Sir Edward German
Sir
Edward German (1862 - 1936) was born in Shropshire,
England.
He studied the piano, organ and violin at the Royal Academy of Music in London,
then embarked on a career as an orchestral player and conductor.
His
compositions did not become known until 1892 when he wrote the incidental music
to the play Henry VIII, a dance from which
is available for listening here on Musical Discovery. He also wrote
incidental music for Nell Gwyn. After
Arthur
Sullivan died he completed a partly finished Gilbert and Sullivan operetta The
Emerald isle. He went on to write two more operettas of his own in
the G & S tradition, namely Merrie England and
Tom Jones. Merrie England
in particular is spectacularly full of great melodies, and it doesn't deserve
the neglect it is currently accorded.