Cobbett Medal
| Walter Willson Cobbett | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born |
11 July 1847 Blackheath, Kent, England |
| Died | 22 January 1937 (aged 89) London, England |
| Nationality | United Kingdom |
| Occupation | British businessman and amateur violinist |
Walter Willson Cobbett CBE (11 July 1847 – 22 January 1937) was a British businessman and amateur violinist, and editor/author of Cobbett's Cyclopedic Survey of Chamber Music. He also endowed the Cobbett Medal for services to chamber music.
Walter Cobbett was born in 1847 in Blackheath, England. He became an active supporter of music, and commissioned numerous works of chamber music from emerging and leading British composers of his time, including chamber works by Benjamin Britten, Frank Bridge, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Arnold Bax, Eugene Goossens.
His two-volume encyclopedia of chamber music, published in 1929, is still considered the most comprehensive work on the subject today. His insightful, wry and occasionally caustic style makes for enlightening and delightful reading.
An innovative industrialist and astute businessman, Cobbett was cofounder of Scandinavia Belting Ltd (today BBA Aviation Ltd.), which manufactured a new type of woven belting for machinery.
But Cobbett's heart was in music. "It has been humorously remarked that he has given to commerce what time he could spare from music," said an article in a contemporary edition of Groves Dictionary of Music and Musicians. Cobbett played weekly in an amateur string quartet, was concertmaster of a number of amateur orchestras, and was a prolific writer and publicist for chamber music.
In 1905, Cobbett endowed a competition, under the auspices of the Worshipful Company of Musicians, for chamber music composers. The Cobbett Competition was instrumental in advancing the careers of leading composers of the time. Frank Bridge won second prize in the first competition with his Phantasy for String Quartet. Other winners included Benjamin Britten and Ralph Vaughan Williams. In addition to granting prizes, Cobbett commissioned works from these and other composers.
Cobbett established other prizes as well. In 1920 he started granting annual prizes for chamber music performance for students of the Royal Academy of Music. The Cobbett Medal for services to chamber music was established in 1924 and continues to be awarded annually by the Worshipful Company of Musicians. He also encouraged British luthiers by granting prizes for outstanding instruments.
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