Damian Howard CV Photo 1 

Damian Howard  Musical Director and Organist

Damian Howard began his musical training as a chorister at Lichfield Cathedral. He gained a Major Music Scholarship to Sedbergh School before entering the Royal Northern College of Music in 1993 where he studied Organ and Choral-Conducting (with Gordon Stewart and Matthew Owens), Improvisation (David Briggs) Harpsichord and Baroque Interpretation (David Ledbetter) and Piano as well as holding down the prestigious position of Organ Scholar at Blackburn Cathedral. He has participated in public Masterclasses with Bernard Roberts, David Lawrence, Ludger Lohman, Carlo Curley, Olivier Latry, to name a few. Having gained the Cronshaw Prize for playing, he completed postgraduate training at Durham University. In 1998-99 he became Postgraduate Organ Scholar of Lincoln Cathedral. During 1997-2005 he won funding from the Eric Thompson Trust to study the organ with Professor Marie-Louise Langlais of the Conservatoire Nationale Superior de Musique/La Schola Cantorum, Paris, the time being extended to 2015 where he travelled regularly for private lessons and became an articled pupil. He is regarded as an expert knowledge and performer of the works of Charles Tournemire and Jean Langlais.He has also premiered commissioned new Organ and Choral works by Nicholas Kingman, Francis Jackson, Malcolm Archer, Hans Andre Stamm, Iain Farrington, Richard Lloyd, A.Hammond and collaborated with International Composers such as Sally Beamish. In January 2006, Damian began his present post of Titulair-Organist and Director of Music at St. Peter’s Cathedral, Lancaster where he presides over the Cathedral Ladies and Gentlemen’s Choir, the Cathedral Choristers, Cantors, the Diocesan and Ecumenical Choirs, and St. Peter’s Brass Consort. He teaches, Organ, Piano, Harpsichord and Singing and is a visiting organist to Lancaster University.