In its statement, the Cathedral remembered Dr Bertalot as a key figure in its musical life, noting his time as Director of Music and Organist from 1964 to 1982, and his later appointment as Organist Emeritus after returning to Lancashire in the late 1990s.
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Dr Bertalot’s own website – a detailed record of his life in music – describes an early moment that shaped his vocation: as a young child visiting Canterbury Cathedral, he heard the organ and decided he wanted to play “like that”.
He went on to study at the Royal College of Music, winning a major organ scholarship, before holding organ scholarships at both Oxford and Cambridge during his student years.
Before arriving in Blackburn, he served at St Matthew’s Church, Northampton (1958-1964), a period he later described as formative for developing his approach as a choirmaster and musician.
At Blackburn Cathedral, the Cathedral and Dr Bertalot’s own accounts both point to his pivotal involvement in the 1969 organ project, which became one of the defining features of the building’s modern musical life. The Cathedral’s organ history page credits him as jointly responsible for the design, alongside Francis Jackson.
His career later took him to the United States, where he served as Director of Music at Trinity Church, Princeton (1983-1998). During that period he founded The Princeton Singers, a choir that continues today and remains part of his legacy.
Alongside performance and leadership roles, Dr Bertalot was widely known for his practical teaching approach. He published influential resources for choir directors and sight-singing, including Five Wheels to Successful Sight-singing and Immediately Practical Tips for Choral Directors, which are still used by church musicians internationally.
Blackburn Cathedral said his contribution to church music “more broadly” was significant, including through the Royal School of Church Music (RSCM), and that his impact on the Cathedral community would not be forgotten.
At the time of writing, no funeral or memorial service details have been published.
