Ivor James

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(1882–1963) Percy A. Scholes. "James, Ivor". ''Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music''. Oxford University Press, 1964. was a British cellist. He taught for many years at 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 ...

; among his pupils were those who became notable cellists.

Life

James studied under William Whitehouse at the

. After graduating he joined the

English String Quartet The English String Quartet was founded in 1902 by a group of students from the Royal College of Music: Thomas F. Morris (1st violin), Herbert Kinsey, Herbert H. Kinsey (2nd violin), Frank Bridge (viola) and Ivor James (cello). The name was not offic ...

, at a time when its viola player was

Frank Bridge Frank Bridge (26 February 187910 January 1941) was an English composer, violist and conductor. Life Bridge was born in Brighton, the ninth child of William Henry Bridge (1845–1928), a violin teacher and variety theatre conductor, formerly a ...

.Margaret Campbell. ''The Great Cellists''. Faber & Faber, 2011. Chapter "The British Element". In 1919 he became William Whitehouse's assistant at the Royal College of Music, and he subsequently taught at the college for 34 years. In his teaching, he was concerned that there should be a strong technical base; also that, in achieving a good interpretation, the line of the music should be considered. His pupils included

Hugo Cole Hugo Cole (6 July 1917 – 2 March 1995) was an English composer, cellist, critic and author on musical subjects. Education and early career Cole was born in London, one of three children of a successful barrister, Arthur Frederick Andrew Cole (1 ...

Amaryllis Fleming Amaryllis Marie-Louise Fleming (10 December 1925 – 27 July 1999) was a British cello performer and teacher. Early life and education Fleming was born in 1925, reportedly in Switzerland.G. R. Seaman, 'Fleming, Amaryllis Marie-Louise (1925? ...

, Martin Lovett, Thelma Reiss and James Whitehead. He married a former pupil, Helen Just, in 1928. She was a fellow professor at the college, and a member of the English String Quartet, the Menges Sextet and the Whinyates String Quartet.'Whinyates String Quartet', in ''Radio Times'', Issue 877, 21 July 1940, p. 16
/ref> In 1928 James was made a Fellow of the Royal College of Music (FRCM). In 1929 he founded a summer school at

Westminster College, Cambridge Westminster College in Cambridge, England is a theological college of the United Reformed Church. Its principal purpose is training for the ordination of ministers, but is also used more widely for training within the denomination. History T ...

, sponsored by the British Federation of Music Festivals; it is regarded as the first of its kind. In the 1930s he was a member of the Menges Quartet. James was appointed

in 1953. In an obituary in 1963 in the ''Royal College of Music Union Magazine'' was written: "He truly felt music to its very depth and centre. He communicated his musical intention to his pupils in some remarkable way which seems impossible to put into words."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:James, Ivor 1882 births 1963 deaths 20th-century British classical musicians British classical cellists Alumni of the Royal College of Music Academics of the Royal College of Music Commanders of the Order of the British Empire 20th-century British cellists