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John Stainer

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Sir John Stainer

Sir John Stainer(6 June 1840 – 31 March 1901) was an English composer and organist whose music, though seldom performed today (with the exception ofThe Crucifixion,still heard atPassiontidein someAnglicanchurches), was very popular during his lifetime. His work as choir trainer and organist set standards forAnglican church musicthat are still influential. He was also active as an academic, becoming Heather Professor of Music atOxford.

Stainer was born inSouthwark,London, in 1840, the son of a schoolmaster. He became achoristeratSt Paul's Cathedralwhen aged ten and was appointed to the position of organist atSt Michael's College, Tenbury,at the age of sixteen. He later became organist atMagdalen College, Oxford,and subsequently organist at St Paul's Cathedral. When he retired owing to his poor eyesight and deteriorating health, he returned to Oxford to become Professor of Music at the university. He died unexpectedly while on holiday in Italy in 1901.

Early years[edit]

John Stainer was the eighth of nine children born to William Stainer and his wife Ann (née Collier) on 6 June 1840. At least three of the children died in infancy, and John was much younger than his brother, William, and his three sisters, Ann, Sarah and Mary.[1]The family lived inSouthwark,London, where his father joined his brother in hiscabinet making business,later becoming avestryclerk and registrar of births, and a parish schoolmaster.[1]He was also an untaught musician and player of the piano, violin andflute.He built a smallchamber organat home on which the precocious John used to accompany him when he played hymn tunes on the violin. His sister Ann also used it – she was the regular organist atMagdalen Hospital,Streatham.It was a happy family, and young John seems to have been spoiled by his elders.[1]He could playBach'sFugue in E majorat the age of seven.[2]

In 1849, after a year's probation, young Stainer became a chorister atSt Paul's Cathedral.He was already an accomplished player on keyboard instruments and possessed perfect pitch and a fine treble voice and soon became the choir's principal soloist.

In 1854, he was invited to sing in the first English performance of Bach'sSt Matthew PassionunderWilliam Sterndale Bennettat theHanover Square Rooms.He travelled each day between his home in Streatham and the cathedral bysteamboat.The choristers were required to sing for services at 9:30 a.m. and 3:15 p.m. In between these times the choristers were instructed in Latin, arithmetic, writing and other subjects, and Stainer probably received a much better education there than he would have done had he been educated at the local elementary school.[3]A house in the cathedral's present choir school has since been named after him. He received organ lessons atSt. Sepulchre'sChurch,HolbornfromGeorge Cooper,assistant organist at St Paul's Cathedral underJohn Goss.At this time he might have met future composerArthur Sullivan,his junior by two years. Certainly the two young men later became friends and undertook activities together on half-holidays.[4]

In 1855, he was offered a six-month contract as organist atSt Benet's, Paul's Wharf.He proved successful, and his contract was renewed several times for further six-month terms. As he was still a minor, his salary of £30 per year was paid to his father. During this period, he sometimes deputised for the regular organists, Goss and Cooper, at services in St Paul's Cathedral.[5]

St Michael's College, Tenbury

At the age of sixteen, Stainer was appointed by SirFrederick Ouseleyto the post of organist at the newly foundedSt. Michael's College, Tenbury.Ouseley wasHeather Professor of MusicatOxford Universityand had recently become vicar of St Michael's College on the outskirts ofTenbury Wells,a choir school with a church that he had founded and endowed and which was intended to serve as a model for Anglican church music.[6]Although Stainer was not much older than the choristers were, Stainer was put in charge of them. One of his duties was to give piano lessons to the boys for two hours a day.[7]

Ouseley was an antiquarian and had an extensive library. He was much interested in the history of music and acted as Stainer's mentor. Under his guidance, Stainer became the youngest ever successful candidate for theBachelor of Musicdegree at Oxford.[8]For this, Stainer wrote acantata,Praise the Lord, O my soul,with text from Psalm 103. Its traditional style was designed to appeal to the examining board and sounds stilted when set against his later works. About this time he wrote several anthems, the most successful of which wasI saw the Lord,a bolder and more original work in a more contemporary idiom.[9]

Magdalen College[edit]

In 1860 he became organist atMagdalen College, Oxford,initially for a period of six months, at a salary of £120 per year. His duties included playing for services, training the choir and leading them on Fridays, a day on which the organ was not used. A new organ had been installed five years earlier that was ideal for developing his talent. He proved satisfactory in the post, and his contract was made permanent. He was permitted to study for a degree as long as it did not interfere with his duties, and he chose to do so in the expectation that it would raise his social status. He gained his BA in 1864 and his MA two years later and was keen to proceed to hisMus Doc,which would raise his standing within the university.[10]

