Benjamin Dale facts for kids

Benjamin James Dale (17 July 1885 – 30 July 1943) was an English composer and teacher. He worked for a long time at the Royal Academy of Music. Benjamin Dale showed a talent for music composition from a young age. He wrote a small but important collection of musical pieces. His most famous work is probably the large Piano Sonata in D minor. He started this sonata while still a student. It has a powerful, late Romantic style. Dale married one of his students, the pianist and composer Kathleen Richards, in 1921.

Biography

Early Life and Musical Beginnings

Benjamin Dale was born in Upper Holloway, London. His father, Charles James Dale, made pottery. Benjamin's father loved music, even though he taught himself. He was a church organist and wrote Methodist hymn tunes. He also helped start a music college in Holloway.

Benjamin was the youngest of seven children. One of his brothers was Henry Hallett Dale. Henry later won a Nobel Prize for his work in science. He studied how our bodies work. Henry and Benjamin were always close. Both brothers were known for being friendly and easy to talk to.

Even though Benjamin didn't do great in school, he was a skilled organist by age 14. He had also written some music. His father arranged for one of his early pieces, an overture called Horatius, to be played in London. It even got a good review in The Musical Times.

Studying at the Royal Academy of Music

At 15, Benjamin left school to study at the Royal Academy of Music (RAM). He started there in September 1900. On the same day, Arnold Bax, another talented musician, also joined. They became lifelong friends. Benjamin also reconnected with York Bowen, a childhood friend who became a famous concert pianist. Bowen remained a very close friend throughout Dale's life.

Dale studied composition with Frederick Corder. Corder supported new and exciting music. This was different from some other music schools at the time.

Important Early Compositions

While at the RAM, Dale worked on several pieces. These included an organ sonata and two concert overtures. His first published work was the Piano Sonata in D minor. This sonata was very long, about sixty pages. Because of this, a group called the Society of British Composers was formed to help composers publish their longer works. They published Dale's sonata first.

Dale wrote his piano sonata between 1902 and 1905. It is a big, challenging piece for piano. It has only two movements. The second movement combines different parts like a slow section, a fast playful section (scherzo), and a finale. It uses a form of variations, which means the music changes and develops a main idea. This style was possibly influenced by Tchaikovsky.

Many famous pianists, like York Bowen and Myra Hess, played Dale's sonata. However, by the 1920s, it became less popular. But in recent years, new recordings have helped people rediscover this important work. It is still the piece Benjamin Dale is most known for today.

Dale's next published work was his Suite for Viola and Piano from 1906. This was written for the famous violist and RAM professor Lionel Tertis. This piece was very difficult for the viola at the time. It is still challenging even now. Tertis often played it with York Bowen on piano. He also encouraged Dale to create an orchestral version of the last two movements. This version was first performed in 1911.

Other viola pieces followed, including the Phantasy for Viola and Piano (1910). He also wrote an Introduction and Andante (1911) for six violas. This was an unusual combination of instruments. It was written for Tertis's students to perform.

By 1909, Dale was a successful composer and teacher. He became a Professor of Harmony at the RAM. In 1912, Henry Wood conducted Dale's Concertstück for organ and orchestra at the Proms. Wood admired Dale's music. He called Dale's choral piece Before the Paling of the Stars (1912) "a choral gem."

Later Years and World War I

When World War I started, Dale was on holiday in Germany. He was held in Nuremberg as an "enemy alien." This meant he was from a country that was at war with Germany. During this time, he wrote three new songs. In November, Dale was moved to a civilian camp called Ruhleben, near Berlin. Many other musicians were also held there.

Dale took part in the Ruhleben Musical Society. He worked with the Canadian musician Ernest MacMillan. They performed four-hand piano arrangements of Beethoven's symphonies. Dale also helped MacMillan recreate the music for The Mikado from memory. This allowed them to put on a full performance in the camp. In 1918, Dale was released early from Ruhleben because he broke his arm. He stayed on a farm in the Netherlands for the rest of the war.

After the war, Dale's health got worse. But he still traveled the world. He worked as an examiner for the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music in Australia and New Zealand. He started composing again. He became a professor and later the Warden at the Royal Academy of Music. He also worked for the BBC's Music Advisory Panel.

In the years after the war, Dale wrote several chamber pieces for violin. These included a large Violin Sonata (1921–22). His last major work was the orchestral piece The Flowing Tide (1943). This piece mixes elements of Debussian Impressionism with Romanticism. In 2002, The Flowing Tide was played on BBC Radio 3. This was likely its first performance since its premiere in 1943.

Benjamin Dale died in London in July 1943. He was 58 years old. He collapsed after conducting a rehearsal for the first performance of The Flowing Tide.

Selected Works

Here are some of Benjamin Dale's important musical works:

Orchestral Music

• Horatius, Overture (1899)
• Concertstück (Concert Piece) for organ and orchestra (1904)
• The Flowing Tide, Tone Poem (1924–1943)

Chamber Music

• Piano Trio in D minor – 1st movement only (performed 1902)
• English Dance for 4 violins, 2 violas and 2 cellos (1916)

Violin Music

• English Dance for violin and piano, Op. 10, No. 1 (1916)
• Sonata in E major for violin and piano, Op. 11 (1921–1922)

Viola Music

• Suite in D major for viola and piano, Op. 2 (1906)
• Phantasy in D minor for viola and piano, Op. 4 (1910)
• Introduction and Andante for 6 violas, Op. 5 (1911, revised 1913)

Keyboard Music

• Organ Sonata in D minor (first performed 1902)
• Sonata in D minor for piano, Op. 1 (1902–1905)
• Night Fancies, Impromptu in D♭ major for piano, Op. 3 (1907)

Vocal Music

• Music, when soft voices die, a song setting for treble voices with piano (1914)
• Two Songs from Shakespeare, Op. 9 (1919)

Choral Music

• Three Christmas Carols, Op. 6 (1911)
• Before the Paling of the Stars for chorus and orchestra, Op. 7 (1912)
• A Song of Praise, Festival Anthem for soloists, chorus and orchestra, Op. 12 (1923)

See also

In Spanish: Benjamin Dale para niños