Paul Christison Edwards (born ) is 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 A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

of music for the

Anglican Church Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of the ...

Biography

Paul Edwards was brought up in the village of Turvey in

Bedfordshire Bedfordshire (; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. The county has been administered by three unitary authorities, Borough of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Borough of Luton, since Bedfordshire County Council wa ...

and educated at St Paul's Choir School and

Bedford Modern School Bedford Modern School (often called BMS) is a Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference independent school in Bedford, England. The school has its origins in Bedford Charity, The Harpur Trust, born from the financial endowment, endowments le ...

. He was a

chorister A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which sp ...

St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in London and is the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London. It is on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London and is a Grad ...

for four and a half years and then spent an equal amount of time as

lay clerk A lay clerk, also known as a lay vicar, song man or a vicar choral, is a professional adult singer in an Anglican cathedral and often Roman Catholic Cathedrals in the UK, or (occasionally) collegiate choir in Britain and Ireland. The vicars chora ...

Peterborough Cathedral Peterborough Cathedral, properly the Cathedral Church of St Peter, St Paul and St Andrew – also known as Saint Peter's Cathedral in the United Kingdom – is the seat of the Church of England, Anglican Bishop of Peterborough, dedicated to Sain ...

. He has served as organist and choir master at several churches in

, including All Saints, Turvey and St. Paul's Church, Bedford. He is also active as a teacher, piano

accompanist Accompaniment is the part (music), musical part which provides the rhythmic and/or harmony (music), harmonic support for the melody or main themes of a song or instrumental piece. There are many different styles and types of accompaniment in ...

and choral singer. Edwards has made a series of recordings of the historic organs of North Bedfordshire. He has transcribed and edited ten volumes of 18th century ''English Organ Music'' published by ANIMUS. The opus numbers of his compositions rise to almost 450. They include about 150 hymn tunes and a large number of

anthem 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. Many of these works have been published in collections including ''Hymns for Today’s Church'', ''Psalms for Today'' and ''Carols for Today''. His carol ''No Small Wonder'', written in 1983 to words by Paul Wigmore, first appeared in ''Carols for Today'' in 1986 and was recorded on LP by

Canterbury Cathedral Canterbury Cathedral in Canterbury, Kent, is one of the oldest and most famous Christian structures in England. It forms part of a World Heritage Site. It is the cathedral of the Archbishop of Canterbury, currently Justin Welby, leader of the ...

Choir and subsequently heard in the famous

Nine Lessons and Carols Nine Lessons and Carols, also known as the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols and Service of Nine Lessons and Carols, is a service of Christian worship traditionally celebrated on or near Christmas Eve. The story of the fall of humanity, the ...

service broadcast on the

BBC Television BBC Television is a service of the BBC. The corporation has operated a public broadcast television service in the United Kingdom, under the terms of a royal charter, since 1927. It produced television programmes from its own studios from 193 ...

by the

Choir of King's College, Cambridge The Choir of King's College, Cambridge is an English Anglican choir. It is considered one of today's most accomplished and renowned representatives of the great English choral tradition. It was created by King Henry VI, who founded King's Coll ...

in 2000. His music has been recorded on several CDs. Edwards finds inspiration for his compositions in the English

countryside In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, ...

, in particular that of

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

.Charlotte Fone in interview with Paul Edwards in Two Countries: One Heart. A collection of essays about Slovak and British music; BHS, Bedford Charity, 2005 He also enjoys driving and photographing

bus A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...

es and

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

es.

Selected compositions

Choral works

*''O dear and lovely brother'' op.84 (1979) *''Evening Service in C sharp minor'' op. 133 (1980) *''Mass in C sharp minor'' op. 133 (1980) *''O gladsome light, O grace'' op. 126 (1980) *''O dearest Lord, thy sacred head'' op. 177 (1982) *''Come, dearest Lord'' op.196 (1983) *''No Small Wonder'' op. 204 (1983) *''Love is Come Again'' op. 224 (1985) *''All Poor Men and Humble'' op. 248 (1988) *''Round me falls the night'' op.268 (1988) *''Give us the wings of faith'' (soprano and organ) for the Choir of St Botolph's Parish Church, Helpston *''Great shepherd of thy people'' op. 292 (1990) *''How shall I sing that majesty'' op. 325 (1993) *''O love that wilt not let me go'' (tune Colkirk) (1994) *''O Lord, how manifold are thy works'' op. 356 (1996) *''Blessed are those servants'' op. 364 (1996) *''Come, healing cross'' op. 369 (1997) *''Requiem Mass'' op. 377 (1999) *''Hold thou my hands'' op.382 no 1 (2000) *''O joyful light of the heavenly glory'' op. 382 no 2 (2000) *''Bread of heaven'' op. 394 (2001) *''What Sweeter Music'' op. 393 (2001) *''Adam Lay Ybounden'' op. 343 (2001) *''In Memoriam'' op. 333 (2001) *''God be in my head'' op. 412 (2002) *''Behold us, Lord'' op. 413 (2003) *''Saviour, who didst healing give'' (2003) *''Carol of the birds'' op. 436 (2007)

Organ works

*''Three Preludes'' op. 184 (1983) *''Fanfare for Ascension Day'' op. 190 (1983) *''An 18th Century Voluntary'' op. 353 (1995) *''Trumpet Air'' op. 367 (1997) *''Voluntary for a City Church'' op. 370 (1997) *''Contemplation'' op. 378 (1999) *''Partita on Iste Confessor'' op. 379 (1999-2000) *''Turvey Tuba Tune'' op. 383 (2000) *''Versets on a Chant by T. H. Webb'' op. 386 (2000) *''Two Romantic Pieces'' op. 387 (2000) *''Okehampton Trumpet Tune'' op. 395 (2001) *''Cornopean Voluntary'' op. 399 (2001) *''Northamptonshire Miniatures'' op. 428 (2004–05) *''Trumpet Processional'' op. 429 (2006) *''Three Elegiac Improvisations'' op. 432 (2007) *''A Prayer'' op. 438 (2008) *''St. Godric Variations'' op. 443 (2009) *''Miniature Variations on a Chant by E. Edwards'' op. 453 (2011) *''Lament for a Damson Tree'' op. 454, no. 1 (2012) *''Andante grazioso'' op. 454, no. 2 (2012) *''Prelude and Tiento "Omnia clara et pulchra"'' op. 478 (2019) *''Chorale Prelude on "Bow Church"'' op. 486 (2021) *''Consolation and Concelebration'' op. 499 (2022)

Selected Recordings

*''No Small Wonder'' Music for Christmas and Remembrance- The Concord Singers, directed by Mary Bainbridge, LAMM 139D *''God be in my head'' Choral works by Paul Edwards, The Chapel Choir of Selwyn College, Cambridge directed by

Sarah MacDonald (musician) Sarah MacDonald FRCO (born November 22, 1968) is a Canadian-born organist, conductor, and composer, living in the UK, and currently holds the positions of Fellow and Director of Music at Selwyn College, Cambridge, and Director of the girl cho ...

, REGCD339

References

External links

Fagus Church MusicPaul Edwards at Presto Classical Music
{{DEFAULTSORT:Edwards, Paul English classical composers Classical composers of church music English organists British male organists Living people 1955 births People educated at Bedford Modern School English male classical composers 21st-century organists 21st-century British male musicians