Lilian
Bryant might not be a household name to many music lovers and record collectors
today, as it but rarely appears undisguised on the many thousand recordings she
was heard on between the late 1890s and 1928. One of the pioneers of the British
recording industry, she became "musical director" for the Edison-Bell
cylinder recording studio shortly before the turn of the last century - a
position that meant rehearsing with singers and instrumentalists, playing piano
accompaniments for them, but also arranging and orchestrating music for
recording purposes, and last not least conducting the in-house orchestra. As the
early studio orchestras consisted mainly of wind instruments that registered
well on the primitive recording equipment, they were mostly recruited from local
military bands and led by military bandmasters. It is thus a particular
exception to find a woman in this position, apart from the fact that woman
conductors and composers were anyway considered an oddity in late-Victorian
England. Despite these unfavourable circumstances, Mme. Bryant made her career,
that had started at the very beginning of commercial record production in
London, with various major companies over more than two decades: From 1905 to
1908 she was employed by Louis Sterling, in whose studios both Sterling
cylinders and Odeon discs were recorded, to conduct for stars like John
McCormack, and organize the first complete recordings of Gilbert & Sullivan
operas ever. When Sterling had to sell his enterprise to Pathé Frères, that
company promptly dismissed their former musical director in her favour. With the
"Imperial Symphony Orchestra" under her direction, British Pathé
produced pioneering recordings of symphonic and concert music. Beside all this
studio work, Bryant found time to tour as piano accompanist (e.g. for Peter
Dawson), compose, and conduct theatre orchestras in and around London. When the
Great War put an end to Pathé's London studio, she worked as rehearsal pianist
for HMV for several years (occasionally recording under her married name
"Mrs. George Baker"), and in the 1920s, she resumed her career as
musical director in the recording studio, this time for the newly-founded
Crystalate company ("Imperial" and "Chantal de Luxe"
labels). Her final recordings were made for Columbia in the mid-1920s.
Piano an all tracks played by Lilian Bryant.
01) Valse chromatique (Benjamin Godard, op.88) 2:44
issued as by "Lola Moretti" - Pathé <8920> (MC 78787 [65324 RA]) - London, ca.07.1910
02) THE BELLE OF NEW YORK (Gustave A. Kerker), Act I: Teach Me How To Kiss 2:32
Alma Jones (A) - Edison-Bell Indestructible cyl. 801 (mx. 801) - London, ca.1901
03) THE NOBLE OUTLAW (Henry R. Bishop): The Pilgrim Of Love "Orynthia, my beloved!" 2:40
Albert Pearce (T) - Edison-Bell brown-wax cyl. 900 - London, ca.1900
04) On A Sunday Afternoon (Harry Von Tilzer / Andrew B. Sterling) 2:18
Harry Macdonough (T) - Edison-Bell Indestructible cyl. 9025 (mx. 9025) - London, 08.1902
05) ROBIN HOOD (Reginald De Koven), Act II: Oh Promise Me 2:23
Harry Macdonough (T) - Edison-Bell Indestructible cyl. 9026 (mx. 9026) - London, 08.1902
06) What Is The Use Of A Man? (anonymous) 2:18
Florrie Forde (fV) - Edison-Bell moulded cyl. 6262 (mx. 6262) - London, 05.1904
07) Rondo Capriccioso (Felix Mendelssohn, op.14) 2:43
issued as by "Lola Moretti" - Pathé <8920> (MC 78786 [66100]) - London, ca.07.1910
08) Le Carnaval de Venise - Variations burlesques (Heinrich W. Ernst, op.18) 2:48
Jan Rudenyi (vn) - Pathé <8910> (MC 79370 [80831 RA]) - London, ca.08.1911
09) An Silvia (Franz Schubert / William Shakespeare) "Who is Sylvia?" 2:27
Rosina Buckman (S) - Pathé 5413 (MC 93686) - London, ca.07.1914
10) Il bacio (Luigi Arditi / Gottardo Aldighieri) "The Dream Of Home" (Henry Farnie) 3:06
Rosina Buckman (S) - Pathé 5413 (MC 93689) - London, ca.07.1914
11) Sérénade (Alfred d'Ambrosio, op.4) 2:55
Jan Rudenyi (vn) - Pathé 6314 (MC 92857•) - London, ca.07.1913
12) Rapsodie hongroise (Raimond Pechotsch) 2:54
Jan Rudenyi (vn) - Pathé 6314 (MC 92858) - London, ca.07.1913
13) Noël des enfants qui n'ont plus de maison (M + W: Claude A. Debussy) 2:47
Marie Louise Edvina (S) - Gramophone 2-033072 (mx. HO 4084 af) - Hayes/Middlesex, 05.11.1919
14) 21 UNGARISCHE TÄNZE (Johannes Brahms, WoO.1), 5: Allegro "Bartfai-Emlek" (arr.: Joseph Joachim) 2:41
Alfred Indig (vn) - Columbia D 9731 (mx. F 8) - London, ca.06.1923
15) SPANISCHE TÄNZE (Pablo de Sarasate, op.23), 1: Playera 2:59
Alfred Indig (vn) - Columbia D 9731 (mx. F 9) - London, ca.06.1923
16) Vliegpostmarsch (anonymous) 3:11
Columbia D 9061 (mx. 68965) - London, ca.03.1923
17) Slavische Serenade (possibly: Josef Weiss, op.55,1) 3:18
Columbia D 9061 (mx. 68966) - London, ca.03.1923
18) Pays de rêve (Maurice Yvain) 3:02
Columbia D 9063 (mx. 68990-1) - London, ca.03.1923
19) Electric Girl (Otto Helmburgh-Holmes) 2:54
Columbia D 9063 (mx. 68991-1) - London, ca.03.1923
20) DIE BAJADERE (Imre Kálmán): Wenn die Sterne am Himmel leuchten 3:00
Columbia D 9064 (mx. 68992) - London, ca.03.1923
21) DIE ERSTE NACHT (Hugo Hirsch): Wenn du einmal eine Braut hast 3:02
Columbia D 9064 (mx. 68993) - London, ca.03.1923
22) Je n' peux pas vivre sans amour (Gaston Gabaroche, Fred Pearly) 2:42
Columbia D 9066 (mx. 68996) - London, ca.03.1923
23) Wenn man allein ist (Theo A. Körner) 3:01
Columbia D 9066 (mx. 68997) - London, ca.03.1923
24) EIN SOMMERNACHTSTRAUM (Felix Mendelssohn), 10: Hochzeitsmarsch 3:00
Columbia D 9846 (mx. WF 236) - London, ca.1926
25) LOHENGRIN (Richard Wagner), Act III: Treulich geführt ziehet dahin 2:57
Columbia D 9846 (mx. WF 237) - London, ca.1926
26) NOCTURNES (Frédéric Chopin, op.9), 2: Nocturne Nr.2 in E-flat 2:50
Columbia/Regal G 8623 (mx. WA 3218) - London, ca.05.1926
