Simon Preston, who has died aged 83, was organist and master of the choristers at Westminster Abbey from 1981 to 1987 and previously organist at Christ Church, Oxford. At both institutions he set unprecedented standards of excellence. He later abandoned the sheltered world of English cathedral music to spread his wings in North America, Australasia and venues all over Europe.
His formidable talents at the keyboard, combined with a wealth of experience as a choral conductor, as well as energy and charisma in abundance, ensured that he was in demand for many decades from his early days as an organ scholar at King’s College, Cambridge. In addition to his prolific live concerts all over the world, he amassed a discography amounting to more than 100 recordings as recitalist, concerto soloist and choral director.
