William Henry Bell (1873-1946)

William Henry Bell, known simply by his initials, W H Bell, was born in St Albans and was a chorister at St Albans Cathedral. He studied organ, violin and piano at the Royal Academy of Music along with composition under Frederick Corder.

In 1912 he moved to South Africa where he remained for the rest of his life. He was appointed  Professor of Music at the University of Cape Town in 1920. The W H Bell Music Library at the University of Cape Town is named in honour of William Henry Bell.

His compositional output was extensive and many of his orchestral works received regular performances in London. However, when Bell moved to South Africa performances back in the UK all but ceased. He continued to compose while in South Africa with all of his four mature symphonies (numbers 2 to 5) premiered there. Bell's 70th birthday was celebrated in the UK with a BBC broadcast of the Arcadian Suite.

Arcadian Suite (1908)

This is a 4 movement suite written whilst Bell was at the RAM, a year before he became Professor of Harmony.

The 1st movement is prefaced by some lines by Spencer. (click to enlarge)

The principal theme is as follows:

SAMPLE: Arcadian Suite 1st mov - start


Eventually a more legato melody appears:

SAMPLE: Arcadian Suite 1st mov - end