Samuel Wesley

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Samuel Wesley (24 February 1766 – 11 October 1837) was an English organist and composer during the late Georgian period.

Wesley was a student of Mozart (1756–1791) and was dubbed "the English Mozart" by some.

Personal life

He was born in Bristol and was the uncle of noted Methodist and hymnodist Charles Wesley, the grandson of Samuel Wesley (a poet of the late Stuart period) and the nephew of John Wesley, the Methodist Church's founder.

His early musical education took place in Bristol, where Sarah Wesley, his mother's, performed and appeared as the harpsichord. The family's favourite items were honed tunes and Handel's work. Samuel took lessons from David Williams, organist of All Saints' Church, Bristol. In 1771, his father bought a second house in Chesterfield Street, Marylebone, London. Samuel left Bristol for London's house by 1778.

Samuel informed his mother that his marriage had been constituted by sexual intercourse, outlawing any civil or religious celebration, but after a lengthy wait, he married Charlotte Louise Martin in 1793, and the three children were born. This marriage came to an end with Charlotte's discovery of Samuel's affair with teen domestic servant Sarah Suter. Samuel and Sarah never married but they had four children together, one of whom was Samuel Sebastian Wesley (1810-1876) who was a cathedral organist and well-known composer.

Wesley secretly converted to Roman Catholicism in 1784, to the dismay of his uncle John Wesley. In the following words: His hymnodist father expressed his displeasure with the following words:

Samuel composed the Missa de Spiritu Sancto, dedicating it to Pope Pius VI during his conversion. He may have denied any conversion at the time, according to his obituary.

In 1788 Wesley was initiated to Freemasonry in the Lodge of Antiquity, London. In 1812, the Duke of Sussex made him Grand Organist of the Premier Grand Lodge of England, and he continued in office through Masonic unification, serving as the first Grand Organist of the United Grand Lodge of England. He was Grand Organist for five years, but he resigned in 1818.

Wesley died in 1837, at the age of 71, and was buried in St Marylebone Parish Church, London.

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Career

Samuel demonstrated his musical ability early in life. He and his elder brother, Charles, were recognized as a child prodigy by the British musical establishment as a youth. He learned the violin, harpsichord, and organ all in a hurry. He was already well-known for his writing and improvisational abilities by the age of eight.

His father, Charles, wrote:

Wesley served as both a conductor and lecturer. He seems to have been one of the founders of the British organ recital: entertainment was not considered appropriate for a church building before his time. Despite a reputation as England's top organist, he never succeeded in obtaining an organist's post, although he applied to the Foundling Hospital in 1798 and 1812, as well as St George's Hanover Square in 1824. Generally, he seemed to be deceived by the British establishment, perhaps due to his forthright demeanor, his marriage arrangements, and the fact that it is likely that he was unreliable. He was plagued by a lack of funds and depression from 1815 to 1980. He was limited to begging Vincent Novello for copying work at one time.

His ability on the organ was so high that he was compelled to play for Felix Mendelssohn in September 1837, a month before Wesley's death. Mendelssohn gave a performance at Christ Church Newgate, during which Wesley told his daughter Eliza, "This is transcendent playing!"

Do you think I dare venture after this?"

Mendelsohn allegedly begged the old man, who was by now in the hospital, to play. Mendelssohn stayed by his side while playing and lauded him, but Wesley replied, "Yes Sir!" he said. You haven't heard me play; you should have heard me 40 years ago."

Wesley seems to have become interested in Johann Sebastian Bach's work between 1796 and 1808. In 1810, he and Charles Frederick Horn collaborated on the first English edition of J.S. The first English edition of J.S. appeared in 1810. Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier is a scholarly book about the lives of Bach. Bach's work has been described as a "English Bach awakening" by the group's joint publication and popularization of his work. No time was wasted in converting others to the Bach cause; William Crotch and Charles Burney, Wesley's most important converts, were William Crotch and Charles Burney. Wesley, in a series of letters to his friend Benjamin Jacob, shared how he made Bach better understood.

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