Frederic King

Frederic King (3 January 1853 – 20 May 1933) was an English baritone and voice teacher. A singer who specialized in the concert repertoire, he was particularly celebrated as an interpreter of the title role of Felix Mendelssohn's Elijah and the role of Mephistopheles in Berlioz's La damnation de Faust, the latter of which he performed for the work's English premiere at Royal Albert Hall in 1882. He worked in an auction house before beginning his singing career. He was trained as a vocalist at the National Training School for Music (NTSM) in the 1870s; a precursor to the Royal College of Music. He studied singing with Albert Visetti at the NTSM, and his other teachers at that school included Ebenezer Prout (harmony), William Henry Monk (choral music), Eaton Faning (piano), and Stephen Kemp (piano).

While obituaries stated that he made his professional singing debut in a ballad concert at St James's Hall in 1878, and that same year had performed professionally as a baritone in concerts in the Assembly Room of the Royal Hotel, Birmingham. Shortly after joining the roster of singers managed by Messrs Harrison, he appeared in concert at the Birmingham Triennial Music Festival in February 1879; and it was reported in the press that this was his professional debut. His performance at the festival included a duet from La favorite sung with Zelia Trebelli-Bettini.

King created the role of Callias, the Priest of Apollo, in the first performance of Arthur Sullivan's oratorio The Martyr of Antioch at the triennial Leeds Festivals in 1880. At that same festival he replaced an ailing Charles Santley in the title role of Felix Mendelssohn's Elijah and in performances of Joseph Haydn's The Creation, the latter of which included soprano Emma Albani and tenor Edward Lloyd. Reviewing King's performance in the latter work, Herman Klein, in Musical Notes, called him: ...a talented and conscientious artist, who invested his music with all the dramatic significance and sardonic humour of which it was susceptible. Truth to tell, there is not much diabolical in Longfellow's fiend, and it would seem as though Sir Arthur Sullivan had sought on occasion to atone for his comparative mildness by applying a background of orchestration worthy in its sonority of Berlioz or Wagner. Whether Satan could make himself heard in Pandemonium may be an open question, but undoubtedly there are moments in The Golden Legend when Lucifer's human representative, be his voice ever so stentorian, is bound to be inaudible. All that artistic singing could do to lend the character its proper prominence was done by Mr. King.

King performed in the Triennial Handel Festivals in 1880, 1882, and 1885.

On retiring from the concert platform King taught singing at the Royal College of Music for 42 years, from 1889 to 1931. Among his students were Norman Allin, Miriam Licette, Muriel O'Malley, Robert Radford, David Brazell, William Samuell and Herbert Heyner. After his retirement from the Royal Academy of Music he continued to give lessons privately, the last being just before he was taken ill a week before his death. His funeral service took place at Golders Green Crematorium on 22 May 1933. In his will he left his widow and children £1,375.