George Rush: A First Set of Sonatas for the Guittar
George Rush’s A First Set of Sonatas for the Guittar (c.1764) is dedicated to Lady Caroline Stanhope (11 March 1747 – 9 February 1767), who had recently returned from “Foreign Countries”. The daughter of William Stanhope, second Earl of Harrington, and the somewhat notorious Caroline Fitzroy, eldest daughter of Charles Fitzroy, second duke of Grafton, Lady Caroline Stanhope married Kenneth Mackenzie, First Earl of Seaforth. Shortly after giving birth to a daughter, also Lady Caroline, she died from lead poisoning caused by white lead in the makeup used to whiten the skin. This would also cause the death of her contemporary Maria Gunning, the famous Lady Coventry. Also like Lady Coventry, at least one country dance was written for her, “Lady Caroline Stanhope’s Birthday”, first published in 1759, when she was 12.
George Rush traveled to Italy sometime before 1764, and, according to Charles Dibdin, returned with “a knowledge of the taste of that country [Italy] but wanting the judgment to adapt that taste to English ears, or rather to English hearts.” In fact, his early operas did not win favor with the public. Dibdin was not alone in seeing Rush’s music in a negative light for he was also the subject of pointed satire, as witnessed in P. C. Roscoe’s brief 1946 biography in The Musical Times, republished online by JSTOR. The Grove entry on Rush takes a more positive few of his works. Rush was, in fact, well known in London during his life, and was commissioned to compose instrumental music for public as well as private performance. His music was also popular in The Hague.
Stylistically, his guittar sonatas look forward rather than back, having a Mozartian rather than Handelian flavor. Charming in nature, as befits the Galant aesthetic, and using a variety of textures, they display the Justness, Discernment and Elegance of Taste for which he commends Lady Caroline Stanhope in his dedication.
George Rush’s A First Set of Sonatas for the Guittar (c.1764) is dedicated to Lady Caroline Stanhope (11 March 1747 – 9 February 1767), who had recently returned from “Foreign Countries”. The daughter of William Stanhope, second Earl of Harrington, and the somewhat notorious Caroline Fitzroy, eldest daughter of Charles Fitzroy, second duke of Grafton, Lady Caroline Stanhope married Kenneth Mackenzie, First Earl of Seaforth. Shortly after giving birth to a daughter, also Lady Caroline, she died from lead poisoning caused by white lead in the makeup used to whiten the skin. This would also cause the death of her contemporary Maria Gunning, the famous Lady Coventry. Also like Lady Coventry, at least one country dance was written for her, “Lady Caroline Stanhope’s Birthday”, first published in 1759, when she was 12.
George Rush traveled to Italy sometime before 1764, and, according to Charles Dibdin, returned with “a knowledge of the taste of that country [Italy] but wanting the judgment to adapt that taste to English ears, or rather to English hearts.” In fact, his early operas did not win favor with the public. Dibdin was not alone in seeing Rush’s music in a negative light for he was also the subject of pointed satire, as witnessed in P. C. Roscoe’s brief 1946 biography in The Musical Times, republished online by JSTOR. The Grove entry on Rush takes a more positive few of his works. Rush was, in fact, well known in London during his life, and was commissioned to compose instrumental music for public as well as private performance. His music was also popular in The Hague.
Stylistically, his guittar sonatas look forward rather than back, having a Mozartian rather than Handelian flavor. Charming in nature, as befits the Galant aesthetic, and using a variety of textures, they display the Justness, Discernment and Elegance of Taste for which he commends Lady Caroline Stanhope in his dedication.
George Rush’s A First Set of Sonatas for the Guittar (c.1764) is dedicated to Lady Caroline Stanhope (11 March 1747 – 9 February 1767), who had recently returned from “Foreign Countries”. The daughter of William Stanhope, second Earl of Harrington, and the somewhat notorious Caroline Fitzroy, eldest daughter of Charles Fitzroy, second duke of Grafton, Lady Caroline Stanhope married Kenneth Mackenzie, First Earl of Seaforth. Shortly after giving birth to a daughter, also Lady Caroline, she died from lead poisoning caused by white lead in the makeup used to whiten the skin. This would also cause the death of her contemporary Maria Gunning, the famous Lady Coventry. Also like Lady Coventry, at least one country dance was written for her, “Lady Caroline Stanhope’s Birthday”, first published in 1759, when she was 12.
George Rush traveled to Italy sometime before 1764, and, according to Charles Dibdin, returned with “a knowledge of the taste of that country [Italy] but wanting the judgment to adapt that taste to English ears, or rather to English hearts.” In fact, his early operas did not win favor with the public. Dibdin was not alone in seeing Rush’s music in a negative light for he was also the subject of pointed satire, as witnessed in P. C. Roscoe’s brief 1946 biography in The Musical Times, republished online by JSTOR. The Grove entry on Rush takes a more positive few of his works. Rush was, in fact, well known in London during his life, and was commissioned to compose instrumental music for public as well as private performance. His music was also popular in The Hague.
Stylistically, his guittar sonatas look forward rather than back, having a Mozartian rather than Handelian flavor. Charming in nature, as befits the Galant aesthetic, and using a variety of textures, they display the Justness, Discernment and Elegance of Taste for which he commends Lady Caroline Stanhope in his dedication.