James Blades

English classical percussionist, Professor of Percussion, and author. Born 9 September 1901 in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England, UK - Died 19 May 1999 in Cheam, Surrey, England, UK. His most famous and widely heard performances were the sound of the drum playing "V-for-Victory" in Morse code, the introduction to the BBC broadcasts made to the European Resistance during World War II. He also provided the sound, but not the image, of the Rank Organization's 'Gongman', who introduced films for many years. He spent most of the 1920s working at a movie theater, creating sound effects for silent movies - gunshots, thunderstorms - and playing in dance bands around Britain. In 1932, he joined the London Film Society Orchestra. Former member of the London Symphony Orchestra (1939-?). As a chamber musician, he played with the Melos Ensemble Of London and the English Chamber Orchestra. He retired from public performances in 1971. In 1954, he was appointed Professor of Percussion at the Royal Academy of Music. Author of the 1970 book 'Percussion Instruments and Their History'. In 1972, he was awarded the Order of the British Empire (OBE). He married the pianist Joan Goossens in 1948.