Pamela Harrison (28 November 1915 – 28 August 1990) was an English composer, pianist and music teacher.[1]

Biography

Pamela Harrison was born in Orpington, England, and educated at the Brampton Down School for Girls in Folkestone. She studied with Gordon Jacob and Arthur Benjamin at the Royal College of Music in London.[2] She first made her mark as a composer with the Quintet for flute, oboe and strings, written in 1938 and first performed that year at a concert of the Society for the Promotion of New Music.[3] The Quintet was heard again in 1944 at Fyvie Hall, Regent Street, played by an ensemble led by Leonard Hirsch.[4]

During World War II, she worked as a school teacher. She was music mistress at The Hall School, Wincanton, Somerset in 1942, and at St Monica's School, Clacton-on-Sea from 1943 until 1945.[5] She also continued to compose and perform. Her String Quartet was played more than once at the wartime Myra Hess National Gallery concerts in 1944.[4]

After the war Harrison went on to compose chamber and orchestral music, as well as vocal settings of Baudelaire, Herrick, Dowson and Edward Thomas.[1] The Viola Sonata was written in 1946 and performed a year later at the Wigmore Hall. Watson Forbes and Alan Richardson gave its first broadcast performance on 17 March 1951.[6] Her piece for small orchestra, A Suite for Timothy, was composed for the first birthday of her son in 1948 and first performed at Hampton Court in 1949. It has been recorded, and was revived in a live performance by the Somerset County Orchestra in December 2023.[7][8]

She married the cellist and conductor Harvey Phillips (1910 – active until late 1970s) in 1943. They lived initially at The Red House, Crockham Hill, Kent, and then at "The Cearne", (previously the house of Edward and Constance Garnett).[9] Harvey was a member of the Hirsch String Quartet and made his professional conducting debut with the Jacques Orchestra at the Wigmore Hall in 1950 (at which he conducted his wife's Suite for Tomothy).[10] That year he formed the Harvey Phillips String Orchestra (with leader Hugh Bean), which included in its repertoire Harrison's Five Poems of Ernest Dowson for tenor and string orchestra - the first London performance with Peter Pears as the soloist on 15 December 1952 at the Royal Festival Hall[11] - and her Six Poems of Baudelaire.[12] Pamela Harrison wrote her 1944 Cello Sonata for Harvey, who gave its debut performance with pianist John Wills at the Wigmore Hall on 9 May 1947.[13][14] The marriage ended in 1959.[4]

The Clarinet Sonata was written for Jack Brymer, who was also the soloist in several performances and broadcasts of the Clarinet Quintet in the late 1950s.[4] In May 1959, Harrison's Concertante for piano and string orchestra with Eric Harrison (not related) as soloist was broadcast on BBC Radio.[15] An archive recording exists, and the first modern performance took place on 13 December 2023.[16][17] In 1979 Ian Partridge gave the first broadcast performance of Harrison's song cycle for tenor and strings The Dark Forest (setting Edward Thomas).[18] A modern studio performance in Salford by the BBC Philharmonic with tenor John Finden took place on 10 January 2024.[19]

Harrison's work was influenced by composers including E.J. Moeran, Arnold Bax and John Ireland, and French music. She also studied Dalcroze eurhythmics, giving exhibitions with Emile Jaques-Dalcroze in Brighton.[1] By the late 1960s Harrison was living at The Old Toll House, Yarlington in Somerset.[5] She died aged 74 in a car accident in Firle, East Sussex. Jack Brymer performed the short piece Drifting Away at her Service of Thanksgiving in December 1990.[4] Her son Tim Phillips, who was Artistic Director of East Devon Music, died in 2023.[20]

Selected works

Orchestral
Chamber music
  1. White May Morning
  2. A Marsh Song
Organ
Piano
  1. Romney Marsh Goblin
  2. A Canterbury Tale
  3. Hoppers' Dance
  4. Childdingstone Cherry Pickers
  5. Ebb tide at Sandgate
  6. Faversham Fair
  1. Plains and Hills
  2. Little Boy Following
  3. An Ancient Olive Grove
  4. Horsemen to the Fair
  5. Shepherd's Siesta
  6. Estremoz, Walled City
Vocal
  1. Fall, leaves, fall; die, flowers, away
  2. I'm happiest now when most away
  3. The night is darkening round me
  4. The battle has passed from the height
  5. The starry night shall tidings bring
  6. 'Tis moonlight, summer moonlight
  1. Blindman's In
  2. A Goldfinch
  3. White
  4. Dreamland
  5. Where
  6. Why?
  7. The Horseman
  8. Nicoletta
  1. Beata solitudo
  2. Non suma qualis eram bonae sub regno Cynarae
  3. Vitae summa brevis spem nos vetat incohare longam
  4. Villanelle of Marguerite's
  5. Soli cantare periti Arcades
Choral

Recordings

Selected recordings include:

External links

References

  1. ^ a b c Banfield, Stephen. 'Harrison, Pamela', in Grove Music Online (2004)
  2. ^ Sadie, Julie Anne; Samuel, Rhian (1994). The Norton/Grove dictionary of women composers. W. W. Norton & Company. p. 210. ISBN 9780393034875. Retrieved 11 January 2013.
  3. ^ Radio Times, Issue 1574, 10 Jan 1954, p. 31
  4. ^ a b c d e Plane, Robert. Notes to Pamela Harris: Chamber Music, Resonus CD RES10313 (2023)
  5. ^ a b Who's Who in Music, Fifth Edition (1969), p. 134
  6. ^ Radio Times, Issue 1426, 11 Mar 1951, p. 41
  7. ^ "Pamela Harrison". Naxos. Retrieved 11 January 2013.
  8. ^ Somerset County Orchestra Concert, Taunton Minster, 10 December 2023
  9. ^ Radio Times, Issue 1489, 25 May 1952, p. 15
  10. ^ The Musical Times, Vol. 91, No. 1285 (March 1950), p. 110
  11. ^ The Times, 16 December 1952, p. 11
  12. ^ The Musical Times, Vol. 94, No. 1320 (February 1953), p. 82
  13. ^ 'A New Sonata', The Daily Telegraph, 10 May 1947, p. 5
  14. ^ Radio Times, Issue 1479, 16 Mar 1952, p. 39
  15. ^ Radio Times, Issue 1854, 24 May 1959, p. 31
  16. ^ Pamela Harrison, Concertante. Remus Platen YouTube channel
  17. ^ BBC Philharmonic with soloist Kunal Lahiry, cond. Robin Wallington
  18. ^ Radio Times listing, 18 September 1979
  19. ^ 'Pastoral moods for a new year', BBC Philharmonic
  20. ^ East Devon Music presents The Tim Phillip's Memorial Concert
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