Francis Cunningham Woods (1862-1929)

Francis Cunningham Woods

“From the organ loft to a small village in Norfolk”

 Born in London, Cunningham Woods was the son of court dressmaker Alfred Woods. From 1877-1880 he attended the National Training School for Music. This was a music conservatory located in Kensington. In 1882 it was absorbed into the newly created Royal College of Music which began instructing students in 1883. Woods was taught by Arthur Sullivan and Ebenezer Prout. 

He was employed as an organist, first at Brasenose College and then at Exeter College Oxford, where he was awarded his MA degree in 1891. He later served as organist to the Duke of Marlborough.

In 1894 he became Head of Music at Highgate School in North London, a position he held for almost the rest of his life. His theatre work included music for Oxford productions of Shakespeare.

The Gressenhall Suite for string orchestra probably dates from the 1920s. Its name hails from the village of Gressenhall, Norfolk. Woods had connections with East Anglia mainly through his wife who was from Norwich and his father who retired to the area.

The composer gave some background to the suite.

“Some years ago I was staying at Gressenhall near East Dereham, Norfolk. During my visit I was present at a jolly little dance in the parish room. All accompaniments were played on an accordion by a young fellow who was employed in a flour mill. He played a large number of folk dances – mainly traditional – the names of which he did not know. ‘I learnt them from my father,’ he said. One struck me as  being a very jolly one and I named it after the village (Gressenhall). A brother of the Squire told me that the words at the commencement of the song, were – “Throw away sorrow, Cast away care! The parish is bound to maintain us.” 

Orchestral worklist (Selected works; bold indicates confirmed surviving performing material)

Date uncertain	Minuet and Trio for orchestra
Date uncertain	Suite in F major
Date uncertain	Romance in F for violin and orchestra
1893	The Two Gentlemen of Verona – incidental music
1894	The Tempest – incidental music
1915 (publication)	The Gressenhall Suite for strings and piano

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The Gressenhall Suite (1915)

There are 4 movements. 

1. Preamble  

2. A Norfolk Folk Tune  

3. Slow Air  

4. Jig and Finale

Bizarely there is a record of a  New Zealand radio-programme notice in 1927 listing the work and its four movements. The broadcast notice also shows that the suite travelled beyond Britain and remained in circulation more than a decade after publication.

1st movement