James Langran
1835 - 1909
Church of England
Biography
James Langran (1835–1909) was an English organist, teacher, editor, and hymn-tune composer. Born in London on November 10, 1835, he served a succession of church appointments before becoming organist of St Paul's Church, Tottenham, in 1870, a position he held for nearly four decades. He later earned the Bachelor of Music degree from Oxford University and taught music at St Katherine's College in Tottenham.
Langran contributed to Victorian hymnody both as a composer and as an editor. He was music editor of The New Mitre Hymnal, published in 1875, and wrote numerous hymn tunes intended for congregational use. His tune LANGRAN, also known as ST AGNES, dates from the 1860s and has been paired with several texts, including Horatius Bonar's “Here, O My Lord, I See Thee Face to Face.”
His work reflects the nineteenth-century English parish tradition in which organists combined teaching, publishing, and composition. Langran died at Tottenham on June 8, 1909.
Langran contributed to Victorian hymnody both as a composer and as an editor. He was music editor of The New Mitre Hymnal, published in 1875, and wrote numerous hymn tunes intended for congregational use. His tune LANGRAN, also known as ST AGNES, dates from the 1860s and has been paired with several texts, including Horatius Bonar's “Here, O My Lord, I See Thee Face to Face.”
His work reflects the nineteenth-century English parish tradition in which organists combined teaching, publishing, and composition. Langran died at Tottenham on June 8, 1909.
Hymns by James Langran
Here, O My Lord, I See Thee
Role: Composer