Parry 100 Festival

About

2018 marks the centenary of the death of the English composer and educator Sir Hubert Parry. His list of compositions includes ‘Jerusalem’ which is sung worldwide to this day.

Parry was born in Bournemouth 170 years ago in 1848. He was Christened in St Peter’s Church, Bournemouth. His Mother sadly died twelve days after his birth and is buried in St Peter’s Churchyard.

Parry 100 will be a six concert music festival that will celebrate Parry’s life and achievements. It will take place in Bournemouth, the town of his birth, and is timed to coincide with the 100th anniversary of his death on 7 October. The principal venue is St Peter’s Church (capacity c400). Bournemouth is a relatively young town (founded 1810, granted town status 1890) with comparatively little history. It is thus very appropriate to celebrate one of its most famous sons.

Parry is an important figure in the revival of English music at the end of the nineteenth century. He wrote some notable orchestral, choral and organ pieces. ‘Blest Pair of Sirens’ and ‘I Was Glad’ are anthems that are well known and enjoyed worldwide. He also was a founder editor of the influential Groves Dictionary of Music and a founder member of staff and then Director at the Royal College of Music where he taught Vaughan Williams, Holst and Frank Bridge amongst others. His writings also influenced Elgar. In his later years, Parry also had a good working relationship with Sir Dan Godfrey and the Bournemouth Municipal Orchestra conducting them on occasion in performances of a range of works including his own compositions.

The Parry 100 Festival will include:

· An organ recital featuring an organist from The Royal College of Music

· A choral concert featuring The Carice Singers which also commemorates the end of the First World War

· An orchestral concert featuring The Bath Philharmonia and The Bournemouth Symphony Chorus and Jennifer Pike, violin soloist

· A song recital

· A performance of ‘Glad Day’, The Westbrook Blake by the Mike Westbrook ensemble and a local choir

· A concert by The Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra at The Pavilion to include a Parry orchestral work

The programme will include works by Parry, Vaughan Williams, Elgar, Howells and others. Other Parry community-related Parry 100 events are also being researched and developed.

The Parry 100 Festival coincides with Bournemouth’s annual Arts by The Sea Festival, which is run by Bournemouth Council. They have agreed to include it in their marketing and publicity.

The event is being planned by Paul Kelly who has 40 years experience in Arts, Events and Festivals management.

‘Jerusalem’ is, amongst other things, the official anthem of the Commonwealth Games and was thus recently sung in Australia several times a day.