James Turle (5 March 1802 – 28 June 1882) was an English

organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ (music), organ. An organist may play organ repertoire, solo organ works, play with an musical ensemble, ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumentalist, instrumental ...

and composer, best known today as the writer of several widely sung

Anglican chant Anglican chant, also known as English chant, is a way to singing, sing Meter (poetry), unmetrical texts, including psalms and canticles from the Bible, by matching the natural Prosody (linguistics), speech-rhythm of the words to the notes of a s ...

s and the hymn tune "Westminster" sung to the words of

Frederick William Faber Frederick William Faber (28 June 1814 – 26 September 1863) was a noted English hymnwriter and theologian, who converted from Anglicanism to Roman Catholicism in 1845. He was ordained to the Catholic priesthood subsequently in 1847. His best-kn ...

"My God, how wonderful thou art". Turle was born at

Taunton Taunton () is the county town of Somerset, England. It is a market town and has a Minster (church), minster church. Its population in 2011 was 64,621. Its thousand-year history includes a 10th-century priory, monastic foundation, owned by the ...

, Somerset, and started as a

choirboy A choirboy is a boy member of a choir, also known as a treble. As a derisive slang term, it refers to a do-gooder or someone who is morally upright, in the same sense that "Boy Scout" (also derisively) refers to someone who is considered honor ...

Wells Cathedral Wells Cathedral, formally the , is a Church of England cathedral in Wells, Somerset, England. It is the seat of the bishop of Bath and Wells and the mother church of the diocese of Bath and Wells. There are daily Church of England services in ...

. In 1817 he became a pupil of

George Ebenezer Williams George Ebenezer Williams (30 August 1783 − 17 April 1819) was an English organist and composer.Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an Anglican church in the City of Westminster, London, England. Since 1066, it has been the location of the coronations of 40 English and British m ...

in London, and after acting as deputy for some years he succeeded to this post himself in 1831 and held it until his death. He and Sir John Goss, the organist at

St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of St Paul the Apostle, is an Anglican cathedral in London, England, the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London in the Church of Engl ...

, had been fellow pupils in London as boys. Turle was a great organist in his day, and composed a good deal of church music which was well known. His son Henry Frederic Turle (1835–1883) was a journalist.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Turle, James 1802 births 1882 deaths English classical organists People from Taunton Master of the Choristers at Westminster Abbey 19th-century English composers 19th-century English male musicians English male classical organists 19th-century English organists