Interior of Magdalen College Chapel

Unfailingly conscientious as a choirmaster, Stainer introduced new anthems and service music, bringing the choir to a higher level of attainment than it had previously seen.[11]It had been the custom for the adult choir members, the lay clerks, not to attend practice at all; but Stainer had a magnetic personality and persuaded them to come. Their more regular attendance enabled the repertoire to be enlarged. Stainer's skill on the organ was much respected, and he was regarded as "the finest organist Oxford had seen in many generations".[12]The vice chancellor,Francis Jeune,was an admirer and in 1861 appointed Stainer to the prestigious post of University Organist at theUniversity Church of St Mary the Virgin.Here he was expected to play for a service every Sunday (at a later time in the morning than the Magdalen service).[12]

At this time he was composing liturgical music and developing his musical style. There were severalanthemsand two more technically assured multi-sectioned verse anthems, "Drop down, ye heavens from above" and "They were lovely and pleasant in their lives". His routine included two services daily, rehearsals, lectures, tutorials, attendance at Ouseley's lectures, and visits home to Southwark in the vacations. He must have performed his duties with diligence as his salary was raised by £10 a year and after 1862 he received an allowance towards his rent.[13]

Stainer was also conductor of the Magdalen Madrigal Society, which gave concerts in the College Hall, and the Magdalen Vagabonds, which performed during vacations. The latter gave concerts in various towns and cities and raised money for church restoration. He wrote somemadrigalshimself, which were published byNovello,a company with which he was to do much future business. He also wrote an oratorio,Gideon,as the exercise for his doctorate and it was performed in November 1865. It was well received on the day and was sufficient to gain him his doctorate but has not been performed since.[14]

After Stainer had obtained his doctorate, Ouseley enrolled him as an examiner for Oxford musical degrees. In this capacity Stainer met and later became friends withHubert Parry.Attending at evensong at Magdalen College in 1866, Parry wrote in his diary "Stainer played the last 3 movements of theSonata in B-flat(Mendelssohn) afterwards most gloriously ".[15]He examinedWilliam PoleandFrederick Bridgeand became involved in organ and music tuition and wider musical activities. He had considerable influence on sacred music in Oxford and his reputation spread beyond the confines of the city. He was employed to play solo organ works at weekly concerts atCrystal Palaceand took part regularly in theThree Choirs Festival.[16]

Stainer was interested in the history of music and traditional folk songs. He encouraged contralto, composer, and festival organizerMary Augusta Wakefield,who shared this interest.There was a revived interest in carols at the time, and he rediscovered old carols, provided new settings for others and introduced contemporary works. Many of his harmonisations are still in use today. He published a volumeChristmas Carols New and Oldwhich was a considerable success, with thousands of copies sold. He followed this up with another edition the following year to which he persuaded Arthur Sullivan to contribute. He also composed several hymn tunes, and some of these are still to be found in Anglican hymnals, with "Love divine, all loves excelling" being popular at wedding services.[17]Other parish music followed with a congregationalTe Deum in Cwhich was regularly sung at Magdalen on Sundays and a verse anthem "Sing a song of praise". Two more substantial anthems, intended for use in cathedrals, were "Lead kindly light" composed in 1868, followed by "Awake, awake, put on thy strength" in 1871. He also produced two evening canticles and a comprehensive set of music for morning, communion and evening services. He had also been working for a long time on his first theoretical work,A Theory of Harmony Founded on the Tempered Scale,published by Novello in 1871.[18]

St Paul's Cathedral[edit]

St Paul's Cathedral at about the time Stainer was organist
Engraving of the interior of St Paul's Cathedral

In 1871, Goss resigned as organist ofSt Paul's Cathedraland Stainer was appointed to the position early in 1872 at a salary of £400 per annum. By this time he had been married for seven years and had five children with another due shortly. The organ was in the process of being rebuilt, by the organ builderHenry Willisto Stainer's design, with portions on either side of the entrance to the choir stalls.[19]Around this time he was asked to help reviseHymns Ancient and Modern,a task he did with enthusiasm.[20]At St Paul's, he soon set about reinvigorating the choir. The appointment of vicars choral was for life, and the tenor and bass voices saw no need for rehearsal, meaning that the repertoire was static. Stainer was able to change their attitude, and new anthems and liturgies were introduced, a choir school built, and the number of choristers increased from twelve to thirty-five. When William Sparrow Simpson was appointedSuccentor,the raising of standards continued, and St Paul's Cathedral became the focus of religious ceremony in the capital, including state occasions, ceremonial events, memorial services and the funerals of the great and famous.[21]A peal of twelve bells was installed in 1878.[22]

