THOMAS TROTTER

Biography

Thomas Trotter is one of Britain’s most widely admired musicians. The excellence of his musicianship is reflected internationally in his musical partnerships. He performs as soloist with conductors Sir Simon Rattle, Bernard Haitink, Riccardo Chailly, Sir Charles Mackerras and many others. He has performed recitals in Berlin’s “Philharmonie”, the “Gewandhaus” in Leipzig, both the “Musikverein” and the “Konzerthaus” in Vienna and London’s Royal Festival Hall. He has given the opening recital on new or restored organs in places such as Severance Hall in Cleveland, Ohio, Princeton University Chapel in New Jersey, the “Concertgebouw” in Amsterdam, St. David’s Hall in Cardiff, and the Royal Albert Hall in London. He is regularly asked to perform on major historic instruments such as those at St. Ouen in Rouen, St. Bavo’s in Haarlem (Netherlands), Weingarten Abbey in Germany and Woolsey Hall at Yale University and he appears at the festivals of Salzburg, Berlin, Vienna, Edinburgh and London’s BBC Proms. He performs with leading orchestras such as the Vienna Philharmonic, Berlin Philharmonic, London Philharmonic and Royal Philharmonic orchestras, and in the United States he has appeared with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra. In May 2001 he was the recipient of the Royal Philharmonic Society award for Best Instrumentalist, the first organist to win this award. Past winners include Andras Schiff, Itzak Perlman and Julian Bream.

Thomas Trotter’s career is also firmly founded on his relationship with the City of Birmingham in England where he was appointed City Organist in 1983 in succession to Sir George Thalben-Ball. He is also Organist at St. Margaret’s Church, Westminster Abbey and Visiting Fellow in Organ Studies at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester. Earlier in his career he was organ scholar at King’s College, Cambridge and later continued his studies with Marie-Claire Alain in Paris, winning the Prix de Virtuosite in her class. He won First Prize at the St. Albans International Organ Competition in 1979 and made his debut in London’s Royal Festival Hall the following year. He received an Honorary Doctorate from Birmingham City University in 2003 and from Birmingham University in 2006.

Alongside his weekly recitals in Birmingham, Thomas Trotter regularly performs throughout the United States and Europe. An active recording artist, his releases of Messiaen and Mozart have been named “Critics’ Choice” by The Gramophone magazine, and he received a Grand Prix du Disque for his recording of music by Liszt in 1995. He was consultant for the new Marcussen organ in Manchester’s newly-built Bridgewater Hall, and also for the new organ in Birmingham at Symphony Hall. Recent engagements have included a Messiaen concert at St. Paul’s Cathedral London (part of the South Bank Messiaen series), five performances of Poulenc’s Organ Concerto for the Royal Ballet at Covent Garden, and recitals in the United States, Australia, Ireland, Germany, Netherlands and Russia.

Current as of December 2009