DICTIONARY OF MUSIC - El Atril

HIAWATHA HICKFORD'S ROOM 393
of the Chapel Royal. He was the intimate friend
of Camden ; they occupied the same house in
Westminster, and when, in 1609, Camden was
attacked by a pestilential disease, he retired to
Heyther's honse at Chislehurst to lie cured, and
there he died in 1623, having appointed Heytlier
his executor. "When Camden founded tlie history
lecture at Oxford in 1622, he made his friend
Heyther the bearer to the University of the
deed of endowment. The University on that
occasion comptlimented Heyther by creating him
Doctor of Music, May IS, 1622. [It is fairly
certain that Gibhons's anthem, ' clap your
hands,' served for Heyther's exercise. [See
GiBBOXs, Orlando.] In 1626-27 Heyther
founded the music lecture at Oxford, and endowed
it with £1 7 ; 6 ; S per annum. The deed
bears date Feb. 2, of 2 Cliarles I. Richard
Nicholson, Mus. Bac. , organist of Magdalen
College, was the iirst professor. Dr. Heyther
died in July 1627, and was buried August 1,
in the south aisle of the choir of Westminster
Abbey. He gave £100 toSt. Margaret's Hospital
in Tothill Fields, commonly known aa the Green
Coat School. There is a portrait of him in his
doctor's robes in the Music School, Oxford, which
is engraved by Hawkins (chap. 120). w. H. H.
HIA'WATHA. Scenes from Longfellow's
' Song of Hiawatha ' set to music for soprano,
tenor, and baritone solos, chorus and orchestra,
by S. Coleridge Taylor, op. 30. The first
section, 'Hiawatha's "Wedding-Feast,' was first
performed at a students' concert at the Koyal
College of Music, Nov. 11, 1898 ; the second,
'The Death of Minnehaha,' at the North Staf-
fordshire Musical Festival (Hanley), Oct. 26,
1899; and the third, 'Hiawatha's Departure,'
by the Royal Choral Society at the Albert Hall,
March 22, 1900, on which occasion the whole
trilogy was given for the first time. N, G.
HIBERNIAN CATCH CLUB. The oldest
existing musical society in Europe. Founded
by the Vicars Choral of St. Patrick's and Christ
Church Cathedrals, Dublin, in tlie winter season
of 1679-80, for the cultivation of catches and
vocal music. In 1698 the place of assembly
was in Francis Street, and a visitor (Henry Eeles)
in 1730 describes the Hibernian Catch Club as
then of fifty years' standing (Letter to tlie Earl
of Burlington). The existing records go back to
1740, and a volume of their favourite catches
•was published in 1741. On the occasion of Earl
Hardwicke's visit to the club on May 4, 1803,
Stevenson received the honour of knighthood.
From the second decade of the 19th century the
' club met every second Tuesday in the month
during the season,' at Morrisson's Hotel— the
President for the year being selected from the
members in rotation. Ever since the year 1844
the club has its habitat at the Antient Concert
Rooms, and is still (190.5) in a flourishing condition,
meeting on the second Tuesday in every
month from December to May, at 7.15 p.m.
The late Duke of Cambridge was elected an
honorary member in 1847, and the Duke of
Connaught in lh77. "^v. H. G. F.
HICKFORD'S ROOM, if not the first, was
one of the first regular public concert-rooms in
London. After the death of Thomas Brixton
and consequent discontinuance of the musical
gatherings in the long room over his sho]» in
Clerkenwell, the only room jircvious to Hickford's
where music could be heard seems to have
been the music room at Clayton's House in
York Buildings (see Cl.ayton).
Of Hickford himself very little is known.
He appears to have been a dancing -master
during the latter part of Queen Anne's reign
and in the early Georgian days, for the first
advertisements of concerts held in his roc-m
mention it as 'Mr. Hickford's Dancing School'
or 'Mr. Hickford's Great Dancing Room.'
Later it was called simply ' Mr. Hickford's
Cireat Room' or 'Hickford's Room.' It was
originally in James Street, Haymarket, opposite
the Royal Tennis Court (the building of which
is still standing), and its probable site is now
occupied by the Comedy Theatre. It must
have been a room of ver}' considerable size to
begin with, and was perliajis enlarged, since, two
or three years after it was opened, we hear of an
entrance from Panton Street ; and in 1719, on
the occasion of a concert for the benefit of !Mr.
Dahuron, the Flautist, it is stated that ' Coaches'
and Chairs may come into James Street or into
Panton Street, there being a passage into the
room both ways. ' The first concert in this room
took place on April 4, 1713, for the benefit of
Signer Claudio Roieri, followed by one on April
17 'by subscripition for Signer Nicolino Hayin.'
The only other concert of that year took place
on Jlay 20, for the celebrated ' Baroness ' and
Mrs. Paulina. Hickford's Room became very
quickly a favourite place of entertainment with
audiences and performers, and with good reason.
For the former, it was situated in a fashionable
part of the town, close to the leading theatres,
in a most convenient locality much frequented
by the ' quality '
; for the latter, it ^\tLS probably
cheaper and less trouble to arrange for a concert
there than at the Opera House or one of the
City Companies' Halls, where some concerts
were given. It must have had considerable
advantages ; for most of the great performers,
both vocal and instrumental, who visited England,
gave their concerts there, and tliose who
resided in London held their benefits there year
after year. In 1714 there are records of six
concerts in the room. On Feb. 1 ' an extraordinary
Consort of Vocal and Instrumental
musick by the liest Masters of the Opera, ' for the
benefit of Mr. Rogier. The Baroness held her
benefit on March 17, when the ' famous Signer
Veracini ' performed
several Sonatas, and the
great Violinist had a benefit of his own on Ajiril
22, the Concert consisting entirely of his own
2 c