Simon Preston

Simon Preston forged a reputation as a masterful organist and conductor specializing chiefly in sacred choral repertoire, while also pursuing composition and serving as a recognized authority on organ design and construction. His expertise prompted the substitution of Christ Church, Oxford’s conventional cathedral instrument with a Rieger organ imported from Austria, and he advised on similar replacements for the concert hall at St. John’s, Smith Square and for Tonbridge School. His programming embraced a wide span of music for both keyboard and chorus, extending from Baroque church works through twentieth-century compositions. He played and recorded J.S. Bach’s concertos and solo pieces, presented Poulenc and Copland concertos, and directed Saint-Saëns’s Third Symphony. In addition he led performances of sacred polyphony by Palestrina and Lassus, choral scores by Handel and Purcell, and Anglican liturgical music. His extensive discography appeared on Decca, Philips, and Deutsche Grammophon.

Born in Bournemouth, England, on August 4, 1938, Preston sang as a chorister at King’s College, Cambridge, while receiving early organ instruction from Hugh McLean. He continued his studies at the Royal Academy of Music under C.H. Trevor. Returning to King’s College in 1958, he remained there for nearly five further years, working with teachers that included Sir David Willcocks. Several recordings, among them albums devoted to Orlando Gibbons and Olivier Messiaen, were issued by the early 1960s. From 1962 to 1967 he served as sub-organist at Westminster Abbey, after which he toured Europe and the United States as a recitalist.

Between 1970 and 1981 he held the posts of organist and tutor in music at Christ Church, Oxford, a period that yielded numerous recordings, notably a widely praised 1975 account of Stravinsky’s Symphony of Psalms released by Argo with the Choir of Christ Church. Appointed organist and master of the choristers at Westminster Abbey from 1981 to 1987, he supplied original music for the 1984 film Amadeus and directed the music at the royal wedding of 1986. Thereafter he worked independently as both soloist and conductor, appearing throughout the world. From 1987 until 2000 he recorded the complete organ works of Bach for Deutsche Grammophon. In 2006 Signum Classics issued Royal Albert Hall Organ Restored, featuring pieces by Mendelssohn, Bolcom, Jongen, and others. The 2009 Birthday Honours named him a Commander of the Order of the British Empire. Among his final projects was a 2010 performance of Berlioz’s Te Deum with Susanna Mälkki and the BBC Symphony Orchestra. Earlier recordings continued to be reissued during the 2010s. Simon Preston died on May 13, 2022, at the age of 83.