This terms Musician of the Term is Ethel Smyth (born in 1858 and died in 1944).
Who was she?
Ethel Smyth’s music consisted of masterpieces for the violin, horn and orchestra and her opera ‘The Wreckers’ was considered the most important English opera of the time. However, it was not until her 75th birthday in 1934, that her work was celebrated at the Royal Albert Hall in front of the Queen. Heartbreakingly, at this moment of long-overdue recognition, Smyth was completely deaf could hear neither her own music, nor the cheering of the crowds.
Interesting Facts!
- Ethel Smyth was caught throwing a brick through a politician’s window during the Suffragette movement, resulting in her being put in Holloway prison for two months.
- While she was there, she was seen leaning through the bars, conducting her March of the Women with a toothbrush to the inmates!
- As well as being a musician, Smyth was also a suffragette who devoted herself to the cause for women’s rights for two years, giving up her music in order to focus on it completely.
- Ethel Smyth enjoyed tennis, golf and riding bikes which was seen as very ‘unladylike’ back then.
Famous Songs:
- Variations on an Original Theme (Of an Exceedingly Dismal Nature) in D flat
- String Quintet in E, Op. 1
- Serenade in D
- Mass in D
- The Wreckers
- March of the Women
- The Boatswain’s Mate
- Concerto for Violin and Orchestra
Watch the videos linked below to listen to some of Ethel Smyth’s famous music pieces and find out more about who she was.
