Photo: Stipple engraving and publication by Thomas Gainsborough, based on a portrait by Mary Ann Rigg (née Scott) [2] · Public domain · credits
Tier 3 · vertical & regionalfull biography
John Stanley
Person · male · Kingdom of Great Britain · London · born 1712 · died 1786 · recording since 1989
English composer and organist
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Also known as Charles John Stanley · J. Stanley · J.Stanley · Stanley · ジョン・スタンリー
Timeline
7 events▣ Album 4◦ Birth 1† Death 1★ Debut release 1
1710s
1780s
1980s
· Debut release
Debut release: Six Concertos in Seven Parts, op. 2
First documented Album in the MusicBrainz discography.
source: musicbrainz
1990s
2020s
Biography
English biography689 words · 2 sectionssource: wikipedia-en · licence CC BY-SA 4.0 · revision 1370775476
Biography
Charles John Stanley (17 January 1712 Old Style – 19 May 1786) was an English composer and organist.
Biography
John Stanley was born in London on 17 January 1712. At about the age of two, he fell on a marble hearth with a china basin in his hand, an accident which left him almost blind.
He began studying music at the age of seven. Under the guidance of Maurice Greene, composer and organist at St. Paul's Cathedral, he studied "with great diligence, and a success that was astonishing" (Burney). At the age of nine he played the organ, probably as an occasional deputy, at All Hallows, Bread Street. When he was eleven years old, Stanley was appointed organist to the church at a salary of £20 per annum.
When he was fourteen "in preference to a great number of candidates" (Burney) he was chosen as organist at St Andrew Holborn, and at the age of seventeen became the youngest person ever to obtain the Bachelor of Music degree (B.Mus.) from the University of Oxford.
In 1734 he was appointed organist to the Society of the Inner Temple, a position which he held until his death in 1786. It was at the ancient Temple Church that his brilliant playing upon the organ and harpsichord attracted the attention of many fine musicians including George Frideric Handel, who regularly visited the church to hear him. Stanley was also an outstanding violinist.
In 1738 Stanley married Sarah Arlond (daughter of Captain Edward Arlond of the East India Company), who brought him a dowry of £7,000 per annum. Sarah's sister Ann, who at this time lived with them, became the blind composer's copyist.
Though virtually blind, Stanley had a remarkable memory, which helped him direct many of Handel's oratorios and to enjoy music-making and card games with his many friends. If he had to accompany a new oratorio he would ask his sister-in-law to play it through just once – enough to commit it to memory. He frequently played the organ at the Vauxhall Gardens and was first choice to play at charity events and at the launch of any newly built church organs. He even found time to teach. His oratorio Jephthah was first performed in 1757.
After Handel's death in 1759, in 1760 Stanley began a partnership with the composer John Christopher Smith and later with Thomas Linley, in order to continue with the series of oratorio performances at Covent Garden. For the first season Stanley composed Zimri. Stanley accompanied all oratorios, and played a concerto during each interval. Also in 1760 he composed an ode in memory of George II and as homage to George III; it was first performed at the Drury Lane Theatre. On the occasion of the King's wedding in 1762 he composed a dramatic pastoral oratorio, Arcadia.
Handel had been a governor of the Foundling Hospital, London. The hospital's chapel organ was Handel's gift, and Handel himself directed eleven performances of Messiah there, so raising £7,000 for the charity. Continuing yet again in Handel's footsteps, Stanley was elected a governor of the Hospital in 1770, and from 1775 until 1777 he directed the annual performance of Handel's Messiah in aid of the hospital funds.
In 1779 Stanley succeeded William Boyce as Master of the King's Band of musicians. In this capacity he composed many New Year and birthday odes to the king but this music has not survived. Stanley's last work was probably an ode written for the king's birthday (4 June 1786). Stanley never heard its performance as he died at his home in Hatton Garden on 19 May 1786, aged 74.
Stanley's works include the opera Teraminta, the dramatic cantata The Choice of Hercules, twelve other cantatas with texts by John Hawkins, the oratorios Jephtha, The Fall of Egypt and Zimri, and instrumental music, notably three volumes of voluntaries for organ (1748, 1752, and 1754). Nearly all of the voluntaries feature a short, slow introduction followed by either a solo-stop movement (such as the so-called trumpet voluntaries) or a fugue. Some of the former have been arranged in modern times for string chamber orchestra and trumpet.
Discography & profile
Normalised profile
Percentiles are computed over every artist in the database, so a tier-3 artist can still sit in the 95th percentile on a single axis.
| Metric | Value | Percentile |
|---|---|---|
| Wikipedia language versions | 17 | 76.4th |
| Spotify monthly listeners | — | no data |
| Release groups in DB | 6 | 79.7th |
| Studio albums | 6 | 86.1th |
| Awards recorded | 0 | 0th |
| Timeline events | 7 | 82.6th |
| Recording span (years) | -203 | 3.3th |
| Genres | 4 | 84.7th |
Percentiles are computed at render time; missing values mean the artist has no data on that axis.
