Crotch, William (b Norwich, 5 July, 1775 - d Taunton, 29 December, 1847)
Crotch was a child prodigy touring England Britain as an organist at the age of three; he also played the piano and violin and composed. He was an organist in Cambridge from 1786 to 1788 and then studied at Oxford, becoming oriagnist of Christ Church in 1790; in 1797 he became professor of music there. His lectures on the history of music given between 1800 and 1804 in Oxford and later at the Royal Institution were the first of their kind. Around 1806 he settled in London where his oratoria Palestine (1812) was a success. As an organist he championed Bach's music, and as a teacher he became the first principal of the Royal Academy Music in 1822, a post which he held until 1832. He retired in 1834.