Robert Lucas de Pearsall

Background

Robert Lucas de Pearsall was born on the 14th of March 1795, at Clifton, England.

Education

Educated for the bar, he practised till 1825, when he left England for Germany and studied composition under Panny of Mainz.

Career

With the exception of three comparatively short visits to England, during one of which he made the acquaintance of the English school of madrigals, he lived abroad, selling his family property of Willsbridge and settling in the castle of Wartensee, on the lake of Constance.

He wrote many works, nearly all of them for voices - in combination: from his part songs, such as "Oh, who will o'er the downs ?" to his elaborate and scholarly madrigals, such as the admirable eight-part compositions, "Great God of Love" and "Lay a Garland, " or the beautiful "Light of my Soul. "

His reception into the Roman Church in his later years may have suggested the composition of some beautiful sacred music, among other things a fine "Salve Regina. "

He died on the 5th of August 1856.

Achievements

• He produced many works of lasting beauty and wrote many valuable treatises on music, and edited a Roman Catholic hymn-book.

Works

• book

  • Lay a Garland. A Madrigal for eight voices. Words from Beaumont and Fletcher (Novello's Tonic Sol-fa series. No. 169. 1883.)
  • Sir Patrick Spens. A Ballad Dialogue in ten real parts (Novello's Tonic Sol-fa series. No. 109. 1880.)
  • When Allen-a-Dale. Glee, etc (Novello's Tonic Sol-fa Series. No. 269. 1885.)
  • O who will o'er the downs. - Hickenstein sic's Song. - Part-song. (Novello's Tonic Sol-fa series, No. 7. 1886.)
  • The Bishop of Mentz. A four-part Song (Novello's Tonic Sol-fa Series. No. 302. 1885.)
  • Tantum ergo, a (Répertoire. Répertoire de musique d'église, etc. No. 46. 1860?)
  • Light of my Soul. Madrigal for six voices. Words from Bulwer's " Siege of Granada " (Novello's Tonic Sol-fa series. No. 166. 1883.)
  • The Hardy Norseman's House, of Yore, etc (Novello's Tonic Sol-fa Series. No. 307. 1885.)
  • Ave Verum Corpus. Hymnus. Op. 8 (Répertoire. Répertoire de musique d'église, etc. No. 45. 1860?)
  • The Red Wine flows, etc (Novello's Part-Song Book. Second Series. Vol.x. No. 308. 1869, etc.)

Connections

Pearsall married Harriet Eliza Hobday in 1817. The couple had four children — two boys.

Wife:

Harriet Eliza Hobday