Thomas Trotter

Organist

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, amongst many others, the conductors Sir Simon Rattle, Bernard Haitink, Riccardo Chailly and Sir Charles Mackerras. 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 played inaugural concerts in places such as Princeton University Chapel USA, the “Concertgebouw” in Amsterdam, the Royal Albert Hall, and Moscow's International Performing Arts Centre. He appears at major Festivals such as Salzburg, Edinburgh and London’s BBC Proms, and he performs with leading orchestras such as the Vienna, Berlin and London Philharmonic. In May 2002 he was the recipient of the Royal Philharmonic Society award for Best Instrumentalist, the first organist ever to win this award.

Thomas Trotter was appointed Birmingham City Organist in 1983 in succession to Sir George Thalben-Ball, and he is also Organist at St Margaret’s Church, Westminster Abbey and Visiting Fellow in Organ Studies at the Royal Northern College of Music. Earlier in his career he was organ scholar at King’s College, Cambridge, winning the First Prize at the St Albans International Organ Competition in his final 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 USA and Europe. He is an active recording artist and several of his recordings have been named “Critics Choice” by The Gramophone magazine. This season he will play two of the opening concerts on the restored organ at Auckland Town Hall New Zealand, as well as inaugurating the new organ at Llandaff Cathedral. Other engagements include concerts in Europe, Russia, South Korea and Australia.

Thomas Trotter is one of Britain’s most widely admired musicians. He performs as a soloist with such conductors as Sir Simon Rattle, Bernard Haitink, Riccardo Chailly and Sir Charles Mackerras. He has performed recitals at Berlin’s Philharmonie, the Gewandhaus in Leipzig, both the Musikverein and the Konzerthaus in Vienna and London’s Royal Festival Hall. He has played inaugural concerts at venues including Princeton University Chapel (USA), the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Royal Albert Hall and the Moscow International Performing Arts Centre. Thomas Trotter also appears at major festivals such as those in Salzburg and Edinburgh and London’s BBC Proms, and he performs with the world’s leading ensembles, among them the Vienna, Berlin and London Philharmonic Orchestras. In May 2002 he was the recipient of the Royal Philharmonic Society’s award as “Best Instrumentalist”, the first organist ever to win this award. In 2012 the New York Branch of the American Guild of Organists named him “Performer of the Year”.

Thomas Trotter was appointed Birmingham City Organist in 1983 in succession to Sir George Thalben-Ball. He is also the organist at St Margaret’s Church, Westminster Abbey, and a Visiting Fellow in Organ Studies at the Royal Northern College of Music.

Thomas Trotter was an organ scholar at King’s College, Cambridge, winning 1st prize at the St Albans International Organ Competition in his final year. He received an Honorary Doctorate from Birmingham City University in 2003 and from the University of Birmingham in 2006.

Alongside his weekly recitals in Birmingham, Thomas Trotter regularly performs throughout the USA and Europe. He is an active recording artist with the companies Decca, Hyperion, Regent and Chandos, and several of his recordings have been named “Critics Choice” by Gramophone magazine.

Last season the organist took part in the festival Pull Out All The Stops to mark the completion of restoration work at the Royal Festival Hall in London. He also gave a special recital to mark one hundred and fifty years since the establishment of the Royal College of Organists. That concert took place at Windsor Castle in the presence of HM Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain.