico ScarlattiGiuseppe Domenico Scarlatti was an Italian composer who spent much of his life in the service of the Portuguese and Spanish royal families. He is classified as a Baroque composer chronologically, although his music was influential in the development of the Classical style...
, Sonata in A major - Scarlatti, Sonata in B minor
- Bach, Prelude and Fugue in D major
BBC Henry Wood Promenade
Monday 7 September 1959, Basil CameronBasil Cameron
Basil Cameron, CBE was an English conductor. He was born in Reading, Berkshire, England, the son of a German immigrant family. His birth name was Basil George Cameron Hindenberg. -Career:...
, John Hollingsworth, Constance Shacklock
Constance Shacklock
Constance Shacklock OBE was an English contralto. After more than a decade of roles with the Covent Garden Opera Company, with other companies and on the concert stage, Shacklock performed for six years in The Sound of Music in London as the Mother Abbess...
(contralto
Contralto
Contralto is the deepest female classical singing voice, with the lowest tessitura, falling between tenor and mezzo-soprano. It typically ranges between the F below middle C to the second G above middle C , although at the extremes some voices can reach the E below middle C or the second B above...
), Nicanor Zabaleta
Nicanor Zabaleta
Nicanor Zabaleta was a Spanish virtuoso and populariser of the harp.Zabaleta was born in San Sebastián, Spain, on January 7, 1907. In 1914 his father, an amateur musician, bought him a harp in an antique shop. He soon began taking lessons from Vincenta Tormo de Calvo and Luisa Menarguez...
(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...
), Maurice Cole (piano)
- Bach, Brandenburg Concerto No. 3
- Handel, "Ombra mai fuOmbra mai fu"Ombra mai fu" is the opening aria from the 1738 opera Serse by George Frideric Handel.-Context:The opera was a commercial failure, lasting only five performances in London after its premiere. In the 19th century, however, the aria was rediscovered and became one of Handel's best-known pieces...
", recitative and aria from Xerxes - Bach, Piano Concerto No. 1 in D minor
- HandelHANDELHANDEL was the code-name for the UK's National Attack Warning System in the Cold War. It consisted of a small console consisting of two microphones, lights and gauges. The reason behind this was to provide a back-up if anything failed....
, Concerto in B-flat for Harp and Small Orchestra - Handel, Suite from The Water MusicWater Music (Handel)The Water Music is a collection of orchestral movements, often considered three suites, composed by George Frideric Handel. It premiered on 17 July 1717 after King George I had requested a concert on the River Thames...
(arr. Harty) - RodrigoJoaquín RodrigoJoaquín Rodrigo Vidre, 1st Marquis of the Gardens of Aranjuez , commonly known as Joaquín Rodrigo, was a composer of classical music and a virtuoso pianist. Despite being nearly blind from an early age, he achieved great success...
, Concierto serenataConcierto serenataThe Concierto serenata for harp and orchestra was composed in 1952 by Joaquín Rodrigo. It was written for Nicanor Zabaleta, who premiered the work in Madrid on November 9, 1956; Paul Kletzki conducted the Spanish National Orchestra....
for harp and orchestra - Bax, TintagelTintagel (Bax)Tintagel is a symphonic poem composed by Arnold Bax in 1919; it is perhaps his best-known orchestral work.Bax had visited Tintagel Castle during the summer of 1917, accompanied by pianist Harriet Cohen, with whom he was carrying on an affair at the time; he dedicated the work to her...
Published works
- Violin concerto / Alberto GinasteraAlberto GinasteraAlberto Evaristo Ginastera was an Argentine composer of classical music. He is considered one of the most important Latin American classical composers.- Biography :...
; reduction for violin and piano by Maurice Cole. Boosey & HawkesBoosey & HawkesBoosey & Hawkes is a British music publisher purported to be the largest specialist classical music publisher in the world. Until 2003, it was also a major manufacturer of brass, string and wind musical instruments....
, 1967. 1 score + 1 part.
Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1
"One can perhaps scarcely expect subtlety for eight shillings. What we get is sensible work and passable orchestral tone, with the pianoforte’s part a good way the best of the bargain. Would it be better worth while to improve the orchestral tone, and charge a little more for the records – if that could be arranged?".Grieg piano concerto
"I have never regarded Mr. Cole as an extremely fine interpreter—more as a sound general utility man. Still, the records are well worth trying by those who like hefty playing... ...In the slow movement (of the Greig piano concerto) the opening orchestral section is omitted and the movement is taken a little faster than the marked speed. The pianist is too urgent in this. It needs stroking. Some of his notes clang a trifle more than I like."Chopin, Rachmaninov, Grieg
"Reginald Paul’s British contemporary Maurice Cole made a number of highly impressive discs for Broadcast – I think especially of his Chopin, Rachmaninov and the Grieg Concerto with the same Metropolitan band (and Stanley Chapple) that accompanies Reginald Paul. He also made some less well-known sides for Aco – and they are no less impressive. Cole is an undeservedly neglected figure though some will remember his Bach LPs from the 1960s. He was married to the fiddler Winifred Small, with whom he also recorded, and we should have examples of his musicianship on CD. End of sermon."Bach
"These are thoughtful, considered performances; you feel Mr. Cole has a reason for everything he does." Review of Cole's recording of Bach'sJohann 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...
The Well-Tempered Clavier
The Well-Tempered Clavier
The Well-Tempered Clavier , BWV 846–893, is a collection of solo keyboard music composed by Johann Sebastian Bach...
, book II in Gramophone Magazine, June 1963.
"…unfailing musicality, control of partplaying, complete accuracy, admirably firm rhythm, and an avoidance of all posturing and pretentiousness (would that the same could be said for all other Bach players!)" Review of Cole's recording of Bach's
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...
Well-Tempered Clavier book I in Gramophone Magazine, November 1962.