Sir George Henschel Henschel, Sir George (hĕnˈshəl) [key],
1850–1934, German-English conductor, composer, and baritone. His
first appearance (1877) in England was as a singer, and there he
and his wife inaugurated (c.1880) the song recital. In 1881 he
became the Boston Symphony Orchestra's first conductor. He
returned to England in 1884 and was professor of singing
(1886–88) at the Royal College of Music, London. He founded
(1886) the London Symphony Concerts, which he conducted until
they ceased in 1897. In his musical compositions, which include
operas, songs, choral works, and instrumental music, he was
strongly influenced by Brahms and Wagner. He was knighted in
1914. His first wife, Lillian June (Bailey) Henschel, 1860–1901,
was an American soprano. She made her debut in Boston in 1876,
then studied (1878) with Viardot-Garcia in Paris and later with
Henschel, whom she married in 1881. The Columbia Electronic
Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2012, Columbia University
Press. All rights reserved. More on S