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H. W. Baker

1821 - 1877 Person Name: Henry Williams Baker (1821-1877) Composer of "ST TIMOTHY" in Ancient and Modern Baker, Sir Henry Williams, Bart., eldest son of Admiral Sir Henry Loraine Baker, born in London, May 27, 1821, and educated at Trinity College, Cambridge, where he graduated, B.A. 1844, M.A. 1847. Taking Holy Orders in 1844, he became, in 1851, Vicar of Monkland, Herefordshire. This benefice he held to his death, on Monday, Feb. 12, 1877. He succeeded to the Baronetcy in 1851. Sir Henry's name is intimately associated with hymnody. One of his earliest compositions was the very beautiful hymn, "Oh! what if we are Christ's," which he contributed to Murray's Hymnal for the Use of the English Church, 1852. His hymns, including metrical litanies and translations, number in the revised edition of Hymns Ancient & Modern, 33 in all. These were contributed at various times to Murray's Hymnal, Hymns Ancient & Modern and the London Mission Hymn Book, 1876-7. The last contains his three latest hymns. These are not included in Hymns Ancient & Modern. Of his hymns four only are in the highest strains of jubilation, another four are bright and cheerful, and the remainder are very tender, but exceedingly plaintive, sometimes even to sadness. Even those which at first seem bright and cheerful have an undertone of plaintiveness, and leave a dreamy sadness upon the spirit of the singer. Poetical figures, far-fetched illustrations, and difficult compound words, he entirely eschewed. In his simplicity of language, smoothness of rhythm, and earnestness of utterance, he reminds one forcibly of the saintly Lyte. In common with Lyte also, if a subject presented itself to his mind with striking contrasts of lights and shadows, he almost invariably sought shelter in the shadows. The last audible words which lingered on his dying lips were the third stanza of his exquisite rendering of the 23rd Psalm, "The King of Love, my Shepherd is:"— Perverse and foolish, oft I strayed, But yet in love He sought me, And on His Shoulder gently laid, And home, rejoicing, brought me." This tender sadness, brightened by a soft calm peace, was an epitome of his poetical life. Sir Henry's labours as the Editor of Hymns Ancient & Modern were very arduous. The trial copy was distributed amongst a few friends in 1859; first ed. published 1861, and the Appendix, in 1868; the trial copy of the revised ed. was issued in 1874, and the publication followed in 1875. In addition he edited Hymns for the London Mission, 1874, and Hymns for Mission Services, n.d., c. 1876-7. He also published Daily Prayers for those who work hard; a Daily Text Book, &c. In Hymns Ancient & Modern there are also four tunes (33, 211, 254, 472) the melodies of which are by Sir Henry, and the harmonies by Dr. Monk. He died Feb. 12, 1877. --John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)

Thomas Tallis

1505 - 1585 Composer of "TALLIS' ORDINAL" in Rejoice in the Lord Thomas Tallis (b. Leicestershire [?], England, c. 1505; d. Greenwich, Kent, England 1585) was one of the few Tudor musicians who served during the reigns of Henry VIII: Edward VI, Mary, and Elizabeth I and managed to remain in the good favor of both Catholic and Protestant monarchs. He was court organist and composer from 1543 until his death, composing music for Roman Catholic masses and Anglican liturgies (depending on the monarch). With William Byrd, Tallis also enjoyed a long-term monopoly on music printing. Prior to his court connections Tallis had served at Waltham Abbey and Canterbury Cathedral. He composed mostly church music, including Latin motets, English anthems, settings of the liturgy, magnificats, and two sets of lamentations. His most extensive contrapuntal work was the choral composition, "Spem in alium," a work in forty parts for eight five-voice choirs. He also provided nine modal psalm tunes for Matthew Parker's Psalter (c. 1561). Bert Polman

Jeremiah Clarke

1669 - 1707 Person Name: Jeremiah Clarke, c. 1674-1707 Composer of "ST. MAGNUS" in Christian Worship (1993)

Judith O'Neill

1930 - 2006 Person Name: Judith Beatrice O'Neill, 1930-2006 Author of "We Praise You, Lord, for Jesus Christ" in Worship (4th ed.)

Myles Birket Foster

1851 - 1922 Person Name: M. B. Foster Composer of "CRUCIS VICTORIA" in Anglican Hymns Old and New (Rev. and Enl.) Born: November 29, 1851, London, England. Died: December 18, 1922, London, England. Son of an artist, Foster attended Brighton and Guildford Grammar School and entered the stock exchange. He subsequently enrolled at the Royal Academy of Music and played the organ at St. James Church, Marylebone, and St. George’s, Campden Hill. From 1880-92 he was organist at the Foundling Hospital and at Her Majesty’s Theatre, and was choirmaster of St. James, Holborn. He composed children’s cantatas and much church music. His works include: Methodist Free Church Hymns, 1889 (co-editor) Anthems and Anthem Composers (London: Novello and Company, 1901) History of the Philharmonic Society (London: 1913) --www.hymntime.com/tch/

Neil Dougall

1776 - 1862 Person Name: Neill Dougall, 1776-1862 Composer of "KILMARNOCK" in Singing the Faith Born: December 9, 1776, Greenock, Renfrewshire, Scotland. Died: October 1, 1862, Greenock, Scotland. Buried: Greenock, Scotland. Neil’s father, wheelwright Neill Dougall, was drafted into the army, and died in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) when his son was only four years old. At age 15, Neil became an apprentice on the ship Britannia. In 1795, while he was loading a gun to fire the second volley of a salute to commemorate Lord Howe’s victory over the French, an explosion blinded him and took his arm. After recovering, he began his musical career. In 1798, he attended a singing class under Robert Duncan, and in the fall of the next year opened his own class, which he ran until 1844. He gave annual concerts in Greenock from 1800 [sic, Frost] to 1860. --www.hymntime.com/tch

Russell Schulz-Widmar

b. 1944 Person Name: Russell Schulz-Widmar (1944-) Harmonizer of "DETROIT" in Common Praise (1998)

Henry J. Gauntlett

1805 - 1876 Person Name: Henry John Gauntlett (1805-1876) Composer of "ST FULBERT" in Ancient and Modern Henry J. Gauntlett (b. Wellington, Shropshire, July 9, 1805; d. London, England, February 21, 1876) When he was nine years old, Henry John Gauntlett (b. Wellington, Shropshire, England, 1805; d. Kensington, London, England, 1876) became organist at his father's church in Olney, Buckinghamshire. At his father's insistence he studied law, practicing it until 1844, after which he chose to devote the rest of his life to music. He was an organist in various churches in the London area and became an important figure in the history of British pipe organs. A designer of organs for William Hill's company, Gauntlett extended the organ pedal range and in 1851 took out a patent on electric action for organs. Felix Mendelssohn chose him to play the organ part at the first performance of Elijah in Birmingham, England, in 1846. Gauntlett is said to have composed some ten thousand hymn tunes, most of which have been forgotten. Also a supporter of the use of plainchant in the church, Gauntlett published the Gregorian Hymnal of Matins and Evensong (1844). Bert Polman