His name was originally John Lodge and he was most likely born in Liverpool where his father Adam Lodge, a wealthy merchant and shipping agent, resided. He was sent to Rugby, one of the leading public schools of 19th century and then gained a B.A. degree at Brasenose College, Oxford in 1821.
At Brasenose, among other things, he studied composition. It is known that he spent two years in Rome studying composition with the Italian composer Pietro Terziani sometime between 1829-31. This was followed by a sojourn in Germany for several years, where he also studied composition. He began composing while at Brasenose and continued throughout the rest of his life.
In about 1845, he added Ellerton to his last name. Sources do not indicate why. He also started appending the title Esq. after his name, which was typically reserved during the 19th century for members of the landed gentry above the rank of Gentleman but just below the rank of of a knight baronet. It is clear from both his education and the fact that he married the daughter of an Earl, that Ellerton was obviously a member of the aristocracy. And as such, he did not wish to be known as a professional musician, since they were generally regarded as members of the lower classes. Hence, he styled himself 'Amateur Musician' . Unfortunately, calling himself thus had the unintended result that neither he nor his music were, for the most part, taken seriously. This was true not only during his lifetime, but thereafter as well.
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Ellerton wrote six symphonies, the only one of which to be published was the third known as the Wald Symphonie (1858) It is in 4 movements framed by a prologue and an epilogue thereby, in effect, making it a six movement work.
SAMPLE: 1st mov - The Forest - from the start
The second movement is entitled Winter and is lively with strong, driving rhythmic phrases.
SAMPLE: 2nd mov - Winter - from the start
Following on from Winter we jump to Summer. This third movement is an Andante Grazioso with the focus on the woodwind for much of the time - birdsong and rippling streams.
SAMPLE: 3rd mov - Summer - ending
The scherzo 4th mov is entitled "Fairies dance in the wood". Muted staccato strings and syncopated rhythms add to the whimsical character of this movement.
SAMPLE: 4th mov - Fairies Dance - start
The 5th mov is a Peasant Dance and to all intents and purposes the Finale. It's quite a raucous affair with some curious harmonic shifts as seen below.
SAMPLE: 5th mov - Peasant Dance - middle
The epilogue, 6th mov recaps on themes from the opening introduction and is over and done with in one and a half minutes. Subtitled Midnight, we can hear the chiming clock from the outset.
SAMPLE: 6th mov - Midnight - all
