by Ben Hogwood

It is with some sadness that we have learned of the death of Simon Preston, a great English organist, at the age of 83.

From the warmth of the tributes paid to Preston on social media, it is clear he was well liked:

It is with sadness that we have learned this evening of the death of Simon Preston.

Organist, conductor and composer, Simon was originally a chorister at King’s, later returning as Organ Scholar. His contributions to music were extraordinary, and he will be greatly missed.

— King's College Choir (@ChoirOfKingsCam) May 15, 2022

We are very saddened to hear the news that our friend and former colleague Simon Preston passed away last week. Simon was Organist and Master of the Choristers here @wabbey from 1981-87, having been Sub-Organist 1962-67. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family. pic.twitter.com/Z2thY0yISf

— Choir of Westminster Abbey (@WAbbeyChoir) May 16, 2022

I was fortunate enough to interview Simon back in 2008 for the Classical Source website, where we spoke about the music of J.S. Bach, promoting an all-Bach concert in that years BBC Proms festival. It was a chance to thank him for some wonderful recordings made for Decca and Deutsche Grammophon, some of which we present below.

There is only one place to start – his impish recording of Charles Ives’ riotous Variations on America, which sounds like one of the most fun pieces to play! Also included are Preston’s exploits as a conductor, which are often overlooked, We have included his account of Vivaldi’s Gloria in a playlist that includes Bach (naturally) but also a few of his more Romantic offerings recorded for Decca: