William Henry Squire, ARCM (8 August 1871 – 17 March 1963) was a British cellist, composer and music professor of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He studied cello at the Royal College of Music, and became professor of cello at the Royal College and Guildhall schools of music. He was principal cello in several major London orchestras and helped to popularize the cello as a solo instrument in the early years of the 20th century by giving public concerts throughout the British Isles and making recordings; he became well known for his performances of the Elgar and Saint-Saëns cello concertos. In 1898, the French composer Gabriel Fauré dedicated his cello piece Sicilienne to Squire. Squire's own compositions were written mainly for the cello; these included several solo pieces of light character and a cello concerto; he also wrote the music for a number of songs. One of Squire's legacies is a collection of student-level works for cello and piano which appear in string teaching syllabuses all over the world including those of the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music, the Internet Cello Society and the Suzuki method of string instrument teaching. Early life William Henry Squire was born in Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire, England, UK in 1871 the son of John Squire, a banker and gifted amateur violinist and his wife Emma Fisher. He had his first music lessons from his father and at five was encouraged to take up the cello to complete the family quartet. There were eight children in this very musical family including his sister, Emily Squire, the eldest (born 1867), who played the viola and went on to become a successful soprano singer and his brother the violinist Charles Barré Squire (born 1881). He made his first public appearance as a solo cellist at the age of six in the town hall at Kingsbridge in Devon where the family had moved. He was educated at Kingsbridge Grammar School. In 1883 at the age of twelve he gained a cello scholarship at the Royal College of Music. There, he studied cello under Edward Howell, chamber music with Henry Holmes and composition under Parry; he was also taught by both Stanford and Fred Bridge. He had occasional lessons with the cellist Piatti. His study at the Royal College was extended for a further three years and on leaving in 1889 he was elected an associate