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John Ireland
John Nicholson Ireland (circa 1920).jpg
Ireland, c. 1920
Born (1879-08-13)13 August 1879
Bowdon, Cheshire, UK
Died 12 June 1962(1962-06-12) (aged 82)
Rock Mill, Washington, Sussex, UK
Alma mater Royal College of Music
Occupation Composer, teacher
Spouse(s)
Dorothy Phillips
​
​
(m. 1926; div. 1928)​

John Nicholson Ireland (born August 13, 1879 – died June 12, 1962) was an English composer and music teacher. He wrote many short pieces for piano and songs with piano.

Some of his most famous works include the short instrumental or orchestral piece "The Holy Boy". He also wrote a popular song based on the poem "Sea-Fever" by John Masefield. Other well-known pieces are his Piano Concerto, the hymn tune Love Unknown, and the choir piece "Greater Love Hath No Man."

John Ireland's Life

John Ireland was born in Bowdon, near Altrincham, in Cheshire, England. His family had roots in both England and Scotland. His father, Alexander Ireland, was a publisher and newspaper owner. He was 69 years old when John was born.

John was the youngest of five children from his father's second marriage. His mother, Annie Elizabeth Nicholson Ireland, was a writer and 30 years younger than his father. John's mother died when he was 14, and his father died the next year when John was 15. People described John Ireland as a "self-critical" and "thoughtful" person, who was always affected by his sad childhood memories.

Early Music Training

In 1893, John Ireland began studying at the Royal College of Music. He learned to play the piano with Frederic Cliffe and the organ with Walter Parratt. From 1897, he studied how to compose music with Charles Villiers Stanford.

In 1896, Ireland became a sub-organist at Holy Trinity, Sloane Street in London. Later, from 1904 to 1926, he worked as an organist and choirmaster at St Luke's Church, Chelsea.

Becoming a Composer

In the early 1900s, Ireland started to become known as a composer. He wrote many songs and chamber music pieces. His Violin Sonata No. 1, written in 1909, won first prize in a competition.

His Violin Sonata No. 2 was even more successful. He finished it in January 1917 and entered it into a competition. The famous violinist Albert Sammons and pianist William Murdoch performed it for the first time on March 6, 1917. Ireland later said that this was the first time a British composer became famous overnight because of a chamber music piece. People loved the work, and the music publisher quickly printed it. All copies were sold out even before they were fully printed!

Inspiration from Islands

Ireland often visited the Channel Islands, which are islands between England and France. He found a lot of inspiration from the beautiful scenery and atmosphere there. In 1912, he wrote the piano piece The Island Spell while staying in Jersey. Later, from 1939 to 1940, he wrote three piano pieces called Sarnia: An Island Sequence while living in Guernsey. He returned to Britain in 1940, just before Germany invaded the Channel Islands during World War II.

Teaching and Personal Life

From 1923, John Ireland taught at the Royal College of Music. Some of his students became famous composers, including Benjamin Britten and Ernest John Moeran. Geoffrey Bush, another student, later helped to prepare many of Ireland's works for publication.

John Ireland was mostly a single man throughout his life. He had a short marriage to a student, Dorothy Phillips, but it ended quickly. He also showed interest in another young student, Helen Perkin, who was a talented pianist and composer. He dedicated his Piano Concerto in E-flat major to her. However, she later married someone else, and Ireland removed the dedications. In 1947, he hired a personal assistant, Mrs. Norah Kirkby, who stayed with him until he passed away.

John Nicholson Ireland grave Shipley 2014
John Ireland's grave in the churchyard of St. Mary the Virgin in Shipley, West Sussex, 2014

On September 10, 1949, his 70th birthday was celebrated with a special concert at The Proms. His Piano Concerto was played by Eileen Joyce, who was also the first pianist to record the concerto in 1942.

Ireland retired in 1953 and moved to a small village called Rock in Sussex. He lived in a converted windmill, Rock Mill, Washington, for the rest of his life. There, he met a young pianist named Alan Rowlands, who Ireland chose to record all of his piano music.

John Ireland died from heart failure at the age of 82 at Rock Mill. He is buried at St. Mary the Virgin in Shipley, close to his home. His gravestone has the words "Many waters cannot quench love" and "One of God's noblest works lies here."

John Ireland's Music

John Ireland learned a lot about the music of Beethoven and Brahms from his teacher, Charles Villiers Stanford. However, as a young man, he was also greatly influenced by French composers like Debussy and Ravel. He also liked the early works of Stravinsky and Bartók.

From these influences, Ireland created his own style of "English Impressionism." This style was more similar to French and Russian music than to the folk-song style that was popular in English music at the time.

Types of Compositions

Like many Impressionist composers, Ireland preferred to write shorter pieces. He did not write any symphonies or operas. However, his Piano Concerto is considered one of the best works written by an English composer.

His music includes:

  • Chamber music: Pieces for a small group of instruments.
  • Piano works: A large number of pieces for solo piano. His most famous piano piece is The Holy Boy, which has been arranged for many different instruments.
  • Songs: He wrote songs using poems by famous writers like A. E. Housman, Thomas Hardy, Christina Rossetti, John Masefield, and Rupert Brooke.
  • Church music: Because he worked as an organist, he also wrote hymns, carols, and other sacred music for choirs. His anthem Greater love hath no man is often sung in services that remember victims of war. The hymn tune Love Unknown is sung in churches all over the world.

Many choirs and musicians have recorded and performed his works, including the Choir of Westminster Abbey and The Choir of Wells Cathedral.

Ireland himself played piano on recordings of his music, including his Fantasy-Sonata for Clarinet and Piano and his Cello Sonata. He also played his Violin Sonata No. 1 with Frederick Grinke, who performed and recorded several of Ireland's chamber works.

Film Music and Later Works

Ireland wrote the music for only one film, the 1946 Australian movie The Overlanders. After his death, an orchestral suite (a collection of pieces) was created from this film score. Some of his other pieces, like the popular A Downland Suite and Themes from Julius Caesar, were finished or rewritten after he died by his student Geoffrey Bush.

John Ireland's Works

Chamber Music

  • Bagatelle for violin and piano (1911)
  • Berceuse for violin and piano (1902)
  • Cavatina for violin and piano (1904)
  • Fantasy-Sonata in E-flat major for clarinet and piano (1943)
  • The Holy Boy: A Carol of the Nativity for cello and piano (arranged 1919)
  • The Holy Boy: A Carol of the Nativity for violin and piano (arranged 1919)
  • The Holy Boy: A Carol of the Nativity for string quartet (arranged 1941)
  • Phantasie, Trio No. 1 in A minor for violin, cello and piano (1906)
  • Sextet for clarinet, horn and string quartet (1898)
  • Sonata in G minor for cello and piano (1923)
  • Sonata No. 1 in D minor for violin and piano
  • Sonata No. 2 in A minor for violin and piano (1915–1917)
  • String Quartet No. 1 in D minor (1897)
  • String Quartet No. 2 in C minor (1897)
  • Trio No. 2 in One Movement for violin, cello and piano (1917)
  • Trio No. 3 in E for violin, cello and piano (1938)
  • Trio in D minor for clarinet, cello and piano (1912–1914)

Church Music

  • Benedictus in F
  • Communion Service in A flat (for treble voices and organ)
  • Communion service in C
  • Evening Service in A (for SATB choir and organ)
  • Evening Service in C (for SATB choir and organ)
  • Evening Service in F
  • Ex Ore Innocentium (for treble voices and organ or piano)
  • Greater Love Hath No Man (motet)
  • The Hills (for a cappella choir)
  • Jubilate Deo in F major
  • Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis in C major
  • Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis in F major
  • "My Song Is Love Unknown" (hymn)
  • Te Deum in F major
  • Vexilla Regis (anthem)

Film Score

  • The Overlanders (1946)

Orchestra Music

  • Comedy Overture (1934)
  • Concertino Pastorale (for string orchestra) (1939)
  • A Downland Suite (1932)
  • Epic March (1942)
  • The Forgotten Rite (1913, published 1918)
  • The Holy Boy (for string orchestra, arranged 1941)
  • London Overture (1936)
  • Mai-Dun, A Symphonic Rhapsody (1921)
  • Meditation on John Keble's Rogation Hymn (1958)
  • Orchestral Poem
  • Poem
  • Satyricon – Overture (1946)
  • Symphonic Studies
  • Tritons (1899)
  • Two Symphonic Studies

Organ Music

  • Alla marcia
  • Capriccio
  • Cavatina (arranged from Cavatina for violin and piano, 1904)
  • Elegiac Romance
  • Elegy (from A Downland Suite – arranged by Alec Rowley)
  • Epic March (arranged by Robert Gower)
  • The Holy Boy (1913, arranged 1919 by Alec Rowley)
  • Marcia Popolare
  • Meditation on John Keble's Rogation Hymn
  • Miniature Suite
  • Sursum Corda

Piano Music

  • The Almond Tree (1913)
  • Ballad (1929)
  • Ballade of London Nights (1930)
  • Columbine (1949)
  • The Darkened Valley (1920)
  • Decorations (1912–1913)
    • The Island Spell
    • Moonglade
    • The Scarlet Ceremonies
  • Equinox (1922)
  • First Rhapsody (1906)
  • Green Ways – Three Lyric Pieces (1937)
    • The Cherry Tree
    • Cypress
    • The Palm and May
  • In Those Days (1895)
    • Daydream
    • Meridian
  • Indian Summer (1932)
  • Leaves from a Child's Sketchbook (1918)
    • By the Mere
    • In the Meadow
    • The Hunt's Up
  • London Pieces (1917–1920)
    • Chelsea Reach
    • Ragamuffin
    • Soho Forenoons
  • Mai-Dun, A Symphonic Rhapsody, arranged for piano four hands (1931)
  • Merry Andrew (1919)
  • Month's Mind (1935)
  • On a Birthday Morning (1922)
  • Prelude in E-flat major (1924)
  • Preludes for Piano (1913–1915)
  • Rhapsody (1915)
  • Sarnia: An Island Sequence (1940–1941)
    • Le Catioroc
    • In a May Morning
    • Song of the Springtides
  • A Sea Idyll (1960)
  • Soliloquy (1922)
  • Sonata in E minor (1920)
  • Sonatina (1926–1927)
  • Summer Evening (1920)
  • The Towing Path (1918)
  • Two Pieces for Piano (1921)
    • For Remembrance
    • Amberley Wild Brooks
  • Two Pieces for Piano (1925)
    • April
    • Bergomask
  • Two Pieces for Piano (1929–1930)
    • February's Child
    • Aubade
  • Three Dances (1913)
    • Gypsy Dance
    • Country Dance
    • Reaper's Dance
  • Three Pastels (1941)
    • A Grecian Lad
    • The Boy Bishop
    • Puck's Birthday

