Extemporisation 1

Alfred Earnest Floyd OBE, Mus D (Cantuar), B Mus (Oxon), D Litt (Monash)

Dr A E Floyd (1877-1974) was one of the great personalities of Australian music in the 20th century.

He arrived in Australia from London in 1915 to become the Director of Music at St Paul’s Anglican Cathedral in Melbourne, a position he held with distinction for 32 years. During that time, he gave many public appearances in recitals and concerts, and was a regular contributor on radio.

One of his particular legacies to performers and lovers of organ music has been his contribution to the repertoire of the church organist.

In 1997, noted Melbourne organist, Lindsay O’Neill, together with Dr John Floyd, Robert Sholl and Leslie Kerr produced a volume of nineteen pieces of A E Floyd’s original compositions and arrangements. Some of these pieces were transcriptions from recordings or long out-of-print published pieces together with unpublished works from original manuscripts.

O’Neill said “This collection of A E Floyd’s original compositions and arrangements is offered with profound respect as a personal tribute to a great musician, friend and mentor whose influence will long remain with those who were privileged to be near him in the organ loft at St Paul’s, and who in various ways have been able to catch something of his inspiration”.