Felix CORBETT 1861 - 1940 Composer Cinderford (General)

by Geoffrey Corbet , Tuesday, February 05, 2013, 05:00 (4305 days ago) @ peteressex

I was very touched by the kind comments you made about my grandfather Felix Corbett.

Here are some more details about him:

Composer, choir master, organist, and concert organiser.
1861 Born in Cinderford, the Forest of Dean.
1877 - 1881 Pupil of James Stimpson, Birmingham Corporation organist.
1882 Appointed organist and choirmaster of St Hilda's, the parish church of Middlesbrough at the age of 21.
1895 "Butterflies" and "In the time of roses" composed by Felix played at the very first Henry Wood Promenade Concert. "In the time of roses" was played again during the 1896 season.
1889 Appointed Middlesbrough Borough organist. Although appointed mainly for ceremonial occasions, Felix used to run organ recitals every Saturday afternoon between September and June with an average attendance of 700.
1900 Felix started the Corbett Celebrity Concerts which were staged in the Town Hall. Amongst those who performed over the years were Clara Butt, Gigli, Yehudi Menuhin, Melba, Paderewski, Tauber, Rachmaninov and Johann Strauss, in addition to composers and conductors Sir Thomas Beecham, Sir Edward Elgar, and Sir Henry Wood, and orchestras such as the Halle, the London Symphony, the Prague Philharmonic, the Vienna Symphony and London Phiharmonic.
1902 Married Beatrice Cooper. Offspring were 2 boys and 2 girls.
1939 Felix retired and moved to Reigate in Surrey where he died in 1940.
1948 Felix's widow unveiled a large stained glass window in Middlesbrough Town Hall to which the people of the town had subscribed in thanks for everything Felix had done for them.

Geoffrey Corbett