John Field (26 July 1782 – 23 January 1837) was an Irish pianist, composer and teacher widely credited as the inventor of the nocturne. While many of his contemporaries wrote in a similar style, Field was the first to use the term to apply to a character piece featuring a cantabile melody over an arpeggiated accompaniment.
Born into a musical family in Dublin, he received his early education in the city, particularly with Tommaso Giordani. The family moved to London in 1793 where, under the tutelage of Muzio Clementi, Field soon became a famous and sought-after concert pianist. Together, they visited Paris, Vienna, and Saint Petersburg. Ambiguity surrounds Field's decision to remain in the latter, but it is likely that Field acted as a sales representative for Clementi & Co..
Field was very highly regarded by his contemporaries and his playing and compositions influenced many major composers, including Felix Mendelssohn, Frédéric Chopin, Johannes Brahms, Robert Schumann, and Franz Liszt. Although little is known of Field's time in Russia, he undoubtedly contributed substantially to concerts and teaching, and to the development of the Russian piano school.
Amongst his students were Charles Mayer, Alexandre Dubuque, and Antoine de Kontski.
Biography
1782–1801: Early life
thumb|left|150px|A plaque commemorating Field in Golden Lane, Dublin
Field was born 26 July 1782 in Golden Lane, Dublin, the eldest son of Irish parents who were members of the Church of Ireland. He was baptised on 30 September. His father, Robert Field, earned his living by playing the violin in Dublin theatres. Field first studied the piano under his grandfather (also named John Field), who was a professional organist, and later under Tommaso Giordani. He made his debut at the age of nine, a performance that was well-received, on 24 March 1792 in Dublin. According to an early biographer, W. H. Grattan Flood, Field started composing in Ireland, but no evidence exists to support his claim. Flood also asserted that Field's family moved to Bath, Somerset, in 1793 and lived there for a short time, and this too is considered unlikely by modern researchers. By late 1793, though, the Fields had settled in London, where the young pianist started studying with Muzio Clementi. This arrangement was made possible by Field's father, who was perhaps able to secure the apprenticeship through Giordani, who knew Clementi.<!-- John Fields NO CONTENT-->
Field continued giving public performances and soon became famous in London, attracting favourable comments from the press and the local musicians. Around 1795 his performance of a Dussek piano concerto was praised by Haydn. Field continued his studies with Clementi, also helping the Italian with the making and selling of instruments. He also took up violin playing, which he studied under J. P. Solomon<!--Johann Peter Salomon?-->. His first published compositions were issued by Clementi in 1795; the first historically important work, Piano Concerto No. 1, H 27, was premiered by the composer in London on 7 February 1799, when he was aged 16. Field's first official opus was a set of three piano sonatas published by (and dedicated to) Clementi in 1801. On Christmas Day 1832 Field was in Paris, performing his 7th Piano Concerto, which received a mixed reaction, just as at his recent concerts in England. After a series of concerts in various European cities, Field spent nine months (1834–5) in a Naples hospital. His Russian patrons rescued him. He briefly stayed with Carl Czerny in Vienna, where he gave three recitals, and then returned to Moscow with his son Adrien.
Music
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| style="text-align: left;" | None have quite attained to these vague eolian harmonies, these half-formed sighs floating through the air, softly lamenting and dissolved in delicious melancholy. Nobody has even attempted this peculiar style, and especially none of those who heard Field play himself, or rather who heard him dream his music in moments when he entirely abandoned himself to his inspiration.
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| style="text-align: right;" | – Franz Liszt's preface to his edition of Field's nocturnes, 1859. (English translation by Julius Schuberth, 1859)
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Field became well known for his post-London style, probably developed in Moscow around 1807. The characteristic texture is that of a chromatically decorated melody over sonorous left-hand parts supported by sensitive pedalling. Field also had an affinity for ostinato patterns and pedal points, rather unusual for the prevailing styles of the day. Entirely representative of these traits are Field's 18 nocturnes and associated pieces such as Andante inedit, H 64. These works were some of the most influential music of the early Romantic period: they do not adhere to a strict formal scheme (such as the sonata form), and they create a mood without text or programme.
List of works
This list is arranged according to Hopkinson numbers, introduced in the 1961 catalogue by Cecil Hopkinson. Many of these works were arranged for other instruments and/or revised by the composer himself; such arrangements and revised versions are not listed.
