On page 67 of Fairest Isle, a BBC publication to mark the 300th anniversary of the death of Henry Purcell in 1695, is a photograph which, in my view, all Bournemouth councillors should reflect on.
The photograph shows, among others, Sir Edward Elgar, Sir Dan Godfrey, and Sir Hubert Parry at the Bournemouth Centenary Festival in 1910.
After the death of Henry Purcell, and until the early works of Edward Elgar, this country was described, perhaps a little unfairly, as: “Das land ohne music” (the land without music).
Sir Dan Godfrey, who founded what became the internationally famed Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, played a very significant role in promoting English music, not least in Bournemouth.
How ironic, therefore, that 100 years after the 1910 centenary celebrations the present Bourne-mouth council seems to have washed its hands of using the 2010 celebrations to mark the part the town played in promoting English music, or indeed any sense of what other tradition Bournemouth once encapsulated.
Das land ohne music? Perhaps not – but “das stadt ohne music” (the town without music) – perhaps yes!
Gordon Cann, Craigmoor Avenue, Bournemouth
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