Hugo Henry Rignold (15 May 1905 – 30 May 1976) was an English conductor and violinist, who is best remembered as musical director of theRoyal Ballet (1957–1960) and conductor of theCity of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (1960–1968).
After playing the violin and recording with manyjazz and dance bands, and leading his own London Casino Orchestra, in the 1920s and 1930s, duringWorld War II, Rignold began to conduct classical orchestras. Thereafter, he conducted opera atCovent Garden and then theLiverpool Philharmonic, beginning in the late 1940s, followed by the Royal Ballet and his long tenure with Birmingham.
Born inKingston upon Thames, England, the son of conductor Hugo Charles Rignold and opera singer Agnes Mann, Rignold was taken to Canada when his parents emigrated toWinnipeg in 1910.[1] He began studying the violin as a child withJohn Waterhouse in Winnipeg and played in the orchestra of the Winnipeg Theatre.[2] After returning to England in 1921, he studied at theRoyal Academy of Music[3] and then worked as ablacksmith for a time.[4]
In the 1920s and 1930s, Rignold played violin with many jazz and dance bands of the day, including those ofMantovani,Jack Hylton,Jack Harris,Fred Hartley,Ambrose,Lew Stone andJay Wilbur.[4] Rignold was highly regarded as a jazz player. In 1936The Gramophone magazine said of him, "With the possible exception of the Negro artist,Eddie South, and our ownEric Siday, who is abroad, there have been only two violinists who have hitherto meant anything to jazz –Venuti, of course, and more recently the French musicianStephane Grappelly (sic). To my mind Hugo Rignold is a greater artist than any of them."[5] Rignold went on to lead his own London Casino Orchestra.[4]
He made many recordings with these musicians, a good number of which have been reissued on modern CDs. Other classical musicians such asLeon andSidonie Goossens, did likewise, but these early jazz and dance records caused some snobbish condescension towards Rignold later in his career (as later happened toAndré Previn).[6][7] 1920s recordings in which Rignold played with the Jack Hylton Orchestra includeGeorge Gershwin's "Oh, Lady Be Good" recorded on 29 March 1926, andIrving Berlin's "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" recorded on 17 August 1926. Both were forHis Master's Voice at the company's studios in Hayes, Middlesex. Later, with Hylton as his mentor, he founded and led his own band, which was playing up to the beginning of the Second World War.
Rignold married three times: in 1934 to Rita Mary Gaylor (the actress Molly Gay); in 1941 to Phyllis Stanley; and in 1948 to Patricia Horton. There was a daughter by each of the first two marriages.[8] The elder wasJennifer Gay, who became the first on-screen schoolgirlcontinuity announcer forChildren's Hour on theBBC.[9][10]
While serving in theRoyal Air Force in 1944, Rignold got the chance to conduct the Palestine Orchestra, now theIsrael Philharmonic, and thereafter his career remained within the classical sphere.[3] He was a staff conductor at theRoyal Opera House, Covent Garden, 1947–1948; he directed theLiverpool Philharmonic (not then 'Royal') in the 1940s and 1950s, succeeding the popularMalcolm Sargent.[3] A "period of unrest and strife" accompanied the beginning of Rignold's reign in Liverpool: Rignold replaced many older players in the orchestra, and some of the audience were unimpressed by his career in popular music.[6]
In the 1949/1950 season with the Liverpool Philharmonic, Rignold conducted 34 concerts, with guest conductors, including Sargent,Rafael Kubelík,Zoltán Kodály,Sir Adrian Boult andSir Thomas Beecham conducting a total of 19 other concerts. Rignold's programming there maintained a balance between presenting accepted modern and classical works and premiering new works, includingSergei Prokofiev's suite fromCinderella and works byBohuslav Martinů,E. J. Moeran andGordon Jacob.[11]
From 1957 to 1960 Rignold was musical director of theRoyal Ballet, In 1960 he became permanent conductor of theCity of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra whenAndrzej Panufnik unexpectedly resigned. He remained at Birmingham until 1968.[8]
Rignold made a number of classical recordings, but did not have a long-term contract with any of the record companies, with the consequence that his recorded repertory was somewhat haphazard – accompanying concertos, or selections for operatic artists (includingMaggie Teyte), and ballet music. Most of his records were made in the mono era, and some have been reissued on CD.
He was a car enthusiast and talented driver: it was said that "he would not be out of place on theGrand Prix circuit".[12]
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