Lionel Tertis,

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 ...

(29 December 187622 February 1975) was an English

violist 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 v ...

. He was one of the first viola players to achieve international fame, and a noted teacher.

Career

Tertis was born in

West Hartlepool West Hartlepool was a predecessor of Hartlepool, County Durham, England. It developed in the Victorian era and took the name from its western position in the parish of what is now known as the Headland. The former town was originally formed ...

, the son of Polish-Jewish immigrants. Tertis's first instrument was the piano, and at thirteen he left home to earn a living as a pianist. In 1892 he had saved enough money to enter

Trinity College of Music Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance is a music, dance, and musical theatre conservatoire based in South East London. It was formed in 2005 as a merger of two older institutions – Trinity College of Music and Laban Dance Centre. Trini ...

in London, where he had violin lessons under B.M. Carrodus, whilst continuing to learn the piano under R. W. Lewis for three intermittent terms. In 1895, after six months at Leipzig Conservatorium, Tertis entered the

Royal Academy of Music The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is one of the oldest music schools in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the firs ...

(RAM) in London and studied the violin under

Hans Wessely Hans Wessely (23 December 1862 – 29 September 1926) was an Austrian violinist. Biography He was born in Vienna in 1862 and died in Innsbruck in 1926. He studied at the University of Music and Performing Arts, Vienna, Vienna Conservatory w ...

. In 1897, whilst at the RAM, he was encouraged by the principal, Alexander Mackenzie, to take up the viola instead. Under the additional influence of

Oskar Nedbal Oskar Nedbal (26 March 1874 – 24 December 1930) was a Czech violist, composer, and conductor of classical music. Early life Nedbal was born in Tábor, in southern Bohemia. He studied the violin at the Prague Conservatory under Antonín Ben ...

, he did so and rapidly became one of the best-known violists of his time, touring Europe and the US as a soloist. As Professor of Viola at the RAM (from 1900), he encouraged his colleagues and students to compose for the instrument, thereby greatly expanding its repertoire. In 1906, Tertis was temporarily in the famous Bohemian Quartet to replace the violist/composer Oskar Nedbal and later he took the viola position in the Walenn Quartet. Composers such as

Arnold Bax Sir Arnold Edward Trevor Bax (8 November 1883 – 3 October 1953) was an English composer, poet, and author. His prolific output includes songs, choral music, chamber pieces, and solo piano works, but he is best known for his orchestral music ...

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 ...

Gustav Holst Gustav Theodore Holst (born Gustavus Theodore von Holst; 21 September 1874 – 25 May 1934) was an English composer, arranger and teacher. Best known for his orchestral suite ''The Planets'', he composed many other works across a range ...

Benjamin Dale Benjamin James Dale (17 July 188530 July 1943) was an English composer and academic who had a long association with the Royal Academy of Music. Dale showed compositional talent from an early age and went on to write a small but notable corpus of ...

York Bowen Edwin York Bowen (22 February 1884 – 23 November 1961) was an English composer and pianist. Bowen's musical career spanned more than fifty years during which time he wrote over 160 works. As well as being a pianist and composer, Bowen was a tal ...

Ralph Vaughan Williams Ralph Vaughan Williams ( ; 12 October 1872– 26 August 1958) was an English composer. His works include operas, ballets, chamber music, secular and religious vocal pieces and orchestral compositions including nine symphonies, written over ...

Arthur Bliss Sir Arthur Edward Drummond Bliss (2 August 189127 March 1975) was an English composer and conductor. Bliss's musical training was cut short by the First World War, in which he served with distinction in the army. In the post-war years he qui ...

Arnold Trowell Arnold Wilberforce Trowell, also known as Thomas Wilberforce Trowell, (25 June 1887 – 16 December 1966) was a New Zealand composer, cellist and teacher, who became Professor of Music at the Guildhall School of Music in London. Biography Arno ...

and

William Walton Sir William Turner Walton (29 March 19028 March 1983) was an English composer. During a sixty-year career, he wrote music in several classical genres and styles, from film scores to opera. His best-known works include ''Façade'', the cantat ...

wrote pieces for him. The Walton piece was his

Viola Concerto A viola concerto is a concerto contrasting a viola with another body of musical instruments such as an orchestra or chamber music ensemble. Throughout music history, especially during the Baroque, Classical, and Romantic eras, viola was viewed mo ...

; however, Tertis did not give the world premiere as he found it difficult to comprehend at the time; that honour went to

Paul Hindemith Paul Hindemith ( ; ; 16 November 189528 December 1963) was a German and American composer, music theorist, teacher, violist and conductor. He founded the Amar Quartet in 1921, touring extensively in Europe. As a composer, he became a major advo ...

