Sir W.S. Gilbert | British playwright | Britannica.com British playwright Alternative Title: Sir William Schwenck Gilbert Sir W.S. Gilbert William Congreve Sir W.S. Gilbert, in full Sir William Schwenck Gilbert (born November 18, 1836, London , England —died May 29, 1911, Harrow Weald, Middlesex , England), English playwright and humorist best known for his collaboration with Sir Arthur Sullivan in comic operas. Gilbert began to write in an age of rhymed couplets, puns , and travesty ; his early work exhibits the facetiousness common to writers of extravaganza . But he turned away from this style and developed a genuinely artful style burlesquing contemporary behaviour. Many of his original targets are no longer topical—Pre-Raphaelite aesthetes in Patience; women’s education (Princess Ida); Victorian plays about Cornish pirates ( The Pirates of Penzance ); the long theatrical vogue of the “jolly jack tar” (H.M.S.

Pinafore); bombastic melodrama (Ruddigore)—but Gilbert’s burlesque is so good that it creates its own truth. As a librettist, Gilbert is outstanding not only because of his gift for handling words and casting them in musical shapes but also because through his words he offered the composer opportunities for burlesquing musical conventions. Gilbert’s early ambition was for a legal career, and a legacy in 1861 enabled him to leave the civil service to pursue it. He was called to the bar in November 1863. In 1861, however, he had begun to contribute comic verse to Fun, illustrated by himself and signed “Bab.” These pieces were later collected as The Bab Ballads (1869), followed by More Bab Ballads (1873); the two collections, containing the germ of many of the later operas, were united in a volume with Songs of a Savoyard (1898). Gilbert’s dramatic career began when a playwright, Thomas William Robertson , recommended him as someone who could produce a bright Christmas piece in only two weeks.

Gilbert promptly wrote Dulcamara; or, The Little Duck and the Great Quack, a commercial success, and other commissions followed. The character of Nanki-Poo is pictured on a poster advertising Gilbert and Sullivan’s … Theatrical Poster Collection/Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. (Digital file no. var 1766) In 1870 Gilbert met Sullivan, and they started working together the following year. Thespis; or, The Gods Grown Old (first performance 1871) and Trial by Jury (1875), a brilliant one-act piece, were followed by four productions staged by Richard D’Oyly Carte : The Sorcerer (1877), H.M.S. Pinafore (1878), The Pirates of Penzance (1879, New York; 1880, London), and Patience; or, Bunthorne’s Bride (1881).

Carte built the Savoy Theatre in 1881 for productions of the partners’ work, and their works collectively became known as the “Savoy Operas”; they included Iolanthe; or, The Peer and the Peri (1882), Princess Ida; or, Castle Adamant (1884), The Mikado; or, The Town of Titipu (1885), Ruddigore; or, The Witch’s Curse (1887), The Yeomen of the Guard (1888), and The Gondoliers (1889). By this time, however, relations between the partners had become strained, partly because Sullivan aimed higher than comic opera and because Gilbert was plagued by a jealous and petty nature when it came to financial matters. A rupture occurred, and the two were estranged until 1893, when they again collaborated , producing Utopia Limited and later The Grand Duke (1896).

Britannica Stories WS Gilbert: a theatrical knight suited to the modern day - Telegraph Opera WS Gilbert: a theatrical knight suited to the modern day A century after his death, there is still an amazing amount to appreciate about WS Gilbert, of Gilbert and Sullivan fame. W.S Gilbert who wrote the librettos of Sir Arthur Sullivan's light operas Photo: ALAMY By Raymond Gubbay 1:51PM BST 28 May 2011 One hundred years ago this weekend, WS Gilbert died from a heart attack while going to the aid of two young ladies who had got into difficulties swimming in the lake at his house. At least, that has always been the official version – but knowing Gilbert’s fondness for young ladies, I cannot help wondering if there was more to it. The story is all the more impressive because Gilbert was 75 at the time, an icon of the British establishment and the first writer ever to receive a knighthood for his plays alone. Yet his success, and that of his partner Arthur Sullivan, had come about almost by chance. By the 1860s, Gilbert was a barrister with few briefs, and a lot of time for writing.

He produced operatic burlesques and plays, achieving a degree of success with his grasp of the absurd and his ability to turn plots on their heads. In 1871, the producer, John Hollingshead, engaged him to write a piece called Thespis, with music by a fashionable young composer, Arthur Sullivan, which ran over the Christmas season. There, the story might have ended, with Gilbert all but forgotten as a minor playwright of the mid-Victorian era, and Sullivan as the composer of long-lost oratorios, the rousing hymn Onward Christian Soldiers, and one or two rather jolly incidental pieces. However, a producer called Richard D’Oyly Carte had been asked to put on Offenbach’s La Perichole and, as was the custom, needed a curtain-raiser. Remembering Thespis, he invited Gilbert and Sullivan to write something. The result, knocked off in a few weeks, was Trial By Jury, a charming if improbable courtroom tale, with the classic line in the Judge’s song: “You’ll soon get used to her looks, said he, and a very nice girl you’ll find her.

She may very well pass for 43, in the dusk with the light behind her”. D’Oyly Carte realised that he had found a rather special talent and raised the money for a full-length work, The Sorcerer. It proved only moderately successful, but Carte persevered with another piece, HMS Pinafore. So successful was it that WH Smith – the founder of the eponymous chain, and model for Sir Joseph Porter, “the Ruler of the Queen’s Navee” who has never been to sea – was soon being referred to even by his fellow Cabinet ministers as “Pinafore Smith”. The secret of Gilbert’s success can be summed up in the quote on his memorial on the Embankment: “His foe was folly and his weapon wit.” For the Victorian audience, Gilbert and Sullivan’s works were ideal, respectable entertainment. Yet running through Gilbert’s libretti is a suggestion of a something else. In Trial by Jury, where the Plaintiff is suing for breach of promise of marriage, her Counsel sings: “To marry two at once is burglaree”. The legal definition of burglary, as a qualified barrister like Gilbert would have known, is “unlawful entry”.

The trio from The Yeomen of the Guard, where the disguised Colonel Fairfax is teaching Jack Point how to woo, includes the lines: “He must learn that the thrill of a touch/ May mean little, or nothing, or much;/ It’s an instrument rare,/ To be handled with care,/ And ought to be treated as such.” I can’t help feeling that, here and elsewhere, Gilbert knew exactly what he was saying. “Where is Mrs Gilbert?” he once asked at the Savoy Theatre . “She’s round behind,” came the reply. “I know,” said Gilbert, “but where is she?” A member of the audience, seeing him standing in the foyer after one performance, mistook the dramatist for a commissionaire and brusquely ordered him to call him a cab. “Certainly,” said Gilbert, “you’re a four-wheeler.” “What!” exclaimed the man. “Well,” said Gilbert, “I certainly wouldn’t call you hansom.” Although he was also responsible for the building of the Garrick Theatre, it was at the Savoy that Gilbert made his theatrical home, forming a kind of ensemble company and directing all his own works with considerable skill.

In the process, he developed innovative ways of staging that were much more akin to modern direction than anything previously seen. However, the relationship with Sullivan himself was never close: Gilbert would write the words and send them off to be set to music. Indeed, Sullivan was always wanting to write more serious music. “You should write a grand opera, Sir Arthur,” said Queen Victoria, “you would do it so well.” The result was Ivanhoe, which opened D’Oyly Carte’s New English Opera at Cambridge Circus (now the Palace Theatre), but is all but forgotten. Gilbert has left a raft of popular terms which have entered our language – “to let the punishment fit the crime”, “a policeman’s lot is not a happy one” and “What, never? Well, hardy ever” are just three random examples. Yet his work passed from fashion surprisingly quickly, largely because the D’Oyly Carte family still controlled his copyright until 1962, and exerted a stranglehold upon how the works could be presented.

After their dead hand was lifted, directors such as Frank Hauser, Tyrone Guthrie and Anthony Besch quickly demonstrated how new ideas could refresh the works – indeed, I cut my own teeth as a promoter with a series of G&S concerts in 1966. The competition also spurred the D’Oyly Carte to improve its image, and there followed a golden age, with performers such as Valerie Masterson, Gillian Knight, Thomas Round, Donald Adams and Kenneth Sandford bringing new life to the company. Its eventual demise in 1982 showed a characteristic snobbery on the part of the Arts Council, which could so easily have used the opportunity to establish a national operetta company with G&S at its core. Yet despite the musical establishment’s sometimes rather disdainful view of Gilbert and Sullivan, there is clearly a bright future for these classics. The Britain and the British that Gilbert had in his sights have not changed much over the years: Private Willis’s reference, in Iolanthe, to politicians being “either a little Liberal or else a little Conservative” still draws guffaws. True, we can only imagine whom Gilbert would add to Ko-Ko’s little list today.

But the success of Ned Sherrin and Alistair Beaton’s wicked adaptations of Iolanthe and The Mikado, featuring portrayals of Mrs Thatcher and a host of her contemporaries, remains one of the highlights of my career. Jonathan Miller’s 25-year-old Mikado is still packing out ENO whenever it is revived, and Opera North’s recent hit production of Ruddigore will be with us well into the future. As Gilbert said in The Yeomen of the Guard, “they don’t blame you so long as you’re funny”. I really do believe they will still be finding him funny a hundred years from now. Raymond Gubbay is a classical music promoter and impresario Sir William Schwenck Gilbert: A Brief Biography Sir William Schwenck Gilbert: A Brief Biography Philip V.

Allingham , Consulting Editor,Victorian Web; Lakehead University, Thunder Bay, Ontario [ Victorian Web Home —> Authors —> Music, Theatre, and Popular Entertainment —> W.S.Gilbert ] Often associated with his musical collaborator, the composer Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan , Sir William Schwenck Gilbert was a dramatist, published poet, and satirist before composing the lyrics for the operettas that have immortalized his name. Born in London on 18 November 1836, the son of a retired naval surgeon, he traveled with his parents throughout Europe, and at the age of two was kidnapped and held for ransom by Italian bandits. Returning with his family (which included three sisters) to London in 1849, he studied first at the Great Ealing School and then at King's College , but decided upon a career in the military as an artillery officer rather than continue studies at Oxford. However, just as he finished his military training the Crimean War ended, and he found employment as a clerk of the Privy Council at the Educational Department (1857 to 1864). An inheritance of ï¿½400 enabled him to study law.

Although called to the bar in 1866, he could not attract enough wealthy clients to succeed financially, and switched to humorous freelance writing, making significant contributions to the magazines Punch and Fun from 1861. In 1869, his various "Bab Ballads" were collected. His first professionally produced play was Uncle Baby, which débuted at the Royal Lyceum Theatre, London, on 31 October 1863, and ran for seven weeks. Other light satirical works for the popular stage include the Christmas pantomime Hush-a-By-Baby (1866) and burlesques Dulcemara, or The Little Duck and The Great Quack (1866) and Pygmalion and Galatea, one of seven new Gilbert plays staged in 1871. The twenty-five-year partnership with Arthur Sullivan actually began in 1871, when the librettist and composer collaborated on Thespis, or The Gods Grown Old, which premiered on 23 December.

They scored their first big hit some four years later with Trial By Jury, which under the able management of Richard D'Oyly Carte débuted at the Royalty Theatre, London, on 25 March 1875, originally conceived of as a companion piece for Jacque Offenbach's comic opera La Perichole. The story is apocryphally told of how the death of Gilbert's composer necessitated the hiring of another, and so D'Oyly arranged for the pair to meet; two weeks later the operetta was ready for rehearsal (in fact, they first met in the autumn of 1870 and produced Palace of Truth together that November). Their next three works -- The Sorcerer (1877), H. M. S. Pinafore (1878), and The Pirates Penzance (1879)--were performed at the Opéra Comique. However, in 1881 their manager built the new Savoy Theatre especially for G & S productions. Of eleven dramatic works which Gilbert wrote during the 1880s, seven were scored by Sullivan.

The quarrel that eventually destroyed the nineteenth-century theatre's most effective partnership began when Gilbert voiced his concern about the excessive cost of the carpets for the new playhouse. The rift continued unabated until 1893, after which they collaborated on only two significant works: Utopia, Limited (7 October 1893) and The Grand Duke (7 March 1896). After Sullivan's death on 22 November 1900, Gilbert teamed up with Edward German to produce the less-than-memorable Fallen Fairies (1909), an adaptation of The Wicked World. Knighted by Edward VII in 1907, Gilbert died four years later when, aged 74, he attempted to rescue a drowning woman. Despite the continuing popularity and calibre of his work, Gilbert's verse does not usually appear in anthologies of nineteenth-century British verse, the exception being Lionel Trilling and Harold Bloom's Victorian Prose and Poetry (Oxford, 1973), which features under "Poetry of the Nineties" Bunthorne's song, "The Aesthete," from Patience. References The Best of Gilbert and Sullivan. EMI Classics.

EMI Records, 1987, 2000. Chambers Biographical Dictionary, ed. Una McGovern and Melanie Perry. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap, 2003. The Complete Plays of Gilbert and Sullivan. The Modern Library. New York: Random House, 1936. Crowther, Andrew."The Life of W. S. Gilbert."Gilbert and Sullivan Archive. Gilbert, W. S. The Bab Ballads, ed. James Ellis. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Belknap and Harvard U. P., 1970. Jones, John Bush. W. S. Gilbert: A Century of Scholarship and Commentary. New York: New York U. P., 1970. Terpening, William."Sir William Schwenck Gilbert: A Bibliography ." W. S. Gilbert - Wikiquote W. S. Gilbert Things are seldom what they seem; Skim milk masquerades as cream.

Sir William Schwenck Gilbert ( 18 November 1836 – 29 May 1911 ) was an English dramatist and librettist , poet and illustrator best known for his operatic collaborations with the composer Sir Arthur Sullivan . Contents Quotes[ edit ] A popular speaker, however unpopular and insignificant, has only to wind up his speech with half-a-dozen lines of Shakespeare (and to make it clearly understood that they are Shakespeare's) and he will sit down amid thunders of applause. "Unappreciated Shakespeare", Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News, Christmas Number, 9 December 1882. She may very well pass for forty three In the dusk with the light behind her. But I submit, my lord, with all submission, To marry two at once is Burglaree! Oh! my name is John Wellington Wells, I'm a dealer in magic and spells, In blessings and curses In prophecies, witches, and knells. If you want a proud foe to "make tracks"— If you'd melt a rich uncle in wax— You've but to look in On our resident Djinn, Number seventy, Simmery Axe! Mr Wells' song, Act I.

"Simmery Axe" is the traditional pronunciation of "St. Mary Axe", a road in the City of London. In Gilbert's day, the last building was number 68, though number 70 was built later. Or you or I must yield up his life to Ahrimanes. I would rather it were you. From such a face and form as mine, the noblest sentiments sound like the black utterances of a depraved imagination! It's human nature! I'm resigned. What, never? / No, never! / What, never? / Well, hardly ever! Things are seldom what they seem; Skim milk masquerades as cream. Now landsmen all, whoever you may be, If you want to rise to the top of the tree, If your soul isn't fettered to an office stool, Be careful to be guided by this golden rule— Stick close to your desks and never go to sea, And you all may be Rulers of the Queen's Navee. The first Lord's Song. When your process of extermination begins, let our deaths be as swift and painless as you can conveniently make them. Against our wills, papa—against our wills!

Yes, but you don't go! If you want a receipt for that popular mystery, Known to the world as a Heavy Dragoon - Take all the remarkable people in history, Rattle them off to a popular tune! Art stopped short at the cultivated court of the Empress Josephine. Then a sentimental passion of a vegetable fashion must excite your languid spleen, An attachment à la Plato for a bashful young potato, or a not-too-French French bean! Though the Philistines may jostle, you will rank as an apostle in the high aesthetic band, If you walk down Piccadilly with a poppy or a lily in your medieval hand. Act I Yes, I am the Apostle of Simplicity. I am called Archibald the All-Right, for I am infallible. Archibald: To understand this, it is not necessary to think of anything at all. Saphir: Let us think of nothing at all! I know what love is. There was a happy time when I didn't, but bitter experience has taught me.

A pallid and thin young man, A haggard and lank young man, A greenery-yallery, Grosvenor Gallery, I can tell a woman's age in half a minute — and I do! ...Darwinian Man, though well-behav’d, At best is only a monkey shav’d! Man is nature's sole mistake. The Mikado (1885)[ edit ] I am, in point of fact, a particularly haughty and exclusive person, of pre-Adamite ancestral descent. You will understand this when I tell you that I can trace my ancestry back to a protoplasmal primordial atomic globule. Consequently, my family pride is something inconceivable. I can’t help it. I was born sneering . No money, no grovel! (Actually an ad-lib introduced by Rutland Barrington when playing the rôle of Pooh-Bah, to the annoyance of Gilbert.) …in the first place, self decapitation is an extremely difficult, not to say dangerous, thing to attempt; and, in the second, it’s suicide, and suicide is a capital offence.