Further appointments followed. Stainer became an honorary fellow of the Royal Academy of Music in 1877 and an examiner for the Doctor of Music degree at Cambridge and London Universities. He accepted the post of musical director of the Madrigal Society of London. He was particularly honoured to be asked to be a juror at theFrench Exhibition in Parisin 1878 and in 1880 was an adjudicator at the WelshEisteddfodatCaernarvon.[23]He was madeChevalier of the Legion of Honourin 1879.[24]

Group of musicians (including John Stainer) that performed Haydn'sToy Symphonyat St. James Hall, on behalf of a charity, 1880 - Sir Arthur Sullivan is on the first row sitting on the floor.

In 1882, Stainer was offered the post of Inspector of Music in Schools and Colleges, a position he took with great seriousness and which he occupied for six years. His assistant wasWilliam Gray McNaught.Together they worked towards raising standards in music teaching and toured the country, visiting schools and colleges and examining candidates. Stainer advocated the use of musical notation andtonic sol-farather than the learning-by-ear method previously used. He was by now treated with the greatest respect in musical circles, but his many activities diminished the time available for composition.[25]The flow of new anthems and service music slowed down, but in 1883 he completed his oratorioMary Magdalen.This was followed in 1887 byThe Crucifixion,the work for which he is most remembered.[26]

In 1885, he was awarded an honorary degree byDurham University,and he became Heather Professor at Oxford in 1889 following the death of Ouseley. He conducted pioneering research intoearly music,notably the output ofNetherlandishRenaissancecomposerGuillaume Dufay,then scarcely known even among experts. He also contributed a small treatise,Harmony,and another,Composition,to the famous series of Novello musical primers. For budding organists he wrote a primer called, simply,The Organ,which continues to have a following. In recognition of his services to British music, he received a knighthood fromQueen Victoriain 1888.[27]

Retirement[edit]

Caricature published inVanity Fairin 1891

Following a childhood accident, Stainer had lost the use of one eye. There is some confusion about this and he may merely have had alazy eye,but for a brief period in 1875 he feared he was losing the sight of the other eye. This proved not to be the case, but he suffered from eye strain and impairment to his vision for much of his life. This was a major reason for his decision to retire from St Paul's Cathedral in 1888,[28]while still in his forties. As Bumpus was to write, "Such honours as are at the disposal of his fellow musicians have been freely showered upon him, for he is universally beloved and esteemed, but his many onerous duties, his organistship of this, his presidency of that, and his incessant hard work as an examiner, have all involved responsibility and constant application, and the result is that his sight and general health have given way under the severe strain of sheer hard work."[29]

In later life, he and his wife took to travelling to theRiviera,FlorenceorMentoneeach year for him to relax and recuperate. It was on such a visit toVerona,Italy, that onPalm Sunday,31 March 1901 he felt unwell and retired to his room. Later that afternoon he died of aheart attack.He was sixty. His body was taken back to England, and his funeral service was held on 6 April atSt Cross Church, Oxfordwith a large number of friends and colleagues present,[30]followed by burial in adjacentHolywell Cemetery.

Stainer's memorial in St Paul's Cathedral byHenry Alfred Pegram

Lady Stainer was devastated by his death and went into mourning for a year, but as she confided to a friend, the pianistFrancesco Berger,"I am thankful he has been spared long illness and the weariness of old age, which he always dreaded".[31]She gave a memorial stained glass window to St Cross Church and arranged for a monument to be erected at Magdalen College. Her husband's valuable library of antiquarian music books passed to his elder son, J F R Stainer, who allowed its use for study and research purposes. The collection was sold to an American collector in 1932 who, on his death in 1973, had it bequeathed to theBodleian Library,where it remains. Lady Stainer died in 1916 leaving six children. She is buried in Holywell Cemetery, Oxford, beside her husband.[31]

Legacy[edit]

Stainer's output of sacred music was extensive, including thePassion cantataororatorioThe Crucifixion(1887), theSevenfold Amen(this latter piece was especially admired by the lexicographer SirGeorge Grove), and numeroushymn tunes,including "Cross of Jesus", "All for Jesus" (both fromThe Crucifixion), and "Love Divine".[26]His settings for theGloriaandSanctuswere sung at thecoronationofEdward VIIin 1902.[32]

