Anthony Vincent Benedictus Collins (3 September 189311 December 1963) was a British composer and conductor. He scored around 30 films in the US and the UK between 1937 and 1954, and composed the British light music classic ''Vanity Fair'' in 1952. His

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label * Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label * Decca Studios, a recording facility in We ...

recordings of the seven

Sibelius Jean Sibelius ( ; ; born Johan Julius Christian Sibelius; 8 December 186520 September 1957) was a Finnish composer of the late Romantic and early-modern periods. He is widely regarded as his country's greatest composer, and his music is often ...

symphonies was the second cycle by a single conductor and orchestra released. Kennedy, Michael (2006). ''The Oxford Dictionary of Music''.

Biography

Collins was born in

Hastings Hastings () is a large seaside town and borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England, east to the county town of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to the north-west ...

, East Sussex, in 1893. At the age of seventeen he began to perform as violinist in the Hastings Municipal Orchestra. He then served four years in the

army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

. Beginning in 1920 he studied violin with

Achille Rivarde Achille Rivarde (31 October 186531 March 1940) was an American-born British violinist and teacher, who worked mainly in Europe and London. Biography Serge Achille Rivarde was born in New York City to a Spanish father and an American mother. He ...

and composition with

Gustav Holst Gustav Theodore Holst (born Gustavus Theodore von Holst; 21 September 1874 – 25 May 1934) was an English composer, arranger and teacher. Best known for his orchestral suite ''The Planets'', he composed many other works across a range ...

at the

Royal College of Music The Royal College of Music is a conservatoire established by royal charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, UK. It offers training from the undergraduate to the doctoral level in all aspects of Western Music including perform ...

. In 1926, he began his musical career performing as principal

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in the

London Symphony Orchestra The London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London. Founded in 1904, the LSO is the oldest of London's orchestras, symphony orchestras. The LSO was created by a group of players who left Henry Wood's Queen's ...

. For ten years he performed in that orchestra and also in the

Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House (ROH) 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. It is the home of The Royal ...

Covent Garden Orchestra. He resigned these positions in 1936. For the rest of his career he divided his time between conducting, beginning with opera and moving to orchestra; and composition. His conducting debut was on 20 January 1938, when he led his former colleagues in the London Symphony Orchestra in

Elgar Sir Edward William Elgar, 1st Baronet, (; 2 June 1857 – 23 February 1934) was an English composer, many of whose works have entered the British and international classical concert repertoire. Among his best-known compositions are orchestr ...

's First Symphony, and the following year he founded the London Mozart Orchestra. He moved to the United States in 1939 to conduct orchestras in Los Angeles and New York City as well as composing film music for

RKO Pictures RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, was an American film production and distribution company, one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orph ...

. He was nominated for three

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

for best music and original score in three consecutive years (1940, 1941 and 1942) for ''

Nurse Edith Cavell ''Nurse Edith Cavell'' is a 1939 American film directed by British director Herbert Wilcox about Edith Cavell. The film was nominated at the 1939 Oscars for Best Original Score. Plot The story follows the broadly true story of Edith Cavell w ...

'', ''

Irene Irene is a name derived from εἰρήνη (eirēnē), the Greek for "peace". Irene, and related names, may refer to: * Irene (given name) Places * Irene, Gauteng, South Africa * Irene, South Dakota, United States * Irene, Texas, United State ...

'' and '' Sunny''. He returned to England in 1945, continuing to conduct the major British orchestras and also compose for British film studios. He retired at the end of the 1950s, returning to Los Angeles, where he died at the age of 70 in 1963.

Compositions

Collins arranged and composed works in many genres, but it is the lighter pieces that are still known today. Most notable of these is ''Vanity Fair'' (1952). Various miniatures, suites and film music extracts by Collins have been recorded. Of the film music, there is a five movement suite taken from his first score, '' Victoria the Great'' (1937). Having established himself in Hollywood during the war, he returned to the UK and scored a series of high profile British films, many of them starring

Anna Neagle Dame Florence Marjorie Wilcox (''née'' Robertson; 20 October 1904 – 3 June 1986), known professionally as Anna Neagle, was an English stage and film actress, singer, and dancer. She was a successful box-office draw in the British cinema ...

