Sullivan, Arthur

Arthur Seymour Sullivan – The Tempest

(b. London, 13 May 1842 – d. London, 22 November 1900)
Incidental music to the play by William Shakespeare

Sullivan wrote this substantial score for his graduation from the Leipzig Conservatory, and the Leipzig authorities were impressed enough to include it in an end-of-year concert on April 1861. He was 19, and had entered the Royal Academy of Music at the age of 14 on the first Mendelssohn Scholarship, followed by a year at Mendelssohn’s own Leipzig Conservatory, where he was a classmate of Edvard Grieg. After Sullivan had returned to London, George Grove attended a private performance and, as a result, arranged for it to be played at the Crystal Palace, conducted by August Manns. Sullivan expanded the work, which was first performed on 5 April 1862, with narration by Arthur Matthison, and vocal soloists May Banks and Robertina Henderson. A great success, the concert was repeated the next week.

Sullivan clearly modelled his music on Mendelssohn’s for A Midsummer Night’s Dream, with its succession of orchestral and vocal items that can be performed apart from the play. He had not yet developed a distinctive voice, and the influence of Beethoven, Berlioz, Schumann, Liszt, and (of course) Mendelssohn are apparent. The Mendelssohn of The Hebrides in particularly apparent in Sullivan’s overture. But Sullivan could not help writing interesting, enjoyable music, beautifully scored. His music was used for several productions of The Tempest, though not after the turn of the 20th century.
Phillip Brookes, 2021

For performance material please contact Novello, London.