. His pupil

Bernard Shore Bernard Shore (17 March 1896 – 2 April 1985) was an English viola player and author. Early life Shore studied at the Royal College of Music from 1912, with Sir Walter Alcock (organ) and Thomas Dunhill (composition), but his time there was int ...

took on the second performance at the

Proms The BBC Proms is an eight-week summer season of daily orchestral classical music concerts and other events held annually, predominantly in the Royal Albert Hall in central London. Robert Newman founded The Proms in 1895. Since 1927, the ...

in August 1930. Tertis first performed the work a month later at the International Society for Contemporary Music festival in Liège. Over the next three years he gave five more performances of the concerto. He owned a 1717

Montagnana Montagnana is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Padova, in Veneto (northern Italy). Neighbouring communes are Borgo Veneto, Casale di Scodosia, Urbana, Bevilacqua, Pojana Maggiore, Pressana, Minerbe and Roveredo di Guà. , the popul ...

from 1920 to 1937 which he found during one of his concert tours to Paris in 1920, and took a chance in acquiring. According to his memoirs, it was "shown to me in an unplayable condition, without bridge, strings or fingerboard.... No case was available – it was such a large instrument 17 1/8 inches – so my wife came to the rescue by wrapping it in her waterproof coat, and that is how it was taken across the English Channel." Tertis preferred a large viola to get an especially rich tone from his instrument. Knowing that some would find a 17-1/8-inch instrument too large he created his own Tertis model, which provides many of the tonal advantages of the larger instrument in a manageable 16-3/4-inch size. Tertis sold the 1717 Montagnana to his pupil Bernard Shore in 1937, who in turn passed it on to his pupil

Roger Chase Roger Chase (born in London in 1953) is a British violist who currently teaches at the Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University. Life Roger Chase was born in London and studied under Bernard Shore (with occasional lessons fr ...

. Along with

William Murdoch William Murdoch (sometimes spelled Murdock) (21 August 1754 – 15 November 1839) was a Scottish chemist, inventor, and mechanical engineer. Murdoch was employed by the firm of Boulton & Watt and worked for them in Cornwall, as a steam engin ...

(piano),

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 Lauri Kennedy, Tertis formed the ''Chamber Music Players''. He also encouraged and coached Sidney Griller as he worked to found the

Griller Quartet The Griller String Quartet was a British musical ensemble particularly active from 1931 to c.1961 or 1963, when it was disbanded. The quartet was in residence at the University of California at Berkeley from 1949 to 1961. It performed a wide repert ...

in 1928, and influenced the Griller's enthusiasm for the

first Viennese School The First Viennese School is a name mostly used to refer to three composers of the Classical period in Western art music in late-18th-century to early-19th-century Vienna: Joseph Haydn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Ludwig van Beethoven. Sometimes, ...

. In 1937, while at the height of his powers, he announced his retirement from the concert platform to concentrate on teaching. He appeared as soloist only one more time, at a special concert in 1949 to an invited audience at the RAM to help raise money for his fund to encourage the composition of music for the viola. He was appointed a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire 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 ...

(CBE) in the 1950 New Year's Honours. Tertis composed several original works and also

arranged In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orchestratio ...

many pieces not originally for the viola, such as

Edward Elgar Sir Edward William Elgar, 1st Baronet, (; 2 June 1857 – 23 February 1934) was an English composer, many of whose works have entered the British and international classical concert repertoire. Among his best-known compositions are orchestr ...

Cello Concerto A cello concerto (sometimes called a violoncello concerto) is a concerto for solo cello with orchestra or, very occasionally, smaller groups of instruments. These pieces have been written since the Baroque era if not earlier. However, unlike instru ...

. He was the author of a number of publications about string playing, the viola in particular, and his own life. They include ''Cinderella No More'' and ''My Viola and I''. Lionel Tertis died on 22 February 1975 in

Wimbledon, London Wimbledon () is a suburb of southwest London, England, southwest of Charing Cross; it is the main commercial centre of the London Borough of Merton. Wimbledon had a population of 68,189 in 2011 which includes the electoral wards of Abbey, Wimb ...

. He was 98 years old.

