The Geelong Town Band Australia and James Ord Hume - 1900

The Geelong Town Band Australia and James Ord Hume - 1900

The 20th Century  march was written by James Ord Hume to welcome in the new century and was the 1st prize winner in the Champion Journal's 'Five Guinea March Competition'. The newly formed Geelong Town Band of Australia gave the premiere in 1900. This turned out to be one of his most popular marches. During World War II the printing plates and original proofs were destroyed in the blitz. This has resulted in the march not being published since that bombing.  

James Ord Hume - The March King

The name of James Ord Hume will be familiar to some brass banders. His name appears on a number of pieces particularly marches, which are still played today. Some of you however may not have known that he used quite a number of other names: Lillian Raymond, William German, Oliver Herzer, Eugene Verner, Jacques Lafont, Dora Hartness and Paul Haake for example. But why would he have written under so many pseudonyms?  The answer is that during his composing lifetime there was so much music under his real name that he felt the public might grow fed up with him, whereas a new composer might arouse fresh interest. Where did he get these names from? - one of them Lillian Raymond was also the name of his daughter who was born in 1892.

 

2 comments

  • Arthur Withers

    Arthur Withers - Sunday, 30 April 2023

    Preston Band played Ord hume march twentieth century at austalian contest held at Towoomba Qld in 1960
    Could still be in Preston (Darebin} victoria library AJW

  • William Hume

    William Hume - Sunday, 09 January 2022

    My dad was John Erskine Hume from Dunfermline. He always told us that his dad's cousin Ord Hume was the original composer of Scotland The Brave. This was about 40 years ago, and now we have the internet I keyed in Ord Hume just to see if there was a musician called Ord Hume from Scotland that fitted the time period and endless listings for James Ord Hume came up. Scotland The Brave is listed as having an anonymous composer and words were later added in 1951.

Leave a comment

Heather Horsley Illustrations

Harlequin Recordings

Broadnib Music

Wigan FM

Wythenshawe Radio 97.2

Brass Band Radio (York)

Tempo FM Wetherby

Phoenix Radio 96.7FM

Preston Hospital Radio

Radio Christmas - Charity Festive Radio Station

Sounds of Brass logo

BAM Web Radio

Drystone Radio

World FM

Radio 88FM

Lionheart Radio 107.3FM

Oldham Community Radio