Sir Arthur Bliss
(1891-1975), ComposerSir Arthur Edward Drummond Bliss
Sitter in 41 portraits
A composer of orchestral and chamber works, Bliss drew inspiration from painting and sculpture. After serving with distinction in the 13th Royal Fusiliers (1914-17) and the Grenadier Guards (1917-19) and surviving with few injuries, his traumatic experiences are revealed in his diaries, letters and autobiography, As I Remember (1970). After the war, Bliss reacted against his German-influenced teaching and experimented with innovative compositions, coming to prominence with Colour Symphony (1921-2). In 1930, Bliss wrote Morning Heroes, a symphony in memory of his brother and friends killed in battle in the war, and identified it as a means for exorcising a recurring war-related nightmare and it is said to address his generation’s drive to fight in the war. Other important work includes the ballet Checkmate (1937) and the score for the film Things to Come (1935), considered one of the finest works in that medium. During World War Two he was the BBC's Director of Music and became Master of the Queen's Music from 1953.
by Mark Gertler
oil on canvas, 1932
NPG 5305
by Richard Stone
chalk, 1969-1970
NPG 5055
by Herbert Lambert
photogravure, circa 1922
NPG Ax7755
by Herbert Lambert
photogravure, circa 1922
NPG x133147
Cecil Armstrong Gibbs; Sir Arthur Bliss
by Elsie Gordon
snapshot print, 1923
NPG x20658
by Gordon Anthony
modern bromide print from original negative, 1937
NPG x44785
by Keystone Press Agency Ltd
bromide press print, 16 December 1949
NPG x184237
by Walter Stoneman
bromide print, 1952
NPG x165316
by Lida Moser
film negative, 1953
NPG x45312
by Lida Moser
film negative, 1953
NPG x45313
by Elliott & Fry
bromide print, 1953
NPG x182174
by Elliott & Fry
half-plate negative, 1953
NPG x82370
by Elliott & Fry
half-plate negative, 1953
NPG x82371
by Elliott & Fry
half-plate negative, 1953
NPG x82372
by Derek Allen
bromide print, 1954
NPG x24103
by P.A. Reuter Photos Ltd
bromide press print, 2 August 1955
NPG x182381
by Norman Parkinson
bromide print on card mount, 1956
NPG x30014
by Walter Bird
bromide print, 4 June 1963
NPG x165317
by Mark Gerson
bromide print, November 1966
NPG x1083
Sir Arthur Bliss; Malcolm Sargent
by Central Press
bromide press print, 2 August 1966
NPG x184238
Michael Gatehouse; Sir Arthur Bliss
by Press Association Photos
bromide press print, 18 February 1969
NPG x184239
Sir Arthur Bliss; Sir Edward Heath; Sir Adrian Boult
by Keystone Press Agency Ltd
bromide press print, 1 June 1972
NPG x184254
by Elliott & Fry
bromide print
NPG x182173
by Gordon Anthony
modern bromide print from original negative, 1937
NPG x44788
by Angus McBean
halftone reproduction tear sheet, published 12 October 1949
NPG x193370
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