Pooh Bah: This professional conscientiousness is highly creditable to you, but it places us in a very awkward position. Koko: My good sir, the awkwardness of your position is grace itself compared with that of a man engaged in the act of cutting off his own head. To sit in solemn silence in a dull, dark dock, In a pestilential prison, with a life-long lock, Awaiting the sensation of a short, sharp shock, From a cheap and chippy chopper on a big black block! [Koko is negotiating the terms by which he can behead Nanki-Poo in his place, and they involve letting the latter be married to his fiance until he is executed] Koko: But my position during the next month will be most unpleasant, most unpleasant! Nanki-Poo: Not nearly so unpleasant as mine at the end of it. I have a left shoulder-blade that is a miracle of loveliness. People come miles to see it. My right elbow has a fascination that few can resist. Merely corroborative detail, intended to give artistic verisimilitude to an otherwise bald and unconvincing narrative.

...but it's an unjust world, and virtue is triumphant only in theatrical performances. The idiot who praises, with enthusiastic tone, All centuries but this and every country but his own. As someday it may happen that a victim must be found I've got a little list, I've got a little list Of society offenders who might well be underground, And who never would be missed—who never would be missed! Song, "As someday it may happen". My object all sublime I shall achieve in time— To let the punishment fit the crime, The punishment fit the crime. I know a youth who loves a little maid— (Hey, but his face is a sight for to see!) Silent is he, for he's modest and afraid (Hey, but he's timid as a youth can be!) Some word that teems with hidden meaning, like "Basingstoke". It might recall me to my saner self. For, after all, I am only Mad Margaret! Daft Meg! Poor Meg! He! he! he!

My eyes are fully open to my awful situation I shall go at once to Roderic and make him an oration, I shall tell him I've recovered my forgotten moral senses And I don't care tuppence ha'penny for any consequences. Now I do not want to perish by the sword or by the dagger, But a martyr may indulge a little pardonable swagger, And a word or two of compliment my vanity would flatter, But I've got to die to-morrow so it really doesn't matter! When maiden loves, she sits and sighs, She wanders to and fro - Unbidden tear-drops fill her eyes, And to all questions she replies With a sad "heigh ho!" Heigh-dy! Heigh-dy! He sipped no sup, and he craved no crumb, As he sighed for the love of a ladye! I've jibe and joke, If so it must befall That death when e're he call Must call too soon. I should have preferred to ride through the streets of Venice; but owing, I presume, to an unusually wet season, the streets are in such a condition that equestrian exercise is impractical.

In enterprise of martial kind, When there was any fighting, He led his regiment from behind— He found it less exciting. One of you may be Baptisto's son, for anything I know to the contrary; but the other is no less a personage than the only son of the late King of Barataria. ... And I trust — I trust it was that one who slapped me on the shoulder and called me his man! Of that there is no manner of doubt— No probable, possible shadow of doubt— No possible doubt whatever. Of the troubles of a King, But of pleasures there are many and of worries there are none; And the culminating pleasure That we treasure beyond measure Is the gratifying feeling that our duty has been done. When everyone is somebody, then no one's anybody. There's a little group of isles beyond the wave, So tiny you might almost wonder where it is— That nation is the bravest of the brave, And cowards are the rarest of all rarities. The proudest nations kneel at her command, She terrifies all foreign-born rap-scallions; And holds the peace of Europe in her hand With half a score invincible battalions. Final chorus.

By doing so, we shall, in course of time, Regenerate completely our entire land— Great Britain is that monarchy sublime, To which some add (but others do not) Ireland. Final chorus, concluding lines. Oh, I am a cook and a captain bold And the mate of the Nancy brig, And a bo'sun tight and a midshipmite And the crew of the captain's gig. The Yarn of the "Nancy Bell". Compare: There were three sailors of Bristol city Who took a boat and went to sea. But first with beef and captain's biscuits And pickled pork they loaded she. There was gorging Jack and guzzling Jimmy, And the youngest he was little Billee. Now when they got as far as the Equator They'd nothing left but one split pea. W. M. Thackeray: Little Billee. Roll on, thou ball, roll on Through pathless realms of space, Roll on! It's true I've got no shirts to wear, It's true my butcher's bill is due, It's true my prospects all look blue, But don't let that unsettle you! Never you mind!

Though "Bother it" I may Occasionally say, I never use a big, big D- The first Lord's Song. The Law is the true embodiment Of everything that's excellent. It has no kind of fault or flaw, And I, my Lords, embody the Law. The Lord Chancellor's Song. On a tree by a river a little tomtit Sang "Willow, titwillow, titwillow" And I said to him, "Dicky-bird, why do you sit Singing ‘Willow, titwillow, titwillow?'. "Is it weakness of intellect, birdie?" I cried, "Or a rather tough worm in your little inside?" With a shake of his poor little head he replied, "Oh, Willow, titwillow, titwillow!" Life's a pudding full of plums; Care's a canker that benumbs, Wherefore waste our elocution William Schwenck Gilbert | Biography & History | AllMusic William Schwenck Gilbert Biography by Bruce Eder One of the more successful dramatists of his era, W.S. Gilbert is best remembered for his collaborations with composer Sir Arthur Sullivan.

