William Christian Sellé
Encyclopedia
William Christian Sellé DMus
(also known as Wilhelm Kristian Sellé) was a Victorian doctor of music, composer and for forty years Musician in Ordinary to her Majesty Queen Victoria.
in 1813, and was the son of a musician John Kristian Sellé who had left Hanover
with Viotti a celebrated violinist, for reason of an opportunity to join the private band of the 15th Light Dragoons of Ernest Augustus Duke of Cumberland
who was then residing at the royal residence in Kew
and was forming a band of mainly German musicians. His Mother Elizabeth Underwood was from a farming family in Suffolk. Sellé was bilingual from an early age.
The young Sellé began his musical educationat a young age. He was placed under the tutelage of another of the Duke of Cumberland’s musician, a man named Platt. At fifteen he became a pupil of Cipriani Potter
, at that time the principal of the Royal Academy of Music
where he specialised in pianoforte. Sellé demonstrated at an early age the ability to teach music beginning whilst he was under tutelage. Potter trusted him enough to allow him to teach the other pupils. He was at the academy for about two years and then started a seventy year career as a teacher. He was primarily a teacher of the piano and organ but was also a skilled violinist.
Sellé recalled in 1878 in a letter to The Times
that he had befriended the young son of the Duke, Prince George of Cumberland (later George V of Hanover
) following a serious accident in 1828 that caused a temporary loss of sight. He related that he was in constant attendance providing support throughout the illness to Prince George who was his first royal pupil. Sellé composed a piece of music for the young prince,. This was probably his first published piece‘The Favorite Gallopade’, with variations for the Piano Forte a copy of which is held at The British Library
.
Sellé married Selina Daniel in Southwark in 1835 setting up home in Richmond on Thames where he was to live for the remainder of his life. He spent the next years raising a family and developing his teaching career that included several members of the royal household. In 1846 he was appointed Organist of the Chapel Royal
at Hampton Court Palace
a prestigious role that he held for some forty six years.
There is a record of him requesting the formation of a permanent choir at Hampton Court in 1853 the same year that he helped organise a concert at Hampton Court in aid of the Crimean War
Relief Fund. This took place in the Great Hall which was opened to the public for the first time.
Sellé was awarded a Lambeth Music Doctorate
by Archbishop Sumner in 1857. The 1850s and 1860s were his most prolific as a composer. The British Library archive has around forty published pieces by Sellé. The majority are from the middle decades of the century. They are relatively short pieces for the piano and organ. They also tend to be lyrical and place Sellé within the romantic tradition of English music. In 1886 he was commissioned by The Shelley Society to provide music for Hellas, a lyrical drama by Percy Bysshe Shelley
. This was performed in October 1894 with Buxton Forman's sister-in-law the actress Alma Murray
in the lead role. The musical score came in for much artistic criticism but remains Sellé's best known score and is still available and in print.
Sellé's obituary mentions a love of Beethoven whom he refers to as ’his dear master’.Sellé's inclination was to favour an establishment view of classical music reinforced by his known dislike of ‘modern music’. Throughout his career as a teacher Sellé maintained a close musical relationship with many of his pupils . He played the organ at the marriage of his former pupil Princess Mary of Cambridge and was by the accounts that still exist a convivial,loquacious man with a string of anecdotes that made him exceptional company. In later life he was to become a familiar character in his community with an affectation of wearing what was described as a 'sombrero' Sellé retired as organist at the Chapel Royal in 1886 at the age of seventy three.
A Liberal and supporter of Gladstone, Sellé was an active member of his community taking part in the issues of the day.He was member of the Richmond Select Vestry
(Parish Council) from 1853 until his death. He also stood unsuccessfully as a Liberal Candidate when Richmond received its Charter of Incorporation.He made an unsuccessful attempt to bring about the opening of the
Richmond Public Library for which he was a serving committee member.
At the time of his death he left a widow and four adult daughters, one of whom was married to Harry Buxton Forman
,a leading bibliographer, rare manuscripts editor and scholar of all things Shelley.His only adult son Guarnerius pre deceased him by nine years. William Christian Sellé died of a heart attack whilst drinking at The Greyhound Hotel in Richmond on November 8, 1898.
Doctor of Music
The Doctor of Music degree , like other doctorates, is an academic degree of the highest level. The D.Mus. is intended for musicians and composers who wish to combine the highest attainments in their area of specialization with doctoral-level academic study in music...
(also known as Wilhelm Kristian Sellé) was a Victorian doctor of music, composer and for forty years Musician in Ordinary to her Majesty Queen Victoria.
Biography
William Christian Sellé was born in Benhall, SuffolkSuffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
in 1813, and was the son of a musician John Kristian Sellé who had left Hanover
Hanover
Hanover or Hannover, on the river Leine, is the capital of the federal state of Lower Saxony , Germany and was once by personal union the family seat of the Hanoverian Kings of Great Britain, under their title as the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg...
with Viotti a celebrated violinist, for reason of an opportunity to join the private band of the 15th Light Dragoons of Ernest Augustus Duke of Cumberland
Duke of Cumberland
Duke of Cumberland is a peerage title that was conferred upon junior members of the British Royal Family, named after the county of Cumberland.-History:...
who was then residing at the royal residence in Kew
Kew
Kew is a place in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames in South West London. Kew is best known for being the location of the Royal Botanic Gardens, now a World Heritage Site, which includes Kew Palace...
and was forming a band of mainly German musicians. His Mother Elizabeth Underwood was from a farming family in Suffolk. Sellé was bilingual from an early age.
