He was an editor, writer, translator and music publisher born in Condie, Perthshire, Scotland, who is credited as being one of the people responsible for laying the “foundation of printed music”.
He published many popular madrigals from England and Italy and became highly regarded as the President of the London Madrigal Society. His work with madrigals also led him to putting together the Society’s first catalogue in 1842, which was placed in the British Museum.
His translations include such choral works as “Hard By A Fountain” and Balthazar Donato’s “All Ye Who Love Music” which he provided English text for in 1837. His English words for the popular songs “Santa Lucia” and “The Ash Grove” are still regularly sung today.
As an author he wrote the book La Musa Madrigalesca; or a collection of Madrigals, Ballets, Roundelays, & c., chiefly of the Elizabethan Age.
He died in London in 1873 when he was 73 years old.
Nathan Granner and Beau Bledsoe recordings
Tzigane CDNB-202 (CD: Departure)
Tenor – Nathan Granner
Guitar – Beau Bledsoe
The King’s Singers recordings
EMI 54904 (CD: Annie Laurie)
Countertenor – David Hurley
Countertenor – Alistair Hume
Tenor – Bob Chilcott
Baritone – Bruce Russell
Baritone – Simon Carrington
Bass – Stephen Connolly
https://youtu.be/qcoLL55FGik
Sources:
- http://www.answers.com/topic/thomas-oliphant
- http://www.stagepass.com/groupartist/artist_items.hperl?Artist=Oliphant%2C+Thomas
- http://www.amazon.co.uk/Madrigalesca-collection-Madrigals-Roundelays-Elizabethan/dp/B0017AE54E/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1219573047&sr=1-2
- http://www.singers.com/9288b/Various-Arrangers/Madrigals-for-SSA/
- http://www.a-cappella.com/category/Russell_Robinson_Arrangements
- http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3870/is_200304/ai_n9187693
- http://www.grainger.de/music/songs/ashgrove.html
- http://www.bristolchamberchoir.org.uk/byard3.html
- http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/sm2html/sm2great3.html