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Henry Purcell

Henry Purcell (, rare: ; c. 10 September 1659 – 21 November 1695) was an English composer and organist of the middle Baroque era. He composed more than 100 songs, a tragic opera Dido and Aeneas, and wrote incidental music to a version of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream called The Fairy Queen.

Purcell's musical style was uniquely English, although it incorporated Italian and French elements. Purcell is generally considered to be one of the greatest English composers.

Birth and Death Data: Born Westminster (area of the City of Westminster in the London Region in England), Died November 21, 1695 (Westminster (area of the City of Westminster in the London Region in England) )

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1908 - 1946

Roles Represented in DAHR: composer

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings (Results 1-25 of 40 records)

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
Victor B-6074 10-in. 4/1/1908 Immortal love Harry Macdonough Male vocal solo composer  
Victor C-13051 12-in. 4/1/1913 My lovely Celia Marcella Sembrich Soprano vocal solo, with piano composer  
Victor B-15061 10-in. 7/13/1914 Come unto these yellow sands Raymond Dixon [i.e., Lambert Murphy] ; William F. Hooley ; Reinald Werrenrath Male vocal trio, with harp and cello composer  
Victor B-17244 10-in. 3/2/1916 I attempt from Love's sickness to fly Reinald Werrenrath Male vocal solo, with orchestra composer  
Victor B-27341 10-in. 12/27/1922 Minuet Alfred Cortot Piano solo composer  
Victor B-29628 10-in. 3/6/1924 Nymphs and shepherds Mendelssohn Chorus Mixed vocal chorus composer  
Victor B-31623 10-in. 12/31/1924 Trumpet prelude Philadelphia Orchestra ; Leopold Stokowski Orchestra composer  
Victor B-31688 10-in. 1/20/1925 Minuetto Alfred Cortot Piano solo composer  
Victor BVE-37685 10-in. 2/22/1927 I attempt from Love's sickness to fly Royal Dadmun Tenor vocal solo, with piano composer  
Victor BS-77831 10-in. 9/27/1933 When I am laid in earth Rose Bampton Contralto vocal solo, with piano composer  
Victor CS-77888 12-in. 11/1/1933 Chaconne American Society of Ancient Instruments ; Ben Stad Instrumental quartet composer  
Victor BS-83155 10-in. 5/24/1934 Suite American Society of Ancient Instruments ; Ben Stad Instrumental quintet composer  
Victor BVE-87585 10-in. 1/15/1935 When I am laid in Earth Rose Bampton ; Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra Contralto vocal solo, with orchestra composer  
Victor BS-03157 10-in. 12/13/1936 Lament from Dido and Aeneas Elsie MacFarlane ; University of Pennsylvania Choral Society Mixed vocal chorus and contralto vocal solo composer  
Victor CS-018851 12-in. 2/7/1938 Suite for strings with four horns, two flutes and English horn John Barbirolli ; New York Philharmonic Strings, with 2 flutes, English horn, and 4 French horns composer  
Victor CS-018852 12-in. 2/7/1938 Suite for strings with four horns, two flutes and English horn John Barbirolli ; New York Philharmonic Strings, with 2 flutes, English horn, and 4 French horns composer  
Victor CS-018853 12-in. 2/7/1938 Suite for strings with four horns, two flutes and English horn New York Philharmonic Strings, with 2 flutes, English horn, and 4 French horns composer  
Victor CS-018854 12-in. 2/7/1938 Suite for strings with four horns, two flutes and English horn New York Philharmonic Strings, with 2 flutes, English horn, and 4 French horns composer  
Victor CS-030910 12-in. 1/8/1939 Suite from "Dido and Aeneas," part 1 Eugene Ormandy ; Philadelphia Orchestra Orchestra composer  
Victor CS-030911 12-in. 1/8/1939 Suite from "Dido and Aeneas," part 2 Eugene Ormandy ; Philadelphia Orchestra Orchestra composer  
Victor CS-030912 12-in. 1/8/1939 Suite from "Dido and Aeneas," part 3 Eugene Ormandy ; Philadelphia Orchestra Orchestra composer  
Victor CS-030913 12-in. 1/8/1939 Suite from "Dido and Aeneas," part 4 Eugene Ormandy ; Philadelphia Orchestra Orchestra composer  
Victor BS-031837 10-in. 1/24/1939 Dido's song Hertha Glatz Contralto vocal solo, with piano composer  
Victor CS-046404 12-in. 1/10/1940 Come again, sweet love Lester Hodges ; Gladys Swarthout Mezzo-soprano vocal solo, with piano composer  
Victor CS-066725 12-in. 7/14/1941 Trumpet tune E. Power Biggs Organ solo composer  
(Results 1-25 of 40 records)

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Purcell, Henry," accessed January 3, 2026, http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/102498.

Purcell, Henry. (2026). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved January 3, 2026, from http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/102498.

"Purcell, Henry." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2026. Web. 3 January 2026.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/102498

External Sources

Wikipedia: Henry Purcell

Discogs: Henry Purcell

Allmusic: Henry Purcell

Grove: Henry Purcell

IMSLP: Henry Purcell

RISM: Henry Purcell

IMDb: Henry Purcell

Britannica: Henry Purcell

Linked Open Data Sources

LCNAR: Purcell, Henry, 1659-1695 - https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n79095298

Wikidata: Henry Purcell - https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q9695

VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/5118737

MusicBrainz: Henry Purcell - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/ddea5540-2c7d-4266-8507-b367c2635d35

Fast: https://id.worldcat.org/fast/41430 - https://id.worldcat.org/fast/41430

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