Organist Robert Quinney reached the very heights of classical music as director of the Oxford New College Choir, organist at Westminster Abbey and director of music at Peterborough Cathedral and was heard all over the world when he played at the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton in 2011. His interest in religious music was initially aroused when his family were living in Dundee and he sang in the cathedral choir there and then joined the church choir when the family moved to Sheffield. That was where he first started playing organ under the tuition of the church organist. He became hooked on listening to choral evensong and also had experience of singing services at Ripon Cathedral and York Minster where he says he became inspired by the traditions associated with the buildings themselves.
He went on to study at Eton College and became an organ scholar at King's College, Cambridge and assistant organist at Winchester Cathedral. He later became sub-organist at Westminster Cathedral and then, in 2000, assistant master of music at the Cathedral. This became the trigger for organising and giving many recitals, going on to tour America and Australia with the Abbey Choir and make recordings such as the acclaimed double album 'The Great Organ of Westminster Abbey'. In 2002 he won the Royal College of Music's Organist of the Year prize and also developed as a writer with pieces such as his 'Short Service' for choristers at Westminster Abbey, first performed in 2008. In 2014 he achieved the highly prestigious distinction of succeeding Edward Higginbottom as organist and tutorial fellow of music at New College, Oxford.
