Parliament of Great Britain and the Parliament of Ireland, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was formed, and it becomes possible to speak of classical music in the United Kingdom. This was also the period when classical music began to be recognised as an important element of British and Irish culture and to be placed on a more organised basis that could match some of the developments seen in continental Europe. Music in this period has been seen as dominated by continental trends and composers. Major foundations In 1813 the London Philharmonic Society was established, which played an important role in the development of musical life in the kingdom. Founders included Sir George Smart, Johann Baptist Cramer, Muzio Clementi, William Ayrton (musical director of the King's Theatre), William Shield, Henry Bishop, Thomas Attwood (composer and organist of St Paul's Cathedral, and teacher of John Goss), Johann Peter Salomon and Vincent Novello. Under their aegis an annual programme of concerts of international calibre was established. The Society was a commissioning patron of Beethoven's Choral Symphony (No. 9). Musical training was placed on a newly professional footing by the creation in 1822 of the Royal Academy of Music, which received a royal charter in 1830, which attempted to train British musicians to the same standards as those of the continent. Its first principal was the oratorio composer Dr William Crotch (1775–1847), and the first tutor of piano was Cipriani Potter (1792–1871). Potter was the first London performer of Mozart and Beethoven concerti. He wrote nine symphonies and four piano concerti and as principal from 1832-59 was highly influential in the development of British music and the profession of musician. The significance of classical music in Ireland, and to a degree its place in conflicting British and Irish identities, was signalled by the foundation of the Dublin Choral Society in 1837, the Irish Academy of Music in 1848 (which was to be granted a royal charter in 1872); and the Royal Choral Institute in 1851 under such figures as Sir Robert Prescot. Performers and composers In the earlier part of the century the British singers Michael Kelly, Nancy Storace and John Braham were prominent and by their example sustained the international opera and oratorio works of Handel, Haydn, Mozart and their successors in the British arena. Braham, whose career thoroughly spanned the opera stage and concert platform, established a tradition in