Presents
John Lodge Ellerton
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Soundbites courtesy of
Steve Jones
String Quintet in f minor, Op.100 for 2 Violins, Viola & 2 Cellos
Most of the surprsingly little information that exists about the life of the English composer John Lodge Ellerton (1801-1873) comes from the Dictionary of National Biography published in London in 1889 and 1900. Surprising, since he was fairly well-known in musical and literary circles both in England as well as Germany. (In addition to being known as a composer, he was also a published poet of some renown) His name was originally John Lodge and he was most likely born in the English city of Liverpool where his father Adam Lodge, a wealthy merchant and shipping agent, resided. He was sent to Rugby, one of the leading public schools of 19th century England and then matriculated at Brasenose College, Oxford in 1818, graduating in 1821 with a B.A. He took the courtesy degree of M.A. (Oxon.) in 1828. At Brasenose, among other things, he studied composition. It is known that he spent 2 years in Rome studying composition with the Italian composer Pietro Terziani sometime between 1829-31. This was followed by a sojourn in Germany for several years, where he also studied composition. He began composing while at Brasenose and continued throughout the rest of his life. A prolific composer in all genres, not the least of which was chamber music, he is said to have written some 54 string quartets of which 20 were published, mostly in Germany, where they were often performed. In about 1845, he added Ellerton to his last name. Sources do not indicate why. He also started appending the title Esq. after his name, which was typically reserved during the 19th century for members of the landed gentry above the rank of Gentleman but just below the rank of of a knight baronet. It is clear from both his education and the fact that he married the daughter of an Earl, that Ellerton was obviously a member of the aristocracy. And as such, he did not wish to be known as a professional musician, since they were generally regarded as members of the lower classes. Hence, he styled himself "Amateur Musician" not because he wished to be considered amateurish or because he did not wish to have his music taken seriously, but only so that he was not mistaken by others as a "professional musician" and hence a member of the lower classes. Unfortunately, calling himself an amateur musician had the unintended result that neither he nor his music were, for the most part, taken seriously. This was true not only during his lifetime, but thereafter as well. Nonetheless, an objective and close examination of his oeuvre reveals that his music was of a professional standard, some of it of very high quality. Of course, the production of a huge quantity of work resulted in several pieces lacking inspiration, not an infrequent fate of what the Germans call Vielschribers, composers who wrote too much for their own good. Even immortals such Bach, Haydn and Mozart churned out works, which due to the pressure of having to make a living, could not be considered inspired.
The String Quintet in f minor, Op.100, as far as we know, was the only string quintet that Ellerton composed. It was composed in the late 1840s and published by the prominent German firm Johann Andre of Offenbach. It was performed in concert in Germany and received a notice in a German musical periodical as a solid work, but of an amateur, and criticized for breaking no new ground, a meaningless criticism since the works of all but a few composers broke new ground. The Quintet is in four movements, the opening Allegro non troppo begins with a leisurely, yearning theme. A brighter second subject follows. The main melody to the second movement, Andante, is a lovely, sweet, naive tune. This is followed by a bustling, lively Scherzo with a nicely contrasting trio section. The exciting finale, Allegro molto, opens with a subject full of forward motion. This is followed by a fetching, more lyrical second theme.
This quintet is certainly strong encough to justify concert performance but it can also be warmly recommended to amateur ensembles.
Parts: $29.95
