Frederic Basil Rowley Smallman (30 June 1921 – 8 December 2001), commonly known as Basil Smallman, was an English music scholar. Born in

Croydon Croydon is a large town in South London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a Districts of England, local government district of Greater London; it is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater Lond ...

on 30 June 1921,''International Who's Who in Music and Musicians' Directory'' (1977), p. 783. Smallman was educated at

Cranleigh School Cranleigh School is a Private school (English fee-charging boarding and day school) in the village of Cranleigh, Surrey. History It was opened on 29 September 1865 as a boys' school 'to provide a sound and plain education, on the principle ...

New College, Oxford New College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1379 by Bishop William of Wykeham in conjunction with Winchester College as New College's feeder school, New College was one of the first col ...

, and the

Royal College of Music The Royal College of Music (RCM) 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 pe ...

.''Who's Who in Music'' (1962), p. 195. After war service, he completed the Bachelor of Music degree at Oxford in 1946–47,

Robert Orledge Robert Orledge (born 5 January 1948) is a British musicologist who specialises in French music from the late 19th to early 20th centuries. A Professor Emeritus at the University of Liverpool, Orledge has published book-length studies on the comp ...

"Basil Smallman"
''Thurlestone, Bantham and Buckland Village Voice'', no. 117 (October–November 2002), p. 15. and then completed a Diploma in Education in 1947.''The Academic Who's Who'' (Adam and Charles Black, 1973), p. 426. He was then the music master at

Malvern College Malvern College is a Private schools in the United Kingdom, fee-charging coeducational boarding school, boarding and day school in Malvern, Worcestershire, Malvern, Worcestershire, England. It is a public school (United Kingdom), public school ...

between 1947 and 1949, before he was appointed to a

lectureship Lecturer is an List of academic ranks, academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. ...

in music at the

University of Nottingham The University of Nottingham is a public research university in Nottingham, England. It was founded as University College Nottingham in 1881, and was granted a royal charter in 1948. Nottingham's main campus (University Park Campus, Nottingh ...

in 1950; for a time after 1955 he also worked as an

accompanist Accompaniment is the part (music), musical part which provides the rhythmic and/or harmony (music), harmonic support for the melody or main themes of a song or instrumental piece. There are many different styles and types of accompaniment in di ...

with the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

. Promotion to a senior lectureship at Nottingham in 1961 was followed in 1964 by his appointment to the James and Constance Alsop Chair of Music at the

University of Liverpool The University of Liverpool (abbreviated UOL) is a Public university, public research university in Liverpool, England. Founded in 1881 as University College Liverpool, Victoria University (United Kingdom), Victoria University, it received Ro ...

. He was Dean of the Faculty of Arts there between 1969 and 1971,

Public Orator The Public Orator is a traditional official post at universities, especially in the United Kingdom. The holder of this office acts as the voice of the university on public occasions. The position at Oxford University dates from 1564. The Public O ...

between 1972 and 1973, and Pro-Vice-Chancellor between 1973 and 1976; on retirement in 1985, he was appointed an

emeritus ''Emeritus/Emerita'' () is an honorary title granted to someone who retires from a position of distinction, most commonly an academic faculty position, but is allowed to continue using the previous title, as in "professor emeritus". In some c ...

professor.For his term as Pro-Vice-Chancellor, see also "University news", ''The Times'', 28 July 1973, p. 14. Smallman was especially interested in the German

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

Passion Passion, the Passion or the Passions may refer to: Emotion * Passion (emotion), a very strong feeling about a person or thing * Passions (philosophy), emotional states as used in philosophical discussions * Stoic passions, various forms of emotio ...

and

Heinrich Schütz Heinrich Schütz (; 6 November 1672) was a German early Baroque music, Baroque composer and organ (music), organist, generally regarded as the most important German composer before Johann Sebastian Bach and one of the most important composers of ...

; in retirement, he expanded his academic output, and published three monographs. He died on 8 December 2001, and was survived by his three children and his wife Ann, ''née'' Hesketh-Williams.

Selected publications

* ''The Background of Passion Music'' (

SCM Press SCM Press is a British publisher of theology, originally linked to the Student Christian Movement. The company was purchased by Hymns Ancient and Modern in 1997. In 2018, ''Church Times'' reported that 100 titles from SCM Press and Canterbury ...

, 1957; 2nd ed. 1970). * ''The Music of Heinrich Schütz'' (Mayflower Enterprises, 1985). *
The Piano Trio: History, Technique, and Repertoire
' (

Clarendon Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...

, 1990). *
The Piano Quartet and Quintet: Style, Structure, and Scoring
' (

, 1994). * ''Schütz'', Master Musicians Series (

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...

, 2000).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smallman, Basil 1921 births 2001 deaths People from Croydon Alumni of New College, Oxford Academics of the University of Nottingham Academics of the University of Liverpool 20th-century British musicologists People educated at Cranleigh School