William Russell (composer)

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William Russell (born October 6, 1777 London ; † November 21, 1813 ibid) was an English organist and composer, son of the organ builder William Russell.

Life

From the age of eight he was tutored by the organists William Scope, William Shrubsole and John Groombridge. Between 1789 and 1793 he was his father's assistant, organist at St. Mary Aldermanbury, London. In 1793 Russell was appointed organist at Great Queen Street Chapel; Cathedral services were held there until 1798, when the chapel became a Methodist ( Wesleyan ) prayer house in 1798 . In September 1798 he was elected organist at St Anne's, Limehouse , London. In 1801 he was selected for a similar position at the Foundling Hospital ( Bloomsbury , London).

At this time Russell resumed his musical studies with Samuel Arnold . Through his influence he came to employment at various London theaters: Between 1800 and 1804 he composed for nearly twenty pantomimes at Sadler's Wells ( Islington , London) and a number of pieces for the Royal Circus. He also wrote for the opera in the London borough of Covent Garden , where he acted as an accompanist. His set of Christopher Smart's Ode on St Cecilia's Day (1800, see Cäcilienode ) and The Redemption of Israel were both likely performed by the Cecilian Society of which he was a member. A volume of psalms, hymns, and other hymns of praise was compiled for the Foundling Hospital Chapel in 1809. In 1808 he obtained a Bachelor of Music from Magdalen College , Oxford , and began working as an organ expert; occasionally he inspected instruments from his father's workshop. He also published Twelve Voluntaries for the Organ or Pianoforte and a Second Book of Voluntaries (1812), while Job , an oratorio by Russell and arranged for organ / piano by Samuel Sebastian Wesley, came out in 1826.

Russell died on November 21, 1813 in Cobham Row, Cold Bathfields, London.

Works

Work - year of first publication

  • Ode on St Cecilia's Day - 1800
  • The Redemption of Israel - ????
  • Twelve Voluntaries for the Organ or Pianoforte - 1812
  • Second Book of Voluntaries - 1812

(the two volumes collectively known as Russell's Voluntaries )

  • Job (oratorio) - 1826

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Russell, William
BRIEF DESCRIPTION English composer
DATE OF BIRTH October 6, 1777
PLACE OF BIRTH London , UK
DATE OF DEATH November 21, 1813
Place of death London, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland