Percy Young
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Percy Marshall Young (17 May 19129 May 2004) was a British music scholar,
editor Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, organization, a ...
,
organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ (music), organ. An organist may play organ repertoire, solo organ works, play with an musical ensemble, ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumentalist, instrumental ...
,
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 ...
,
conductor Conductor or conduction may refer to: Biology and medicine * Bone conduction, the conduction of sound to the inner ear * Conduction aphasia, a language disorder Mathematics * Conductor (ring theory) * Conductor of an abelian variety * Cond ...
and
teacher A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. w ...
.


Life and career

Young was born in
Northwich Northwich is a market town and civil parish in the Cheshire West and Chester borough of Cheshire, England. It lies on the Cheshire Plain, at the confluence of the rivers Weaver and Dane, east of Chester, south of Warrington and south of Ma ...
,
Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Merseyside to the north-west, Greater Manchester to the north-east, Derbyshire to the east, Staffordshire to the south-east, and Shrop ...
. His father, twice mayor of Northwich, was a clerk at Brunner Mond Chemical works in Winsford; his mother, Annie née Marshall, was a nurse. Young was educated at the local Sir John Deane's Grammar School, from where he won a scholarship to
Christ's Hospital Christ's Hospital is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English Private schools in the United Kingdom, fee-charging boarding school for pupils aged 11–18) with a royal charter, located to the south of Horsham in West Sussex. T ...
,
Horsham Horsham () is a market town on the upper reaches of the River Arun on the fringe of the Weald in West Sussex, England. The town is south south-west of London, north-west of Brighton and north-east of the county town of Chichester. Nearby to ...
, where, taught by Robert Wilkinson, he became senior Music Grecian; and then, in 1930, he won an organ scholarship to
Selwyn College, Cambridge Selwyn College, Cambridge is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1882 by the Selwyn Memorial Committee in memory of George Selwyn (bishop of Lichfield), Georg ...
, where he read English (studying under Tom Henn), History and Music (studying music history under Edward Dent and organ under
Cyril Rootham Cyril Bradley Rootham (5 October 1875 – 18 March 1938) was an English composer, educator and organist. His work at Cambridge University made him an influential figure in English music life. A Fellow of St John's College, where he was also or ...
). Staying a fourth year in Cambridge, taking up the Stuart of Rannoch Scholarship, he was awarded the William Barclay Squire Prize for music paleography. Then from 1934 to 1937 he was Director of Music at Stranmillis Teacher Training College in
Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...
, during which years he earned a Mus.D. at
Trinity College, Dublin Trinity College Dublin (), officially titled The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, and legally incorporated as Trinity College, the University of Dublin (TCD), is the sole constituent college of the Univ ...
. From 1937 to 1944 Young was Musical Adviser to
Stoke-on-Trent Stoke-on-Trent (often abbreviated to Stoke) is a city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Staffordshire, England. It has an estimated population of 259,965 as of 2022, making it the largest settlement in Staffordshire ...
Local Education Authority Local education authorities (LEAs) were defined in England and Wales as the local councils responsible for education within their jurisdictions. The term was introduced by the Education Act 1902, which transferred education powers from school bo ...
. After that, Young became Director of Music at Wolverhampton College of Technology, a position he would occupy from 1944 to 1966, after which he became an independent scholar, prolific author, music-arranger / -editor and enthusiastic lecturer, broadcaster, adjudicator and examiner. In 1985 he was made a D.Mus., h.c., by The University of Birmingham; and in 1998 he was made an
Honorary Fellow Honorary titles (professor, president, reader, lecturer) in academia may be conferred on persons in recognition of contributions by a non-employee or by an employee beyond regular duties. This practice primarily exists in the UK and Germany, as ...
of
Selwyn College, Cambridge Selwyn College, Cambridge is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1882 by the Selwyn Memorial Committee in memory of George Selwyn (bishop of Lichfield), Georg ...
.Obituary, ''The Times'', 18 May 2004, p. 26 Young published more than fifty books. Among those are biographies of musicians
Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel ( ; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque composer well-known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and organ concerti. Born in Halle, Germany, H ...
(1947),
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 ...
(five books: 1955–1978),
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 ...
(1953),
Schumann Robert Schumann (; ; 8 June 181029 July 1856) was a German composer, pianist, and music critic of the early Romantic music, Romantic era. He composed in all the main musical genres of the time, writing for solo piano, voice and piano, chamber ...
(1957), Kodály (1964),
Sir Arthur Sullivan Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan (13 May 1842 – 22 November 1900) was an English composer. He is best known for 14 operatic collaborations with the dramatist W. S. Gilbert, including ''H.M.S. Pinafore'', ''The Pirates of Penzance' ...
(1971), Alice, Lady, Elgar (1978), and Sir
George Grove Sir George Grove (13 August 182028 May 1900) was an English engineer and writer on music, known as the founding editor of ''Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians''. Grove was trained as a civil engineer, and successful in that profession ...
(1980). Bossey & Hawkes published his edition of Kodály's "Choral Method". Also, for younger readers, Young wrote a series of ten titles on composers Handel, Haydn,
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 ...
, Schubert,
Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most revered figures in the history of Western music; his works rank among the most performed of the classical music repertoire ...
, Tchaikovsky, Dvořák, Debussy, Stravinsky, and
Britten Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten of Aldeburgh (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, o ...
. For many years he was Music Editor of the journal "Child Education", published by Evans Brothers. From fragments left by Elgar Young reconstructed, and published, a suite from unfinished opera ''The Spanish Lady''. Young edited Gilbert and Sullivan's opera "H.M.S.Pinafore" (2000) for the complete edition of The Savoy Operas (Broude Brothers, New York) and was General Editor of the complete edition. His own compositions include: "Virgin's Slumber Song" (1932), ''From a Child's Garden'' (Robert Louis Stevenson; 1941), Passacaglia for violin and piano (1931), Fugal Concerto in G minor for 2 pianos and strings (1951), ''Elegy for String Orchestra'' (1960) and ''Festival Te Deum'' (1961). There are also many unpublished pieces for brass ensemble. Piano duo Keith Swallow and John Wilson have recorded his ''Five Folk Song Duets'' (1938).
Points North: Piano Duets
', Campion Cameo CD 2036 (2006), reviewed at ''MusicWeb International''
Young was also a keen followers and historian of Association football, writing twelve books on the genre including histories of several League clubs --
Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club ( ), commonly referred to as Wolves, is a professional association football, football club based in Wolverhampton, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league s ...
, Manchester United, Bolton Wanderers, "Football on Merseyside", "Football in Sheffield" -- plus a history of the game itself (''A History of British Football''). Young was also a Labour councillor in Wolverhampton, gaining the Wednesfield Heath ward from the Conservatives. In the 1970s he was Chairman of The Council for Community Relations in Wolverhampton. After the death of his first wife, Netta Carson, Young married Renée Morris in 1969, who survives him, along with three sons and a daughter of his first marriage. Young's archive is held at the Cadbury Research Library, University of Birmingham.


References


Citations


Bibliography

* * * * * * * * *Young, Percy M. (1971). ''Sir Arthur Sullivan''. London: J. M. Dent & Sons. .


External links


Obituary 14 May 2004
in ''The Independent'', Retrieved 23 February 2018 {{DEFAULTSORT:Young, Percy M. 1912 births 2004 deaths Fellows of Selwyn College, Cambridge People educated at Sir John Deane's College People educated at Christ's Hospital People from Northwich British writers 20th-century British musicologists Handel scholars Elgar scholars