Born in London in 1836, William Schwenck Gilbert was the only… google+ Artist Biography by Bruce Eder One of the more successful dramatists of his era, W.S. Gilbert is best remembered for his collaborations with composer Sir Arthur Sullivan . Born in London in 1836, William Schwenck Gilbert was the only son of William Gilbert, a retired naval surgeon. He tried working in the civil service and as a lawyer, but failed, and instead contributed as a sketch artist and writer to the journal Fun, where he published a body of humorous verse later known as The Bab Ballads. In the 1860s, Gilbert found success on stage with the satirical works Dulcamara, Hush-a-Bye-Baby, and The Pretty Druidess. He soon became better versed in theater so he was able to direct his own productions, and he authored seven successful plays in the 1870s, earning a reputation as one of the top satiric voices in theater and was known for his piercing caricatures of political figures. It was also during this decade that he crossed paths professionally with Sullivan , a composer who was rapidly building a good reputation of his own.

Beginning with Thespis (1871) and adding considerable momentum with Trial By Jury (1873), they started seeing joint success with their operettas, though neither was inclined to keep the partnership together for any but monetary reasons and neither appreciated the artistic association -- Richard D'Oyly Carte, the theater manager, held their relationship together for more than two decades. The most popular of their works, including H.M.S. Pinafore (1878), The Pirates of Penzance (1879), Iolanthe (1882), The Mikado (1885), Ruddigore (1887), The Yoeman of the Guard (1888), and The Gondoliers (1889), swept out across England and to the rest of the world, the combination of Sullivan 's musical wit and Gilbert 's edgy satire proving irresistable. The partnership was an uneasy one -- Sullivan resented the relative neglect of his concert music (some of the finest of its time) by the public, while Gilbert came to feel that the attractiveness of Sullivan 's music, for all of its wit, blunted his most piercing satiric barbs.

Their partnership foundered over the production of The Gondoliers, but they reunited for two more operettas, Utopia, Ltd. (1893) and The Grand Duke (1896), neither of which could recapture the magic of their earlier work. Each tried working in operetta with other collaborators but found little of his former success. Gilbert retired to his home at Grim's Dyke in Harrow Weald and was honored with a knighthood in 1907. He died in a swimming accident in 1911. W.S. Gilbert: He was an Englishman | History Today W.S. Gilbert: He was an Englishman Ian Bradley examines the achievements of the surprisingly radical Victorian dramatist and librettist who, in collaboration with the composer Arthur Sullivan, created classic satires of English national identity. W.S. Gilbert, 1878 Jonathan Miller’s dismissive comment in a Sky Arts television documentary about ‘UKIP [the anti-EU UK Independence Party] set to music’ sums up a prevailing feeling about the works of Gilbert and Sullivan that is shared by many academic historians.

David Cannadine writes in similar vein in his book In Churchill’s Shadow (2004) that ‘the Savoy operas were a paean of praise to national pride and to the established order’. W.S. Gilbert, who died a hundred years ago this month on May 29th, 1911, is generally viewed as a crusty Victorian gentleman exhibiting in acute form the typical prejudices of his age and class, notably complacency, misogyny and xenophobia. Want the full article and website archive access? Already a member? Log in now W. S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan sheet music, 1866-1996: Guide. W. S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan sheet music, 1866-1996: Guide. Houghton Library, Harvard College Library Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138 USA © 2011 The President and Fellows of Harvard College Last update on 2015 February 19 Repository: Harvard Theatre Collection, Houghton Library, Harvard College Library, Harvard University Location: Harvard Depository Note: This collection is shelved offsite at the Harvard Depository.

See access restrictions below for additional information. Call No.: MS Thr 725 Title: W. S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan sheet music, Date(s): 1866-1996. Quantity: 1.75 linear feet (7 portfolio boxes) Language of materials: Collection materials are in English. Some material in German, Japanese, and Dutch. Abstract: Printed sheet music of and relating to W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan compositions and productions. 2010MT-11. Gift of Thomas Garrett; received: 2010 October 9. Forms part of the Fredric Woodbridge Wilson Collection of Gilbert and Sullivan (Harvard Theatre Collection). Access Restrictions: There are no restrictions on physical access to this material. This collection is not housed at the Houghton Library but is shelved offsite at the Harvard Depository. Retrieval requires advance notice. Readers should check with Houghton Public Services staff to determine what material is offsite and retrieval policies and times. Arranged into the following series: I. Arrangements IV.

Gilbert and Sullivan related sheet music Items within series and subseries arranged alphabetically by production or composition title unless noted otherwise. Godfrey, Charles, arranger. H.M.S. Pinafore : quadrille : sheet music, undated. Illustrated by Hanhart (Lithographers). 4 copies. Maylath, H. (Heinrich), 1827-1883, arranger. All the music of H.M.S. Pinafore arranged for the pianoforte : sheet music, c.1879. H.M.S. Pinafore (selection from Arthur Sullivan's comic opera) : sheet music, undated. Arranger unknown. Weston, J.P. arranger. Her Majesty's ship Pinafore : sheet music, c.1878. Songs include: He is an Englishman; A maiden fair to see; Fair moon to thee I sing; Little buttercup; Many years ago; Sorry her lot; When I was a lad; Kind captain; Things are seldom what they seem; and I am the monarch of the sea. 2 copies. Blake, Charles D. (Charles Dupee), 1847-1903, arranger.

The lass that loved a sailor : grand potpourri de concert : sheet music, c.1878. 2 copies. Fregatten Jylland : sangspil : sheet music, undated. Arranger unknown. Jost, J.W., arranger. H.M.S Pinafore : sheet music, c.1879. (2)Iolanthe. 3 folders. Includes: Perabo, Ernst, 1845-1920, arranger. Iolanthe : comic opera in two acts. Ten transcriptions for the piano : sheet music, undated. Illustrated by Geo. H. Walker & Co. 2 copies. 1 copyrighted 1887. Royle, Popplewell, arranger. Iola : the new dance "Iolanthe" : sheet music, c.1891. Illustrated by Henderson & Spalding. Bucalossi, P. (Procida), 1832-1918, arranger. The mikado lancers : sheet music, undated. Illustrated by Hanhart (Lithographers). Wallace, Herbert, arranger.

