Dear Editor,

As we end the month of October it might be appropriate for aficionados of classical music to note the 75th anniversary of the death of the widely acclaimed composer, Sir Frederic Hymen Cowen. He was born at 90 Duke Street in Kingston and was taken by his parents to England where his first published composition appeared when he was but six years old. He was later able to associate with accomplished musicians such as Liszt and Brahms.

Cowen went on to become conductor of the Philharmonic Society and in his time produced a large volume of classical works, including operas, oratorios, cantatas and even dance music. He wrote a large number of songs, ranging from ballads to anthems and symphonies. For his great work he was knighted in 1911 at St James Palace by King George V.

In his biography, My Art and my Friends, Cowen said his mother told him how in Kingston, Jamaica, “…she felt sure I was going to be a musician by the pronounced habit I had of lying on the floor and drumming with the heels of my shoes…”

The late Astley Clerk, one of the early promoters of music in Jamaica, named a section of his famous businessplace Cowen House, in honour of Sir Frederic. It was at this location that the first Jamaican Christmas morning concert was planned. All this, stashed away in the mist of Jamaican history, needs to be remembered.

Ken Jones

Kensjones2002@yahoo.com