Philip Napier Miles
Encyclopedia
Philip Napier Miles JP DLitt h.c. (Bristol) (21 January 1865 – 19 July 1935) was a prominent and wealthy citizen of Bristol
, UK, who left his mark on the city, especially on what are now its western suburbs, through his musical and organizational abilities and through good works of various kinds. He was the only son of Philip William Skynner Miles (1816–1881), a major developer of the docks at Avonmouth, who was the eldest son of Philip John Miles (1773–1845) by his second marriage to Clarissa Peach (1790–1868), and Pamela Adelaide Napier, daughter of the soldier (distinguished in the Peninsular War) and military historian General Sir William Francis Patrick Napier
. He was therefore half-nephew of Sir William Miles, 1st Baronet
, half-cousin of Sir Philip John William Miles, 2nd Baronet, both Conservative politicians, and cousin of the fashionable portrait painter Frank Miles
. He was educated at Harrow School
and Oriel College, Oxford, and was High Sheriff
of the City of Bristol in 1915-16.
and was prominent in an amateur capacity in the musical life of the city in the early part of the 20th century, having studied in post-Wagnerian Dresden
and under Hubert Parry
. He was a minor composer gaining modest recognition for his small output. He wrote six operas, three of which remain unperformed and four unpublished. His other works are a sonata
for violin
and piano
, a Fantasia
on two Elizabethan themes (by Thomas Weelkes
and Thomas Morley
), and two early works: a first and only symphony
(in C) and the "Lyric overture: From the West Country". His other vocal works consist of songs with piano
accompaniment
, mostly published, and the school song for the then Portway Senior Boys' School in nearby Shirehampton
. Although Kingsweston was known as a welcoming place for musicians and a centre for music, Napier Miles did not court fame as a composer. His works occasionally had performances in his lifetime in London
and at the Hereford
Festival, and at least one broadcast (of the "Lyric overture"). No recordings of his music are known.
Napier Miles was a friend and supporter of Ralph Vaughan Williams
, whose violin
rhapsody
"The Lark Ascending
" was first performed by Marie Hall
(with piano accompaniment
) in 1920 at Shirehampton Public Hall at his instigation. He also founded the Avonmouth
Choral Society and was president of the Bristol Madrigal
Society (1910–1914). He organized operatic seasons at Shirehampton, later the Victoria Rooms, Clifton
, and, in 1926, the Theatre Royal, Bristol, and some of his own operas were staged at these venues. His wish had been to establish an English national opera-house, but it was not to be fulfilled. At Shirehampton, he was openly trying to emulate Rutland Boughton
's "village opera" at Glastonbury. For these services to music, he was awarded an honorary doctorate
of letters by the University of Bristol
in 1925.
Napier Miles' papers are currently deposited with Information Services at the University of Bristol. They include autograph scores, printed works, and correspondence (e.g. with Falla
), as well as signed copies of works by Holst
, Vaughan Williams, Grainger
and John Stainer
. It is uncertain whether any of his music has been publicly performed since the commemorative concert at the University of Bristol on 7 May 1935.
towards the area around Kingsweston include donations of land for the Shirehampton Public Hall in 1903, which is now a grade II listed building, and to the National Trust
in 1918, as well as for various local schools, churches, and sporting activities including cricket
and golf
. In 1930 he gave land at Sea Mills
for homes for World War I
veterans, and established covenants which were intended to ensure that only relatively low-density housing was built on it, in line with the ideals of the garden city movement
of the time. His philanthropy might be thought of as aesthetic and moral (tending to improve the condition of working people through the provision of space, sport
, education
and religion
); as might be expected from his family links, he was a social and political conservative
.
parish church, and his grave is marked by the punning family motto "Labora siccut bonus miles": 'Work like a good soldier.' He is commemorated in the name of Napier Miles Road, leading to the gate of Kingsweston (Kings Weston House
).
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
, UK, who left his mark on the city, especially on what are now its western suburbs, through his musical and organizational abilities and through good works of various kinds. He was the only son of Philip William Skynner Miles (1816–1881), a major developer of the docks at Avonmouth, who was the eldest son of Philip John Miles (1773–1845) by his second marriage to Clarissa Peach (1790–1868), and Pamela Adelaide Napier, daughter of the soldier (distinguished in the Peninsular War) and military historian General Sir William Francis Patrick Napier
William Francis Patrick Napier
General Sir William Francis Patrick Napier KCB , Irish soldier in the British Army and military historian, third son of Colonel George Napier was born at Celbridge, near Dublin.-Military service:...
. He was therefore half-nephew of Sir William Miles, 1st Baronet
Sir William Miles, 1st Baronet
Sir William Miles, 1st Baronet was an English politician, agriculturalist and landowner. He was educated at Eton College and Christ Church, Oxford and was created Baronet on April 19, 1859, of Leigh Court, Somerset....
