David Brazell (1875 – 1959) was a Welsh singer. His parents were collier John Brazell, and Mary, of Pwll,

Llanelli Llanelli ("St Elli's llan (placename element), Parish"; ) is a market town and the largest community in Carmarthenshire and the Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county of Dyfed, Wales. It is located on the Loughor estuary north-west of ...

Carmarthenshire Carmarthenshire ( cy, Sir Gaerfyrddin; or informally ') is a county in the south-west of Wales. The three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford. Carmarthen is the county town and administrative centre. The county is known ...

. Following his education at local schools, Brazell entered employment in the tinplate industry, but studied music in

during his spare time. In 1901, encouraged by his teacher, R.C. Jenkins, he joined the

Royal Academy of Music The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is the oldest conservatoire in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the first Duke ...

in London, where he spent five years. In 1906 he was offered contracts with several professional opera companies, first joining the

Carl Rosa Opera Company The Carl Rosa Opera Company was founded in 1873 by Carl Rosa, a German-born musical impresario, and his wife, British operatic soprano Euphrosyne Parepa-Rosa to present opera in English in London and the British provinces. The company premiere ...

before choosing to continue his career on a freelance basis. He had a rich baritone voice, which was favoured by a number of accomplished composers of his time.

Edward 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 ...

invited him to sing at an early performance of his oratorio, ''The Dream of Gerontius'', and

Edward German Sir Edward German (17 February 1862 – 11 November 1936) was an English musician and composer of Welsh descent, best remembered for his extensive output of incidental music for the stage and as a successor to Arthur Sullivan in the field of En ...

invited him to sing the part of the Earl of Essex in his opera, ''Merrie England''. He made numerous recordings, of selections from operas and oratorios, popular songs, and Welsh songs, and his name appeared in the catalogues of a number of gramophone companies. He died in hospital in

in 1959.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brazell, David 1875 births 1959 deaths Welsh operatic baritones 19th-century Welsh male opera singers 20th-century Welsh male opera singers