John Henry Maunder - Critical Opinion

Critical Opinion

In 1922, an American reviewer for The New Music Review wrote the following: "An enthusiastic choirmaster once declared that the organists and choristers of the English-speaking world should unite to raise a monument to J. H. Maunder as a great benefactor of the human race in general and of church musicians in particular, because of the fact that he combined in his voluminous writings for the church two factors which are both most highly to be commended and yet which are seldom found in the same composer, i.e., a good musical style and great technical facility. The music of Maunder is always well-written and thoroughly musical and devotional in feeling, and yet it is always easy to sing. Any amateur parish choir can attempt it, and yet it is worth the attention of even the best choral organizations. There is always a fresh and apparently inexhaustible flow of melodic ideas and the harmonic fabric is always full of interest and color and yet never unduly complicated. These remarks apply to all his writings, and may be made of the service suggested for this day."

In the 1955 edition of the Oxford Companion to Music Percy Scholes damns him with faint praise, writing that his ‘seemingly inexhaustible cantatas, Penitence, Pardon and Peace, and From Olivet to Calvary long enjoyed popularity, and still aid the devotions of undemanding congregations in less sophisticated areas.’

In 1966, the critic Basil Ramsey wrote in the Musical Times of the LP recording of Olivet to Calvary by Barry Rose and the Guildford Cathedral Choir: "Here is a perplexing problem. Does this work warrant the preparation that has resulted in such an irresistible performance? Sweeping transformations can be made to music, however questionable its worth; and even poor words take on a superior air in such circumstances. The delusion will work for some and not others." These almost cryptic, yet bitter remarks suggest that he was troubled at being moved by "the irresistible performance" of music whose style he had been taught to despise. It should be noted, however, that the performance accurately follows the printed score, and undergoes no such "sweeping transformations", its only three cuts being of a minor nature, namely the first presentation of "Another temple waits Thee, Lord divine" by the Trebles, "Come unto Him, all ye that labour" by the Baritone soloist, and the organ "March to Calvary", music which in each case is later repeated by the chorus.

According to Robert Young, author of The Anthem in England and America (1970), Maunder's music was probably more esteemed by volunteer church choir singers than his peers.

Phillip Tolley, in the website of British Choirs on the Net, writes: Olivet to Calvary ‘is a fine example of music written for the late Victorian/early Edwardian Anglican church. Considered by some to be over sentimental by modern tastes, it contains a sincerity and dedication which, despite being a definite product of its time, has carried the piece through to the modern era. Its popularity is in part due to its simplicity, needing only organ, choir, bass and tenor soloists, it is a work which can be performed by the smallest choirs. ‘Described as a sacred cantata, Olivet to Calvary recalls the scenes which mark the last few days of Christ's life on earth. Part 1 starts with Christ's jubilant journey to Jerusalem and ends with the scene on the Mount of Olives. Part 2 begins with the Feast of Passover with Christ's commandment to his disciples to 'Love one Another' and ends with the Crucifixion at Calvary. It is interspersed with congregational hymns which reflect on the scenes. ‘While a slight and somewhat outdated work Olivet to Calvary, like Stainer's more substantial Crucifixion, rewards sincere performance.’