Legacy

Lionel Tertis 1876-1975 viola soloist lived in a flat here 1961-1975

The

Lionel Tertis International Viola Competition The Lionel Tertis International Viola Competition is an international music competition for viola players established in 1980 to honor the memory of the English viola virtuoso Lionel Tertis. Up to 2019 this triennial event was held at the Erin Art ...

was established in 1980 to honour his memory. In February 2007 Roger Chase, along with his accompanist, pianist Michiko Otaki, initiated "The Tertis Project," a series of concerts devoted to works composed for Tertis. A CD, ''The Tertis Tradition'', was issued in 2009. In 2015,

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, a battlefield, medieval castles, Roman forts, historic industrial sites, Lis ...

unveiled a

blue plaque A blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place in the United Kingdom, and certain other countries and territories, to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person, event, or former building on the site, serving a ...

at his Wimbledon, London home. Many fine English violists were students of Tertis, including Harry Berly, Rebecca Clarke,

Eric Coates Eric Francis Harrison Coates (27 August 1886 – 21 December 1957) was an English composer of light music and, early in his career, a leading violist. Coates was born into a musical family, but, despite his wishes and obvious talent, his parents ...

, Winifred Copperwheat, Paul Cropper,

Harry Danks Harry Danks, (1912-2001) was a British violist and principal viola of the BBC Symphony Orchestra from 1946 to 1978. He was the founder and director of the London Consort of Viols. Biography Harry Danks was born in Pensnett near Bridgnorth in Wo ...

, C. Sidney Errington, Watson Forbes, Max Gilbert, Hope Hambourg, Raymond Jeremy, James Lockyer,

Frederick Riddle Frederick Craig Riddle OBE (20 April 19125 February 1995) was a British violist. He was considered to be in the line from Lionel Tertis and William Primrose, through to the violists of today such as Lawrence Power. Early life and career Frederi ...

, Ian Ritchie, Philip Sainton, Beryl Scawen Blunt,

Gilbert Shufflebotham Gilbert Shufflebotham (1907–1978) was a British violist and violinist. He studied at the Royal Manchester College of Music. He started his playing career on the violin, performing for radio broadcasts in the 1920s. He was principal violist of ...

Jacqueline Townshend Jacqueline Mary Townshend, (January 15, 1912 – July 2, 1983), was a British pianist, violinist and violist who played with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and the London Consort of Viols. She was a pupil of Lionel Tertis, performing and broadcast ...

Maurice Ward Maurice Ward was a British inventor best known for his invention of Starlite, a thermal shielding material. He was a former hairdresser from Hartlepool, County Durham, England. Ward believed he should not sell his material directly or allow uns ...

and Lena Wood.

Works

Original compositions

* ''Elizabethan Melody'' for viola and cello * ''15th Century Folk Song: 1452-Anonymous'' for viola, cello and piano * ''Hier au soir'' for viola and piano * ''Rêverie'' for viola and piano * ''Sunset (Coucher du soleil)'' for viola (or violin or cello) and piano * ''Three Sketches'' for viola and piano :# ''Serenade''; revised as ''A Tune'' :# ''The Blackbirds'' (1952) :# ''The River'' * ''A Tune'' for viola and piano (published 1954); 2nd version of ''Serenade'' * ''Variations on a Passacaglia of Handel'' for 2 violas (1935); original work based on the ''Passacaglia'' by

Johan Halvorsen Johan Halvorsen (15 March 1864 – 4 December 1935) was a Norwegian composer, conductor and violinist. Life Born in Drammen, he was an accomplished violinist from a very early age and became a prominent figure in Norwegian musical life. He r ...

* ''Variations on a Four Bar Theme of Handel'' for viola and cello

Transcriptions, arrangements and adaptations

For viola and piano unless otherwise noted

Recordings

Lionel Tertis made recordings in ensembles: * Vocalion D-02019 Robert Fuchs: Duet; Handel (arr. Halvorsen): Passacaglia with

* Columbia LX225-7 Brahms: Sonata in F minor, Op.120/1, with

Harriet Cohen Harriet Pearl Alice Cohen CBE (2 December 189513 November 1967) was a British pianist. Biography Harriet Cohen was born in London. Her younger sister was the singer Myra Verney (1905-1993) and she was a distant cousin of the pianist Irene Scha ...

, piano * Columbia L 2342-3 Delius (arr. Tertis): (Violin) sonata 2 (1915) 3s / ''Hassan'' - Serenade, with G. Reeves, piano and as a soloist: * HMV Treasury HLM 7055, Sonatas by Brahms, Handel, Delius, music by Bach, Mendelssohn etc. Recorded between 1920 & 1933. issued:74

Career

Legacy

Works

Original compositions

Transcriptions, arrangements and adaptations

Recordings

Writings

References

External links

Other reading