, such as ''

Piccadilly Incident ''Piccadilly Incident'' is a 1946 British drama film directed by Herbert Wilcox and starring Anna Neagle, Michael Wilding, Coral Browne, Edward Rigby and Leslie Dwyer. Wilcox teamed his wife Anna Neagle with Michael Wilding for the first time, es ...

'' (1946), ''

The Courtneys of Curzon Street ''The Courtneys of Curzon Street'' (also titled ''The Courtney Affair'' or Kathy's Love Affair, in the U.S.) is a 1947 British drama film starring Anna Neagle and Michael Wilding. It is a study of class division and snobbery in Britain in the la ...

'' (1947) and ''Odette'' (1950).Foreman, Lewis. Notes to Dutton CDLX7162 (2006)
/ref> Four one-act operas - ''Perseus and Andromeda'', ''Catherine Parr'', ''The Blue Harlequin'' and ''Kanawa'' - were composed in the early 1930s for the Royal College of Music. ''Eire'' (1938) is a suite of Irish folksong arrangements. ''Louis XV Silhouettes'' (1939) is a suite of

pastiche A pastiche is a work of visual art, literature, theatre, music, or architecture that imitates the style or character of the work of one or more other artists. Unlike parody, pastiche pays homage to the work it imitates, rather than mocking i ...

18th-century dance movements. His 1942 ''Elegy in Memory of Edward Elgar'', is based on a theme from the slow movement of Elgar's third symphony. Collins also compiled the ''Threnody for a Soldier Killed in Action'' (1944) from sketches left by Michael Heming, a young composer killed in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. There are also chamber works and songs. Many of his more ambitious works have been lost. These include the last two of the four string symphonies, two violin concertos (the first only surviving in the version published for violin and piano), ''Romney Marsh'' for viola and orchestra (1944) and the cantata ''The Lay of Rosabelle''. Others, such as the tone poem ''Sir Toby and Sir Andrew'', only exist as historical recordings.

Recordings

Collins conducted a series of classical recordings, notably of music of Elgar and Sibelius, for Decca Records and EMI. His Decca

Kingsway Hall The Kingsway Hall in Holborn, London, was the base of the West London Mission (WLM) of the Methodist Church, and eventually became one of the most important recording venues for classical music and film music. It was built in 1912 and demolished ...

recordings made between 1952 and 1955 of the seven Sibelius symphonies (the second complete cycle with a single orchestra and conductor) and some of the tone poems were very highly regarded. He recorded with Decca from May 1945 to December 1956.

Selected works

* ''The Lay of Rosabelle'', choral cantata (1932) * ''Catherine Parr'', opera after a play by

Maurice Baring Maurice Baring (27 April 1874 – 14 December 1945) was an English man of letters, known as a dramatist, poet, novelist, translator and essayist, and also as a travel writer and war correspondent, with particular knowledge of Russia. During Wo ...

(1930s) * ''Perseus and Andromeda'', opera (1930s) * ''The Blue Harlequin'', opera (1930s) * ''Kanawa'', opera (1930s) * ''Topley Pike'', pastoral (1937) * ''Eire'', suite (1938) * ''Louis XV Silhouettes'', suite (1939) * Symphony No. 1 for strings (1940) * ''Elegy in Memory of Edward Elgar'' (1942) * ''Sir Andrew and Sir Toby'', overture (1942) * ''Romney Marsh'', viola and orchestra (1944) * ''Threnody for a Soldier Killed in Action'' (1944), from sketches left by Michael Heming * ''The Song of Erin: Lamentation'', cor anglais and orchestra (1946) * ''The Willow Pattern Plate'', ballet (1946) * Symphony No. 2 for strings (Hallé/Barbirolli Cheltenham Festival 7 July 1950) * ''Valse Lente'', orch. Harry Dexter, extracted from ''Odette'' (1950) * ''Prelude and Valse Variations'', extracted from ''The Lady with a Lamp'' (1951) * ''Hogarth Suite'', oboe and strings (1952) * ''Vanity Fair'' (1952) * Violin Concerto No. 1, op. 48 (1953) * ''With Emma in Town'' (recorded 1957)Decca 10-inch 78, F.10337, London Promenade Orchestra, cond. Collins
/ref> * ''Festival Royal'' overture (1958) * ''Santa Cécilia'', orchestral madrigal (1959) * Violin Concerto No. 2 * String Quartet in B flat major * Quartet for flute, violin, viola and harp * Trio for flute, viola and harp

Film music

* '' Victoria the Great'', 1937 * '' The Rat'', 1937 * '' A Royal Divorce'', 1938 * ''

Sixty Glorious Years ''Sixty Glorious Years'' is a 1938 British colour film directed by Herbert Wilcox Herbert Sydney Wilcox CBE (19 April 1890 – 15 May 1977) was a British film producer and director. He was one of the most successful British filmmakers f ...

'', 1938 * '' Marigold'', 1938 * ''

'', 1939 * ''

Allegheny Uprising ''Allegheny Uprising'' (released in the UK as ''The First Rebel'') is a 1939 American Adventure Western film directed by William A. Seiter and starring Claire Trevor and John Wayne. Based on the 1937 novel ''The First Rebel'' by Neil H. Swanson, ...

'', 1939 * '' Swiss Family Robinson'', 1940 * ''

Tom Brown's School Days ''Tom Brown's School Days'' (sometimes written ''Tom Brown's Schooldays'', also published under the titles ''Tom Brown at Rugby'', ''School Days at Rugby'', and ''Tom Brown's School Days at Rugby'') is an 1857 novel by Thomas Hughes. The stor ...

'', 1940 * ''

'', 1940 * '' Sunny'', 1941 * '' Unexpected Uncle'', 1941 * '' The Nazis Strike'', 1943 * '' Appointment in Berlin'', 1943 * '' Destroyer'', 1943 * '' Forever and a Day'' * '' I Live in Grosvenor Square'', 1945 * ''

'', 1946 * ''

'', 1947 * ''

The Fabulous Texan ''The Fabulous Texan'' is a 1947 American Western film directed by Edward Ludwig and written by Lawrence Hazard and Horace McCoy. The film stars Wild Bill Elliott, John Carroll, Catherine McLeod, Albert Dekker, Andy Devine and Patricia Knig ...

'', 1947 * '' Odette'', 1950 * ''

Thunder in God's Country ''Thunder in God's Country'' is a 1951 American Western film directed by George Blair, written by Arthur E. Orloff, and starring Rex Allen, Mary Ellen Kay, Buddy Ebsen, Ian MacDonald, Paul Harvey and Harry Lauter. It was April 8, 1951, by Re ...

'', 1951 * ''

The Lady with a Lamp ''The Lady with a Lamp'' is a 1951 British historical film directed by Herbert Wilcox and starring Anna Neagle, Michael Wilding and Felix Aylmer. The film depicts the life of Florence Nightingale and her work with wounded British soldiers duri ...

'', 1951 * ''

Macao Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a po ...

'', 1952 * '' Derby Day'', 1952 * ''

Trent's Last Case ''Trent's Last Case'' is a detective novel written by E. C. Bentley and first published in 1913. Its central character, the artist and amateur detective Philip Trent, reappeared subsequently in the novel '' Trent's Own Case'' (1936), and the s ...

'', 1952 * ''

Laughing Anne ''Laughing Anne'' is a 1953 British adventure film directed by Herbert Wilcox and starring Wendell Corey, Margaret Lockwood, Forrest Tucker, and Ronald Shiner. It was adapted from Joseph Conrad's short story, " Because of the Dollars" and fro ...

'', 1953 * '' Adventures of Robinson Crusoe'', 1954

Awards and nominations

References

External links

Classics Online biography
*
"Vanity Fair", conducted by Ernest Tomlinson
{{DEFAULTSORT:Collins, Anthony 1893 births 1963 deaths English conductors (music) British male conductors (music) English film score composers English male film score composers Light music composers English classical violists 20th-century British conductors (music) 20th-century English composers 20th-century British male musicians 20th-century violists