James McVinnie was born on 13 January 1983 in Kent, United Kingdom, and is an organist and pianist. He trained as an organist and pianist at Clare College, Cambridge, studying under Sarah Baldock, Thomas Trotter, and Hans Fagius. He began his career as assistant organist at Westminster Abbey (2008‑2011) and released his debut EP Cycles in 2013 on Bedroom Community, featuring music written for him by Nico Muhly. Subsequent releases include Organ Works (2007), The Grid (2018) on Orange Mountain Music, All Night Chroma (2019) on Warp Records, and Dreamcatcher (2025) on Pentatone, which compiled works by John Adams, Meredith Monk, and others. McVinnie collaborated with Philip Glass, Tom Jenkinson, Angelique Kidjo, Nico Muhly, David Lang, and Jonny Greenwood, and performed at the Salzburg Festival in 2009 and the Royal Festival Hall in 2014.
