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He obtained degrees in both music and theology from Union Theological Seminary, New York City, and did further study at the University of Texas. He served as minister of music in several American Methodist churches, and as teacher of organ and church music at various colleges. He was music editor for the Methodist General Board of Education, Nashville, Tennessee 1958-67; and has composed a good deal of church music. He was founder-editor of Music Ministry, a monthly periodical for Methodist church musicians, and special consultant to the committee that compiled the 1966 (U.S.) Methodist Hymnal. He is an ordained elder of the United Methodist Church (USA).
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He was a chorister and then lay-vicar in Salisbury Cathedral. He was appointed a Gentleman of the Chapel Royal 1781-92, and sang in the Handel Commemoration 1784. He was organist and master of the choristers at Salisbury 1792-1804; but resigned in favour of his son Arthur Thomas Corfe, who served until 1853. He is buried in the NW transept of the Cathedral.
His publications include cathedral music and a text-book on harmony.
(See also DNB; GDM)
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He graduated from Prague University in 1609, studied for the Roman Catholic priesthood in Graz and Vienna, and was ordained in 1614. He was pastor of chueches in Nieder”sterreich; then in 1625 he entered the Benedictine monastery at Göttweig, becoming its Abbot in 1631. From 1638 until his death he was Rector of Vienna University.
He is known primarily for his comprehensive hymnal Gross Catholisch Gesangbuch 1625 and his Geistliche Nachtigal 1631, both of which went through several editions. In these books hymns and tunes were drawn from many sources; he himself wrote some hymns but apparently no tunes.
(See also GDM)
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(See also DNB; Julian pp.262b-263a)
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His father was a Gentleman of the Chapel Royal, and young Raphael was a chorister there 1690-95. He was appointed the first organist pf St James's, Piccadilly, in 1691; and seems to have remained in the post for 81 years, although in later years most of the duties were performed by a deputy. It has been suggested that he died earlier and was succeeded by a son of the same name, but evidence is lacking.
He was associated with Purcell in providing music for d'Urfey's opera Don Quixote 1695, and also composed songs and chamber music. He is often identified with the Courteville who edited The Gazetteer, a strongly pro-Government political paper, thus gaining the nick-name `Court Evil'.
(See also DNB; GDM)
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- (words and music)
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(See also DNB; OCEL; Julian pp.265-266a)
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(See also Julian pp.266a & 1626)
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Obituary, Congregational Year Book 1931 p.227
. . . was born in London on November 2, 1841. The only child of his parents.
He was a descendant of a noble Huguenot family, refugees from Saumur in Anjou in the sixteenth century; one of his ancestors, Theodore Crepin, or Crespin, being minister of the Walloon (now called French) Church which still meets each Sunday in the crypt of Canterbury Cathedral.
His father being in the Revenue service, his childhood was rather restless, owing to his father having several "removes" in the county.
When he was thirteen the family was transferred to Yorkshire, where, first at a boarding school at Scarborough and then at home, he spent the ensuing six years, while there making the acquaintance of the lady who many years later became his wife.
Another move took the family to Lasswade, in Scotland, from whence Mr. Crippen returned to Yorkshire as a student at Airedale College in 1861, being called to the pastorate of the church at Boston Spa (1866-70), when he had completed his college course in 1866. This was followed by a short pastorate at Fulbourn in Cambridgeshire (1866-73) [ sic; ? should be1870-73] , which owing to a serious breakdown in health, came to an end early in 1873.
On recovery he accepted a call to the church at Oldbury, near Birmingham (1873-83), and soon after settlement he married Miss Haggard, of Driffield and Scarborough, which marriage was one of unbroken happiness till Mrs Crippen's death with a few months of fifty years later.
The Oldbury pastorate he always spoke of as his happiest, and they were much loved by the people of the church. Circumstances made it advisable that a change should be made, and he resigned in 1883. Shortly after he received two invitations to churches in America, but owing to the delicate health of his wife declined them both, in 1884 accepting the charge of the church at Kirton in Holland, Lincs (1884-87), where he was for four years, assuming his final pastorate at Milverton (1877-96) in Somerset in 1887. Here he was for about eight years, in 1896 being asked to become librarian at the Congregational Library at the Memorial Hall, a post for which he was ideally suited, and in which he spent nearly thirty happy years, till his retirement in 1925, leaving behind him a monument of patient labour.
He was also on the Committees of the Congregational Church Hymnal and the later Hymnary.
He was a man with many interests, and wide scholarship, his lingiistic attainments being of great use in his work as librarian, as he had a reading acquaintance with French, German, Italian, Hebrew, Latin and Greek, besides a bowing acquaintance with several other tongues. His range of knowledge was extraordinary; among his friends and relatives he was jestingly known as "The Encyclopaedia".
His chief interests were the Hymnology on which stress has been laid, Congregational Church history and research work, Church history in general and Christmas carols and customs. On these subjects he contributed articles to the "Victoria County History" and also Hastings' "Encyclopaedia of Religion and Ethics," besides which he published some nine or ten volumes, chiefly of history and biography, in addition to his best-known work, "Christmas and Christmas Lore" and a number of hymns which have been printed in many hymn-books.
Mr Crippen was also one of the originators of the Congregational Historical Society, being for some years editor of their Transactions, to which he was a voluminous contributor of both signed and anonymous articles.
He left behind him a quantity of unpublished work, and much material the result of many years of research.
He passed peacefully to rest at Peckham, at the age of eighty-eight years, on December 13, 1929, leaving two daughters to mourn his loss.
A memorial service was held at the Peckham Rye Congregational Church, of which he had for some years been an honorary life deacon.
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He was a boy chorister of the Chapel Royal; and probably first organist of St Anne's, Soho 1700-12. From 1700 he was a Gentleman Extraordinary of the Chapel Royal; in 1704 he was joint organist there with Jeremiah Clarke, becoming sole organist on Clarke's death in 1707. From 1708 to 1727 he was organist of Westminster Abbey and composer to the Chapel Royal.
In early life he wrote instrumental and theatre music, but later became one of the most innovative and significant composers of church music, especially anthems. Handel regarded his church music as a model for style. His hymn tunes mark the transition from the somewhat severe Genevan form to a more lyrical, distinctively English style. He was, or may have been, involved in the music editing of the 1708 Supplement to the `New Version' of the English Psalter.
He is buried in the north choir aisle of Westminster Abbey.
(See also DNB; GDM; OCM)
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(See also DNB; OCEL; Julian p.269a)
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[ For notes on Fanny Crosby, see Van Alstyne, Frances ]
(See also DNB; Julian p.269b)
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He was a remarkable prodigy who, at age 2, could play a small organ built by his father, a master carpenter. At 3 years he gave recitals in London; he then toured Britain with his mother. At 11 he was pupil assistant organist at King's and Trinity Colleges and Great St Mary's Church, Cambridge; at 13 he went to Christ Church, Oxford, to study theology.
At 14 an oratorio of his was performed; the next year he became organist of Christ Church, and at 22 was appointed Professor of Music in the University. In 1807 he moved to London and was the first Principal of the Royal Academy of Music, 1822-32.
He was ambidextrous and skilled in drawing and painting. As a composer, however, he did not quite fulfil his early promise. His best work is probably the oratorio Palestine (from Reginald Heber's Newdigate Prize poem), composed in 1812. He also wrote piano and organ music, hymn tunes, anthems, 74 Anglican chants, and what is now known as the `Westminster chimes'.
(See also DNB; GDM; OCM)
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He was the son of an inn-keeper; and studied at the Jesuit College, Olmütz, and at the School of Poetry, Regensberg. After travelling widely he settled in Berlin in 1615 as a private tutor. He studied theology at Wittenberg University 1620-22; and was Cantor of the Lutheran Cathedral of St Nicholas, Berlin 1622-62, founding its famous choir.
He was a noted theorist and composed instrumental and choral works; but is remembered chiefly as collector, arranger and composer of chorales. In 1644 he initiated the celebrated Praxis Pietatis Melica (`The practice of piety through melody') which, in successive editions over the next 80 years, has been the main source for seventeenth-century Lutheran hymnody.
(See also GDM; Julian pp.271b-272)
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He was a chorister of St Paul's Cathedral and then of the Temple Church, London; in 1847 he sang under Mendelssohn's baton in the first London performance of `Elijah'. He was organist of Waltham Abbey 1848-53; sang in the choirs of the Temple Church, Westminster Abbey, and the Chapel Royal; and was highly acclaimed as a tenor soloist, especially as Evangelist in Bach's `Passions'.
He was a renowned lecturer and musicologist, especially as an authority on Purcell; and was active as a conductor. He was Professor of Singing at the Royal Academy of Music 1879-96; and Principal of the Guildhall School of Music 1896-1910. He composed church music, orchestral music, and songs.
(See also GDM; OCM)
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He was a well-known Queen's Counsel and an authority on music copyright law; he was also a keen amateur musician who composed songs and piano, organ and orchestral music. For some years he was organist at Whitchurch, Edgware.
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From King Edward's School Birmingham he went to Clare College Cambridge to read music, and then to Mansfield College Oxford for theology. He held teaching posts in the College of Technology and the Oastler College of Education, Huddersfield; and from 1968-89 was tutor and director of chapel music at Bretton Hall College of Education, near Wakefield, Yorkshire.
He was encouraged in hymn-tune composition by Erik Routley, and has written a large number of tunes, widely known internationally. He was chairman of the editorial committee for New Church Praise 1975, and author of a short Commentary on it (serialised 1975-76 and published complete in 1980). In 1989 he moved to the USA where he was Director of Music at St John's United Methodist Church, Watertown, Massachusets 1989-93, and at Newton Highlands United Congregational Church since 1994. Since 1989 he has also been Director of Music at Andover Newton Theological School.
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End of Biographies C. Return to Top . . .
(The Rejoice & Sing Enchiridion:edited by David Goodall; last amended 17/5/03)