Oliver King (1855-1923) belonged to the younger generation of Victorian composers. He was a chorister at St Andrew’s, Wells Street, under Joseph Barnby (later Sir Joseph, Principal of The Guildhall School of Music). In 1874 he enrolled at the Leipzig Conservatory, studying piano and composition, and on his return to London established himself as a concert pianist and professor at The Royal Academy of Music, as well as precentor at St Marylebone Parish Church. His output included songs, a piano concerto and church music. In Leipzig he would have become familiar with the latest German trends in organ composition exemplified in the works of Liszt, J G Töpfer, A G Ritter, G Merkel, Julius Reubke and Josef Rheinberger. Several of his organ compositions employ chorale melodies, including the Prelude for Lent Op 10 No 2, which is a deeply-felt meditation on the first chorale in Bach’s St Matthew Passion: Herzliebster Jesu, was hast du verbrochen?

from notes by Graham Barber © 2003