Attributed to Sir Peter Lely, Late 17th Century

Portrait of John Blow
oil on canvas
29 x 18 inches.

Property from the Collection of Maestro Raymond Leppard, Indianapolis, Indiana

Provenance:

Presented to Sir Frederick Arthur Gore Ouseley (1825-1889) by George R. Powell, 1867 (labeled verso)

J. Manley, London (labeled verso)

Probably acquired from Philip Mould, London

Exhibited:

Worcester Exhibition, 1882

Albert Hall, Collection of Musicians, 1885

Music Loan Exhibition, 1904

(reference Historical Portraits Image Library, Philip Mould & Co.)

Note:

John Blow (English, 1649-1708) was a Baroque composer and the organist of Westminster Abbey, a post he resigned in 1679 in favor of his pupil Henry Purcell, but resumed it again on Purcell's death in 1695, holding the office until 1708. In 1685 he was appointed a private musician to James II. In 1687 he became Choirmaster at St. Paul's Cathedral, and in 1699 he was appointed Composer to the Chapel Royal. His Venus and Adonis is the earliest known English opera, written for the Court of King James II. He wrote anthems for the coronations of King James II, King William III and Queen Anne, together with many odes, songs, sacred and instrumental works.

Maestro Raymond Leppard (1927-2019), Commander of the British Empire, was an internationally recognized composer, conductor and scholar of Baroque music, as well as a Grammy-winning recording artist. Born in London, Leppard grew up in Bath where he was educated at the City of Bath Boys’ School, now the Beechen Cliff School. He studied harpsichord and viola at Trinity College, Cambridge, where he would go on to become Lecturer and Fellow before making his debut at Wigmore Hall in London in 1952. He also helped establish and was long associated with the English Chamber Orchestra.

Leppard’s realizations of 17th century operas by Italian composers Claudio Monteverde and his disciple, Francesco Cavalli, re-introduced the world to these and other Baroque operas. His brilliant arrangements for their modern stage productions in the 1960s and 1970s were widely acclaimed and, thus, forged his imprint on the classical music industry. He conducted Benjamin Britten’s Billy Budd at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City, the world premiere of Nicholas Maw’s Rising of the Moon at Glyndebourne Opera, and composed film scores for, among others, Peter Brook’s Lord of the Flies, based on the novel by William Golding. As a prolific recording artist, Leppard recorded more than 200 albums. He has appeared at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, the New York City Opera, the Metropolitan and San Francisco Operas, and in Paris, Hamburg, Santa Fe, Stockholm and Geneva. Leppard was principal conductor for the BBC Northern Symphony Orchestra for over seven years, and, more recently, led the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra (ISO) from 1987 to 2001. Leppard is credited with transforming the ISO into an internationally recognized ensemble, becoming the organization’s first and only Conductor Laureate.

Beyond Leppard’s musical genius, his warm character, generous heart and good humor endeared him to the likes of Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, Princess Margaret, Benjamin Britten, Frederica Von Stade, Dame Janet Baker and members of the infamous Bloomsbury Group. WFMT, Chicago’s classical music radio station, dedicated every August 11, his birthday, as Raymond Leppard Day, on which they broadcast several of his recordings. Leppard amassed an eclectic collection of works of art, music and 18th and 19th century furniture, many of which are featured throughout this auction.