Discography (6 release groups · 6 studio albums)
Albums · 6
Six Concertos in Seven Parts, op. 2
1989 · studio album
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Tracklist · 27 tracks · 58:13
1Concerto no. 1 in D major: Largo1:082Concerto no. 1 in D major: Allegro - Adagio1:323Concerto no. 1 in D major: Allegro3:044Concerto no. 1 in D major: Adagio1:375Concerto no. 1 in D major: Allegro2:006Concerto no. 2 in B minor: Largo - Adagio2:147Concerto no. 2 in B minor: Allegro3:428Concerto no. 2 in B minor: Adagio - Allegro moderato2:409Concerto no. 2 in B minor: Allegro2:1310Concerto no. 2 in B minor: Allegro2:0211Concerto no. 3 in G major: Adagio1:4712Concerto no. 3 in G major: Allegro2:1113Concerto no. 3 in G major: Andante1:3614Concerto no. 3 in G major: Allegro3:3215Concerto no. 4 in D minor: Adagio1:5316Concerto no. 4 in D minor: Allegro3:1317Concerto no. 4 in D minor: Andante1:1218Concerto no. 4 in D minor: Allegro2:1819Concerto no. 5 in A minor / A major: Largo1:2220Concerto no. 5 in A minor / A major: Allegro1:5521Concerto no. 5 in A minor / A major: Adagio1:1522Concerto no. 5 in A minor / A major: Allegro1:4523Concerto no. 5 in A minor / A major: Allegro moderato2:1024Concerto no. 6 in B-flat major: Adagio1:3725Concerto no. 6 in B-flat major: Allegro3:3326Concerto no. 6 in B-flat major: Largo2:0827Concerto no. 6 in B-flat major: Allegro2:341996 · studio album
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Tracklist · 12 tracks · 53:48
1Organ Concerto no. 1 in E major: I. Vivace5:082Organ Concerto no. 1 in E major: II. Allegro3:293Organ Concerto no. 2 in D major: I. Allegro spiritoso4:454Organ Concerto no. 2 in D major: II. Presto3:175Organ Concerto no. 3 in B-flat major: I. Adagio - Allegro5:136Organ Concerto no. 3 in B-flat major: II. Gavot (Allegro)4:077Organ Concerto no. 4 in C minor: I. Vivace4:288Organ Concerto no. 4 in C minor: II. Andante affettuoso4:419Organ Concerto no. 4 in C minor: III. Presto2:5410Organ Concerto no. 5 in A major: Allegro - Adagio - Minuetto7:1211Organ Concerto no. 6 in C major: I. Allegro4:2512Organ Concerto no. 6 in C major: II. Rondeau (Vivace)4:09John Stanley: Complete Flute Sonatas CD1
2023 · studio album
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Tracklist · 29 tracks · 1:04:14
1Solo No. 1 in D Minor/Major, Op. 1: I. Adagio1:442Solo No. 1 in D Minor/Major, Op. 1: II. Allegro1:493Solo No. 1 in D Minor/Major, Op. 1: III. Minuet, andante with Variation3:414Solo No. 2 in G Minor, Op. 1: I. Adagio staccato – Affettuoso1:215Solo No. 2 in G Minor, Op. 1: II. Allegro2:566Solo No. 2 in G Minor, Op. 1: III. Allegro2:047Solo No. 3 in G Major, Op. 1: I. Largo1:128Solo No. 3 in G Major, Op. 1: II. Allegro2:229Solo No. 3 in G Major, Op. 1: III. Adagio2:0010Solo No. 3 in G Major, Op. 1: IV. Allegro1:2811Solo No. 4 in D Major, Op. 1: I. Adagio2:5312Solo No. 4 in D Major, Op. 1: II. Allegro2:4613Solo No. 4 in D Major, Op. 1: III. Adagio0:3414Solo No. 4 in D Major, Op. 1: IV. Minuet, allegro2:4015Solo No. 5 in C Major, Op. 1: I. Siciliana3:5216Solo No. 5 in C Major, Op. 1: II. Allegro3:3317Solo No. 5 in C Major, Op. 1: III. Minuet, andante1:1518Solo No. 5 in C Major, Op. 1: IV. Gavot, allegro1:0019Solo No. 6 in D Major, Op. 1: I. Largo2:5620Solo No. 6 in D Major, Op. 1: II. Allegro andante2:1921Solo No. 6 in D Major, Op. 1: III. Largo0:5722Solo No. 6 in D Major, Op. 1: IV. Minuet, allegro with Variation4:1323Solo No. 7 in D Minor/Major, Op. 1: I. Largo1:3824Solo No. 7 in D Minor/Major, Op. 1: II. Allegro1:4525Solo No. 7 in D Minor/Major, Op. 1: III. Siciliana1:4626Solo No. 7 in D Minor/Major, Op. 1: IV. Gavot, allegro, with Variations3:2927Solo No. 8 in E Minor, Op. 1: I. Allegro2:5828Solo No. 8 in E Minor, Op. 1: II. Adagio1:3429Solo No. 8 in E Minor, Op. 1: III. Minuet, allegro1:29John Stanley: Complete Flute Sonatas CD2
