Kathleen "Ida" Long

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 ...

(7 July 189620 March 1968) was an English pianist and teacher.

Early life

Long was born in

Brentford Brentford is a suburban town in West (London sub region), West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the River Thames, Thames, west of Charing Cross. Its economy has dive ...

, a suburb of London in the UK. Her early instruction in music, which began aged six, was with her aunt, Miss J. E. Long. She attended Langton House School in Bury St. Edmunds where she took further piano tuition with George W. Bouttell. She was a child prodigy who first performed in public at the age of seven and made her debut at the Aeolian Hall in 1915. From 1910 to 1916 she studied with Herbert Sharpe 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 ...

in London.

Career

Long was a teacher at the Royal College of Music from 1920 to 1964; her pupils included

Imogen Holst Imogen Clare Holst (; 12 April 1907 – 9 March 1984) was a British composer, arranger, conductor, teacher, musicologist, and festival administrator. The only child of the composer Gustav Holst, she is particularly known for her education ...

and Eiluned Davies. She was a regular performer at the CEMA concerts during World War II, often with the violinist Eda Kersey. Others with whom she frequently appeared were

Pablo Casals Pau Casals i Defilló (Catalan: ; 29 December 187622 October 1973), known in English as Pablo Casals,Albert Sammons Albert Edward Sammons CBE (23 February 188624 August 1957) was an English violinist, composer and later violin teacher. Almost self-taught on the violin, he had a wide repertoire as both chamber musician and soloist, although his reputation re ...

and Guilhermina Suggia, but her longest working partnership was with the violinist Antonio Brosa with whom she collaborated between 1948 and 1966. Her tours included Europe, North America and South Africa. Long interpreted the music of (among many others)

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( ; ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions ...

and

Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (German: �joːhan zeˈbasti̯an baχ ( – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his prolific output across a variety of instruments and forms, including the or ...

,. She studied

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 ...

’s ''Ondine'' with the composer himself, made what was only the second recording of the Sonatine in 1927, and played and recorded works by

Gabriel Fauré Gabriel Urbain Fauré (12 May 1845 – 4 November 1924) was a French composer, organist, pianist and teacher. He was one of the foremost French composers of his generation, and his musical style influenced many 20th-century composers. ...

, with whose music she was particularly identified. In 1934 she performed in the premiere of

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 ...

's ''Phantasm'', drawing praise from the composer. In 1950 she was awarded the

Palmes Académiques Palmes is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Sir Brian Palmes, English landowner and politician * Sir Guy Palmes, English politician * Brian Palmes MP * Lieutenant General Francis Palmes * Major Billie Palmes * Captain Laurence P ...

by the French Government for her services to French music. She was also created

for her "services to music" in 1957. Long was also a champion of new music, playing works of

Madeleine Dring Madeleine Winefride Isabelle Dring (7 September 1923 – 26 March 1977) was an English composer, pianist, singer and actress. Life Madeleine Dring spent the first four years of her life at Raleigh Road, Harringay, before the family moved to Str ...

in concert sometimes before they had been published. Long recorded regularly for Decca during the 1940s and 1950s. Dutch composer Gerard Schurmann composed his Bagatelles (1945) for her, which she premièred at the

Concertgebouw Concertgebouw may refer to one of the following concert halls: * Concertgebouw, Amsterdam, Netherlands * Concertgebouw, Bruges, Belgium * Concertgebouw de Vereeniging, Netherlands {{disambiguation Buildings and structures disambiguation pages ...

Personal life

Long's brother

John Herbert Long John Herbert Long FRCO (1 July 1908 – 1985) was an English music teacher and organist. Life The son of Herbert Long of Bury St. Edmunds, and Sophia Edith Chapman,Merton College Register, 1900-1964, ed. Robert Graham Cochrane Levens, Basil Black ...

was also a musician. Long was the godmother to

John Le Mesurier John Le Mesurier (, born John Elton Le Mesurier Halliley; 5 April 191215 November 1983) was an English actor. He is probably best remembered for his comedic role as Sergeant Arthur Wilson in the BBC television situation com ...

of ''

Dad's Army ''Dad's Army'' is a British television British sitcom, sitcom about the United Kingdom's Home Guard (United Kingdom), Home Guard during the World War II, Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft (TV producer), David Crof ...

'' fame.

Notes

References

* Feuchtwanger, Peter, article on record sleeve of Decca ACL 168 (1962)
A Buyer's Guide to Historic Piano Recordings Reissued on Compact Discs: L-R: Kathleen Long (1896-1968)
at the International Piano Archives at Maryland. Retrieved 31 Jul 2013. {{DEFAULTSORT:Long, Kathleen 1896 births 1968 deaths 20th-century British women classical pianists 20th-century British classical pianists 20th-century British musicians Alumni of the Royal College of Music British classical pianists British music educators British women music educators British women pianists Commanders of the Order of the British Empire