Lives of the First World War

Sir Arthur Edward Drummond Bliss CH KCVO (2 August 1891 – 27 March 1975) was an English composer and conductor. Bliss's musical training was cut short by the First World War, in which he served with distinction in the army. His autobiography details some horrific experiences. He was injured at the Somme in 1916 and gassed at Cambrai 1918. He also lost a brother, Kennard, in September 1916 and many friends and fellow officers His war time experiences had a profound affect on him and his approach to composition and in the post-war years he quickly became known as an unconventional and modernist composer.