, half-cousin of Sir Philip John William Miles, 2nd Baronet, both Conservative politicians, and cousin of the fashionable portrait painter Frank Miles
Frank Miles
George Francis "Frank" Miles was a London artist who specialised in pastel portraits of society ladies, also an architect and a keen plantsman.-Life and career:...
. He was educated at Harrow School
Harrow School
Harrow School, commonly known simply as "Harrow", is an English independent school for boys situated in the town of Harrow, in north-west London.. The school is of worldwide renown. There is some evidence that there has been a school on the site since 1243 but the Harrow School we know today was...
and Oriel College, Oxford, and was High Sheriff
High Sheriff
A high sheriff is, or was, a law enforcement officer in the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States.In England and Wales, the office is unpaid and partly ceremonial, appointed by the Crown through a warrant from the Privy Council. In Cornwall, the High Sheriff is appointed by the Duke of...
of the City of Bristol in 1915-16.
Life in music
Napier Miles was the last squire of KingswestonKingsweston
Kingsweston is a ward of the city of Bristol. The three districts in the ward are Coombe Dingle, Lawrence Weston and Sea Mills. The ward takes its name from the old district of Kings Weston , now generally considered part of Lawrence Weston.-Coombe Dingle:Coombe Dingle is a suburb of Bristol,...
and was prominent in an amateur capacity in the musical life of the city in the early part of the 20th century, having studied in post-Wagnerian Dresden
Dresden
Dresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe, near the Czech border. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....
and under Hubert Parry
Hubert Parry
Sir Charles Hubert Hastings Parry, 1st Baronet was an English composer, teacher and historian of music.Parry's first major works appeared in 1880. As a composer he is best known for the choral song "Jerusalem", the coronation anthem "I was glad" and the hymn tune "Repton", which sets the words...
. He was a minor composer gaining modest recognition for his small output. He wrote six operas, three of which remain unperformed and four unpublished. His other works are a sonata
Sonata
Sonata , in music, literally means a piece played as opposed to a cantata , a piece sung. The term, being vague, naturally evolved through the history of music, designating a variety of forms prior to the Classical era...
for violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
and 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...
, a Fantasia
Fantasia (music)
The fantasia is a musical composition with its roots in the art of improvisation. Because of this, it seldom approximates the textbook rules of any strict musical form ....
on two Elizabethan themes (by Thomas Weelkes
Thomas Weelkes
Thomas Weelkes was an English composer and organist. He became organist of Winchester College in 1598, moving to Chichester Cathedral. His works are chiefly vocal, and include madrigals, anthems and services.-Life:Weelkes was baptised in the little village church of Elsted in Sussex on 25...
and Thomas Morley
Thomas Morley
Thomas Morley was an English composer, theorist, editor and organist of the Renaissance, and the foremost member of the English Madrigal School. He was the most famous composer of secular music in Elizabethan England and an organist at St Paul's Cathedral...
), and two early works: a first and only symphony
Symphony
A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, scored almost always for orchestra. A symphony usually contains at least one movement or episode composed according to the sonata principle...
(in C) and the "Lyric overture: From the West Country". His other vocal works consist of songs with 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...
accompaniment
Accompaniment
In music, accompaniment is the art of playing along with an instrumental or vocal soloist or ensemble, often known as the lead, in a supporting manner...
, mostly published, and the school song for the then Portway Senior Boys' School in nearby Shirehampton
Shirehampton
Shirehampton, near Avonmouth, at the north-western edge of the city of Bristol, England, is a district of Bristol which originated as a separate village. It retains something of its village feel, having a short identifiable High Street with the parish church situated among shops, and is still...
. Although Kingsweston was known as a welcoming place for musicians and a centre for music, Napier Miles did not court fame as a composer. His works occasionally had performances in his lifetime in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and at the Hereford
Hereford
Hereford is a cathedral city, civil parish and county town of Herefordshire, England. It lies on the River Wye, approximately east of the border with Wales, southwest of Worcester, and northwest of Gloucester...
Festival, and at least one broadcast (of the "Lyric overture"). No recordings of his music are known.
Napier Miles was a friend and supporter of 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...
, whose violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
rhapsody
Rhapsody (music)
A rhapsody in music is a one-movement work that is episodic yet integrated, free-flowing in structure, featuring a range of highly contrasted moods, colour and tonality. An air of spontaneous inspiration and a sense of improvisation make it freer in form than a set of variations...
"The Lark Ascending
The Lark Ascending
The Lark Ascending is a work by the English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams, inspired by George Meredith's 122-line poem of the same name about the skylark. The work was written in two versions: violin and piano, written in 1914; and violin and orchestra, written in 1920. The orchestral version...
