Elegy

Charles Harford Lloyd (Thornbury, 16 October 1849 – Slough, 16 October 1919) was an English composer and organist who was well-known in his time.

When Samuel Sebastian Wesley died in 1876, the position at Gloucester was immediately offered to Lloyd. This caused dissatisfaction in some musical circles because Lloyd was an unknown at the time, but he soon earned a reputation as an outstanding musician and their fears were put to rest. He remained at Gloucester until 1881. While there he became the Honorary Secretary of an organisation called Cathedral Organists of England and Wales, which worked for better working and living conditions for organists and choristers.

In 1882, he moved to Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford, remaining there until 1891. While in Oxford he took his degree of Doctor of Music in 1890. From 1887 to 1892, Lloyd was an instructor in organ and composition at the Royal College of Music.

Lloyd was invited to fill the position of music teacher at Eton College from 1892, when Sir Joseph Barnby resigned. As Instructor of Music, his work was largely that of supervision with six music teachers under him. He played the organ in the Eton College Chapel every morning and afternoon, as well as on Sundays, and rehearsed the choir. He also gave frequent organ recitals on Sunday evenings.

After retirement from Eton in 1914, Lloyd was appointed organist at the Chapel Royal, St. James Palace from 1914, a post he held until his sudden death on his birthday in 1919.

In order to show different "side" of Lloyd, I'm uploading two very different works.

"Elegy" was published by Novello. It is small, elegant, and quite "classical" in effect. This piece reminds a great deal of some of the works of Mendelssohn, and is humble and unpretentious, with no heroic grandeur or gestures about it. It uses ONLY the Swell Diapasons, so, once again,

The score is attached below, as well as photos of Lloyd and of the chapel and organ at Eton.