Gems from Gilbert & Sullivan's "Mikado". Arranged for the pianoforte : sheet music, c.1885. Illustrator unknown. Potpourri aus der oper The mikado : sheet music, undated. Arranger and illustrator unknown. Klepsch, Charles, arranger. March - Polka : potpourri and couplet : sheet music, undated. Illustrator unknown. Page, N. Clifford (Nathaniel Clifford), 1866-1956, arranger. For he's going to marry Yum Yum : sheet music, c.1885. Illustrator unknown. In English and Japanese. Translated by Y. Isawa. (4)Patience. 1 folder. Albert, Charles Louis Napoléon d’, 1809-1886, arranger. Patience : quadrille : sheet music, undated. Illustrated by Hanhart (Lithographers). Albert, Charles Louis Napoléon d’, 1809-1886, arranger. Patience : waltz : sheet music, undated. Illustrated by Hanhart (Lithographers).

Albert, Charles Louis Napoléon d’, 1809-1886, arranger. Patience : lancers : sheet music, undated. Illustrator unknown. (5)The pirates of Penzance. 2 folders. Includes: Godfrey, Charles, arranger. The pirates of Penzance : lancers : sheet music, c.1880. Illustrated by Stannard & son. Nordendorf, C.C. de, arranger. Recollection from "The Pirates" : the Stanleys : sheet music, undated. (6)Trial by jury. 1 folder. Includes: Albert, Charles Louis Napoléon d’, 1809-1886, arranger. Trial by jury : lancers : sheet music, undated. Illustrated by T.W. Lee. Kinkee, F.R., arranger. Utopia limited : sheet music, undated. Illustrated by Hanhart (Lithographers). (8)The yeomen of the guard (Capitän Wilson). 1 folder.

Includes: Léon, Victor, 1858-1940, arranger and Karl Lindau, 1853-1934, arranger. Lied vom papagei und staarmatz : sheet music, undated. Illustrator unknown. Léon, Victor, 1858-1940, arranger and Karl Lindau, 1853-1934, arranger. Marschlied : sheet music, undated. Illustrator unknown. In German. Léon, Victor, 1858-1940, arranger and Karl Lindau, 1853-1934, arranger. Sah ein röslein spriessen : lied : sheet music, undated. Illustrator unknown. Léon, Victor, 1858-1940, arranger and Karl Lindau, 1853-1934, arranger. Lied des Wilson : sheet music, undated. Illustrator unknown.

Léon, Victor, 1858-1940, arranger and Karl Lindau, 1853-1934, arranger. Lied der Mary : sheet music, undated. Illustrator unknown. Léon, Victor, 1858-1940, arranger and Karl Lindau, 1853-1934, arranger. Lied der Elsie : sheet music, undated. Illustrator unknown. Arrangement: Items (14) and (21) arranged alphabetically by subject. (9)The gondoliers. 2 folders. Bucalossi, P. (Procida), 1832-1918, arranger. The gondoliers lancers : sheet music, undated. Kuhe, Wilhelm, 1823-1912, arranger. The gondoliers : fantasia : sheet music, undated. Lodge, Petrina, arranger. The gondoliers : overture : sheet music, c.1996. (10)H.M.S. Pinafore. 5 folders.

Pridham, John, arranger. H.M.S. Pinafore : singing quadrille : sheet music, undated. 3 copies. Godfrey, Charles, arranger. H.M.S. Pinafore : quadrille [duet] : sheet music, undated. 4 copies. Godfrey, Charles, arranger. H.M.S. Pinafore : quadrille : sheet music, undated. 2 copies. Godfrey, Charles, arranger. H.M.S. Pinafore : waltz : sheet music, undated. 2 copies. Godfrey, Charles, arranger. H.M.S. Pinafore : galop : sheet music, undated. 4 copies. Coote, Charles, arranger. H.M.S. Pinafore : lancers : sheet music, undated. Fuller, Charles A., arranger. H.M.S. Pinafore lancers : sheet music, c.1879. Farmer, Henry, 1819-1891, arranger. H.M.S. Pinafore : selection : sheet music, undated. Coote, Charles, arranger. Selection from the nautical comic opera H.M.S.

Pinafore : sheet music, undated. 5 copies. Röckel, Joseph Leopold, 1838-1923, arranger. H.M.S. Pinafore : transcription : sheet music, undated. Published under the name Edouard Dorn. Sousa, John Philip, 1854-1932, arranger. H.M.S. Pinafore (selection from Arthur Sullivan's comic opera) : sheet music, c.1879. Part of Stoddart's musical library. Instrumental & vocal for piano & organ selected by Sep. Winner. McNaught, William Gray, 1849-1918, arranger. H.M.S. Pinafore school edition : sheet music, undated. 2 copies. Winterbottom, W., arranger. Selection : Iolanthe : sheet music, undated. Milford, H., arranger. Iolanthe lancers : sheet music, c.1883. Godfrey, Charles, arranger. Iolanthe : selection : sheet music, undated.

Clarke, Hamilton, 1840-1912, arranger. Fantasia on airs from Sullivan's "Iolanthe" : sheet music, undated. Part of The flute players journal. (12)The mikado. 2 folders. Winterbottom,W., arranger. Mikado : sheet music, undated. 3 copies. 1 copy missing cover. Macy, James Cartwright, 1845-1918, arranger. Mikado : selections : sheet music, c.1885. 2 copies. Bucalossi, P. (Procida), 1832-1918, arranger. The mikado : waltz : sheet music, undated. Bucalossi, P. (Procida), 1832-1918, arranger. The mikado quadrilles : sheet music, undated. Bailey, Eben H. (Eben Howe), 1843-1943, arranger. Mikado lancers quadrille : sheet music, c.1885. (13)Patience. 2 folders.