" was first performed by Marie Hall
Marie Hall
Marie Pauline Hall was an English violinist.Hall was born in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. She received her first lessons from her father, who was a harpist in the orchestra of the Carl Rosa Opera Company...
(with piano accompaniment
Accompaniment
In music, accompaniment is the art of playing along with an instrumental or vocal soloist or ensemble, often known as the lead, in a supporting manner...
) in 1920 at Shirehampton Public Hall at his instigation. He also founded the Avonmouth
Avonmouth
Avonmouth is a port and suburb of Bristol, England, located on the Severn Estuary, at the mouth of the River Avon.The council ward of Avonmouth also includes Shirehampton and the western end of Lawrence Weston.- Geography :...
Choral Society and was president of the Bristol Madrigal
Madrigal (music)
A madrigal is a secular vocal music composition, usually a partsong, of the Renaissance and early Baroque eras. Traditionally, polyphonic madrigals are unaccompanied; the number of voices varies from two to eight, and most frequently from three to six....
Society (1910–1914). He organized operatic seasons at Shirehampton, later the Victoria Rooms, Clifton
Victoria Rooms (Bristol)
The Victoria Rooms, also known as the Vic Rooms, houses the University of Bristol's music department in Clifton, Bristol, England, on a prominent site at the junction of Queens Road and Whiteladies Road...
, and, in 1926, the Theatre Royal, Bristol, and some of his own operas were staged at these venues. His wish had been to establish an English national opera-house, but it was not to be fulfilled. At Shirehampton, he was openly trying to emulate Rutland Boughton
Rutland Boughton
Rutland Boughton was an English composer who became well known in the early 20th century as a composer of opera and choral music....
's "village opera" at Glastonbury. For these services to music, he was awarded an honorary doctorate
Doctorate
A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...
of letters by the University of Bristol
University of Bristol
The University of Bristol is a public research university located in Bristol, United Kingdom. One of the so-called "red brick" universities, it received its Royal Charter in 1909, although its predecessor institution, University College, Bristol, had been in existence since 1876.The University is...
in 1925.
Napier Miles' papers are currently deposited with Information Services at the University of Bristol. They include autograph scores, printed works, and correspondence (e.g. with Falla
Manuel de Falla
Manuel de Falla y Matheu was a Spanish Andalusian composer of classical music. With Isaac Albéniz, Enrique Granados and Joaquín Turina he is one of Spain's most important musicians of the first half of the 20th century....
), as well as signed copies of works by Holst
Gustav Holst
Gustav Theodore Holst was an English composer. He is most famous for his orchestral suite The Planets....
, Vaughan Williams, Grainger
Percy Grainger
George Percy Aldridge Grainger , known as Percy Grainger, was an Australian-born composer, arranger and pianist. In the course of a long and innovative career he played a prominent role in the revival of interest in British folk music in the early years of the 20th century. He also made many...
and John Stainer
John Stainer
Sir John Stainer was an English composer and organist whose music, though not generally much performed today , was very popular during his lifetime...
. It is uncertain whether any of his music has been publicly performed since the commemorative concert at the University of Bristol on 7 May 1935.
Philanthropy
As well as his artistic achievements, Napier Miles' great philanthropyPhilanthropy
Philanthropy etymologically means "the love of humanity"—love in the sense of caring for, nourishing, developing, or enhancing; humanity in the sense of "what it is to be human," or "human potential." In modern practical terms, it is "private initiatives for public good, focusing on quality of...
towards the area around Kingsweston include donations of land for the Shirehampton Public Hall in 1903, which is now a grade II listed building, and to the National Trust
National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty
The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
in 1918, as well as for various local schools, churches, and sporting activities including cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
and golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
. In 1930 he gave land at Sea Mills
Sea Mills, Bristol
Sea Mills is a suburb of the English port city of Bristol. It is situated some 3.5 miles north-west of the city centre, towards the seaward end of the Avon Gorge. Nearby suburbs are Shirehampton, Sneyd Park, Combe Dingle and Stoke Bishop...
for homes for 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...
veterans, and established covenants which were intended to ensure that only relatively low-density housing was built on it, in line with the ideals of the garden city movement
Garden city movement
The garden city movement is a method of urban planning that was initiated in 1898 by Sir Ebenezer Howard in the United Kingdom. Garden cities were intended to be planned, self-contained communities surrounded by "greenbelts" , containing proportionate areas of residences, industry and...
of the time. His philanthropy might be thought of as aesthetic and moral (tending to improve the condition of working people through the provision of space, sport
Sport
A Sport is all forms of physical activity which, through casual or organised participation, aim to use, maintain or improve physical fitness and provide entertainment to participants. Sport may be competitive, where a winner or winners can be identified by objective means, and may require a degree...
, education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
and religion
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
); as might be expected from his family links, he was a social and political conservative
Conservatism
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...
.
End of the Kingsweston estate
He had married Sybil Marguerite Gonne, OBE, daughter of the eighth Baron de Hochepied Larpent, in 1899, but died childless, and his death occasioned the selling-off of much of the vast Kingsweston estate which extended to over 9000 acres (36.4 km²). Even after giving so much in philanthropic acts during his life, the Grant of Probate for his Will shows that he still had personal estate worth £286,422 11s 4d (£87,561,390 in 2008 terms). His estate was dealt with by his executors who included his cousin, William StJohn Fenton Miles, a Director for the National Provincial Bank which, by now, had taken over the family's original bank, Miles & Co. His ashes are buried at HenburyHenbury
Henbury is a suburb of Bristol, England, approximately 5 mi northwest of the city centre. It was formerly a village in Gloucestershire and is now bordered by Westbury-on-Trym to the south; Brentry to the east and the Blaise Castle estate Blaise Hamlet and Lawrence Weston to the west...
parish church, and his grave is marked by the punning family motto "Labora siccut bonus miles": 'Work like a good soldier.' He is commemorated in the name of Napier Miles Road, leading to the gate of Kingsweston (Kings Weston House
Kings Weston House
Kings Weston House is a historic building in Kings Weston Lane, Kingsweston, Bristol, England.It was built between 1710 and 1725 was designed by Sir John Vanbrugh for Edward Southwell on the site of an earlier Tudor house, and remodelled 1763 by Robert Mylne. A significant architectural feature is...
).
List of Napier Miles' operas
- Queen Rosamond
- Westward Ho! (1913; performed at the Lyceum, London)
- Fireflies (performed Bristol 1924)
- Markheim (1919; Carnegie award 1921; performed Bristol 1924; vocal score published by J. Curwen, 1926)
- Good Friday (vocal score published by Oxford University Press, 1933)
- Demeter
List of Napier Miles' other published works
- Four Songs, poetry by Shelley. C. Jefferys, 1891.
- Hymn before Sunrise for Baritone Solo, Chorus and Orchestra, the words by S. T. Coleridge ... the pianoforte accompaniment arranged ... by S. P. Waddington. Boosey & Co, 1896.
- Fragment of an Ode to Maia. [Four-part song.] Words by Keats. Op. 5. No. 6, etc. Stainer & Bell, 1911.
- Nocturn. [Four-part song.] Words by E. F. Benson. Op. 5. No. 5, etc. Stainer & Bell, 1913.
- Rose cheek'd Laura. [Four-part song.] Words by T. Campion. Op. 5. No. 4. Stainer & Bell, 1916.
- Battle. [Song cycle.] Ten Songs, poems by W. W. Gibson. Op. 7. S. Acott & Co, 1917.
- Music comes. Choral Dance for tenor solo, female chorus and small orchestra, the poem by J. Freeman. Op. 11. [Vocal score.]. Boosey & Co, 1921.
- Battle .... Second Set. Op. 9. Poems by W. W. Gibson, etc. J. Curwen & Sons, 1929.
- Ode on a Grecian Urn. Poem by J. Keats ... For Chorus and Orchestra. Vocal Score. [Pianoforte version by A. Jacob.] Oxford University Press, 1931 [chorus version 1934].
- In the Belfry. [Mixed voices.] Poem by A. Dobson. Op. 20. No. 1 (The Oxford Choral Songs). Oxford University Press, 1932.
- Four Songs for Baritone Voice & Oboe. The words by Robert Bridges. (1. The Poppy. 2. The Cliff-top. 3. Thou art alone, fond Lover. 4. When June is come.) Oxford University Press, 1933.
- My Master hath a Garden. [Song.] The poem from "Corn from olde Fields," etc. Oxford University Press, 1933.
General
- Anonymous (1935) Obituary. Musical Times (August), p. 751.
- Bristol Madrigal Society. Bristol Branch of the Historical Association Local History Pamphlets 15.
- Colles, H.C. (1936) Philip Napier Miles – composer. Music & Letters 17 (4), pp. 357–67.
- Grout, Donald J., and Hermine Weigel Williams (2003) A short history of opera, fourth edition, Columbia University Press, p. 709.
- Helme, Judy (2004) Shirehampton Public Hall, 1904–2004. Shirehampton: Public Hall Community Association, chap. 3.
- Thomas, Ethel (1993) Shirehampton story, 2nd edn. Privately published, esp. pp. 40–4.
- Thomas, Ethel (2002) The continuing story of Shirehampton. Privately published, esp. pp. 21–4, 66, 189–91.
External links
- Philip Napier Miles papers, 1884–1951 University of Bristol Library Special Collections