Hook, James
Period: Classic
Born: Friday, June 3, 1746 in Norwich, England
Died: 1827 in Boulogne, France
Nation of Origin: United Kingdom
Major Works:
Catch: I wish you all good night (1765)
Comic opera: Dido (1771)
Comic opera: Cupid's Revenge (1772)
Tune: Hoot Awa Ye Loon
Tune: Within a Mile of Edinburgh Toon
More than 2000 songs
Other Information:
Exact date of birth is uncertain but is probably June 3, 1746.
He had a club foot at birth and always walked with a limp.
He played harpsichord from age of four and performed concertos from age of six.
He composed his first opera (now lost) before he turned eight.
By February 1764 he had moved to London to work as an organist at the tea garden, White Conduit House, Pentonville.
He became known as an organist, teacher, and composer of mostly songs.
He married Elizabeth Jane Madden, a painter and writer, on 29 May 1766.
He was given the position of organist and composer to Marylebone Gardens in 1768.
He was an early proponent of the pianoforte, playing a concerto on it in 1772.
He worked as an organist at St Johns Horselydown, Bermondsey from September 1772.
He worked as an organist at Vauxhall Gardens from 1774 until 1820.
Madden wrote the libretto for Hook's opera The Double Disguise (1784).
He had two sons, both of whom wrote librettos for his operas.
Elizabeth Jane Madden died on October 18, 1805.
He married Harriet Horncastle James in 1806.
He composed in the style galant for much of his career.
General Bibliography:
Blume, Friedrich, with Norton, M. D. (Translator) and Norton, Herter (Translator), Classic and Romantic Music; A Comprehensive Survey, W. W. Norton & Company, November 1970, ISBN: 0393098680
Rosen, Charles, The Classical Style : Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, W. W. Norton & Company, March 1997, ISBN: 0393040208
Slonimsky, Nicolas and Kuhn, Laura; Editors, Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians, Gale Group, December 2000, ISBN: 0028655257
Sadie, Stanley and Tyrrell, John; Editors, The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, Groves Dictionaries, Inc., January 2004, ISBN: 0195170679
Rutherford-Johnson, Tim, Kennedy, Michael, and Kennedy, Joyce The Oxford Dictionary of Music, Oxford University Press, 6th Edition, 2012, ISBN: 0199578109
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