Piano and Orchestra Music

  • Legend (1933)
  • Piano Concerto in E-flat major (1930)

Songs

  • "Alpine Song" (James Vila Blake, 1911)
  • "Aubade" (for soprano, alto and piano, 1912)
  • "Bed in Summer"
  • "The Bells of San Marie" (John Masefield, 1918)
  • "Earth's Call (A Sylvan Rhapsody)" (1918)
  • Five Poems by Thomas Hardy (song cycle, Thomas Hardy, 1926)
    • "Beckon to me to come"
    • "In my sage moments"
    • "It was what you bore with you, woman"
    • "The tragedy of that moment
    • "Dear, think not that they will forget you"
  • Five Sixteenth Century Poems (song cycle, various poets, 1938)
  • "Full Fathom Five" (William Shakespeare)
  • "A Garrison Churchyard" (Eric Thirkell Cooper, 1916)
  • "Hawthorn Time" (1919)
  • "The Heart's Desire" (1917)
  • "Hope the Hornblower" (1912)
  • "I Have Twelve Oxen" (1919)
  • "If There Were Dreams to Sell" (1918)
  • "If We Must Part" (1929)
  • "The Journey" (1920)
  • The Land of Lost Content (song cycle, A. E. Housman, 1920–1921)
    • "The Lent Lily"
    • "Ladslove" ("Look not in my eyes")
    • "Goal and Wicket" ("Twice a week the winter thorough")
    • "The Vain Desire" ("If truth in hearts that perish")
    • "The Encounter" ("The street sounds to the soldiers' tread")
    • "Epilogue" ("You smile upon your friend today")
  • "Love is a Sickness Full of Woes"
  • Mother and Child (song cycle, Christina Rossetti, 1918)
    • "Newborn"
    • "The Only child"
    • "Hope"
    • "Skylark and Nightingale"
    • "The Blind Boy"
    • "Baby"
    • "Death Parting"
    • "The Garland"
  • "The Sacred Flame"
  • "Santa Chiara" (1925)
  • "Sea-Fever" (John Masefield, 1913)
  • "Song from o'er the Hill" (1913)
  • Songs of a Wayfarer (song cycle, various poets, 1912)
  • Songs Sacred and Profane (song cycle, various poets, 1929–1931)
    • "The Advent" (Alice Meynell)
    • "Hymn for a Child" (Sylvia Townsend Warner)
    • "My Fair" (Meynell)
    • "The Salley Gardens" (W. B. Yeats)
    • "The Soldier's Return" (Warner)
    • "The Scapegoat" (Warner)
  • "Spring sorrow" (1918)
  • Spring Will Not Wait
  • Three Songs (Arthur Symons, 1918–1919)
    • "The Adoration"
    • "The Rat"
    • "Rest"
  • Three Songs (various poets, 1926)
  • Three Songs to Poems by Thomas Hardy (1925)
    • "Summer Schemes"
    • "Her Song"
    • "Weathers"
  • "The Three Ravens" (1920)
  • "There is a Garden in Her Face" (for two voices and piano)
  • "Three Variations on 'Cadet Rousselle'" (1919)
  • Two Songs (Eric Thirkell Cooper, 1916)
    • "Blind"
    • "The Cost"
  • Two Songs (Rupert Brooke, 1917–1918)
    • "The Soldier"
    • "Blow Out, You Bugles"
  • Two Songs (various poets, 1920)
  • Two Songs (various poets, 1928)
  • "The Vagabond" (John Masefield, 1922)
  • We'll to the Woods No More (song cycle, A. E. Housman, 1928)
    • "We'll to the Woods No More"
    • "In Boyhood" ("When I would muse in boyhood")
    • "Spring Will Not Wait" ("'Tis time, I think, by Wenlock town")
  • "What Are You Thinking Of?" (1924)
  • "When I Am Dead, My Dearest" (1924)

Chorus and Orchestra Music

  • These Things Shall Be (1937)

Other Works

  • Brooks Equinox
  • Elegiac Meditation
  • Scherzo & Cortege (1942)

See also

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