Biography
At the Brussels Conservatory Tinel received piano instruction from Brassin while Gavaert guided his work in composition. Although he first aspired to a career as a virtuoso pianist, he soon abandoned that path in favor of writing music. In 1877 he produced the cantata “Klokke Roeland,” which earned him the Belgian Prize of Rome. Five years later he assumed the directorship of the Malines Institute of Religious Music. By 1889 he had joined the faculty of the Brussels Conservatory as professor of counterpoint, and he subsequently served as choir master to the king. Religious music written for liturgical use remained his central concern. His most notable achievements appeared in settings of the Te Deum, in oratorios, and in other forms of sacred drama. Moments of textual anguish are frequently underscored by sudden, unexpected modulations that demonstrate his acute sense of emotional expression.