Overview
Sir Arnold Edward Trevor Bax (1883–1953) was an English composer, poet, and author, recognized as a leading figure in the British Neoromantic movement between the World Wars.
His work is characterized by its lush orchestration, romantic evocativeness, and rich, often chromatic harmonic language, leading him to describe himself as a “brazen romantic.”
🎵 Key Aspects of His Life and Work
Musical Influences and Style:
Celtic Revival: A lifelong fascination with Irish culture, sparked by the poetry of W.B. Yeats, was a profound early influence. He spent much time in Ireland, wrote short stories and poems under the pseudonym Dermot O’Byrne, and incorporated a distinctive “Celtic curve” into his melodies.
Nordic/Russian Influence: Later, he developed an affinity for Nordic culture (e.g., Sibelius) and briefly absorbed Russian influences following a visit to Saint Petersburg.
Orchestration: Bax was a master orchestrator, known for creating complex, shimmering, and atmospheric textures, sometimes giving his music an “impressionistic” quality.
Major Compositions: Bax’s most significant output is his orchestral music, especially:
Seven Symphonies (1921–1939): These works are considered the core of his achievement and are often three-movement cycles. His Symphony No. 3 and Symphony No. 6 are particularly highly regarded.
Symphonic Poems (Tone Poems): These evocative works often depict landscapes and mythology and are among his best-known pieces, including:
Tintagel (1919)
The Garden of Fand (1916)
November Woods (1917)
Other Works: He also produced a large body of chamber music (notably the Viola Sonata), solo piano music (much written for his long-time lover, pianist Harriet Cohen), and vocal/choral works.
Career and Legacy:
Independent Means: Born into a prosperous family, Bax had private means which allowed him to follow his own creative path without having to rely on teaching or fashion.
Master of the King’s Musick: He was appointed to this prestigious post in 1942, succeeding Sir Henry Walford Davies.
Posthumous Neglect and Revival: His music was considered somewhat old-fashioned late in his life and was largely neglected after his death. Since the 1960s, however, a steady stream of recordings has led to a gradual, if incomplete, revival of interest in his extensive catalogue.
History
Sir Arnold Edward Trevor Bax was born in Streatham, London, in 1883, into a prosperous family whose wealth allowed him to pursue a career as a composer without the need to earn an income. He was musically gifted from a young age, starting to compose profusely by 1896.
Early Life and Celtic Influence
Bax’s formal musical training began when he entered the Royal Academy of Music in 1900, studying composition and piano. While a student, he developed a profound, lifelong fascination with Irish culture and the Celtic Revival, sparked by reading the poetry of W.B. Yeats. He declared that Yeats’s work “meant more to me than all the music of the centuries.”
This fascination led him to spend extended periods in Ireland, including Dublin and Glencolumcille, Co. Donegal, before the First World War. He learned the Irish language, moved in Dublin literary circles, and published short stories and poems inspired by Celtic mythology under the pseudonym Dermot O’Byrne. Musically, he absorbed this influence, creating works with a distinct “Celtic curve” to their melodies.
In 1910, a romantic pursuit of a Ukrainian woman named Natalia Skarginska led him to Russia, musically enriching him and inspiring Russian and Slavonic-themed pieces, though the relationship proved unsuccessful. Upon returning, he married pianist Elsita Sobrino in 1911, and they moved to Dublin, where they had two children.
First World War and Artistic Maturity
The outbreak of the First World War led Bax and his family to return to England. A heart condition rendered him unfit for military service, which allowed him to compose a large body of music during the war years, reaching his technical and artistic maturity. However, the Irish Easter Rising in 1916 profoundly disturbed him, leading him to write works such as the lament In Memoriam Padraig Pearse.
Around this period, he began a passionate relationship with the pianist Harriet Cohen, who became the inspiration for many of his works and a champion of his piano music. Bax left his wife in 1918 to be with Cohen, and his inner conflict during this time is often seen reflected in his symphonic poems like November Woods and Tintagel (1919), which established his reputation.
Apex of His Career
The 1920s marked the peak of his fame, during which he was widely regarded as the leading British symphonist. He composed the majority of his seven Symphonies between 1921 and 1939. His prolific output extended across orchestral, chamber, solo piano, and vocal genres.
Around 1928, Bax began a new annual tradition of wintering in Morar, in the Scottish Highlands, often accompanied by his later love interest, Mary Gleaves, to orchestrate the works he had sketched in London. During this time, Nordic influences, particularly that of Sibelius, also became prominent in his music.
Final Years and Legacy
In 1942, Bax was appointed Master of the King’s Musick, a prestigious role which he held until his death, though he composed little in this capacity. He had been knighted in 1937. By the end of his life, his lush, neoromantic style was starting to be regarded as old-fashioned compared to newer musical trends, and his music was largely neglected following his death.
