Mexborough & Swinton Times – Friday 23 June 1939

Talented Musician.

Mr. Edgar Cree, talented Bolton musician, was in the gramophone studios yesterday (Thursday) with his string orchestra, making recordings of works by Vaughan Williams and Tchaicovsky. The records will be available later in the year.

Mr. Cree, who is the eldest son of Mr. and Mrs. William Cree, Ladycroft. Bolton-on-Dearne, has now a symphony orchestra of fifty players, chamber orchestra of 22, and string orchestra of 12, and is permanent conductor of the Purley Choral Society and Purley Philharmonic Orchestra.

He was from 1930-33 assistant organist at Peterborough Cathedral, and left there to spend three years as a student at the Royal College of Music.

In 1938 he became Master of Music at Christ Church. Purley. In his earlier days he understudied Reginald Porter-Brown, famed cinema organist, now of Southampton, at Swinton Picture House, and also played the organ at Bolton Parish Church.

A composition of his own. “lntroduction and Romance.” a piece of two solo Instruments (violin and clarionette) and full symphony orchestra, has been dedicated to his former pianoforte teacher, Mr. P. Prince of Barnburgh, one of the founders of the Barnburgh Main Orchestra.

Dr. R. Vaughan Williams, who is president of the Purley Philharmonic Orchestra, has dedicated his “The Five Tudor Portraits” to Mr. Cree. The broadcasts to have been given by Mr. Cree and his light orchestra at Whitsuntide has been postponed to a later date.