Includes: Godfrey, Fred, 1880-1953, arranger. Selection from Arthur Sullivan's opera "Patience" or Bunthoren's bride : sheet music, undated. 2 copies. Binding, E., arranger. Winterbottom's fantasia from A. Sullivan's opera Patience : sheet music, undated. 11 copies. (14)Piano arrangements. 1 folder. Includes: Lanning, Jerry, arranger. The Gilbert & Sullivan selection : favourite melodies from the Savoy operas arranged for easy piano : sheet music, c.1994. Bucalossi, P. (Procida), 1832-1918, arranger and Chris S. Langdon, arranger. Eight valses from famous Gilbert and Sullivan operas : sheet music, undated. (15)The pirates of Penzance. 2 folders. Includes: Hiller, J. Sabastian (John Sabastian), arranger. Selection - "The pirates of Penzance" : sheet music, undated. 2 copies. Godfrey, Fred, 1880-1953, arranger.

The pirates of Penzance : fantasia : sheet music, undated. 3 copies. Carmer, H., arranger. Memories of the pirates of Penzance : sheet music, c.1880. Moelling, Theodore, arranger. The pirates of Penzance : potpourri : sheet music, c.1880. Raymond, C., arranger. Potpourri di concert, pirates of Penzance : sheet music, c.1881. Incomplete. Includes cover and page 7. (16)Princess Ida. 1 folder. Winterbottom, W., arranger. Selection from Arthur Sullivan's opera Princess Ida : sheet music, undated. (17)Ruddigore. 1 folder. Winterbottom, W., arranger. Ruddigore : sheet music, undated. (18)The sorcerer. 2 folders. Albert, Charles Louis Napoléon d’, 1809-1886, arranger. The sorcerer waltz : sheet music, undated. 2 copies. Harvey, R. F. (Richard Frederick), arranger.

Happy young heart : valse brillante : sheet music, undated. 2 copies. Richards, Brinley, 1819-1885, arranger. The sorcerer : sheet music, undated. 3 copies. Goodban, Henry W., arranger. Selection of airs from Arthur Sullivan's opera The sorcerer : sheet music, undated. 2 copies. Wells, M. arranger. Selection of airs from Arthur Sullivan's opera The sorcerer : sheet music, c. 1879. Albert, Charles Louis Napoléon d’, 1809-1886, arranger. The sorcerer quadrille : sheet music, undated. (19)Trial by jury. 1 folder. Includes: Albert, Charles Louis Napoléon d’, 1809-1886, arranger. Trial by jury : lancers : sheet music, undated. (20)Utopia limited. 1 folder. Duprêt, Paul, arranger. Utopia limited : sheet music, undated. (21)Vocal arrangements. 1 folder.

Five vocal gems for soprano : volume one : sheet music, c.1992. Arranger unknown. Published by HLH Music Publications. Five vocal gems for bass : volume one : sheet music, c.1992. Arranger unknown. Published by HLH Music Publications. (22)The yeomen of the guard. 2 folders. Includes: Bucalossi, P. (Procida), 1832-1918, arranger. Yeomen of the guard : quadrille : sheet music, undated. Godfrey, Charles, arranger. Yeomen of the guard : selection : sheet music, undated. 3 copies. Martelli, Carlo, arranger. Yeomen of the guard : sheet music, c.1993. Series: II. Excerpts and selections (23)The gondoliers. 1 folder. Includes: Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. In enterprise of martial kind : sheet music, undated.

Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. Take a pair of sparking eyes : sheet music, undated. 2 copies. (24)H.M.S. Pinafore. 2 folders. Includes: Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. Nevermind the why and where-fore : sheet music, undated. 3 copies. Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. Little buttercup : sheet music, undated. Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. Josephine's song : sorry her lot who loves too well : sheet music, undated.

Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. I am the captain of the Pinafore : sheet music, undated. Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. I am the ruler of the Queen's navee : sheet music, undated. Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. He is an Englishman : sheet music, undated. Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. H.M.S. Pinafore or the lass that loved a sailor : sheet music, undated.

Includes Little buttercup; A maiden fair to see; Sorry her lot; When I was a lad; Fair moon, to thee I sing; and Many years ago. (25)Iolanthe. 1 folder. Includes: Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. The sentry's song : sheet music, undated. (26)The mikado. 1 folder. Includes: Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. "Brightly dawns our wedding day" : madrigal for four voices : sheet music, undated. (27)Patience. 2 folders. Includes: Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. Duke's song : sheet music, c.1967.

Includes reprint of article entitled "Gilbert and Sullivan premiere" and note on Piers Press stationary inscribed "with compliments". 2 copies. Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. Love is a plaintive song : sheet music, undated. (28)Pirates of Penzance. 2 folders. Includes: Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. Ruth's first song : sheet music, c.1880. Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. Poor wandering one : sheet music, undated. 2 copies. Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer. The pirates of Penzance : sheet music, undated.

Songs include Poor wandering one and The policeman's song. (29)Ruddigore. 1 folder. Includes: Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. The pretty little flower and the great oak tree : sheet music, undated. (30)The sorcerer. 2 folders. Includes: Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. Happy young heart : sheet music, c.1907. 3 copies. Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. The vicar's song : sheet music, undated. 7 copies. Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S.

(William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. She will tend him : quintett : sheet music, undated. 2 copies. Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. The sorcerer's song : my name is John Wellington Wells : sheet music, undated. Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. Engaged to so-and-so : sheet music, undated. Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. It is not love : sheet music, undated. 2 copies. (31)Thespis. 1 folder. Includes: Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S.