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="width:100%; text-align: center"
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! Number !! Opus !! Form !! class="unsortable" | Title !! Key || Notes || Refs !! Year
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| H 1 || – || Variation || on "Fal Lal La" for piano || A major || ? || ? ||
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| H 2 || – || Rondo || "Favorite Hornpipe" for piano || A major || ? || ? ||
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| H 3 || – || Rondo || "Go the devil" for piano || C major || ? || ? ||
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| H 4 || – || Variation || on "Since then I'm doom'd" for piano || C major || ? || ? ||
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| H 5 || – || Rondo || "Slave, bear the sparkling goblet" for piano || G major || || ? ||
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| H 6 || – || Rondo || "The two slaves dances" for piano || G major || ? || ? ||
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| H 7 || – || Variation || on "Logie of Buchan" for piano || C major || ? || ? ||
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| rowspan="3" | H 8 || rowspan="3" | Op. 1 || rowspan="3" | Sonata || Piano Sonata No. 1 || E flat major || rowspan="3" | ? || rowspan="3" | ? || P 1801
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| Piano Sonata No. 2 || A major || P 1801
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| Piano Sonata No. 3 || C minor || P 1801
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| H 9 || – || Concertante || "Pleyel's" for piano, violin & cello || F major || ? || ? ||
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| H 10 || – || Variation || "Air russe" for piano 4 hands || A minor || ? || ? ||
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| H 11 || – || – || Andante for piano 4 hands || C minor || ? || ? ||
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| H 12 || –|| – || "Danse des ours" for piano 4 hands || E flat major || ? || ? ||
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| H 13 || – || Nocturne || for piano (12) || E major || ? || ? ||
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| H 14 || – || Divertissement || No. 2 for piano || A major || ? || ? ||
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| H 14 || – || Nocturne || for piano (7) || A major || ? || ? ||
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| H 15 || Op. 3 || Fantasia || on "Guardami un poco" for piano || A major || ? || ? ||
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| H 16 || – || Marche triomphale || for piano || E flat major || ? || ? ||
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| H 17 || – || Sonata || for piano || B major || ? || ? || P 1812
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| rowspan="2" | H 18 || rowspan="2" | – || Rondeau || rowspan="2" | for piano || rowspan="2" | A flat major || rowspan="2" | ? || rowspan="2" | ? ||
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| Waltz ||
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| H 19 || – || Grande valse || for piano 4 hands || A major || ? || ? ||
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| H 20 || – || Variation || on "Vive Henry IV" for piano || A minor || ? || ? ||
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| H 21 || – || Polonaise || for piano || E flat major || ? || ? ||
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| H 22 || – || Variation || on "Kamarinskaya" for piano || B flat major || ? || ? ||
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| H 23 || – || Rondo || "Speed the Plough" for piano || B major || ? || ? ||
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| H 24 || –|| Nocturne || No. 1 for piano || E flat major || ? || ? || P 1814
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| H 25 || – || Nocturne || No. 2 for piano || C minor || ? || ? || P 1814
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| H 26 || – || Nocturne || No. 3 for piano || A flat major || ? || ? || P 1814
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| rowspan="3" | H 27 || rowspan="3" | – || Piano Concerto || No. 1 || rowspan="2" | E flat major || rowspan="3" | || rowspan="3" | ? ||
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| Rondo || from Piano Concerto No. 1 ||
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| Variation || on "Within a mile" for piano || B flat major ||
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| rowspan="2" | H 28 || rowspan="2" | – || Piano Concerto || No. 4 || rowspan="2" | E flat major || rowspan="2" | || rowspan="2" | ? ||
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| Rondo || from Piano Concerto No. 4 ||
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| H 29 || – || Rondo || from Piano Concerto No. 3 || E flat major || ? || ? ||
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| H 30 || – || Nocturne || No. 9 (8) for piano || E flat major || ? || ? ||
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| rowspan="3" | H 31 || rowspan="3" | – || Piano Concerto || No. 2 || A flat major || rowspan="3" | ? || rowspan="3" | ? ||
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| Poco adagio || from Piano Concerto No. 2 || E flat major ||
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| Rondo || from Piano Concerto No. 2 || A flat major ||
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| H 32 || – || Piano Concerto || No. 3 || E flat major || || ? ||
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| H 33 || – || Étude|| "Exercice modulé sur tous les tons majeurs et mineurs" for piano || – || ? || ? ||
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| H 34 || – || Piano quintet || – || A flat major ||? || ? ||
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| H 35 || – || Fantasia || on "Ah! quel dommage" for piano || G major || ? || ? ||
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| H 36 || – || Nocturne || No. 4 for piano || A major || ? || ? || P 1817
