Chelsea Reach and Ragamuffin were both composed in 1917. At first they were given the collective title of London: Impressions for Piano, and Chelsea Reach was provisionally called The River. Its ‘subject’ is indeed that view of the Thames between Battersea Bridge and Chelsea Bridge which, as a resident of nearby Gunter Grove, Ireland would have known well. The rhythm of the barcarolle evokes both the flowing river and the music of Chopin.

A character study of a typical London ‘type’ epitomise...