Sydney Watson

Sydney Watson OBE (1903–1991) was an English church musician. Watson studied at Keble College, Oxford, and at the Royal College of Music. He was the Organist of New College, Oxford, from 1933 and left in 1938 to become Musical Director at Winchester College where he stayed until 1946. He then moved to become Precentor at Eton College, leaving in 1955 to take up a post as music lecturer at Christ Church, Oxford, and organist of Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford, which posts he held until 1970. He was also Professor of Organ at the RCM from 1946 to 1971, and he conducted the Oxford Bach Choir between 1955 and 1970.

In 1965 he conducted the first performance of Walton's The Twelve, and in 1967 he directed what was probably the first liturgical performance of Taverner's Missa Corona Spinea for four hundred years. He was appointed an OBE in 1970 for his services to music. A private and undated recording exists of Sydney Watson conducting Sir Arnold Bax' Concertante for piano left hand and orchestra with Douglas Fox as soloist and an orchestra called the Oxford Orchestral Society.