Arnold, Sir Malcolm (Henry)
Arnold, Sir Malcolm (Henry)
Arnold, Sir Malcolm (Henry), prolific and versatile English composer; b. Northampton, Oct. 21, 1921. He studied trumpet with Ernest Hall and composition with Gordon Jacob at the Royal Coll. of Music in London (1938–41). He played trumpet in the London Phil. (1941–42), serving as its 1st trumpeter (1946–48), and also played trumpet in the BBC Sym. Orch. in London (1945). He then devoted himself chiefly to composition, developing a melodious and harmonious style of writing that possessed the quality of immediate appeal to the general public while avoiding obvious banality; many of his works reveal modalities common to English folk songs, often invested in acridly pleasing harmonies. His experience as a trumpeter and conductor of popular concerts provided a secure feeling for propulsive rhythms and brilliant sonorities. He had a particular knack for composing effective film music. In his sound track for The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957), he popularized the rollicking march Colonel Bogey, originally composed by Kenneth Alford in 1914. In 1970 Arnold was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire, and in 1993 he was knighted. He also received several honorary doctorates, was made a Fellow of the Royal Coll. of Music in 1983, and was named an Honorary Fellow of the Royal N. Coll. of Music in Manchester in 1997.
Works
DRAMATIC: opera:The Dancing Master (1951); The Open Window (London, Dec. 14, 1956). Ballet: Homage to the Queen (London, June 2, 1953); Rinaldo and Armida (1954); Solitaire (1956); Sweeney Todd (1958); Electra (1963). Other Stageworks: Song of Simeon, nativity play (1958); The Turtle Drum, children’s spectacle (1967). Film: Over 80 scores, including: The Captain’s Paradise (1953); I Am a Camera (1955); Trapeze (1956); Island in the Sun (1957); The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957); Inn of the Sixth Happiness (1958); Roots of Heaven (1958); Nine Hours to Rama (1962); The Chalk Garden (1963); David Copperfield (1969). ORCH Sym. for Strings (1946); 9 numbered syms.: No. 1 (Cheltenham, July 6, 1951), No. 2 (Bournemouth, May 25, 1953), No. 3 (1954–57; London, Dec. 2, 1957), No. 4 (London, Nov. 2, 1960), No. 5 (Cheltenham, 1961), No. 6 (1967; Sheffield, June 28, 1968), No. 7 (1973; London, May 1974), No. 8 (N.Y., May 5, 1979), and No. 9 (1987); solo concertos: 2 for Horn (1945, 1956); 2 for Clarinet (1948, 1974); 1 for Piano Duet (1951); 1 for Oboe (1952); 2 for Flute (1954, 1972);1 for Harmonica (London, Aug. 14, 1954); 1 for Organ (1954); 1 for Guitar (1958); 1 for 2 Violins (1962); 1 for 2 Pianos, 3–Hands (1969); 1 for Viola (1970); 1 for Trumpet (1981); 1 for Recorder (1988); 1 for Cello (London, March 9, 1989); 1 for Saxophone (1996); 10 overtures: Beckus the Dandipratt (1943); Festival Overture (1946); The Smoke (1948); A Sussex Overture (1951); Tarn O’Shanter (1955); A Grand, Grand Overture for 3 Vacuum Cleaners, 1 Floor Polisher, 4 Rifles, and Orch. (London, Nov. 13, 1956); Commonwealth Christmas Overture (1957); Peterloo (1968); Anniversary Overture (1968); The Fair Field (1972); Larch Trees, tone poem (1943); Serenade for Small Orch. (1950); 8 English Dances in 2 sets (1950–51); The Sound Barrier, rhapsody (1952); 3 sinfoniet–tas (1954, 1958, 1964); 2 Little Suites (1955, 1962); Serenade for Guitar and Strings (1955); 4 Scottish Dances (1957); 4 Cornish Dances (1966); Concerto for 28 Players (1970); Fantasy for Audience and Orch. (1970); A Flourish (1973); Fantasy for Brass Band (1974); Philharmonic Concerto (1977); Sym. for Brass Instruments (1979); Irish Dances (1986); Welsh Dances (1988); Theme and Variations: Fantasy for Recorder and Strings (1990; also for Recorder and String Quartet). CHAMBER: Trio for Flute, Viola, and Bassoon (1943); 3 Shanties for Wind Quintet (1944); Duo for Flute and Viola (1945); 2 violin sonatas (1947, 1953); Viola Sonata (1947); Flute Sonatina (1948); 2 string quartets (1949, 1976); Oboe Sonatina (1951); Clarinet Sonatina (1951); Recorder Sonatina (1953); Piano Trio (1955); Oboe Quartet (1957); Toy Symphony for 12 Toy Instruments, Piano, and String Quartet (1957); 2 brass quintets (1961, 1988); 5 pieces for Violin and Piano (1965); Trevelyan Suite for Wind Instruments (1968); Wind Octet (1988); piano pieces. VOCAL: Choral pieces; songs.
Bibliography
A. Poulton, M. A.: A Catalogue of His Music (London, 1986); H. Cole, M. A.: An Introduction to His Music (London and Boston, 1989); P. Burton-Page, Philharmonic Concerto: The Life and Music of Sir M. A. (London, 1994); S. Craggs, M. A.: A Bio-Bibliography (Westport, Conn., 1998).
—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire