William Baines

The family moved to York in 1917 where, aged 18, Baines became a professional musician and gave his first public piano recital at which a number of his original compositions were heard.

In March 1920 Dr Arthur Eaglefield Hull of Huddersfield wrote an article in the British Music Society Journal declaring him "a genius".

[6] But it wasn't until fifty years after his death that the Yorkshire artist Richard Bell instigated a wider revival of interest in Baines with a publication,[7] two recitals by Eric Parkin and an exhibition at the 1972 Harrogate Festival.

[8] Baines was the subject of a 90-minute drama written by Martyn Wade for BBC Radio 3 first broadcast in 1989, called Goodnight to Flamboro', which traced the final months of his life.

[11] Perhaps his best known compositions are the piano portrait "Goodnight to Flamboro'" and "The Lone Wreck" comprising the collection Tides, named after Flamborough Head, the promontory on the Yorkshire coast.

[12] His piano works have twice been recorded by Eric Parkin – once for the Lyrita label, and later, a fuller selection on Priory[13][14] – and by Peter Jacobs (2021)[15] and Duncan Honeybourne (2022, also including the Five Songs).