English Shakespeare Song in British Concerts, 1901‒1951

Abstract

A study of Shakespeare song in UK concerts during the first half of the twentieth century reveals a developing appetite among performers and audiences for more cogent song programming capable of satisfying a range of demands beyond pure entertainment. For example, concerts providing education, a philanthropic platform, or improvement through participation in ‘high’ art (albeit passive) appealed to audience members from a spectrum of social classes; and singers too participated in this gradual move away from the variety-hall style of performances that tended to be prevalent in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Shakespeare song in particular provided easy access to cultural prestige. Additionally, it evoked nostalgia for the perceived glories of the Elizabethan age (often referred to as the ‘Merry England’ effect). In the first half of the twentieth century, a number of composers of English song who had a strong influence on song programming (Quilter, Warlock, Gurney, and Finzi, for example) produced Shakespeare settings that were popular additions to programmes, lending themselves to coherent theming and groupings. The German Lied, and the song cycles of Schubert in particular, had dominated song recitals in the United Kingdom and provided a ready-made programming strategy for performers; but many star singers, such as John Coates and John Goss, were eager to promote English song, and Shakespeare settings were a recurrent feature of their recitals. These singers were particular favourites at London’s Wigmore Hall, but their performances featuring Shakespeare song were repeated nationwide to great acclaim.