A Dictionary of Music and Musicians/Croft, William

CROFT (or, as he sometimes wrote his name, Crofts), William, Mus. Doc., born in 1677 [App. p.601 "1678; he was baptised on Dec. 30 in that year"] at Nether Eatington, Warwickshire, was one of the children of the Chapel Royal under Dr. Blow. On the erection of an organ in the church of St. Anne, Soho, Croft was appointed organist. On July 7, 1700, he was sworn in as a gentleman extraordinary of the Chapel Royal, with the reversion, jointly with Jeremiah Clark, of the first vacant organist's place. On May 25, 1704, on the death of Francis Piggott, Croft and Clark were sworn in as joint organists, and on Clark's death in 1707, Croft was sworn in to the whole place. On the death of Dr. Blow in 1708 Croft was appointed his successor as organist of Westminster Abbey, and master of the children and composer to the Chapel Royal. It was in the discharge of the duties of the latter office that Croft produced, for the frequent public thanksgivings for victories, etc., many of those noble anthems which have gained him so distinguished a place among English church composers. In 1711 he resigned his appointment at St. Anne's in favour of John Isham, who had been his deputy for some years. In 1712 he edited for his friend, Mr. (afterwards Sir John) Dolben, sub-dean of the Chapel Royal, a collection of the words of anthems, to which he prefixed a brief historical account of English church music. On July 9, 1713, he took the degree of Doctor of Music in the University of Oxford, his exercise (performed on July 13) being two odes, one in English, the other in Latin, on the Peace of Utrecht; these were afterwards engraved and published under the title of 'Musicus Apparatus Academicus.' In 1715 Croft received an addition of £80 per annum to his salary as master of the children of the Chapel Royal for teaching the children reading, writing, and arithmetic, as well as playing on the organ and composition. In 1724 Dr. Croft published in two folio volumes, with a portrait of himself, finely engraved by Vertue, prefixed, Thirty Anthems and a Burial Service of his composition, under the title of 'Musica Sacra.' In the preface he states it to be the first essay in printing church music in that way, i. e. engraven in score on plates. Dr. Croft died Aug. 14, 1727, and was buried in the north aisle of Westminster Abbey, where a monument is erected to his memory. His biographers commonly attribute his death to an illness contracted at the coronation of George II. A glance at the dates will at once disprove this:—Croft died Aug. 14, George II was crowned Oct. 4, 1727. Croft in the earlier part of his career composed for the theatre, and produced overtures and act tunes for 'Courtship a la mode,' 1700; 'The Funeral,' 1702; 'The Twin Rivals,' 1703 [App. p.601 "1702"]; and 'The Lying Lover,' 1704 [App. p.601 "1703"]. He also published sonatas for both violin and flute. Numerous songs by him are to be found in the collections of the period, and some odes and other pieces are still extant in MS. Two psalm tunes attributed to him, St. Ann's and St. Matthew's, and a single chant in B minor, will long live in the Anglican church, even after his fine anthems have become obsolete.

[ W. H. H. ]