Joseph Barnby
Joseph Barnby (1838–1896) was an English composer and conductor. His hymn tunes, anthems and partsongs include the enduring lullaby Sweet and Low.
Born in York and a chorister at York Minster, he studied at the Royal Academy of Music and raised the standard of London church music as organist and choirmaster before becoming precentor at Eton College. From 1871 he conducted the Royal Albert Hall Choral Society; in 1892 he was appointed principal of the Guildhall School of Music and knighted.
Besides services and anthems he wrote the oratorio Rebekah, Psalm settings, partsongs and songs, and some two hundred and forty-six hymn tunes gathered in one volume after his death. Sweet and Low remains among the best-known of his smaller choral works.
Compositions by Joseph Barnby appear on
Laughing
The internationally acclaimed Choir of Ormond College, directed by Douglas Lawrence, turns to the lighter side of a cappella singing across jazz, madrigal and spiritual repertoire.
Polyphony
The Phones were an a cappella group with a comedic bent. This 1984 album largely reflects their interest in contemporary music of the preceding twenty-five years, mixing pop classics with Australian songs and original pieces.