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| H 37 || – || Nocturne || No. 5 for piano || B flat major || ? || ? || P 1817
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| H 38 || – || Rondo || for piano || A major || ? || ? ||
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| rowspan="2" | H 39 || rowspan="2" | – || Piano Concerto || No. 5 "L'incendie par l'orage" || rowspan="2" | C major || rowspan="2" | || rowspan="2" | ? ||
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| Rondo || from Piano Concerto No. 5 ||
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| H 40 || – || Nocturne || No. 6 for piano || F major || ? || ? ||
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| H 41 || – || Variation || on a Russian folksong for piano || D minor || ? || ? ||
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| H 42 || – || 6 Dances || for piano || – || ? || ? ||
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| H 43 || – || Rondo || for piano 4 hands || G major || ? || ? ||
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| H 44 || – || Étude || "Exercice nouveau" No. 1 for piano || C major || ? || ? ||
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| H 45 || – || Nocturne || No. 7 (13) for piano || C major || ? || ? ||
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| H 46 || – || Nocturne || No. 8 (9) for piano || E minor || ? || ? ||
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| H 47 || – || – || "The Maid of Valdarno" || – || || ? ||
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| H 48 || – || – || "Exercice nouveau" No. 2 for piano || C major || ? || ? ||
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| H 49 || – || Piano Concerto || No. 6 || C major || || ? ||
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| H 49 || – || Rondo || No. 6 from Piano Concerto || C major || ? || ? ||
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| H 50 || – || – || 2 Songs || – || ? || ? ||
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| H 51 || – || Waltz || "Sehnsuchts-Walzer" for piano || E major || ? || ? ||
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| H 52 || – || Rondoletto || for piano || E flat major || ? || ? ||
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| H 53 || – || Rondo || "Come again, come again" for piano || E major || ? || ? ||
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| H 54 || – || Nocturne || No. 10 for piano || E minor || ? || ? ||
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| H 55 || – || Nocturne || "Le troubadour" for piano || C major || ? || ? ||
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| H 56 || – || Nocturne || No. 11 for piano || E flat major || ? || ? ||
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| H 57 || – || Fantasia || on "We met" for piano || G major || ? || ? ||
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| rowspan="2" | H 58 || rowspan="2" | – || Nocturne || No. 12 (14) for piano || G major || rowspan="2" | || rowspan="2" | ? ||
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| Piano Concerto || No. 7 || C minor ||
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| H 59 || – || Nocturne || No. 13 (15) for piano || D minor || ? || ? ||
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| H 60 || – || Nocturne || No. 14 (16) for piano || C major || ? || ? ||
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| H 61 || – || Nocturne || No. 15 (17) for piano || C major || ? || ? ||
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| H 62 || – || Nocturne || No. 16 (18) for piano || F major || ? || ? ||
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| H 63 || – || Nocturne || – for piano || B flat major || ? || ? ||
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| H 64 || – || Andante inedit || for piano || E flat major || ? || ? ||
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| H 65 || – || Pastorale || for piano || – || || ? ||
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| H 66 || – || Nocturne || "Dernière pensée" for piano || – || || ? ||
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| H 67 || – || – || "88 passages doigtés" for piano || – || || ? ||
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| H deest || – || Étude || "Exercice" for piano || A flat major || ? || ? ||
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| H deest || – || Fantasia || on "Dans le jardin" for piano || A minor || ? || ? ||
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| H deest || – || Largo || for piano || C minor || ? || ? ||
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| H deest || – || Prelude || for piano || C minor || ? || ? ||
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| H deest || – || Nocturne || No. 17 for piano || E flat major || ? || ? ||
|}
Ephemera
In the Dublin suburb of Walkinstown there is a road called Field Avenue, one of a number of so-called 'musical roads' named after prominent Irish musicians.
He is mentioned in passing in War and Peace when Countess Rostova calls on the Rostov household musician to play her favourite nocturne.
Also, in Tolstoy's Childhood, Field is said to have taught the narrator's mother to play: "Mamma was playing Field's second concerto. Field had been her master." (Everyman Library, trans. C. J. Hogarth.)
Field is mentioned in Poshekhonskaya Antiquity by Saltykov-Shchedrin. [Салтыков-Щедрин, М.Е. Пошехонская Старина. --М: Правда, 1980.]
"Она у Фильда уроки берет. Дорогонек этот Фильд, по золотенькому за час платим, но за то . . . "
[Знаменитый в то время композитор-пианист, родом англичанин, поселившийся и состарившийся в Москве. Под конец жизни он давал уроки только у себя на дому и одинаково к ученикам и ученицам выходил в халате. (Прим. М Е. Салтыкова-Щедрина)]
She takes lessons from Field. That Field is expensive, we pay a gold piece an hour, but for that...
[A famous composer-pianist at the time, an Englishman by birth, who had settled and grew old in Moscow. Toward the end of his life he gave lessons only in his home and went to his pupils, male or female alike, in his housecoat. Author's note.]
See also
- Nocturnes (Field)