Arthur Sullivan was born in London on May 13,1842. His father was Director of the band at the Royal Military College at Sandhurst, and young Arthur was able to begin his musical training as a chorister at the Chapel Royal.. His formal musical training began at age eleven, when he was the first winner of the new Mendelssohn Scholarship to the Royal Conservatory, and after four years was sent to finish his studies at the Conservatory in Leipzig. Sullivan began his musical career as a serious composer, and his early compositions were well received. During the late 1860’s and early 1870’s he was busily engaged in conducting, composing secular and religious works, (perhaps the most well known to this day, is the hymn “Onward! Christian Soldiers”), and serving as organist at two London churches. He wrote for many different musical genres, i.e.,choral, instrumental solo and ensemble, opera and operetta. In 1871 Sullivan was introduced by a mutual friend to librettist William S. Gilbert. Gilbert and Sullivan produced fourteen G&S operettas between 1871 and 1894, most of them produced by the D’Oyly-Carte opera company in London. The name of Arthur Sullivan is virtually unknown to the modern-day world until it is linked to his musical partner, William S. Gilbert, and to their still popular Gilbert and Sullivan operettas. The partnership was ended by Gilbert at some point in the early 1890's because of an undisclosed disagreement between them. Sullivan returned to composing “serious music”. His later serious works, however, never regained the respect and popularity he had enjoyed during his association with Gilbert. Sullivan never married, but was known as a “lady’s man”. He was devoted to his family, close to his mother until her death, and close to his brother Fred and his family. When Fred died at age 39, Sullivan became the guardian of the seven children, and continued to underwrite their support and education after the death of their mother in 1895. Sullivan received many awards and honors, and was knighted by Queen Victoria in 1883. Sir Arthur Sullivan died in London on the 22nd of November, 1900.