His work as a composer was much esteemed during his lifetime but is not well known today - and Stainer himself was dismissive of his own work, tellingEdmund Fellowesthat "he regretted ever having published most of his compositions".[33]The Crucifixionis one of the few major works of his that is still regularly performed. It is often given in Anglican churches duringHoly Weekand forms part of the repertoire of numerous choirs. He also made a lasting contribution to the music of Christmas in hisChristmas Carols New and Old(1871), produced in collaboration with the Revd.H. R. Bramley,which marked an important stage in the revival of theChristmas carol.The book includes Stainer's arrangements of what were to become the standard versions of "What Child Is This","God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen","Good King Wenceslas","The First Nowell",and"I Saw Three Ships",among others.[34]He was a skilled musician and accompanist andWalter Galpin Alcock,who was taught composition by Arthur Sullivan at theNational Training School of Music,recalls Sullivan saying "I was at St Paul's yesterday, listening to Dr Stainer extemporising. My dear young friends, he is a genius, and I hope you will miss no chance of hearing him."[35]John Stainer was also a close friend ofEdmund Hart Turpin,the later Hon. Secr. of theRoyal College of Organistsfor more than fifty years.[36]

Selected list of works[edit]

A list of Stainer's more prominent works is provided below.[37]

Anthems[edit]

Services[edit]

  • Full services in E-flat, D/A, B-flat and D
  • Communion services in A, F and C

Hymn tunes[edit]

Oratorios[edit]

Stainer wrote four oratorios:[39]

  • Gideon(1865)
  • The Daughter of Jairus(1878)
  • St. Mary Magdalen(1883) Written, by request, for a performance at the Triennial Music Festival of 1883
  • The Crucifixion(1887)

Books with carols and hymns[edit]

Organ music[edit]

Books on musical theory, history and instruments[edit]

References[edit]

Footnotes[edit]

  1. ^abcDibble, pps. 5–6.
  2. ^Bumpus, p. 175.
  3. ^Dibble, pps. 11–12.
  4. ^Dibble, p. 34.
  5. ^Dibble, p. 36.
  6. ^Tenbury Wells and the Teme Valley,2007, p10
  7. ^Dibble, p. 42.
  8. ^Dibble, p. 52.
  9. ^Dibble, pp. 55–62.
  10. ^Dibble, pps. 102–104.
  11. ^Bumpus, p. 176.
  12. ^abDibble, p. 73.
  13. ^Dibble, pps. 84–85.
  14. ^Dibble, pps. 104–105.
  15. ^Dibble, Jeremy (2004)."Parry, Sir (Charles) Hubert Hastings, baronet (1848–1918)".Oxford Dictionary of National Biography(online ed.). Oxford University Press.doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/35393.(Subscription orUK public library membershiprequired.)
  16. ^Dibble, pps. 109–115.
  17. ^Dibble, pps. 118–119.
  18. ^Dibble, pps. 124–129.
  19. ^Bumpus, p. 59.
  20. ^Dibble, p. 138.
  21. ^Dibble, p. 194.
  22. ^Dibble, p. 196, 237.
  23. ^Dibble, pps. 199–201.
  24. ^"Stainer, Sir John".Who's who biographies, 1901.1901. p. 1054.
  25. ^Dibble, pps. 214–238.
  26. ^abBumpus, p. 178.
  27. ^Dibble, p. 247.
  28. ^Dibble, pps. 108–109.
  29. ^Bumpus, p. 180.
  30. ^Dibble, p. 308.
  31. ^abDibble, pps. 309–310.
  32. ^Cowgill, Rachel andRushton, Julian(2006),Europe, Empire, and Spectacle in Nineteenth-century British Music,Ashgate Publishing Limited,ISBN0-7546-5208-4(p. 129)
  33. ^E H Fellowes.English Cathedral Music(1941)
  34. ^Dearmer, Percy; Vaughan Williams, Ralph; Shaw, Martin (1918).Oxford Book of Carols.Oxford University Press.ISBN0-19-353315-4.
  35. ^Charlton, Peter (1984).John Stainer and the musical life of Victorian Britain.David & Charles. p. 79.ISBN978-0-7153-8387-2.
  36. ^Charles William Pearc,A Biographical Sketch of Edmund Hart Turpin,1911
  37. ^"John Stainer".NetHymnal.2011.Retrieved14 February2013.
  38. ^Luff, Alan (2001)."Hail, gladdening Light – Sebaste".hyperion-records.co.uk.Hyperion Records Limited.Retrieved18 August2021.
  39. ^"John Stainer".Center for Church Music.Retrieved9 July2015.

Bibliography[edit]

External links[edit]

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Church of England titles
Preceded by Organist and Master of the ChoristersofSt Paul's Cathedral
1872–1888 		Succeeded by

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