The young Sellé began his musical educationat a young age. He was placed under the tutelage of another of the Duke of Cumberland’s musician, a man named Platt. At fifteen he became a pupil of Cipriani Potter
Cipriani Potter
Philip Cipriani Hambly Potter was a British composer, pianist and educator.-Life and career:Born in London, the son of a piano teacher named Richard Huddleston Potter, Cipriani was named after his godmother...
, at that time the principal of 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...
where he specialised in pianoforte. Sellé demonstrated at an early age the ability to teach music beginning whilst he was under tutelage. Potter trusted him enough to allow him to teach the other pupils. He was at the academy for about two years and then started a seventy year career as a teacher. He was primarily a teacher of the piano and organ but was also a skilled violinist.
Sellé recalled in 1878 in a letter to The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
that he had befriended the young son of the Duke, Prince George of Cumberland (later George V of Hanover
George V of Hanover
George V was King of Hanover, the only child of Ernest Augustus I, and a grandchild of King George III of the United Kingdom. In the peerage of Great Britain, he was 2nd Duke of Cumberland and Teviotdale, 2nd Earl of Armagh...
) following a serious accident in 1828 that caused a temporary loss of sight. He related that he was in constant attendance providing support throughout the illness to Prince George who was his first royal pupil. Sellé composed a piece of music for the young prince,. This was probably his first published piece‘The Favorite Gallopade’, with variations for the Piano Forte a copy of which is held at The British Library
British Library
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom, and is the world's largest library in terms of total number of items. The library is a major research library, holding over 150 million items from every country in the world, in virtually all known languages and in many formats,...
.
Sellé married Selina Daniel in Southwark in 1835 setting up home in Richmond on Thames where he was to live for the remainder of his life. He spent the next years raising a family and developing his teaching career that included several members of the royal household. In 1846 he was appointed Organist of the Chapel Royal
Chapel Royal
A Chapel Royal is a body of priests and singers who serve the spiritual needs of their sovereign wherever they are called upon to do so.-Austria:...
at Hampton Court Palace
Hampton Court Palace
Hampton Court Palace is a royal palace in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, Greater London; it has not been inhabited by the British royal family since the 18th century. The palace is located south west of Charing Cross and upstream of Central London on the River Thames...
a prestigious role that he held for some forty six years.
There is a record of him requesting the formation of a permanent choir at Hampton Court in 1853 the same year that he helped organise a concert at Hampton Court in aid of the Crimean War
Crimean War
The Crimean War was a conflict fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the French Empire, the British Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. The war was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the declining...
Relief Fund. This took place in the Great Hall which was opened to the public for the first time.
Sellé was awarded a Lambeth Music Doctorate
Lambeth degree
A Lambeth degree is an academic degree conferred by the Archbishop of Canterbury under the authority of the Ecclesiastical Licences Act 1533 as successor of the papal legate in England...
by Archbishop Sumner in 1857. The 1850s and 1860s were his most prolific as a composer. The British Library archive has around forty published pieces by Sellé. The majority are from the middle decades of the century. They are relatively short pieces for the piano and organ. They also tend to be lyrical and place Sellé within the romantic tradition of English music. In 1886 he was commissioned by The Shelley Society to provide music for Hellas, a lyrical drama by Percy Bysshe Shelley
Percy Bysshe Shelley
Percy Bysshe Shelley was one of the major English Romantic poets and is critically regarded as among the finest lyric poets in the English language. Shelley was famous for his association with John Keats and Lord Byron...
. This was performed in October 1894 with Buxton Forman's sister-in-law the actress Alma Murray
Alma Murray
Alma Murray was an English actress, born in London, the daughter of an actor, Leigh Murray. Her father's real surname was 'Wilson'. His brother was Gaston Murray whose daughters often used the double-barreled stage-name 'Gaston-Murray' and were well-known performers with the D'Oyly Carte Opera...
in the lead role. The musical score came in for much artistic criticism but remains Sellé's best known score and is still available and in print.
Sellé's obituary mentions a love of Beethoven whom he refers to as ’his dear master’.Sellé's inclination was to favour an establishment view of classical music reinforced by his known dislike of ‘modern music’. Throughout his career as a teacher Sellé maintained a close musical relationship with many of his pupils . He played the organ at the marriage of his former pupil Princess Mary of Cambridge and was by the accounts that still exist a convivial,loquacious man with a string of anecdotes that made him exceptional company. In later life he was to become a familiar character in his community with an affectation of wearing what was described as a 'sombrero' Sellé retired as organist at the Chapel Royal in 1886 at the age of seventy three.
A Liberal and supporter of Gladstone, Sellé was an active member of his community taking part in the issues of the day.He was member of the Richmond Select Vestry
Vestry
A vestry is a room in or attached to a church or synagogue in which the vestments, vessels, records, etc., are kept , and in which the clergy and choir robe or don their vestments for divine service....
(Parish Council) from 1853 until his death. He also stood unsuccessfully as a Liberal Candidate when Richmond received its Charter of Incorporation.He made an unsuccessful attempt to bring about the opening of the
Richmond Public Library for which he was a serving committee member.
At the time of his death he left a widow and four adult daughters, one of whom was married to Harry Buxton Forman
Harry Buxton Forman
Henry "Harry" Buxton Forman CB was a Victorian-era bibliographer and antiquarian bookseller whose literary reputation is based on his bibliographies of Percy Shelley and John Keats...
,a leading bibliographer, rare manuscripts editor and scholar of all things Shelley.His only adult son Guarnerius pre deceased him by nine years. William Christian Sellé died of a heart attack whilst drinking at The Greyhound Hotel in Richmond on November 8, 1898.
External links
- http://www.maryceleste.co.uk/famhist/selle/selle-print.htm Information from The British Library listed in family archive