Ernest Edwin Philip Truman (29 December 1869 - 6 October 1948) was an Australian organist and a composer of light romantic era classical music.

Early life

Truman was born was in Weston-super-Mare,

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

, England. Son of Edwin Philip Truman, a fishmonger, and Elizabeth Robinson Crawfurd Smith. His family emigrated to

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

and then

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

, before settling in Hunters Hill, a suburb of

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

, in 1885.

Musical career

Truman was taught music by his father, then studied under Arthur J. Barth of Dunedin, New Zealand and Julius Buddee of Sydney. From 1888 until 1893, Truman attended Leipzig Conservatory along with Australian Alfred Hill.G. D. Rushworth, 'Truman, Ernest Edwin Philip (1869–1948)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/truman-ernest-edwin-philip-8858/text15549, published first in hardcopy 1990, accessed online 30 May 2020. While at Leipzig he composed 26 fugues, as a result of which he was known at the Conservatorium as "The English Bach". Upon his return to Sydney, he became organist at

Christ Church St Laurence Christ Church St Laurence is an Anglican church located at 814 George Street, near Central railway station and Haymarket, in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is the principal centre of Anglo-Catholic worship in the city and Diocese of S ...

from 1893 until 1896. He also presided at the console of St Mary's Cathedral, Sydney and St Patrick's, Church Hill in Sydney. He was appointed City Organist in 1909 and presided at the

Sydney Town Hall Grand Organ The Sydney Town Hall Grand Organ is a large pipe organ built by English firm William Hill & Son in 1890. It is located in the Centennial Hall of Sydney Town Hall in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

until 1935. He was the most competitive organist in New South Wales when appointed Sydney city organist in which role he held at least 3,000 recitals. He accompanied many famous singers, including Dame Nellie Melba,

Dame Clara Butt Dame Clara Ellen Butt, (1 February 1872 – 23 January 1936) was an English contralto and one of the most popular singers from the 1890s through to the 1920s. She had an exceptionally fine contralto voice and an agile singing technique, and imp ...

Florence Austral Florence Austral (26 April 1892 – 15 May 1968) was an Australian operatic soprano renowned for her interpretation of the most demanding Wagnerian female roles, although she never gained the opportunity to appear at the Bayreuth Festival or New ...

Lawrence Tibbett Lawrence Mervil Tibbett (November 16, 1896 – July 15, 1960) was an American opera singer and recording artist who also performed as a film actor and radio personality. A baritone, he sang leading roles with the Metropolitan Opera in New York ...

and

Richard Crooks Richard Alexander Crooks (June 26, 1900 – September 29, 1972) was an American tenor and a leading singer at the New York Metropolitan Opera. Biography He was born the second son of Alexander and Elizabeth Crooks on June 26, 1900 in Trenton, N ...

. His ensemble pieces, still performed at festivals and music schools, are regarded as exemplary. Some of his works, such as ''In The Woods of

Dandenong Dandenong is a southeastern suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, about from the Melbourne CBD. It is the council seat of the City of Greater Dandenong local government area, with a recorded population of 30,127 at the . Situated mainly ...

'' were influential in being early examples of an

impressionist Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage ...

school of Australian music.

Works

* String Quartet * Matthis: The Polish Jew. An Opera * Mass in D minor * Operetta 'Club Life' * Bushman's Song * 1912 Magnificat: soli, chorus and full orchestra (with orchestral interlude), Op. 46 * The Pied Piper: cantata grotesque, Op. 50 / poem by Robert Browning ; set to music by Ernest Truman

Recordings

*2015 The Tribute – A musical interpretation of the memorable address of the Bishop of Amiens (1919) by Ernest Truman (1869-1948) Performed by Dimity Shepherd, mezzo-soprano and Stefan Cassomenos, piano.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Truman, Ernest 1869 births 1948 deaths Australian conductors (music) Australian male composers 20th-century Australian musicians 20th-century classical composers Australian male classical composers Australian opera composers 20th-century Australian male musicians 19th-century male musicians 19th-century classical composers 19th-century Australian musicians Male opera composers Academic staff of the Sydney Conservatorium of Music British emigrants to colonial Australia