Opera Composers Codexery

Gustav Holst

English composer of The Planets and influential teacher.

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Gustav Holst

via Wikipedia: Gustav Holst · see source

Gustav Holst was born in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, the elder of two children of a professional musician and his wife.[1] Holst's primary renown comes from his compositions, but his professional activities included serving as an organist and playing the trombone in orchestras.[2][3]

Last updated 2026-10-08 from the source article.

Quick Facts

Born
21 September 1874
Died
25 May 1934
Field
  • Composer
  • arranger
  • teacher
Nationality
English
Known for
Orchestral suite The Planets

Facts from the source article.

Life and work

Holst was taught piano and violin as a child, but hated the violin and took up the trombone at age twelve on his father's suggestion to help his asthma.[4] He studied composition at the Royal College of Music under Charles Villiers Stanford, and supported himself by playing trombone professionally in theatres and at seaside resorts.[5][6] He taught at St Paul's Girls' School from 1905 until his death and at Morley College from 1907 to 1924.[3] During the First World War he was rejected for military service but served as YMCA musical organiser in Salonica, changing his surname from "von Holst" to "Holst" by deed poll in 1918.[7][8]

During 1895, Holst became acquainted with Ralph Vaughan Williams; this connection developed into a lasting friendship, and Vaughan Williams exerted a greater impact on Holst's musical output than any other individual.[9] Holst wed Isobel in 1901 at Fulham Register Office, and their daughter Imogen was born six years later, in 1907.[10]

What the cited sources add

Vaughan Williams stated that Holst's music was shaped by his friend's work, and he affirmed that the opposite was also true.[11] Holst's daughter remarked that his Sanskrit translations were "clear and dignified" and were intended to "lead the listener into another world".[12]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Gustav Holst" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Mitchell, p. 3; Mitchell, p. 2 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Gustav Holst" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Vaughan Williams, "Holst, Gustav Theodore (1874–1934)", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography Online edition (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Gustav Holst" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Holst (1981), p. 30; Warrack, "Holst, Gustav Theodore", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography Online edition, January 2011 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Gustav Holst" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Holst (1969), p. 7; "Mr Gustav Holst", The Times, 26 May 1934, p. 7; Holst (1981), p. 15; Holst (1969), p. 7 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Gustav Holst" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Mitchell, p. 9 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Gustav Holst" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Holst (1981), p. 19; Holst (1981), p. 19; Matthews, "Holst, Gustav", Grove Music Online (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  7. Wikipedia, "Gustav Holst" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Warrack, "Holst, Gustav Theodore", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography Online edition, January 2011 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  8. Wikipedia, "Gustav Holst" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Short, p. 159; Holst (1969) p. 52; ; Mitchell, p. 161 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  9. Wikipedia, "Gustav Holst" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Mitchell, p. 15 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  10. Wikipedia, "Gustav Holst" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Holst (1969), p. 29 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  11. Wikipedia, "Gustav Holst" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Moore, p. 26; Vaughan Williams, "Holst, Gustav Theodore (1874–1934)", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography Online edition (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  12. Wikipedia, "Gustav Holst" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Holst (1981), p. 25; Short, p. 55; Jaffé, Daniel. Review of Sita in Saarbrücken. Opera, January 2025, Vol. 76 No. 1, pp. 78–80.; Matthews, "Holst, Gustav", Grove Music Online (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Gustav Holst (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

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Sources

Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.

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