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“In moving further into the 21st century it becomes increasingly important to try to preserve the artistic treasures that are our heritage. As past eras recede further into the distance, and tangible links with them become increasingly rare, any attempt to document our heritage for the benefit of future generations is an important and worthwhile undertaking.”

Keyboard Giants .com

Verne

Vallier

AV01

ADELA VERNE

Adela Verne (1877-1952) was the greatest woman pianist of her era, ranked alongside the male keyboard giants of the time.

Her phenomenal playing "EQUALLED THE POWER OF ROSENTHAL" [San Francisco Examiner] and was "UNSURPASSED EVEN BY THE LIKES OF RUBINSTEIN AND PADEREWSKI" [The Times].

Paderewski said "SHE IS ONE OF THE WORLD'S GREATEST PIANISTS" She toured with immense success all over the world.

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JOHN VALLIER

John Vallier (1920-1991) was Adela Verne's son and a worthy successor to inherit the great traditions held by the family.

His teachers were Mathilde and Adela and he also worked with Edwin Fischer and Alfred Cortot, both of whom proclaimed him "A BRILLIANT MUSICIAN".

He possessed "A RELIABLE VIRTUOSO TECHNIQUE AND A TOUCH THAT CAN SING SWEETLY AND ALSO THUNDER WITH IMPRESSIVE FORCE" [New York Times].

He was held in the highest esteem and carried on the traditions through to later generations, through intemational performances and musicological research.

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MATHILDE VERNE

Mathilde Verne (1864-1936) was Clara Schumann's greatest pupil.

Pupils flocked from all over the world to Mathilde's College in London, founded in 1909, including Royalty, the aristocracy and fashionable society. Her sister, Adela, and nephew, John Vallier, were her greatest professional pupils; Solomon and Moura Lympany were other successes.

Her pupils included HM The Queen Mother (as Lady Bowes-Lyon and Duchess of York).

Mathilde Verne was held in the highest possible esteem by the musical and artistic world, an elite among professors of the piano who ranked as one of Europe's greatest teachers, alongside her own teacher, Clara Schumann, and the likes of Leschetitzky, Busoni, Philip and Matthay.

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The Archives

The Verne Vallier Archive Library is a unique collection of music and musical memorabilia stretching back to the purest of the Romantic Composers and Traditions.

It has a pedigree of incomparable distinction and is one of the most important archives on music heritage from the Romantic to the present era in existance.

The family are commemorated by a plaque erected on the house in Southampton, England, where their ancestors settled in the early 19th Century:

The Collection contains, for example:

Scores of Robert Schumann’s music containing the personal annotations of Clara Schumann;

Robert Schumann’s conducting baton [see picture below];

letters from Clara Schumann;

her writing case and gold book mark;

many editions of music books dated from c. 1860;

scores of music annotated by Ignace Jan Paderewski, the great Polish Pianist and Statesman;

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ALICE VERNE-BREDT

Alice Verne-Bredt (1868-1958) was the sixth of the ten Veme children. She too studied with Clara Schumann, although illness prevented a performing career.

She undertook a very active role in Mathilde's School, particularly over the teaching of the younger children.

She was the pioneer of teaching music to children in class and the innovator of percussion bands for children in Great Britain and elsewhere.

She was a formidable composer.

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