1838–1896 · United Kingdom · Romantic
Joseph Barnby (1838–1896) was a composer and conductor from England, born in York and died in London. He worked as an organist, led choirs, headed the Guildhall School of Music and wrote church hymn tunes, anthems and songs. His "The Beggar Maid", for voice and piano, is on the site.
Joseph Barnby came into the world on 12 August 1838 in York. His father, Thomas Barnby, played the organ for a living. From the age of seven the boy sang in the choir of York Minster.
When Joseph was fifteen his voice broke. He then enrolled at the Royal Academy of Music, where for some two or three years his teachers were Cipriani Potter and Charles Lucas. He lost the contest for the Mendelssohn Scholarship to Arthur Sullivan by a small margin.
In 1862 Barnby became organist at St Andrew's church, on Wells Street in London, and made its services outstanding. In 1864 the choir under him sang a pair of anthems composed by Alice Mary Smith. This is thought to have been the first occasion on which a woman's music for worship was heard in the Church of England.
Barnby moved from St Andrew's to a comparable post at St Anne's in Soho.
From 1864 Barnby conducted a choir known by his own name. Concerts by the choir were held at St James's Hall to begin with, and later at Exeter Hall. In 1871 he followed Charles Gounod as head of the Royal Albert Hall Choral Society, and he stayed in that post for the rest of his life.
Barnby was a supporter of Bach's music. In 1870, on his suggestion to Dean Stanley, the St John Passion was given with a full orchestra and a choir of five hundred voices. He also did a great deal to spread a liking for Gounod's sacred works among the less well-educated Londoners who heard them. He showed little warmth towards opera, yet in 1884 he staged a Parsifal concert in the Royal Albert Hall.
In the 1870s Barnby took charge of choral worship and music at Eton College. In 1892 he took charge of the Guildhall School of Music, and in July of that year he was knighted. He was the conductor of the Cardiff Festivals in 1892 and 1895.
Barnby died in London on 28 January 1896. A special service was held for him in St Paul's Cathedral, and he was laid to rest in West Norwood Cemetery.
Barnby wrote music for church and choir. His output includes the oratorio "Rebekah", "The Lord is King" on the words of Psalm 97, anthems and services in great number, along with 246 hymn tunes that appeared in 1897 as a single volume. He also left partsongs, other songs and several pieces for the organ.
Among his songs are "Now the Day Is Over" and the lullaby "Sweet and Low", set to words by Lord Alfred Tennyson.
A pianist and a singer can start with "The Beggar Maid": on the site it is sheet music for voice and piano at an advanced level.