Arthur Hutchings in Durham 2 - in the lecture room and beyond
"Hutch" would often begin a lecture as he walked across Palace Green to Room 6, or at least give semblance of having begun it for he would enter in mid sentence to keep everyone on their toes. Wearing a gown that had seen better days he usually carried within a large brown leather bag a few records, some papers and a score or two. Relevant musical illustrations might be sketched on the piano, then wiping a long player disc with the sleeve of his gown he would attempt, with many near misses, to persuade the stylus to hit the right track, whilst grumbling that students didn’t always take care of the records they borrowed from the department! Frequently he would amplify the subject of the lecture with digressions, analogies and anecdotes - for example Sir Thomas Beecham's "lollipops", Cathedral gossip, local architecture he considered unworthy, Wordsworth's philosophy, Turner's paintings, Charles Burney's musical travels in the 1770s, recommended walks, where to buy the best fish and chips in the city and so on. A comprehensive education indeed offered in a mixture of erudition and enlightenment.
Musical literature was expounded with regard to its social context and the creative means by which composers engaged listeners and audiences. In short, his lectures were never dull or boring and quite often the asides would reduce everyone to fits of laughter. He hated pretension and pomposity in any context - he couldn't abide the elongation of 'o' in the word 'opus' and Debussy was pronounced as 'Dibussi', Ravel became 'Raarvel'. Should he have reason to cancel a Saturday morning lecture in late November he would announce "Christmas shopping on Saturday - it's not too early!". When a music history exam approached, and to aid revision, Prof would pretend to divulge the questions by reading them out in a lecture - but with all the essential words replaced by "blank". Although Bach's music was ever a central reference point, he held Handel in equal esteem "I would burn incense before Handel any day of the week" he declared. When talking about Handel's writing for orchestra he said of the famous 'Arrival of the Queen of Sheba' sinfonia that the string figuration almost suggests the rustling of ladies' crinolines although "the real Queen most likely arrived wearing two half coconuts and a grass skirt!". His passion for the Baroque era bore admirable fruit in his book "The Baroque Concerto" [1961]. He discussed Handel's Op 6 Concerti in a BBC talk (see Audio page).
The Hutchings BBC talks during the 1960s to 1980 period offered many examples of his barbed wit; they certainly retain the flavour and tone of his lecturing style (Listen to examples on the Audio page). Addressing the question 'was Hutchings a popularizer?' Professor Peter Evans in his 1990 Memorial Concert address (see Documents page) gave a completely balanced and convincing judgment as to where his strengths lay when he speaks about his "intense seriousness of purpose".
Pastoral care of his students was an essential aspect of his character thus from time to time he circulated some well chosen words of advice, for instance ‘Rules’ - basically be courteous and helpful to each other within the department, ‘Pride’ and ‘Manners’ and in a “don’t take it too seriously manner” he advised "Christmas, Birthday and Treat Yourself Presents’ - Don’t spend your money on expensive cards and keeping up with the Joneses. I am now ancient yet, when asked what I wanted for a birthday present, I said “The vocal score of Falstaff”. Snob: “Hadn’t you already got one?”. Me: “Yes, I had, but I lent it..to a parson”. How much I can avoid shelf-hunting now, after 90 birthdays and Chistmasses and girl friends and grateful pupils (NB). I have nice little bound copies of Boven’s overtures, chamber works of Brahms, Handel’s Op 6, the Brandyballs and various operas and choral things". (See the Documents page for the complete General Advice to students).
During the Durham years he performed two Mozart piano concertos with the University Orchestra; during one cadenza he glanced at the audience as if to say “You didn’t think I could do that!”. During an organ recital in the Castle’s Tunstall chapel when he substituted for the Cathedral organist and played Bach, his fingers led him momentarily astray so he called out “Bach didn’t write that!”. On another occasion, playing the Bach Chorale Prelude “An Wasserflussen Babylon” some mishap occurred, prompting the loud remark “Oh dear, I think the stream’s dried up”. For several years the programme for the annual Freshers’ Conference included a special event held on the Saturday evening prior to the popular Ball in the Castle Great Hall - an advertised lecture by the music professor that always ensured a full house. His 1961 subject was “Duet and two piano music”, surely an unlikely prospect for a non specialist audience. Undeterred, they greeted the witty and irreverent stories with gales of laughter. On this occasion Prof decided he should end with the finale of Bach’s C major Double Concerto BWV 1061 so asked music student John Peace to partner him in a brief rehearsal before the evening. The performance was quite unique, Prof’s piano technique being far from polished. At one point Hutchings failed to turn a page quickly and sang the next phrase before continuing triumphantly to the close. It brought the house down. The recording can be heard at the foot of this page.
As organist of St Oswald’s Church in the city (where celebrated hymn writer the Rev J B Dykes was Vicar 1862-76) Hutchings was always grateful when capable student organists could fill in or deputise for him when he was away on business - read the idiosyncratic and amusing instructions for playing a Eucharist and an Evensong on the Documents page. In one letter he writes "I’m gradually weaning myself [from St Oswald’s] as they’re lousy with FRCOs [!!] and I’m not really interested in Anglican church music, only with humble services of the type Fr Meux [the Vicar] perforce had to use". But his contribution wasn't restricted to organ playing for occasionally he would write and duplicate the parish magazine or arrange flowers. In a letter written in 1968 he looked forward to retirement
"I shall certainly retire before [age] 65. Apart from making performance compulsory and cutting down too much ‘book history’ instead of absorbing interest in the stuff itself, I have left courses unchanged for the next man. Didn’t want to go until I cd say “I have one of the best staff & students in the kingdom”. If I left now I cd say that. One miserable student can affect others badly by just being miserable. I know all the religious reasons against this (not offering places to those who have eg mental illness, broken home etc) and all the ‘liberty’ arguments against my forbidding of beards, long hair etc but they know that and can go elsewhere. I have never had here a set of students so excellent as people or so very able as young musicians. Very rarely can a man say that after 22 years. My memory is going and I tire easily so I hate being out late or entertaining late or even being entertained. A younger man should be here. I’m not unhappy but I dread clinging till I’m merely regarded with affection without genuine recognition of efficiency….The last composer to thrill was Bartok, except for some bits of Gerhard, Dallapiccola and Berg. I’m also hopelessly Latin-French biassed in earlier music. I’ve not cured it. I ought to go. I come from Devon, as far as I know the most utterly unmusical of all counties, but who wants music when you’ve got what Devon offers?
Also important decisions must be made in the near future and they should be made by the man who will live with them.This ship helps me to go without fond farewells and “waiting for it”, which after 22 years I should find painful. My real weariness now is that I can do little teaching because of quantity of meetings, not only in Durham but in London, bumpf and writing, reports, graphs, analyses, finance… And now Jo [his daughter] is married I want to be more with Marie [his wife]. We aren’t fond of rushing about. We like walking and wandering and being quiet at home. I’m itching to hear and play music, to write and potter and smell the garden. We’ve ruined ourselves to get this cottage nr Axminster and it’s silly to stay where we can’t get away from well meaning folk..the Somerville drawl, pretension, university, traffic and noise and parties".
In the course of his teaching career Hutchings's students included Bernard Stevens (composer and RCM professor, d1983), Donald Mitchell (writer, editor and academic, d2017), Eric Roseberry (writer, teacher, administrator d2012), Peter Evans (Durham colleague then Professor of Music Southampton University, writer & composer d2018), Michael Fleming (director of music All Saints, Margaret St, and other London churches d2006), Anthony Payne (composer and critic d2021), Alan Gibbs (composer, teacher & organist b1932).
St Oswald's Parish Church, Durham City
