Categories
20th Century Romantic English

PARRY, Sir Charles Hubert Hastings

Born in Bournemouth, Feb 27, 1848
Died in Rustington, Sussex, Oct 7, 1918

  • Sir Charles Hubert Hastings Parry was one of the foremost English composers, music scholars and teachers of the 19th century and did much to revitalize music education standards in England.
  • Parry’s most influential musical mentor was Edward Dannreuther, who was largely responsible for aiding Parry’s passion for Richard Wagner‘s music.
  • Parry was Director of the Royal College of Music from 1895 to the end of his life. Due to this role, in addition to his position as Heather Professor of Music at Oxford from 1900-08, Parry was essentially the face of British classical music at the time.
  • Fun fact: Parry worked for George Grove as a sub-editor for the first edition of Grove’s Dictionary of Music and Musicians. Parry wrote more than 100 articles in the first Grove’s.1

“Although Parry’s ceremonial music embodies a sense of strength and confidence, on a deeper level his musical language imparts something much more aspirational – a longing for a better world in which music will help to raise humanity to new heights.”2

Short biography
Timeline via Google Arts & Culture

Sources

  1. Jeremy Dibble, “Composer of the Month: Hubert Parry,” BBC Music Magazine Vol. 26, No. 10 (2018), 62-66.
  2. Ibid.