Reginald Alwyn Surplice (20 August 1906 – 21 April 1977) was an English organist and composer.Biographical Dictionary of the Organ, Reginald Alwyn Surplice
Accessed 12 November 2021.

Life

Born at Pangbourne,

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...

, Surplice studied at the University of Reading under Gustav Holst and was awarded a Bachelor of Music degree from

Durham University , mottoeng = Her foundations are upon the holy hills (Psalm 87:1) , established = (university status) , type = Public , academic_staff = 1,830 (2020) , administrative_staff = 2,640 (2018/19) , chancellor = Sir Thomas Allen , vice_chan ...

. In 1927 he was appointed Assistant Organist at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, later serving as Sub-Organist from 1932 to 1945, when he was appointed Organist and Master of the Choristers at Bristol Cathedral. In 1949 he moved to Winchester Cathedral, holding the same office until his retirement in 1971. Surplice was a Fellow of the Royal College of Organists and taught organ at the

Royal Academy of Music The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is the oldest conservatoire 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 first Duke of ...

. On his retirement, the

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. The current archbishop is Justi ...

, Michael Ramsey, conferred on him the degree of Doctor of Music. He died at

Winchester Winchester is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs Nation ...

at the age of 70.

Works

In addition to the hymn tune "Wessex", he composed

psalm settings The Book of Psalms ( or ; he, תְּהִלִּים, , lit. "praises"), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the ("Writings"), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived f ...

and

anthems An anthem is a musical composition of celebration, usually used as a symbol for a distinct group, particularly the national anthems of countries. Originally, and in music theory and religious contexts, it also refers more particularly to short s ...

in the Anglican choral tradition.Hymnary.org, Wessex
Accessed 12 November 2021.

References

1906 births 1977 deaths English organists 20th-century English composers Alumni of the University of Reading Fellows of the Royal College of Organists Academics of the Royal Academy of Music {{UK-composer-stub