Robert Walker (b. 1946) — A Little Psalm-Tune (1975) for organ
“O Lord, my heart is not lifted up,
my eyes are not raised too high;
I do not occupy myself with things
too great and too marvelous for me.”
(Psalm 131:1)
English composer Robert Walker (b. 1946) was born in Northampton. He studied organ with John Bertalot and sang in the choir at St. Matthew’s Church, Northampton. Further study followed at the Royal School of Music; Jesus College, Cambridge; and Cambridge University. At Cambridge he studied composition with Roger Smalley and organ with Arthur Wills. Walker held various church positions before leaving full-time church employment in 1973 to focus on composition. In the 1980s, worked as a presenter of musical production for the BBC and from 1982 to 1991 was professor of composition at the London College of Music. In 1992, he moved to Bali (Indonesia) to study gamelan music and dance. From 2000–04, he taught music at several universities in Bangkok, Thailand. In 2004, he returned to Northamptonshire, England.