Henry, Leigh Vaughan
Henry, Leigh Vaughan
Henry, Leigh Vaughan, English conductor, writer on music, and composer; b. Liverpool, Sept. 23, 1889; d. London, March 8, 1958. He received his earliest training from his father, John Henry, a singer and composer, then studied with Bantock in London, Vines in France, and Buonamici in Italy. He taught music at Gordon Craig’s Theatrical School in Florence (1912), then was in Germany, where he was interned during World War I. Returning to England, he ed. a modern-music journal, Fanfare (1921–22). He also was active in various organizations promoting modern music. He was music director of the Shakespeare Festival Week in London in 1938, 1945, and 1946, and organized and conducted orch. concerts of British music, and the National Welsh Festival Concerts. He also conducted at the BBC. Among his compositions were The Moon Robber, opera, Llyn-y-Fan, symphonic poem, and various pieces on Welsh themes.
Writings
Music: What It Means and How to Understand It (1920); The Growth of Music in Form and Significance (1921); The Story of Music (1935); Or. John Bull (largely fictional; London, 1937); with R. Hale, My Surging World, autobiography (1937).
—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire