Search results
Gerald Raphael Finzi (14 July 1901 – 27 September 1956) was a British composer. Finzi is best known as a choral composer, but also wrote in other genres. Large-scale compositions by Finzi include the cantata Dies natalis for solo voice and string orchestra, and his concertos for cello and clarinet.
Learn about the life and music of Gerald Finzi, a pioneering British composer of the early 20th century. Explore his songs, choral works, orchestral pieces and more on his official website.
- Family background. Gerald Finzi was born into a Jewish family in London on 14 July 1901. His father was of Italian origin and his mother, German. Despite his background, Finzi became one of the most characteristically English of composers as well as an agnostic who wrote heartfelt Christian choral music.
- Move to Harrogate. Young Gerald was only 7 when his father died. When the Great War broke out, the family moved to Harrogate, and he began to study music under Ernest Farrar, a former pupil of Charles Villiers Stanford.
- Tragic events. The shy teenager found Farrar a good and sympathetic teacher. Farrar's death in the war affected Finzi deeply. Losing three of his brothers added to his pain.
- Love of poetry. Finding solace in poetry, Finzi began to set poems by Thomas Hardy (pictured) and Christina Rossetti to music. Finzi was attracted by the motif of childhood innocence being corrupted by adult experience.
Learn about the life and works of Gerald Finzi, a master of song-writing and a sensitive setter of poetry. Discover how he overcame personal tragedies, musical isolation and a fatal illness to create his masterpiece Cello Concerto.
People also ask
Who is Gerald Finzi?
Where did Gerald Finzi grow up?
Who was Gerald Raphael Finzi?
How old was Gerald Finzi when he died?
Biography. Gerald Finzi was born in London on 14 July 1901 and spent his early childhood in London. His father died when he was just seven, and following the outbreak of war Finzi moved with his mother to Harrogate, in Yorkshire. There, Finzi was able to study with the composer Ernest Farrar (until his departure for the War), and from 1917 with ...
The life and times of an iconic British choral composer, and his particular brand of lyrical, pastoral melancholy: an introduction to Gerald Finzi.
Gerald Finzi - 20th century English composer, renowned for inspired, flexible Thomas Hardy verse settings and lyrical instrumental style. Lover of reading, collector of books, conservationist - whether of 18th century music or apples: scholar, aesthete, stalwart citizen - directing amateur music-making, hosting war evacuees.
Related searches
