T. Tertius Noble | |
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| Born | Thomas Tertius Noble (1867-05-05)May 5, 1867 |
| Died | May 4, 1953(1953-05-04) (aged 85) Rockport, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Education | Royal College of Music |
| Occupation(s) | Organist and composer |
Thomas Tertius Noble (May 5, 1867 – May 4, 1953) was an English-bornorganist and composer, who lived in the United States for the latter part of his career.
He served as organist and choirmaster at a number of churches includingEly Cathedral andYork Minster in England andSt Thomas Episcopal Church inNew York City. He is chiefly remembered for hismusic for the Anglican church.
Noble was born on 5 May 1867 inBath, England, to Thomas Noble (a silversmith) and Sarah Jefferson.[1][2] The name 'Tertius' derives from Noble being the third Thomas in his family.[3]
In his youth, Noble was introduced to thepipe organ byJames Pyne, organist atBath Abbey, and from 1880 he was tutored in the organ atGloucester Cathedral.Frederick Ouseley declined to accept Noble as a student at his music school, citing that "the market was over-stocked."[3] He sent his first composition,Theme and Variations, toRheinberger andBest; their feedback was mixed.[3]
At the age of 15 he was appointed organist atAll Saints' Church, Colchester, where he was also educated by the rector. He won a scholarship to attend theRoyal College of Music, where he was tutored byWalter Parratt,Charles Villiers Stanford andFrederick Bridge,[4] and made other close connections withGeorge Grove andJohn Stainer.[3]
After graduating from the Royal College of Music in 1889, Noble was appointed a member of staff there, teaching the organ. He also took the position of organist at the Church of St John the Evangelist, Wilton Road, in London.[4]
In 1890, Stanford recommended him to fill the vacancy as his assistant organist atTrinity College Chapel, Cambridge. Noble was dissatisfied with the quality of singing and Stanford's bad temper,[5] leaving Trinity in 1892 to serve as organist and choirmaster atEly Cathedral.
From 1898 to 1913 Noble served as organist atYork Minster. While there, he established the York Symphony Orchestra and composed pieces for them. He was also conductor of the York Musical Society and in 1910 revived the York Festival.[4]
In January 1913 Noble moved to America after accepting the post of organist and choirmaster ofSt Thomas Episcopal Church inNew York City, traversing on theCarmania.[3] He was responsible for establishing a choral tradition at St Thomas's alongAnglican cathedral lines. He also oversaw the installation of a new organ at the church and founded theSaint Thomas Choir School for boys in 1919. This was Noble's final position, which he held for 35 years.[4]
In 1932 Noble became the first person outside the British Isles to be awarded theLambeth degree ofDoctor of Music by theArchbishop of Canterbury. He was an examiner and member of the national council of theAmerican Guild of Organists and also served as president of the National Association of Organists.[2] He was a member of theHymn Society of America, and served as its president for multiple terms.[6]
Noble composed orchestral and chamber music, including an orchestralIntroduction and Passacaglia performed atThe Proms on 17 August 1945, where it was conducted by a former pupil,Basil Cameron.[7] But he is now remembered for hismusic for the Anglican church, particularly hisEvening services in A major, B minor and A minor, and hisanthemsGo to dark Gethsemane,Souls of the Righteous, andGrieve not the Holy Spirit. His tunes were used for seven hymns inThe Hymnal of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America, 1940.[8] His tuneOra labora for the hymnCome, labour on is well known in the United States, as is his edition ofHandel'sMessiah, published byG. Schirmer in 1912.[9] ForLowell Mason's sesquicentennial celebrations, he wrote an organ prelude based on Mason'sWatchman.[10]
In 1897 Noble married Meriel Maude Stubbs (daughter ofCharles Stubbs,Dean of Ely), with whom he had a son, Philip Raymond Noble (1903–1979).[2] English jazz composer and actorRay Noble (1903–1978) was his nephew.[11]
Noble died on 4 May 1953, the day before his 86th birthday, inRockport, Massachusetts, and he was buried at Beech Grove Cemetery there. Thehymn tune "Rockport" composed by Noble was named after the city of his death.[1]
| Religious titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Organist and Master of the Choristers ofEly Cathedral 1892 – 1898 | Succeeded by Hugh Allen |
| Preceded by | Organist and Director of Music,York Minster 1897 – 1913 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Organist & Choirmaster, Saint Thomas Church, New York 1913–1943 | Succeeded by |
