In late September 1939, pianist Myra Hess, along with friends, brainstormed ways to bring music back to a city gripped by war. With the outbreak of the Second World War, all entertainment venues had been shut down. However, after weeks of what was termed the ‘phoney war’, a compelling article in The Times called for live music to return. It suggested that if evening concerts were not possible, then perhaps lunchtime performances could be organized. The idea sparked a conversation, with fellow pianist Denise Lassimonne proposing the National Gallery as a venue. Hess humorously countered with a suggestion of Buckingham Palace.

Born on February 25, 1890, Hess was already 49 and a prominent figure in the British music scene, recognized not just for her talent but also for her keen sense of humor and straightforwardness. My research for her biography revealed her natural ability to endear herself to people around her.

Without hesitation, Hess and Lassimonne approached Kenneth Clark, the National Gallery’s director, who had relocated the artworks to safer locations in the countryside. He found the idea of substituting one form of art with another inspired and took it a step further by suggesting daily concerts instead of weekly ones. This marked the beginning of a remarkable chapter in wartime Britain.

Hess enlisted the help of composer Howard Ferguson and began to organize committees and invite various performers. They transformed the gallery’s glass dome into a concert space, setting up 500 chairs and borrowing a piano from Steinway. Admission was set at one shilling, and every artist would receive a flat fee of five guineas, ensuring that the funds raised would support the Musicians Benevolent Fund.

This venture was unprecedented; the National Gallery had never hosted concerts before, and there was little time for publicity, presenting numerous challenges. To mitigate risks, Hess decided to perform in the inaugural concert herself, thinking, “If this fails, at least I will have played.”

On October 10, the team expected only 200 attendees. To their astonishment, a crowd of around a thousand people began lining up outside Trafalgar Square just 40 minutes before the performance. Such turnout soon became the norm. Actress Joyce Grenfell, who helped in the canteen, recounted a day when they made and sold 1,700 sandwiches, a testament to the concert’s popularity that rose from the need to hear Brahms’ Horn Trio amidst the war.

The concerts stood as a powerful symbol of resilience during the war, continuing every weekday for over six years despite the challenges posed by the Blitz, the v-1 buzz bombs, and V2 rockets. Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, became a regular attendee, while filmmaker Humphrey Jennings highlighted Hess and the concerts in his wartime propaganda films.

As Hess, who was knighted as Dame Myra in 1941, organized these concerts, she exemplified the fundamental role of music in uplifting the human spirit during tumultuous times. She reflected on one experience after a harrowing air raid, noting an audience of 500 braving debris and danger to seek the comfort and strength that music provided, demonstrating its profound healing power.

Hess also became a quiet advocate for those in need. By inviting numerous refugees to perform, she helped them establish their place in British society. Notable participants included pianist Maria Donska, who lost her family in the Holocaust, and violinist Arnold Rosé, related to composer Gustav Mahler.

Alongside composer Ralph Vaughan Williams, Hess campaigned vigorously against the internment of Jewish refugees, appalled at the treatment of vulnerable individuals alongside Nazi sympathizers. One such musician, violinist Norbert Brainin, whom they helped free from an internment camp, later became a renowned member of the celebrated Amadeus Quartet.

During the relentless bombings known as the Blitz, the concerts moved to the gallery’s downstairs shelter. Despite broken windows and leaking roofs, they persevered. Hess even adapted her performance style in response to aerial attacks, creating a unique synergy between music and the imminent danger surrounding them.

Over 1,698 concerts were held throughout the war, attended by an astonishing 824,152 people, generating substantial funds for the Musicians Benevolent Fund—equivalent to around £600,000 in today’s money. This initiative aligned with the goal of making high-quality arts widely accessible, a principle that would influence the establishment of the Arts Council in 1946.

As the war concluded, topics concerning the future of these concerts led to disagreements. The decision to end the series in April 1946, taken without Hess’s consent, deeply pained her. A passionate and dedicated individual, she had poured her heart into the initiative. However, she would find solace in the fact that concert series inspired by her vision continue to thrive across the UK and the US, including in London.

At the final concert on April 10, 1946, Hess bid farewell to a tearful audience, stating, “This experience has been the greatest privilege of any musician.” She acknowledged that had she died on the day of peace, she would have felt her life’s work complete.

Hess poignantly remarked, “IT IS SAID SOMETIMES THAT MUSIC IS A FORM OF ESCAPE, but the experience of these years has made us understand that it is infinitely more IMPORTANT THAN THAT.”

In writing her biography, I hope to reawaken the critical understanding of the role of music in turbulent times—a realization that is as vital today as it was then.