Maurice Cole (1902 – 1990), was an English pianist, teacher and adjudicator. He was born in London and studied at the Guildhall School of Music and privately with Arthur De Greef in London and Brussels.[1]
Cole was the first pianist to broadcast a recital on the BBC and went on to perform, amongst many other compositions, both books of Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier on the BBC Third Programme. He was professor at the Guildhall School of Music from 1953, was appointed Professor of Pianoforte at the School on two occasions and was a member of the Incorporated Society of Musicians.[2] He was married with Doris Allen.
During the Second World War, he was a member of ENSA and entertained the forces, both in London and abroad. He partnered with the pianist composer Helen Pyke for piano duets before her death in 1954.[3] In 1958, he went on an extensive performance tour to Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and other countries.
Cole recorded extensively in the 1920s and 1930s for release on 78 rpm for Vocalion, for Hyperion during the late 1940s, and for Classics Club Records during the late 1950s (later reissued by Saga Records). He was also one of the first pianists to broadcast from the Marconi House Studio in 1922 and also broadcast from Savoy Hill.[4]
Maurice Cole played his first Portsmouth Municipal concert at The Kings Theatre, Southsea,on the 1st November 1942 with the orchestra of the Royal Marines under Vivian Dunn.
He died in Portsmouth on 14th April 1990.