(William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. Little maid of Arcadee : sheet music, undated. 7 copies. (32)Trial by jury. 1 folder. Includes: Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. The judge's song : sheet music, undated. 2 copies. (33)Utopia limited. 1 folder. Includes: Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. The beautiful English girl : sheet music, c.1893. (34)The yeomen of the guard. 2 folders. Includes: Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. I have a song to sing, o! : sheet music, undated.

Sung by Geraldine Ulmar and George (?) Grossmith. Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. Were I thy bride : sheet music, undated. Sung by Jessie Bond. 2 copies. Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. Is life a boon? : sheet music, undated. Sung by Courtice Pounds. Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. A laughing boy but yesterday : sheet music, undated. Photocopies. Sullivan, Arthur, 1842-1900, composer and W. S. (William Schwenck) Gilbert, 1836-1911, lyricist. Strange adventure : sheet music, undated.

2 copies. Series: III. Adaptations and parodies (35)Loomis, Harvey Worthington, 1865-1930, arranger and Stevens, D. K. (David Kilburn), 1860-1946, librettist. All at sea (a Gilbert & Sullivan dream) : sheet music, undated. (36)Larnyoh, G., arranger, Eddie Quansah, arranger, J. Bajtala, arranger, and D. Bloxham, arranger. The black mikado : sheet music, c.1974. (37)Winthrop, arranger and Culiar, Thomas P., lyricist. The fellow that plays on the horn : sheet music, c.1885. (38)Hot mikado song folio : sheet music, undated. Includes cover only. (39)Leslie, C. E. (Charles Eddy), composer and lyricist. The o.p.r.a. or a manager's troubles (comic quartet) : sheet music, c.1881.

(40)Mackerras, Charles, 1925-2010, arranger. Pineapple poll : sheet music, c.1951. Series: IV. Gilbert and Sullivan related sheet music (41)Russell, Henry, 1812-1900, composer and Charles Mackay, 1814-1889, lyricist. The dream of the reveller : sheet music, c.1843. Sung by Isabella Paul. Illustrated by Henry C. Eno. (42)The life of Julius Caesar : sheet music, c.1866. Sung by Isabella Paul. Part of Mr. & Mrs. Howard Paul's songs. Illustrated by Bufford Brothers. The Nightmare by W. S. Gilbert - YouTube The Nightmare by W. S. Gilbert Want to watch this again later? Sign in to add this video to a playlist. Need to report the video? Sign in to report inappropriate content. The interactive transcript could not be loaded. Loading... Rating is available when the video has been rented. This feature is not available right now. Please try again later.

Uploaded on May 23, 2008 A recital of extracts from "The Nightmare", a poem by Sir William Schwenck Gilbert (1836 -- 1911). Gilbert was an English dramatist, librettist, poet and illustrator best known for his fourteen comic operas produced in collaboration with the composer Sir Arthur Sullivan. The full text of the poem is below -- the extracts included in the video recital are within quotation marks "". The recital in the video strays very slightly from this text. A Nightmare "When you're lying awake with a dismal headache, and repose is taboo'd by anxiety, I conceive you may use any language you choose to indulge in without impropriety; For your brain is on fire - the bedclothes conspire of usual slumber to plunder you: First your counterpane goes and uncovers your toes, and your sheet slips demurely from under you; Then the blanketing tickles - you feel like mixed pickles, so terribly sharp is the pricking, And you're hot, and you're cross, and you tumble and toss till there's nothing 'twixt you and the ticking.

Then the bedclothes all creep to the ground in a heap, and you pick 'em all up in a tangle; Next your pillow resigns and politely declines to remain at its usual angle! Well, you get some repose in the form of a doze, with hot eyeballs and head ever aching, But your slumbering teems with such horrible dreams that you'd very much better be waking;" For you dream you are crossing the Channel, and tossing about in a steamer from Harwich, Which is something between a large bathing-machine and a very small second-class carriage; And you're giving a treat (penny ice and cold meat) to a party of friends and relations - They're a ravenous horde - and they all came on board at Sloane Square and South Kensington Stations. And bound on that journey you find your attorney (who started that morning from Devon); He's a bit undersized, and you don't feel surprised when he tells you he's only eleven.

Well, you're driving like mad with this singular lad (by the bye the ship's now a four-wheeler), And you're playing round games, and he calls you bad names when you tell him that "ties pay the dealer"; But this you can't stand, so you throw up your hand, and you find you're as cold as an icicle, In your shirt and your socks (the black silk with gold clocks), crossing Salisbury Plain on a bicycle: And he and the crew are on bicycles too - which they've somehow or other invested in - And he's telling the tars all the particuLARS of a company he's interested in - It's a scheme of devices, to get at low prices, all goods from cough mixtures to cables (Which tickled the sailors) by treating retailers, as though they were all vegeTAbles - You get a good spadesman to plant a small tradesman (first take off his boots with a boot-tree), And his legs will take root, and his fingers will shoot, and they'll blossom and bud like a fruit-tree - From the greengrocer tree you get grapes and green pea, cauliflower, pineapple, and cranberries, While the pastry-cook plant cherry

-brandy will grant - apple puffs, and three-corners, and banberries - The shares are a penny, and ever so many are taken by ROTHSCHILD and BARING, And just as a few are allotted to you, you awake with a shudder despairing - "You're a regular wreck, with a crick in your neck, and no wonder you snore, for your head's on the floor, and you've needles and pins from your soles to your shins, and your flesh is a-creep, for your left leg's asleep, and you've cramp in your toes, and a fly on your nose, and some fluff in your lung, and a feverish tongue, and a thirst that's intense, and a general sense that you haven't been sleeping in clover; But the darkness has passed, and it's daylight at last, and the night has been long - ditto, ditto my song - and thank goodness they're both of them over!" Category

Question: Who was W.S. Gilbert's songwriting partner?
Answer: Arthur Sullivan