John Banister (1630 – 3 October 1679) was an English musical

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...

and

violin The violin, sometimes referred to as a fiddle, is a wooden chordophone, and is the smallest, and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in regular use in the violin family. Smaller violin-type instruments exist, including the violino picc ...

ist.

Early life

Banister was the son of one of the waits (municipal musicians) of the parish of St. Giles-in-the-Fields, and that profession he at first followed. His father was his first instructor, and he arrived at such proficiency on the violin that Charles II became interested in him and sent him for further education to France. On his return, Charles appointed him to the post of leader of his own band, vacated by the death of Thomas Baltzar in 1663.

Court life

About 1666–1667 he is said to have been dismissed by the king for an impertinent remark concerning the appointment of French musicians to the royal band. This seems to be referred to in '' Pepys's Diary,'' dated 20 February 1666 – 1667, although Banister's name occurs in a list of the King's Chapel in 1668.

Concerts

On 30 December 1672, he inaugurated a series of

concert A concert, often known informally as a gig or show, is a live performance of music in front of an audience. The performance may be carried by a single musician, in which case it is sometimes called a recital, or by a musical ensemble such as an ...

s at his own house, which are remarkable as being the first lucrative concerts given in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. One peculiarity of the arrangements was that the audience, on payment of one shilling, were entitled to demand what music they wished to be performed. These entertainments continued to be given by him, as we learn from advertisements in the '' London Gazette'' of the period, until within a short time of his death, which took place on 3 October 1679. He was buried in the cloisters of Westminster Abbey.

Compositions

His most important composition is the music to the tragedy of '' Circe'' by Dr. C. Davenant, which was performed at the Duke of York's Theatre in 1676.

Manuscript A manuscript (abbreviated MS for singular and MSS for plural) was, traditionally, any document written by hand or typewritten, as opposed to mechanically printed or reproduced in some indirect or automated way. More recently, the term has ...

copies of the first act are preserved in the library of the Royal College of Music, and in the Fitzwilliam Museum at Cambridge. In the same year he wrote music to ''

The Tempest ''The Tempest'' is a Shakespeare's plays, play by William Shakespeare, probably written in 1610–1611, and thought to be one of the last plays that he wrote alone. After the first scene, which takes place on a ship at sea during a tempest, th ...

'' in conjunction with Pelham Humphrey. Several songs by Banister, some of them belonging to some classic tragedy of which the name is unknown, and written jointly with Dr. Blow, are in a manuscript in the Christ Church Library,

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

. In the contemporary collections of printed music his name occurs frequently. Besides his vocal compositions, he wrote a great many short pieces for one, two, and three violins, and also for the

lute A lute ( or ) is any plucked string instrument with a neck (music), neck and a deep round back enclosing a hollow cavity, usually with a sound hole or opening in the body. It may be either fretted or unfretted. More specifically, the term "lu ...

. He was especially skilled in writing upon a ground bass.

Family

His son, John Banister the Younger, was a pupil of his father's, and became, like him, a violinist in the royal band. He performed under Charles II, James II, William III and Mary II, and Anne. When the first

Italian opera Italian opera is both the art of opera in Italy and opera in the Italian language. Opera was in Italy around the year 1600 and Italian opera has continued to play a dominant role in the history of the form until the present day. Many famous ope ...

s were given in England at the

Theatre Royal, Drury Lane The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, commonly known as Drury Lane, is a West End theatre and listed building, Grade I listed building in Covent Garden, London, England. The building faces Catherine Street (earlier named Bridges or Brydges Street) an ...

, he played the first violin. He died in 1735. There is a portrait of John in the National Portrait Gallery in London.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Banister, John 1630 births 1679 deaths English Baroque composers 17th-century English classical composers English classical violinists English male violinists Burials at Westminster Abbey English male classical composers English male classical violinists 17th-century English male musicians