James Thomas MA FRCO (born 1963) is an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ (music), organ. An organist may play organ repertoire, solo organ works, play with an musical ensemble, ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumentalist, instrumental ...

and

choirmaster A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which sp ...

. He has held several liturgical posts at cathedrals, including

Blackburn Blackburn () is an industrial town and the administrative centre of the Blackburn with Darwen borough in Lancashire, England. The town is north of the West Pennine Moors on the southern edge of the Ribble Valley, east of Preston and north-n ...

Chichester Chichester () is a cathedral city and civil parish in West Sussex, England.OS Explorer map 120: Chichester, South Harting and Selsey Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton B2 edition. Publishing Date:2009. It is the only ci ...

and

St Edmundsbury Cathedral St Edmundsbury Cathedral (formally entitled the Cathedral Church of St James and St Edmund) is the cathedral for the Church of England's Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich. It is the seat of the Bishop of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich and is in ...

Early life and education

Thomas was born in

Banbury Banbury is a historic market town on the River Cherwell in Oxfordshire, South East England. It had a population of 54,335 at the 2021 Census. Banbury is a significant commercial and retail centre for the surrounding area of north Oxfordshire ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. He was educated at

Magdalen College School, Brackley Magdalen College School, Brackley, in Northamptonshire, is one of three ancient "Magdalen College Schools", the others being Magdalen College School in Oxford, and Wainfleet All Saints in Lincolnshire, all associated with Magdalen College, Oxf ...

, before going on to read music at

Gonville and Caius College Gonville and Caius College, often referred to simply as Caius ( ), is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1348, it is the fourth-oldest of the University of Cambridge's 31 colleges and one of th ...

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

where he was

organ scholar An organ scholar is a young musician employed as a part-time assistant organist at a cathedral, church or institution where regular choral services are held. The idea of an organ scholarship is to provide the holder with playing, directing and adm ...

. Upon graduating, he spent a year studying for the

Postgraduate Certificate in Education The Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE/PGCertEd) is a one- or two-year higher education course in England, Wales and Northern Ireland which provides training in order to allow graduates to become teachers within maintained schools. In ...

. He gained the FRCO diploma in 1985 and was awarded the prize for

extemporisation Improvisation is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. Improvisation in the performing arts is a very spontaneous performance without specific or scripted preparation. The skills of impr ...

. He spent two years at the Rouen Conservatoire, taught by

Louis Thiry Louis Henry Nicolas Thiry (15 February 1935 St Albans International Organ Festival The International Organ Festival (IOF) is a biennial music festival and organ competition held in St Albans, England since 1963. Originally held annually, it was changed to every two years in 1965 due to the complexity of organising the increasin ...

in both 1987 and 1988.

Career

Upon returning to England in 1988, Thomas was appointed Assistant Organist of

Blackburn Cathedral Blackburn Cathedral, officially known as the Cathedral Church of Blackburn Saint Mary the Virgin with St Paul, is an Church of England, Anglican (Church of England) cathedral situated in the heart of Blackburn town centre, in Lancashire, England ...

, a position he held for three years before moving to

Chichester Cathedral Chichester Cathedral, formally known as the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity, is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Chichester. It is located in Chichester, in West Sussex, England. It was founded as a cathedral in 1075, when the seat of the ...

as Assistant Organist, in 1991. Whilst at Chichester Cathedral, Thomas was also Director of Music of

The Prebendal School The Word of God is the Fountain of Wisdom , established = , type = PreparatoryIndependent , religious_affiliation = Church of England , head_label = Head , head = Louise Salmond Smith , chair_label = Chair of G ...

, the choir school. In September 1997, he left Chichester to become Director of Music at

, a position he held until 2020. During his tenure, the choir made several CDs and broadcasts on the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

. In 1998, he was appointed conductor of the Cambridgeshire Choral Society, a post he held until 2004. Thomas has given recitals up and down the country, as well as in France and Germany. In 1995, he was a semi-finalist in the

Royal College of Organists The Royal College of Organists (RCO) is a charity and membership organisation based in the United Kingdom, with members worldwide. Its role is to promote and advance organ playing and choral music, and it offers music education, training and de ...

"Performer of the Year" competition.

Discography

* 2009 – The Holy Temple (

Regent A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...

) * 2004 – So Rich a Crown
Lammas
* 2001 – Godspeed (Lammas) * 2001 – Complete New English Hymnal Vol. 12 (

Priory A priory is a monastery of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. Priories may be houses of mendicant friars or nuns (such as the Dominicans, Augustinians, Franciscans, and Carmelites), or monasteries of mon ...

) * 1999 – Advent to Candlemass (Lammas) * 1997 – Sing Ye to the Lord (Lammas) * 1996 – Chichester Commissions (Priory) * 1996 – Great Cathedral Anthems Vol. 7 (Priory) * 199? – Organ Masterworks
Kevin Mayhew
* 1994 – Malcolm Archer: Requiem (Kevin Mayhew) * 1991 – Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis Vol. 2 (Priory)

Works

* ''We wait for thy loving kindness'' * ''St Edmund Prayer'' * ''The Prayer of St Richard'' * ''Benedicite in E flat''-Recently Edited 2012

References

External sources

Director of Music
– profile on St Edmundsbury Cathedral website {{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, James English organists British male organists 1963 births Living people Alumni of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Assistant Organists of Chichester Cathedral People from Banbury Fellows of the Royal College of Organists 21st-century organists 21st-century British male musicians Male classical organists