Arnold Bax died in Cork, Ireland, in 1953, the country that had provided inspiration for so much of his life’s work. Since the 1960s, a revival of interest, primarily through commercial recordings, has brought his extensive catalogue back into focus.
Chronological History
Arnold Edward Trevor Bax was born in Streatham, London, on November 8, 1883, into a prosperous family whose financial comfort allowed him to dedicate his life fully to composition. His formal musical education began in 1900 when he entered the Royal Academy of Music, where he studied composition and piano.
Early in his career, he developed a deep, formative interest in Irish culture and the Celtic Revival, becoming fluent in Irish Gaelic and publishing poetry and short stories under the pseudonym Dermot O’Byrne. This influence was apparent in his early orchestral work, the symphonic poem In the Faëry Hills (1909).
In 1910, he traveled to Russia, a visit that infused his writing with Slavonic influences, which can be seen in his piano music and his ballet The Truth About the Russian Dancers, which premiered in 1920. He married Elsita Sobrino in 1911.
The period surrounding the First World War (1914-1918) proved to be crucial for his artistic maturity. Unable to serve in the military due to a heart condition, he was able to compose prolifically, creating some of his most famous tone poems, including The Garden of Fand (1916), November Woods (1916), and the celebrated Tintagel (1917–19).
The 1920s and 1930s represented the peak of his compositional output and fame. He became recognized as a leading figure in British music, particularly for his symphonic works. He completed the bulk of his major orchestral compositions, writing his seven Symphonies between 1921 and 1939. He was honored with a knighthood in 1937.
In 1942, he was appointed Master of the King’s Musick, a position he held until his death. However, his creative output slowed significantly in his later years. By this time, his lush, neoromantic style was starting to be seen as dated compared to newer compositional trends.
Sir Arnold Bax died on October 3, 1953, in Cork, Ireland, the country that had inspired so much of his life’s work. Following his death, his music was largely neglected for a period, though a comprehensive revival of interest in his extensive catalogue began in earnest in the latter half of the 20th century.
Style(s), Movement(s) and Period(s) of Music
🎼 Musical Style, Movement, and Period of Arnold Bax
Arnold Bax (1883–1953) is generally categorized within the Early 20th Century music period, specifically representing the Neoromantic trend in British music between the World Wars.
Movement
Post-romantic / Neoromantic / Nationalist (specifically Celtic Revival)
Style
Romantic, Impressionist, with a strong Celtic and Nordic influence.
Period
Early 20th Century (His major symphonic output spanned 1921–1939).
In-Depth Analysis
Style and Aesthetics
Bax’s style is characterized by a “brazen Romanticism,” marked by:
Lush Orchestration: He was a master orchestrator, creating rich, shimmering, and atmospheric textures.
Impressionism: His use of complex, undulating harmonies and focus on atmosphere and color (especially in his tone poems like Tintagel and The Garden of Fand) shows the influence of composers like Debussy.
Programmatic Evocation: His music is often romantically evocative, inspired by landscapes (Scottish Highlands) and mythology (Celtic and Nordic).
Harmonic Language: He uses a highly chromatic and expansive harmonic vocabulary, a late extension of the Romantic tradition.
Movement and Context
Post-romantic / Neoromantic: Bax’s music essentially carried the torch of the 19th-century Romantic tradition—with its emphasis on emotion, expressive melody, and dramatic scale—well into the 20th century, setting him against the rising tide of Modernism.
Nationalist (Celtic): A profound, lifelong influence was the Irish Literary and Celtic Revival, which inspired many of his early works and imbued his melodies with a distinctive “Celtic curve.”
Old or New? Traditional or Innovative?
Traditional in Aims, Individual in Language: Bax was primarily a traditional composer in the context of the European Modernist movement. He rejected the radical innovations of atonality (Schoenberg) and high-Modernism that began to dominate the continent.
Old-Fashioned at the Time: By the end of his life (the 1940s and 1950s), his style was already widely considered old-fashioned compared to the prevailing trends of his contemporaries like Britten and Walton, who embraced more astringent and modern approaches. However, his fusion of Wagnerian/Lisztian structure with Impressionist color and Celtic/Nordic material resulted in a highly individual sound.
The closest overarching labels for his music are Post-romantic and Impressionist, heavily colored by a personal Nationalist spirit.
Genres
Sir Arnold Bax was a highly prolific composer who wrote across nearly all classical musical genres, though he is best known for his large-scale orchestral and chamber works.
His output can be broadly divided into the following categories:
1. Orchestral Music (His Most Famous Genre)
This category represents the core of his musical achievement and where his lush, romantic, and atmospheric style is best displayed.
Symphonies: He composed seven full symphonies (1922–1939), which form the heart of his major works. He was considered the leading British symphonist of his time.
Symphonic Poems (Tone Poems): These are his most evocative and arguably most popular works. They are single-movement pieces that often tell a story or describe a scene, heavily influenced by Celtic and Nordic mythology and landscapes.
Key Examples: Tintagel, The Garden of Fand, and November Woods.
Concertante Works (Concertos): Works for solo instrument and orchestra, including:
Concertos for Cello, Viola, Violin, and Piano. His Symphonic Variations for Piano and Orchestra is a particularly large and significant example.
Overtures and Shorter Orchestral Pieces: Including works like Overture to a Picaresque Comedy and Mediterranean.
Film Music: Notably, he wrote the score for the 1948 film Oliver Twist.
2. Chamber Music
Bax’s chamber music is extensive and reflects his private, often more introspective style, frequently incorporating the harp (a favorite instrument of his):
Sonatas: A large number of sonatas for various duos, including:
Viola Sonata (considered a masterpiece of the repertoire).
Cello Sonatas and Violin Sonatas.
Clarinet Sonata and Horn Sonata.
Trios, Quartets, and Quintets: He wrote three String Quartets and numerous works incorporating the piano and/or harp, such as the Oboe Quintet and the Harp Quintet.
Elegiac Trio for flute, viola, and harp is another well-known example.
3. Solo Instrumental Music
He was a highly capable pianist, and his solo piano music is technically demanding and deeply expressive:
Piano Sonatas: He wrote four numbered sonatas.
Character Pieces: A vast catalogue of shorter, atmospheric piano works, often evocative of Irish or Russian themes (A Hill Tune, Mediterranean, Toccata).
Other Solo Instruments: He also wrote a few pieces for solo harp and solo cello.
4. Vocal and Choral Music
Bax was prolific in setting poetry, often inspired by his literary friends from the Celtic Revival:
Songs: Hundreds of songs for voice and piano.
Choral Works: Both sacred and secular pieces, including large-scale motets and cantatas, such as Mater, ora Filium and This Worldes Joie.
He was also one of the few British composers to write a significant work for left-hand piano and orchestra (Concertante for Piano (left hand) and Orchestra), following an injury to his friend, Harriet Cohen.
Characteristics of Music
Sir Arnold Bax described himself as a “brazen Romantic,” and this single phrase encapsulates the core of his musical identity. His style is a rich, late-flowering of the Romantic tradition, heavily colored by both Impressionism and Nationalism.
1. Orchestral Color and Impressionism
Bax was a supreme master of the orchestra, and his style is often defined by its textures and atmosphere:
Lush Orchestration: His scores are densely woven, with rich, soaring string lines, prominent brass fanfares, and delicate woodwind solos. He knew exactly how to make the orchestra sound sumptuous and powerful.
Impressionistic Textures: His use of shimmering, high-register string tremolos, harp glissandi, and subtly shifting wind colors creates a sense of “otherworldliness,” evocative of natural landscapes and ancient myths. Works like Tintagel and The Garden of Fand are prime examples of this “musical seascape.”
Harmonic Richness: While fundamentally tonal, his harmony is highly chromatic and complex, often using chords for their coloristic effect rather than their functional pull, a trait shared with Debussy and Ravel.
2. Celtic and Nordic Nationalism
His music is deeply intertwined with literary and landscape inspirations, reflecting a strong sense of cultural identity:
Celtic Influence: A lifelong passion for the Celtic Revival (inspired by W.B. Yeats and his time in Ireland) led to melodies with a distinctive “Celtic curve”—often modal, rhapsodic, and melancholy. Themes of ancient legends, twilight, and melancholy are pervasive.
Nordic/Pagan Themes: Later works, particularly his symphonies, incorporated influences from the rugged landscapes of the Scottish Highlands and Nordic mythology (like Sibelius), resulting in more stark, angular, and sometimes turbulent musical lines.
Programmatic Writing: Many of his most famous pieces are tone poems (symphonic poems) that directly depict moods, places, or stories, prioritizing emotional and pictorial evocation over abstract development.
3. Form and Structure
Though his music can sound spontaneous and rhapsodic, it is often held together by clear structural devices:
Rhapsodic Melody: His melodies are often expansive, flowing, and highly expressive, giving his music a free, improvisatory quality.
Conflict and Duality: Many commentators note that his music is built on conflict, reflecting the contradictions in his own life. This manifests as rapid shifts between moments of turbulent intensity and passages of serene, idyllic contemplation.
The Three-Movement Symphony: A notable characteristic of his seven symphonies is his preference for a three-movement structure, rather than the standard four.
In summary, Bax’s music is a glorious blend of Romantic emotional intensity and Impressionistic color, driven by a unique Nationalist spirit that sought to capture the atmosphere and legends of the British Isles and the North.
Activities of Music Except Composition and/or Music
Arnold Bax’s life was not solely dedicated to musical composition; he was a talented individual who pursued literary, performing, and ceremonial activities alongside his primary career.
Here are the key activities Bax engaged in outside of his compositional work:
1. Literary Activities (Writing and Poetry)
Bax was an author and poet, writing extensively on Celtic subjects under a pseudonym, reflecting his profound connection to Irish culture.
Pseudonym: He published poetry and short stories, often related to the Irish Literary Revival and Celtic mythology, using the pen-name Dermot O’Byrne.
Journalism and Publishing: As “Dermot O’Byrne,” he was active in Dublin literary circles, publishing his work in various media.
Autobiography: He wrote the witty and fluent autobiography Farewell My Youth (published 1943), which covers his life up to around 1920, though it contains intentional omissions and false names to protect his privacy.
Language Study: His Celtic passion led him to learn Irish Gaelic and immerse himself in Irish legend and folklore.
2. Performing Activities
While he had an aversion to conducting, Bax was a highly skilled pianist.
Pianist: Bax was an exceptional pianist, having studied the instrument at the Royal Academy of Music (RAM) with Tobias Matthay. He was noted for his exceptional sight-reading ability and his skill in playing complex orchestral scores at the piano.
Accompanist: As a youth, he served as the accompanist for his father’s private choral society. He also frequently played his own solo and chamber music, especially with his long-time muse, pianist Harriet Cohen.
3. Official and Ceremonial Duties
Later in life, Bax held one of the most prestigious positions in British music.
Master of the King’s Musick (1942–1953): Appointed to this post, he served as the sovereign’s adviser in musical matters and was expected to compose music for important royal and state occasions, such as coronations, birthdays, and anniversaries.
Key Works in this Capacity (though limited): He did compose the Coronation March for the accession of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953, shortly before his death. The administrative and ceremonial aspects of the role became a significant part of his public life in his last decade.
4. Education and Mentorship
Student: His early life involved five years as a distinguished student at the Royal Academy of Music, where he won various prizes for both piano playing and composition.
Relationships with Composers
Sir Arnold Bax maintained a number of significant professional, personal, and artistic relationships with other figures in the musical world, though his social life often involved literary and political figures as much as composers.
1. Close Personal and Professional Muse: Harriet Cohen (Pianist)
This was arguably his most significant relationship in the music world, though she was a performer, not a composer:
Inspiration and Dedication: Bax began an affair with the pianist Harriet Cohen around 1914, which evolved into a lifelong, close professional partnership and friendship after his separation from his wife in 1918. Cohen was his muse (“Tania”) and the inspiration for numerous works, including the Symphonic Variations and the Concertante for Piano (left hand) and Orchestra.
Promoter of His Music: Cohen became the foremost champion and performer of Bax’s piano music during his lifetime, doing perhaps more than anyone else to promote his work.
2. Acknowledged Predecessor and Model: Sir Edward Elgar
Though not a direct, friendly relationship (Elgar was significantly older and died in 1934), Bax openly admired him.
Admiration and Tradition: Bax explicitly stated his admiration for Elgar, noting he was “very pleased to be following Elgar” when he was appointed Master of the King’s Musick in 1942, succeeding Sir Walford Davies, who had followed Elgar.
Musical Allusion: Bax’s work, such as the First String Quartet (1918), has been shown to contain musical references and stylistic echoes of Elgar, demonstrating a conscious nod to the preceding generation of great British composers.
3. Connection to an Era’s Major Figure: Jean Sibelius
Their relationship was likely indirect, facilitated primarily by Harriet Cohen.
Dedication: Bax dedicated his Symphony No. 5 (1932) to the Finnish composer Jean Sibelius, signifying his high regard and the strong Nordic influence present in his later symphonic writing.
Personal Acquaintance: Harriet Cohen, who was a champion of both their music, facilitated some level of acquaintance between the two. Bax drew significant aesthetic inspiration from Sibelius’s brooding soundscapes and symphonic processes.
4. Direct Family Link to Another Composer: Gustav Holst
Bax’s own brother provided a key link to Holst.
Clifford Bax’s Role: It was Bax’s brother, the writer Clifford Bax, who introduced Gustav Holst to the subject of astrology. This meeting and the subsequent intellectual interest it sparked became the central concept and direct inspiration for Holst’s most famous work, the orchestral suite The Planets.
Shared Circle: While Arnold Bax’s own relationship with Holst was less central than the one between his brother and Holst, they moved in a similar circle of British artists and thinkers.
Bax, a staunch Post-romantic who preferred to glance backward, felt no imperative to join the radical compositional movements of his time, setting him apart from figures like Stravinsky or Schoenberg. His relationships were thus often based on shared performance interests (Cohen) or artistic admiration across generations (Elgar, Sibelius).
Similar Composers
Arnold Bax’s unique style—a blend of late Romanticism, Impressionistic orchestration, and deep Celtic and Nordic influences—places him alongside composers who share one or more of these characteristics.
Here are the composers most often cited as similar to Arnold Bax:
1. British Contemporaries (The “English Pastoral/Romantic School”)
These composers were operating in the same national and temporal context, developing an English voice that often incorporated folk music or natural imagery:
Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872–1958): Shares Bax’s sense of English nationalism, though Vaughan Williams’s style is more overtly pastoral and modal (inspired by English folk song), while Bax is more Celtic and emotionally turbulent. Listen to Vaughan Williams’s Symphony No. 4 or Tallis Fantasia for a point of comparison on British symphonic voice.
Frederick Delius (1862–1934): Perhaps the closest parallel in terms of Impressionistic color and mood. Delius’s music is famously lush, sensual, and atmospheric, often depicting nature, though his texture is less dense and his form is more free-flowing than Bax’s. Try Brigg Fair.
John Ireland (1879–1962) and E.J. Moeran (1894–1950): Both share a similar post-Romantic temperament and an interest in the atmosphere of the British landscape (Moeran also had a strong connection to Ireland). Their music is often introspective and lyrically beautiful.
Frank Bridge (1879–1941): Shares Bax’s initial grounding in late Romanticism, but his music (especially after WWI) became more harmonically daring and often dark, showing a complexity that parallels Bax’s own often “savage” or turbulent passages.
2. Influential European Figures (Romantic & Nationalist)
These were the composers who directly influenced Bax and share his artistic aims:
Jean Sibelius (1865–1957): Bax admired him deeply and dedicated his Fifth Symphony to him. They share a love for Nordic/mythological themes, a focus on symphonic structure, and a strong, often rugged, nationalist voice, particularly in their orchestral works.
Sergei Rachmaninov (1873–1943): Shares Bax’s “brazen Romanticism.” Both are late-Romantic composers with a rich, expressive harmonic language, memorable melodies, and a profound sadness or melancholy underpinning their music. Bax’s piano writing often has a Rachmaninovian depth and virtuosity.
Alexander Scriabin (1872–1915): Bax was briefly influenced by Russian music after a visit to Saint Petersburg. Scriabin’s music has a similar chromatic harmonic richness and a focus on mystical or spiritual themes expressed through complex, shimmering orchestral and piano textures.
In short, if you appreciate Bax’s atmospheric tone poems and lush, chromatic symphonies, you will likely enjoy the orchestral color of Delius and Sibelius, and the rich, expressive drama of the other British Post-Romantics.
Relationships
🎹 Musicians and Players (Collaborators and Muses)
Bax’s relationships with performers were often both personal and professional:
Harriet Cohen (Pianist and Muse): This was a lifelong, defining relationship. Starting as an affair around 1914 while Bax was married, it evolved into a close professional and personal association. Cohen was his muse (“Tania”) and champion, premiering and promoting much of his demanding piano music across Europe. Bax dedicated many works to her, including the Concertante for Piano (left hand) and Orchestra (written after she sustained an injury).
Elsita Sobrino (Pianist and Wife): Bax married the pianist Elsita Sobrino in 1911. They had two children, but the marriage effectively ended when Bax left her around 1918 to be with Harriet Cohen.
Tobias Matthay (Piano Teacher): Bax studied piano with Matthay at the Royal Academy of Music (RAM) from 1900 to 1905.
Carlos Sobrino (Pianist and Father-in-Law): Elsita Sobrino was the daughter of the “distinguished Spanish pianist” Carlos Sobrino.
🎼 Composers and Teachers
Frederick Corder (Composition Teacher): Corder, a devotee of Wagner, taught Bax composition at the RAM. This initial influence led Bax to “wallow in Wagner’s music” in his youth.
Jean Sibelius (Composer): Bax held great admiration for the Finnish composer, dedicating his Symphony No. 5 to Sibelius, a gesture reflecting the Nordic influence in his later symphonic works.
Richard Wagner and Richard Strauss (Early Influences): Bax was strongly influenced by the music of Wagner and later by Strauss, both of whom Corder championed, and who were the primary musical inspirations of his early years.
🎭 Non-Musicians and Literary Figures (The Celtic Influence)
Bax’s alter ego, “Dermot O’Byrne,” highlights his profound connection to the Irish Literary Revival:
W.B. Yeats (Poet): Reading Yeats’s poetry was the initial spark for Bax’s lifelong fascination with Irish culture, which he said meant more to him than all the music of the centuries.
Padraig Colum (Poet and Writer): Bax was a close friend of the poet Padraig Colum and moved in the Dublin literary circles that included figures like Yeats and George Russell.
Thomas MacDonagh and Padraig Pearse (Irish Nationalists): Bax was friendly with many nationalists during his time in Dublin, including Thomas MacDonagh and Padraig Pearse (a leader of the 1916 Easter Rising). The subsequent execution of Pearse deeply affected Bax, who expressed his feelings in works like the orchestral piece In Memoriam, which was dedicated to Pearse’s memory.
Mary Gleaves: Bax began a relationship with Mary Gleaves in the mid-1920s. She became his constant companion for the remainder of his life and often accompanied him on his annual orchestrating trips to the Scottish Highlands.
👑 Official and Professional Relationships
King George VI and Queen Elizabeth II (Monarchs): Bax was appointed Master of the King’s Musick in 1942, serving under George VI and then Elizabeth II until his death in 1953. This official capacity required him to compose for state occasions, such as the Coronation March for Queen Elizabeth II.
Sergei Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes: In 1919, Bax was commissioned to write orchestral music to serve as interludes for the London operation of the Ballets Russes, for which he arranged his Russian-themed piano works into his Russian Suite.
Notable Piano Solo Works
Arnold Bax was a highly accomplished pianist himself, and his solo piano output is substantial, virtuosic, and deeply characteristic of his overall style—full of rhapsodic emotion, evocative color, and harmonic complexity.
His notable solo piano works fall into two main categories: the large-scale Sonatas and the shorter, atmospheric Tone Pictures.
1. The Piano Sonatas
Bax wrote four numbered piano sonatas (and several early, unnumbered/unpublished works). These are considered cornerstones of his solo output, displaying a sweeping, epic, and often turbulent Romanticism.
Piano Sonata No. 1 in F-sharp minor (1910; revised 1917–20): This is often called his “Russian” Sonata. It was inspired by his visit to Saint Petersburg and his love for a Ukrainian woman. It is highly passionate, with a large-scale, one-movement structure, and features a broad, triumphant coda punctuated by a brilliant pianistic impression of Russian cathedral bells.
Piano Sonata No. 2 in G major (1919; revised 1920): A darker, more heroic, and immensely dramatic work, also in a continuous, complex structure. It is thought to reflect his emotional turmoil following the Easter Rising and the aftermath of World War I. Bax admitted it was “concerned with the warring forces of light and darkness.”
Piano Sonata No. 3 in G-sharp minor (1926): This sonata is perhaps the most formally traditional of the set, consisting of three distinct movements. It is considered one of his most powerful works, containing an arresting and majestic opening movement, followed by a serene slow movement, and a lively, dramatic finale.
Piano Sonata No. 4 in G major (1932): This work is lighter in tone, more concise, and less overtly dramatic than its predecessors, reflecting a shift towards a more classically balanced structure, although it retains his signature lyrical warmth.
2. Shorter, Evocative Tone Pictures (Character Pieces)
These pieces showcase his Impressionistic gifts and are often linked to his love for Irish and Russian folklore, or Scottish landscapes.
A Hill Tune (1920): A beautiful, rhapsodic piece that captures the atmosphere and melancholy of a solitary, windswept Irish or Scottish landscape.
In a Vodka Shop (1915): A colorful, characterful piece inspired by his brief time in Russia, notable for its rhythmic energy and somewhat exotic flavour.
Mediterranean (1920): A bright, sunnier contrast to his Celtic-inspired works, reflecting a more outward-looking, relaxed mood.
Pæan (c. 1928): A powerful, celebratory showpiece intended for public performance, built on a persistent, rhythmic, and fanfare-like motif.
Two Russian Tone Pictures (1912): This pair includes May Night in the Ukraine and Gopak, demonstrating the early influence of Russian composers like Scriabin.
These works—especially the four sonatas and the most popular character pieces—are challenging to play and require a performer who can fully command Bax’s often dense, orchestral keyboard style.
Notable Chamber Music
Arnold Bax was a prolific and highly skilled composer of chamber music, a genre where his lyrical gifts, atmospheric textures, and Celtic leanings often found their most intimate expression. His chamber works are highly regarded and form a significant part of the English chamber music repertoire of the early 20th century.
Here are his most notable chamber music works:
1. The Masterpiece: Viola Sonata (1921–1922)
Instrumentation: Viola and Piano
Significance: This is widely considered the masterpiece of Bax’s chamber output and a major work in the viola repertoire.
Context: It was dedicated to the great British violist Lionel Tertis, who encouraged many composers to write for the instrument.
Characteristics: It is a deeply expressive and atmospheric three-movement work. It features a turbulent central scherzo that evokes wild Irish dancing, an autumnal melancholy throughout, and a return of the first movement’s opening theme in the tranquil closing moments, creating a sense of unity.
2. Works Featuring the Harp
Bax had a particular affinity for the harp, using it to create the shimmering, coloristic textures central to his Impressionistic style.
Elegiac Trio (1916):
Instrumentation: Flute, Viola, and Harp.
Context: Written in the wake of the 1916 Easter Rising in Dublin, the work is a sorrowful and beautiful lament. Its haunting mood perfectly captures the sense of loss Bax felt over the events.
Fantasy Sonata (1927):
Instrumentation: Viola and Harp.
Characteristics: This is a late, innovative work that brilliantly exploits the sonic possibilities of the unusual pairing, featuring both rhapsodic and virtuosic writing for both instruments.
Quintet for Harp and Strings (1919):
Instrumentation: Harp and String Quartet (two violins, viola, cello).
Characteristics: A lush, single-movement work where the harp is used not just as an accompaniment, but as an essential, integrated voice that provides unique color and texture.
3. Works for Oboe and Winds
Oboe Quintet (1922):
Instrumentation: Oboe and String Quartet.
Context: Dedicated to the celebrated oboist Leon Goossens.
Characteristics: This is a charming and lyrical work that contrasts the plaintive, often improvisatory quality of the oboe with Bax’s rich string writing.
Clarinet Sonata (1934):
Instrumentation: Clarinet and Piano.
Characteristics: A serenade-like, two-movement piece that is generally more relaxed and overtly lyrical than his earlier, more turbulent works, showing his mellower later style.
4. String and Piano Combinations
Piano Quintet in G minor (1915): A powerful and expansive work, reflecting the dramatic tension and intense emotion of the early war years.
Violin Sonatas (Nos. 1, 2, and 3): These works cover a wide span of his career, moving from the Russian-influenced passion of the early works to the more structured lyricism of the Third Sonata.
String Quartets (Nos. 1, 2, and 3): His three numbered quartets showcase his development as a composer, moving from the Celtic atmosphere of No. 1 to the more mature and rigorous structures of No. 3.
Bax’s chamber music is distinguished by its blend of Romantic warmth, technical virtuosity, and a profound sense of landscape and atmosphere, proving that his characteristic style was not confined to the symphony orchestra.
Notable Orchestral Works
Arnold Bax is most famous and significant for his large-scale orchestral output, which is dominated by his symphonies and symphonic poems (tone poems). These works showcase his “brazen Romanticism,” lush orchestration, and deep connection to Celtic and Nordic mythology and landscapes.
Here are his most notable orchestral works:
1. Symphonic Poems (Tone Poems)
These works are arguably his most widely appreciated and immediately accessible, renowned for their atmosphere and color.
Tintagel (1917–1919):
Theme: A powerful and dramatic evocation of the Cornish castle of Tintagel, the legendary birthplace of King Arthur. The music depicts the wild cliffs, the restless sea, and incorporates a central melody said to represent the Arthurian myth. It is one of the most performed and famous of all his works.
The Garden of Fand (1913–1916):
Theme: Inspired by a Celtic legend about the sea-goddess Fand. The work is a shimmering “seascape” that beautifully captures the Impressionistic qualities of his style, depicting the waves, the enchanted garden, and the wild climax of a storm.
November Woods (1917):
Theme: A darker, intensely emotional work that conveys the feeling of a desolate, windswept forest in late autumn. It reflects the emotional turmoil in Bax’s life at the time and the atmosphere of the war years, characterized by rapid shifts between agitated passages and moments of profound, bleak stillness.
2. The Seven Symphonies
Bax’s cycle of seven symphonies, composed between 1922 and 1939, is the core of his achievement as a composer, establishing him as the leading British symphonist of his era.
Symphony No. 3 (1929):
Significance: Often considered his finest symphony and the most frequently performed.
Characteristics: It is intensely atmospheric, with a long, lyrical first movement and a brilliant, energetic scherzo. It is famous for its haunting, evocative Epilogue (a lengthy slow coda) which describes a serene, perhaps Scottish, landscape at dawn.
Symphony No. 5 (1932):
Significance: Dedicated to Jean Sibelius, whose influence is apparent in the work’s thematic development and dramatic scope.
Characteristics: It is particularly dark and rugged, embodying a strong sense of struggle and climax. It includes a beautiful, slow movement that has been described as a “Northern nocturne.”
Symphony No. 6 (1934):
Significance: A work of vast scale, known for its powerful, dramatic energy and formal complexity.
Characteristics: The finale is particularly notable, structured as a slow, rhapsodic introduction leading to a wild scherzo, before ending with a sublime Epilogue.
3. Concertante Works
Bax wrote several concertos, combining solo instruments with his rich orchestral palette:
Cello Concerto (1932):
Characteristics: A deeply poetic and melancholy work, written for the great cellist Gaspar Cassadó. It has a beautiful central movement that is highly personal and emotionally resonant.
Symphonic Variations (1918):
Instrumentation: Piano and Orchestra.
Characteristics: Essentially a large-scale concerto in variation form, dedicated to his muse, Harriet Cohen. It is a massive, virtuosic work that highlights Bax’s distinctive piano writing alongside his orchestral mastery.
These orchestral works—especially the symphonic poems and the Third and Sixth Symphonies—are essential to understanding Arnold Bax’s place as a great Neoromantic voice in 20th-century music.
Other Notable Works
Excluding solo piano, chamber, and symphonic music (which covers his seven numbered symphonies, the unnumbered tone poems like Tintagel, The Garden of Fand, and November Woods, as well as his numerous sonatas, quartets, and trios), his other notable works are primarily found in the areas of concertante works, choral music, and film/stage scores.
Here are some of Arnold Bax’s other notable works:
🎻 Concertante Works (Concertos/Works for Soloist and Orchestra)
These feature a soloist but are not categorized as symphonic music.
Viola Concerto (more accurately titled Phantasy for Viola and Orchestra) (1920)
Cello Concerto (1932)
Violin Concerto (1938)
Concertante for Piano Left Hand and Orchestra (1949) – Note: While it features piano, it avoids the solo piano and standard concerto categories by being specifically for the left hand and orchestra, written for Harriet Cohen.
Symphonic Variations for Piano and Orchestra (1918) – Often considered a large-scale piano concerto, but the title classifies it differently.
🎤 Choral Works
Bax was a prolific writer of vocal and choral music, often setting medieval texts or poems with a Celtic/Irish influence.
Mater, ora Filium (1921)
A major a cappella motet for unacompanied double chorus (SSAATTBB), notable for its complexity and rich texture.
This Worldes Joie (1922)
For unaccompanied chorus, another setting of a medieval text.
St Patrick’s Breastplate (1924)
A significant work for chorus and orchestra (or organ), setting the ancient Irish prayer.
Walsinghame (1926)
A ballade for tenor, soprano obbligato, and orchestra, or tenor and piano.
🎬 Film and Stage Music
His work as Master of the King’s Music led him to some high-profile commissions later in his career.
Film Score: Oliver Twist (1948)
Music for the famous David Lean film adaptation.
Film Score: Malta G.C. (1942)
A score for the wartime documentary Malta G.C.
Ballets:
From Dusk till Dawn (1917)
The Truth about the Russian Dancers (1920)
Episodes & Trivia
Arnold Bax’s life was rich with literary and musical intrigue, personal drama, and a touch of bohemianism. Here are some notable episodes and pieces of trivia about the composer:
🎭 The Literary Double Life: Dermot O’Byrne
The Pseudonym: For nearly two decades, Bax maintained a secret identity as the writer and poet Dermot O’Byrne. He wrote short stories, poetry, and political polemics about Ireland under this name. The existence of this literary alter ego was only revealed to the public later in his life, and allowed him to express his intense political and cultural sympathy for Irish nationalism without jeopardizing his career as an English composer.
A Political Shock: His deep involvement with the Irish literary circles led him to befriend figures who became central to the 1916 Easter Rising, including Padraig Pearse. When Pearse was executed, Bax was profoundly affected. He expressed his sorrow not through the voice of Arnold Bax, but through the highly emotional orchestral elegy In Memoriam, originally titled In Memoriam Padraig Pearse in its piano sketch.
💖 Personal Drama and the Muse
The Affair and the Muse: The passionate affair Bax began with the celebrated pianist Harriet Cohen in 1914 led to the breakdown of his marriage. Cohen became the central musical muse of his life, inspiring and premiering many of his greatest piano and concertante works.
The Left-Hand Concerto: When Harriet Cohen injured her hand in a car accident, temporarily curtailing her concert career, Bax responded with a heartfelt professional gesture. He composed the massive Concertante for Piano (left hand) and Orchestra for her, allowing her to continue performing as a soloist.
👑 The Master of the King’s Musick
Reluctant Honoree: When Bax was offered the post of Master of the King’s Musick in 1942, he was initially reluctant to accept, viewing it as a distraction from composing. However, he accepted the knighthood and the position, viewing it as an honour to the art of music.
Limited Output: Unlike some predecessors, Bax composed very little in his official capacity, often finding the ceremonial demands tedious. He famously stated that the only piece he was asked to compose was a piece for a King’s favourite dog, which he declined to do. His major output as Master was the Coronation March for Queen Elizabeth II in 1953, which he completed just a few months before his death.
Death in Cork: After a lifetime of romanticizing Ireland, Bax passed away in Cork, Ireland, in 1953, the very country that had provided the spiritual inspiration for so much of his work.
🏡 Trivia on Influences
Private Means: Bax was born into a wealthy family, granting him the rare freedom among composers to pursue his creative vision without needing to teach or conduct for income. This allowed him to remain outside musical fashion and pursue his individual, late-Romantic style.
The Sibelius Connection: His admiration for the Finnish composer was immense. He not only dedicated his Symphony No. 5 to Jean Sibelius, but he consciously absorbed some of the Finnish master’s structural compactness and brooding, northern landscape quality into his later symphonies.
(The writing of this article was assisted and carried out by Gemini, a Google Large Language Model (LLM). And it is only a reference document for discovering music that you do not yet know. The content of this article is not guaranteed to be completely accurate. Please verify the information with reliable sources.)