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Scan 370
Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians, 1918
10 lines. Read by computer on 11 September 2026. Printed page 330. See the scan on archive.org.
1history of the festival may be mentioned: the introduction of Haydn's 'Creation' in the place of one of Handel's oratorios in 1802; the engagement of Mr. Greatorex, organist of Westminster Abbey, in 1805, previous to which year the organists had been local performers; the use of Mozart's accompaniments to the 'Messiah' for the first time in 1808; the withdrawal of the orchestral accompaniment at the church service, and the use of additional wind parts for the 'Messiah,' by Greatorex, in 1820; the introduction of nine trombones in addition to the organ at the church service in 1823; the last performance in church in 1829, the year in which operatic performances in character were introduced, and in which Signor Costa was compelled to appear as a vocalist as a condition of the payment of his expenses by the committee, who refused to allow him to conduct Zingarelli's cantata; the appearance of Mendelssohn as the conductor of 'St. Paul,' and as solo organist in 1837; the production of 'Elijah' in 1846; the appointment of Signor Costa as conductor, and the rearrangement of the plan of the orchestra, in 1849; and the formation of the Birmingham Amateur Harmonic Association, to form the local contingent of the chorus, in 1855. Sir Michael Costa wrote his 'Eli' and 'Naaman' for performance at the festivals of 1855 and 1864. [1882 is remembered as the year of production, for the first time, of Gounod's 'Redemption.' In 1885 Richter inaugurated his direction by producing the 'Messiah' as far as possible in the manner intended by Handel. Important new works were Gounod's 'Mors et Vita,' Stanford's 'Three Holy Children,' Dvořák's 'Spectre's Bride,' and Cowen's 'Sleeping Beauty.' In 1888 Parry's 'Judith' was the most important new work, and interesting revivals took place of Bach's 'Magnificat,' Handel's 'Saul,' and Berlioz's 'Messe des Morts.' In 1891 Stanford's 'Eden' and Dvořák's 'Requiem' were given; in 1894 Parry's 'King Saul,' Goring Thomas's 'Swan and the Skylark,' and Henschel's 'Stabat Mater'; in 1897 Stanford's 'Requiem,' Somervell's 'Ode to the Sea,' and Purcell's 'King Arthur'; and in 1900 Elgar's 'Dream of Gerontius' was the chief novelty, Byrd's five-part mass being revived. Elgar's 'Apostles' was the only new oratorio brought forward in 1903, Liszt's Psalm xiii. being among the quasi-novelties. The receipts at the festivals gradually rose for many years, and the actual profit, which is handed over to the treasurer of the General Hospital, stood at upwards of £7500 in 1873, as compared with £299 in 1768. In 1900 a sum of £6000 was handed to the hospital, but in 1903 the profits were less, owing to increased expenses. Since their foundation, the festivals have yielded a grand total of upwards of £100,000 to the hospital funds.
3BIS (Fr.), that is, 'twice,' a cry more in use abroad than in England, and equivalent to ENCORE. The French even have a verb, bisser, to repeat.
5When written, as it sometimes is in MS. music, over a phrase or passage, it signifies that the notes are to be repeated; the same thing would be effected by dots of repetition at the beginning and end of the phrase.
7BISCHOFF, DR. LUDWIG FRIEDRICH CHRISTIAN, born at Dessau, Nov. 27, 1794. His father was a violoncello-player in the Duke's band, and the boy was early initiated into music, though (like so many musicians) intended for science. In 1812 he entered the university of Berlin, and attended the philological lectures of Boeckh. But the war of freedom put a stop to study; Bischoff volunteered, and was taken prisoner by the French. After the treaty of Paris he resumed his studies and took his degree. He filled various posts in Switzerland, was professor at Berlin, and director of the gymnasium at Wesel from 1823 to 1849. Here he was remarkably active in musical matters, founding societies, assisting performances, and making his house in every sense a home for music. After twenty-five years he took his leave, and settled first in Bonn and then in Cologne. There he founded the Rheinische Musikzeitung (1850) and its successor, the Nieder-Rheinische Musikzeitung (1853), and edited the latter to the day of his death (Feb. 24, 1867), acting also as reporter to the Kölnische Zeitung, and acquiring great influence throughout the Lower Rhine districts. In 1859 he published a translation of Oulibichev's Beethoven. The tendency of his papers was dead against that of the Neue Zeitschrift of Schumann and Brendel, in regard to Wagner and Liszt. Bischoff's worship for Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven, with whom he afterwards associated Mendelssohn, was so exclusive as to preclude his appreciating even Schumann, essential as he is in the development of modern music. On the other hand, his influence on music in the Lower Rhine was both good and great. He was the musical centre of the energy and devotion which kept up the festivals of Cologne, Aix-la-Chapelle, and Düsseldorf, and through them acted so beneficially on the whole of Germany. With Bischoff's death his papers came to an end, nor have they been yet replaced.
9BISHOP, ANN, better known as Mme. Anna Bishop, was the daughter of a singing-master named Rivière, and was born in London in 1814. She studied the pianoforte under Moscheles, and in 1824 became a student at the Royal Academy of Music. Here she remained until her marriage with SIR HENRY BISHOP in 1831. In this year she appeared as a singer at the Philharmonic and other concerts. (See ALSAGER.) In 1839 she went on a tour in the provinces with Bochsa the harpist, and shortly after their return to London eloped with him to the continent. Almost all the remainder of her
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