John Ansell (26 March 1874 – 14 December 1948) was a British composer of light classical music.

Early life

Born in London, he studied under Hamish MacCunn at the

Guildhall School of Music The Guildhall School of Music and Drama is a music and drama school located in the City of London, England. Established in 1880, the school offers undergraduate and postgraduate training in all aspects of classical music and jazz along with dram ...

, and played violin and

viola The viola ( , () ) is a string instrument of the violin family, and is usually bowed when played. Violas are slightly larger than violins, and have a lower and deeper sound. Since the 18th century, it has been the middle or alto voice of the ...

in various orchestras before being appointed musical director at the

Playhouse Theatre The Playhouse Theatre is a West End theatre in the City of Westminster, located in Northumberland Avenue, near Trafalgar Square, central London. The Theatre was built by F. H. Fowler and Hill with a seating capacity of 1,200. It was rebuilt in ...

in 1907.

Career

He became music director at the

Alhambra Theatre The Alhambra Theatre was a popular theatre and music hall located on the east side of Leicester Square, in the West End of London. It was built as the Royal Panopticon of Science and Arts, opening on 18 March 1854. It was closed after two yea ...

in 1913, and later worked at other theatres including the

Winter Garden Theatre The Winter Garden Theatre is a Broadway theatre at 1634 Broadway in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City, New York, U.S. Originally designed by architect William Albert Swasey, it opened in 1911. The Winter Garden's current des ...

. Between 1926 and 1930, he worked at 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 ...

as conductor of the 2LO Wireless Orchestra.Philip L. Scowcroft, "John Ansell", ''Classical Music on the Web''
Retrieved 30 March 2017 As well as incidental music, Ansell composed various popular light musical pieces, most notably the overture ''Plymouth Hoe'', which incorporated several nautical melodies and continues to feature in the repertoire of orchestras and military bands; and another overture, ''The Windjammer''. He also wrote

operetta Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs and including dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, and length of the work. Apart from its shorter length, the oper ...

s, including ''The King's Bride'' (1911), and ''Violette'' (1918); and the ballet ''The Shoe''.John France, "John Ansell: The Shoe Ballet", ''Land of Lost Content'', 19 April 2013
Retrieved 30 March 2017 Ansell's obituarist in ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'' commented that his music "exhibits a soundness of construction and vein of fantasy which should ensure it the regard of discriminating audiences".

Compositions

* ''Children's Suite'' * ''Danses Miniatures de Ballet'' * ''John and Sam'' overture * ''Mediterranean Suite'' * ''Overture to an Irish Comedy'' * ''Plymouth Hoe'', overture * ''Private Ortheris'' overture * ''Suite Pastorale'' * ''The Shoe'', ballet suite * ''Three Irish Pictures'' * ''The Windjammer'' overture

Death

Ansell died in

Marlow, Buckinghamshire Marlow ( ), historically Great Marlow or Chipping Marlow, is a town and civil parish within the Unitary Authority of Buckinghamshire, England. It is located on the River Thames, south-southwest of High Wycombe, west-northwest of Maidenhead and ...

in 1948, aged 74.

References

1874 births 1948 deaths English musical theatre composers English male classical composers {{England-musician-stub