Peter Warlock 1894 - 1930

Peter Warlock creative pseudonym for Philip Heseltine * Early interest in music at school further stimulated by meeting Delius in France in 1910 * Became lifelong champion of Delius's music and produced many piano arrangements * Other musical influences included Roger Quilter and Bernard van Dieren * Conscientious objector during war years, when he enjoyed a brief friendship with DH Lawrence * In 1918 returned to London and studied early music and English poetry * Full flowering of creativity in 1920s when most of his 200 songs were composed * Psychological split between light and dark personae of Heseltine and Warlock grew increasingly apparent * Died from gas poisoning in 1930, with an open verdict recorded * Music shows craftsmanship and versatility, ranging from pastoral love songs to raucous drinking ditties * Work as writer and editor included new performing versions of Elizabethan and Jacobean music, and authoritative study of Delius (1923)

Works by Peter Warlock include:
Benedicamus Domino (1918) for mixed choir
Sociable Songs (1924-28) for baritone and male chorus
The Countryman (1926) for voice and piano, or unison chorus and keyboard
Bethlehem Down (1927) for mixed choir, or voice and organ

"...the chordal chromaticism of Delius, the contrapuntal lines of Bernard van Dieren, the graceful melodies of the Elizabethan lutenists, and the pungency of Bartók." — The Independent