Frederick Thomas Durrant (1895 - died before 1980), typically known as F.T. Durrant, was an organist, musical academic and composer, long resident in

Harrow Harrow may refer to: Places * Harrow, Victoria, Australia * Harrow, Ontario, Canada * The Harrow, County Wexford, a village in Ireland * London Borough of Harrow, England * Harrow, London, a town in London * Harrow (UK Parliament constituency) * ...

. Durrant was born at

Beer Beer is an alcoholic beverage produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches from cereal grain—most commonly malted barley, although wheat, maize (corn), rice, and oats are also used. The grain is mashed to convert starch in the ...

in Devon and was a chorister at

Exeter Cathedral Exeter Cathedral, properly known as the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter in Exeter, is an Anglican cathedral, and the seat of the Bishop of Exeter, in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Exeter, Devon, in South West England. The presen ...

. He attended the

Royal Academy of Music The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is one of the oldest music schools in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the firs ...

, where he won the

Battison Haynes Walter Battison Haynes (21 November 1859 – 16 February 1900) was an English pianist, organist and composer. Biography Haynes was born in Kempsey near Worcester, and received his earliest musical education from his uncle William Haynes, who wa ...

Prize in 1921 and the

Charles Lucas Sir Charles Lucas, 1613 to 28 August 1648, was a professional soldier from Essex, who served as a Royalist cavalry leader during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. Taken prisoner at the end of the First English Civil War in March 1646, he was re ...

Medal in 1923. He married his wife Gladys Louise (1891-1975, also born in Beer) in 1922 and they moved to Harrow-on-the Hill, at 71 Whitmore Road, where they stayed the rest of their lives.Gladys Louise Durrant obituary, ''Harrow Observer'', 4 April 1975, p. 2 Durrant received his D.Mus. from the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

in 1929, where he later became Dean of the Facility of Music. He was a professor at the Royal Academy from 1931, teaching harmony and composition. From around 1937 he was organist at

St Augustine's, Kilburn Saint Augustine's, Kilburn, is a Church of England church in the area of Kilburn, in North London, England. Because of its large size and ornate architecture, it is sometimes affectionately referred to as "the Cathedral of North London", althou ...

, moving on to become director of music at St Mark's Church, St John's Wood in 1947. He was also choirmaster and organist at

Pinner Pinner is a suburb in the London Borough of Harrow, northwest London, England, northwest of Charing Cross, close to the border with Hillingdon, historically in the county of Middlesex. The population was 38,698 in 2021. Originally a mediaeval ...

Parish Church from 1954 until 1957, and after that moved to an organist appointment in

Ruislip Ruislip ( ) is a suburb in the London Borough of Hillingdon in northwest London. Prior to 1965 it was in Middlesex. Ruislip lies west-north-west of Charing Cross, London. The manor of Ruislip appears in the Domesday Book, and some of the ear ...

. His compositions included the Clarinet Quintet in E flat, inaugural winner of the Clements Memorial Prize in 1938, which was broadcast by the Whinyates String Quartet with soloist

Pauline Juler Pauline may refer to: Religion *An adjective referring to St Paul the Apostle or a follower of his doctrines *An adjective referring to St Paul of Thebes, also called St Paul the First Hermit *An adjective referring to the Paulines, various relig ...

on 22 July 1941, and subsequently performed at

Conway Hall Conway Hall in Red Lion Square, London, is the headquarters of the Conway Hall Ethical Society. It is a Grade II listed building. History The building was commissioned by the South Place Ethical Society, which had previously been accommodated ...

(also by Juler) in 1946. The Quintet was revived by Peter Cigleris at Conway Hall in 2019. His six part madrigal ''Requiescat'' won the Madrigal Society's 1947 prize. A slow march, scored for military band, won a Liverpool Philharmonic Society competition in 1952, and was performed on 25 June that year.'Slow March for Liverpool', in ''The Liverpool Echo'', 6 May 1952, p. 5 Most of his compositions were choral and organ pieces for church use. Durrant survived his wife Gladys, who died in 1975, aged 84. There were a son and a daughter. Until 1976 he was still contributing concert reviews for the local papers in Harrow. The memorial Durrant Prize was awarded for the first time in July 1980 by the

Royal College of Organists The Royal College of Organists (RCO) is a charity and membership organisation based in the United Kingdom, with members worldwide. Its role is to promote and advance organ playing and choral music, and it offers music education, training and de ...

.'Royal College of Organists'
in ''The Musical Times'', Vol. 121, No. 1650 (August 1980), p. 524

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Durrant, Frederick 1895 births English composers Alumni of the Royal Academy of Music English classical organists English male organists 20th-century English organists Year of death uncertain