2023 · studio album
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Tracklist · 19 tracks · 48:27
1Solo No. 1 in A Minor/Major, Op. 4: I. Siciliana2:402Solo No. 1 in A Minor/Major, Op. 4: II. Allegro2:313Solo No. 1 in A Minor/Major, Op. 4: III. Menuet2:424Solo No. 2 in E Minor, Op. 4: I. Adagio2:015Solo No. 2 in E Minor, Op. 4: II. Poco allegro2:056Solo No. 2 in E Minor, Op. 4: III. Adagio0:477Solo No. 2 in E Minor, Op. 4: IV. Menuet1:008Solo No. 3 in G Major, Op. 4: I. Adagio3:399Solo No. 3 in G Major, Op. 4: II. Allegro2:3510Solo No. 3 in G Major, Op. 4: III. Menuet with Variations3:3711Solo No. 4 in B Minor, Op. 4: I. Adagio3:0312Solo No. 4 in B Minor, Op. 4: II. Poco allegro2:5413Solo No. 4 in B Minor, Op. 4: III. Gigg2:0214Solo No. 5 in D Major, Op. 4: I. Adagio4:3115Solo No. 5 in D Major, Op. 4: II. Allegro2:2616Solo No. 5 in D Major, Op. 4: III. Gigg2:0417Solo No. 6 in D Major, Op. 4: I. Siciliana1:4318Solo No. 6 in D Major, Op. 4: II. Allegro3:0919Solo No. 6 in D Major, Op. 4: III. Menuet with Variations2:58— · studio album
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Tracklist · 11 tracks · 58:28
1Organ Voluntary in D minor, op. 5 no. 87:432Organ Voluntary in A minor, op. 6 no. 84:353Organ Voluntary in D major-minor, op. 6 no. 58:294Organ Voluntary in D major, op. 6 no. 67:085Organ Voluntary in F major, op. 6 no. 45:006Organ Voluntary in A minor, op. 6 no. 25:447Organ Voluntary in D minor, op. 5 no. 23:558Organ Voluntary in D major, op. 5 no. 54:239Organ Voluntary in G major, op. 7 no. 93:3610Organ Voluntary in C major, op. 7 no. 23:5811Organ Voluntary in F major, op. 7 no. 63:57— · studio album
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Tracklist · 6 tracks · 53:47
1Organ Concerto no. 1 in E major: I. Vivace—II. Allegro8:372Organ Concerto no. 2 in D major: I. Allegro spiritoso—II. Presto8:023Organ Concerto no. 3 in B-flat major: I. Adagio - Allegro—II. Gavot (Allegro)9:204Organ Concerto no. 4 in C minor: I. Vivace—II. Andante affettuoso—III. Presto12:035Organ Concerto no. 5 in A major: Allegro—Adagio—Minuetto7:126Organ Concerto no. 6 in C major: I. Allegro—II. Rondeau (Vivace)8:33
Stats & PK
Percentile within all 23,672 published artists.Put John Stanley head-to-head →
| Metric | Value | Percentile |
|---|---|---|
| Wikipedia language versions | 17 | 76.4th |
| Spotify monthly listeners | — | no data |
| Release groups in DB | 6 | 79.7th |
| Studio albums | 6 | 86.1th |
| Awards recorded | 0 | 0th |
| Timeline events | 7 | 82.6th |
| Recording span (years) | -203 | 3.3th |
| Genres | 4 | 84.7th |
Awards & honours
Where this record comes from
portrait—Wikimedia Commons · Public domain · retrieved 11 October 2026
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:John_Stanley.jpgaliases/urls—musicbrainz · CC0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://musicbrainz.org/artist/e9dd9aac-8d3b-4ee3-81b2-2bf8a58976f8discography—musicbrainz · CC0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://musicbrainz.org/artist/e9dd9aac-8d3b-4ee3-81b2-2bf8a58976f8core—wikidata · CC0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q726286genre—wikidata · CC0 · retrieved 11 October 2026
https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q726286seed-list—wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Stanley_%28composer%29biography—wikipedia-en · CC BY-SA 4.0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Stanley_%28composer%29
Why this artist is in the database
- List of composers by name
Tier rule: curated genre/region list
Image: Stipple engraving and publication by Thomas Gainsborough, based on a portrait by Mary Ann Rigg (née Scott) [2] · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
Wikidata: Q726286 · MusicBrainz: e9dd9aac-8d3b-4ee3-81b2-2bf8a58976f8
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