Charles Edward Stephens (1821–1892) was an English musician and composer.

Life

He was born in London at 12 Portman Place (now part of

Edgware Road Edgware Road is a major road in London, England. The route originated as part of Roman Watling Street and, unusually in London, it runs for in an almost perfectly straight line. Forming part of the modern A5 road, Edgware Road undergoes sever ...

) on 18 March 1821, and was nephew to the singer Catherine Stephens. He studied the piano and violin under J. M. Rost,

Cipriani Potter Philip Cipriani Hambly Potter (3 October 1792 – 26 September 1871) was an English musician. He was a composer, pianist, conductor and teacher. After an early career as a performer and composer, he was a teacher in the Royal Academy of Musi ...

, F. Smith, and Henry Blagrove, and theory under James Alexander Hamilton. After school, Stephens was organist successively to

St Mark's, Myddelton Square St Mark's Church is an Anglicanism, Anglican church in the middle of Myddelton Square, the largest square in London's Clerkenwell district. The square was laid out by William Chadwell Mylne, and there are 75 houses, by 13 different builders, all ...

; Holy Trinity, Paddington; St John's, Hampstead;

St Clement Danes St Clement Danes is an Anglican church in the City of Westminster, London. It is now situated near the 19th-century Royal Courts of Justice on the Strand in Aldwych. Although the first church on the site was reputedly founded in the 9th cent ...

; and St Saviour's, Paddington, where he resigned in 1875. He died in London on 13 July 1892 and was buried at

Kensal Green Cemetery Kensal Green Cemetery is a cemetery in the Kensal Green area of North Kensington in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in London, England. Inspired by Père Lachaise Cemetery in P ...

. He was a fellow or member of many of the English musical institutions, being an original member of the Musical Association in 1874.

Works

Stephens wrote numerous compositions. They included a symphony in G minor, played at the Philharmonic in 1891, and piano and chamber music. In 1880 he gained both the first and second prizes for

string quartet The term string quartet refers to either a type of musical composition or a group of four people who play them. Many composers from the mid-18th century onwards wrote string quartets. The associated musical ensemble consists of two Violin, violini ...

s offered by

Trinity College, London Trinity College London (TCL) is an examination board based in London, United Kingdom which offers graded and diploma qualifications across a range of disciplines in the performing arts and English language learning and teaching. Trinity College ...

Notes

External links

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Stephens, Charles Edward 1821 births 1892 deaths English composers Musicians from London People from Marylebone Associates of the Royal College of Organists