Evelyn Suart, Lady Harcourt (30 April 188126 October 1950) was an English pianist. She was born in 1881 in Sindapore,

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, the daughter of Brigadier-General W. H. Suart,Royal Navy (RN) Officers 1939-45
at unithistories.com, accessed 3 April 2018 and she spent some of her early childhood there. She also lived for periods in

Gibraltar Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...

and England.Harcourt Articles 2 Lady Evelyn Harcourt, nee Suart - Information Provided by Rebekah Coombs: A Talented Concert Pianist who pioneered modern music.
at members.iinet.net.au, accessed 3 April 2018 Her piano studies were with Storck in Brussels,

Raoul Pugno Stéphane Raoul Pugno (23 June 1852 – ) was a French composer, teacher, organist, and pianist known for his playing of Mozart's works. Biography Raoul Pugno was born in Paris and was of Italian origin. He made his debut at the age of six, and w ...

in Paris and

Theodor Leschetizky Theodor Leschetizky (sometimes spelled Leschetitzky; ; 22 June 1830 – 14 November 1915) was a Polish pianist, professor, and composer active in Austria-Hungary. He was born in Landshut in the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, then a crown land ...

in Vienna. She made six tours and appeared in Vienna, Brussels, London, and with the

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

and

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

Philharmonic Orchestras. In London she often played at the St. James's Hall, under conductors such as Hans Richter and Sir Henry J. Wood, and appeared with violinists of the calibre of

Eugène Ysaÿe Eugène-Auguste Ysaÿe (; 16 July 185812 May 1931) was a Belgian virtuoso violinist, composer, and conductor. He was regarded as "The King of the Violin", or, as Nathan Milstein put it, the "tsar". Early years Born in Liège, Ysaÿe began ...

and

Karel Halíř Karel Halíř (1 February 1859 – 21 December 1909) was a Czech violinist who lived mainly in Germany. "Karel" is also given as Karol, Karl or Carl; "Halíř" is also given as Halir or Haliř. Life Karel Halíř was born in Hohenelbe, Bohem ...

, and other artists. Her British premieres included the original version of

Sergei Rachmaninoff Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff; in Russian pre-revolutionary script. (28 March 1943) was a Russian composer, virtuoso pianist, and Conducting, conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a compos ...

's 1st Piano Concerto (under Wood, 4 October 1900),

Max Reger Johann Baptist Joseph Maximilian Reger (19 March 187311 May 1916) was a German composer, pianist, organist, conductor, and academic teacher. He worked as a concert pianist, a musical director at the Paulinerkirche, Leipzig, Leipzig University Chu ...

's Violin Sonata No. 5 in F-sharp minor (with Halíř), and pieces by

Debussy Achille Claude Debussy (; 22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionism in music, Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most influe ...

Ravel Joseph Maurice Ravel (7 March 1875 – 28 December 1937) was a French composer, pianist and conductor. He is often associated with Impressionism in music, Impressionism along with his elder contemporary Claude Debussy, although both composer ...

, H. Balfour Gardiner, and most particularly

Cyril Scott Cyril Meir Scott (27 September 1879 – 31 December 1970) was an English composer, writer, poet, and occultist. He created around four hundred musical compositions including piano, violin, cello concertos, symphonies, and operas. He also wrot ...

. She met Scott in 1902 and soon became his champion, frequently playing his works, and introducing him to his publisher, Elkin.Leslie De’Ath, Cyril Scott as Composer, Pianist and Author
at musicweb-international.com, accessed 3 April 2018 Scott dedicated his Scherzo, Op. 25, to her. She was also a

Christian Scientist Activists, politicians, and military figures Activists *Tsianina Redfeather Blackstone (1882-1985) – Native American singer and activist * Bonnie Carroll – President and founder of the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS) *Henry ...

, and interested in

metaphysics Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that examines the basic structure of reality. It is traditionally seen as the study of mind-independent features of the world, but some theorists view it as an inquiry into the conceptual framework of ...

. It was through her that Cyril Scott began his lifelong interest in such matters. Evelyn Suart was a President of the

Society of Women Musicians The Society of Women Musicians was a British group founded in 1911 for mutual cooperation between women composers and performers, in response to the limited professional opportunities for women musicians at the time. The founders included Katharine ...

. She died in London in 1950.

Private life

In 1910, Evelyn Suart married Gerald Gould, an Irish-born civil servant with the Foreign Office, who died of

typhoid fever Typhoid fever, also known simply as typhoid, is a disease caused by '' Salmonella enterica'' serotype Typhi bacteria, also called ''Salmonella'' Typhi. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often th ...

in 1916. They had one son (also named Gerald Gould) and two daughters. The elder daughter Diana Gould became a noted ballerina and was the second wife of

Yehudi Menuhin Yehudi Menuhin, Baron Menuhin (22 April 191612 March 1999), was an American-born British violinist and conductor who spent most of his performing career in Britain. He is widely considered one of the greatest violinists of the 20th century. ...

. The younger, Griselda, became the second wife of the pianist

Louis Kentner Louis Philip Kentner (19 July 190523 September 1987) was a Hungarian, later British, pianist who excelled in the works of Chopin and Liszt, as well as the Hungarian repertoire. Life and career He was born Lajos Kentner in Karwin, Austrian S ...

. Evelyn Suart had no time for her children, and had so little understanding of the world that Diana found it hard to imagine how she and her siblings had been conceived. She told Griselda, "Don't think of her as a mother, think of her as a fascinating woman".Sydney Morning Herald, She chose to be a great fiddler’s moll (Lady (Diana) Menuhin, Ballerina 1912-2003)
at smh.com.au, accessed 3 April 2018 In 1920 she married a second time, to a naval officer,

Cecil Harcourt Admiral Sir Cecil Halliday Jepson Harcourt (translated to Chinese as zh , t= 夏慤 , j=haa6 kok3 , labels=no; 11 April 1892 – 19 December 1959) was a British naval officer. He was the ''de facto'' governor of Hong Kong as commander-in-chi ...

. He had a prominent career, rising to the rank of admiral in 1949. He was Head of the Military Government of Hong Kong in 1945–46, and became

Second Sea Lord The Second Sea Lord and Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff (formerly Second Sea Lord) is deputy to the First Sea Lord and the second highest-ranking officer currently to serve in the Royal Navy and is responsible for personnel and naval shore estab ...

in 1948. He was knighted on 18 December 1945, and Evelyn Suart became Lady Harcourt.

References

Sources

* Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians, 5th ed., 1954 {{DEFAULTSORT:Suart, Evelyn 1881 births 1950 deaths British people in colonial India 20th-century English classical pianists Pupils of Theodor Leschetizky English women pianists