Mr Lees had often wondered where he got his musical bent and decided that it must have been ‘‘genetic’’ after he discovered his great-grandfather Joseph Lees, who immigrated to North Otago with his family between 1862 and 1864, played the piano.
Tim said he had had an ‘‘unusual career’’ as a professional organist, the pinnacle being his time as Royal Organist to the Sultan of Oman.
In 1990, Mr Lees and his late wife relocated to the Middle Eastern country after they were both offered jobs — he as a music teacher and instructor for the country’s national symphony orchestra, established in 1987 by Sultan Qaboos bin Said Al Said, who died in January, and she in a similar role in the maths and science field.
He said the sultan loved music.
‘‘His great passion in life was music, but in particular the pipe organ.
‘‘How can a Muslim monarch be interested in classical music and the pipe organ? It’s quite simple. His father sent him to be privately educated in the UK in his mid-teens. He gained a place at Cambridge, which is very famous for its choirs and its organs.’’
In 1991, after the royal organist was fired, Mr Lees was approached by two armed guards and the sultan’s chief protocol officer with an offer.
‘‘They said the information they had was that I was a very good organist ... and that his majesty has got to know about this and he wants you to become the new royal organist. I just sat there completely dumbfounded.’’
His first job was to oversee the installation of a new pipe organ, delivered in pieces from the UK to Oman, planned for a miniature version of the Royal Albert Hall that was being constructed on palace grounds.
The installation was expected to take about three months, with a view to a concert being staged on December 31, 1991.
‘‘The builders said two weeks before Christmas it was impossible to finish building the organ. They just did not have enough time ... the organ builders were going home for Christmas.
‘‘Before they went I said you can’t leave me in this situation where the organ is unplayable. They said they would put what they can together to give me something to play. I had to come up with a programme to counter the fact the organ was not finished. That was my baptism of fire.’’
Fortunately, the concert went without a hitch.
Mr Lees spent 10 years as royal organist, and played at least two dozen concerts for guests including former US President Jimmy Carter, Prince Charles, Queen Elizabeth, Prince Philip and Nelson Mandela.
He recalled one occasion he was scheduled to play for Prince Charles in Salalah, where the Sultan bin Said Al Said was born.
A marble music hall was constructed at his residence there, complete with a full size grand piano.
However, it was deemed ‘‘too loud’’ for the space and sent to Muscat to be used elsewhere.
Mr Lees said he got a message that he was required to play at a dinner being attended by Prince Charles — despite the fact the piano was no longer there.
There was, however, an electronic organ — complete with boxes of floppy discs with pre-recorded classical music.
‘‘We put the first floppy disc in ... it coughed and spluttered, a few lights flashed, but nothing happened. We put in another until we got to the fifth and then the organ started playing itself; proper classical music arranged for the organ. I found I had a few hours of music suitable for the occasion.
‘‘So, what I did ... they could see me, full face, but they could not see what I was doing down there. For three hours I sat and pretended to play while the discs did the work for me.’’
Once again, the performance went smoothly.
He looked back on his time in Oman fondly and said it was an experience he would never forget.
‘‘It was incredible. An experience I will always hold very dear.’’
