Alastair Ross

Alastair Ross (harpsichord) studied at New College, Oxford, where he gained a First in Music in spite of his attention to final exams being threatened by the arrival that summer of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Heart’s Club Band. He then studied in New York and worked as an organist and choirmaster in Connecticut for two years, only returning to England after deciding that possible drafting to the war in Vietnam was not a wise career-move. Alastair has worked for twenty five years as a harpsichordist and organist based in London. He has appeared as soloist with many London orchestras, in the concert hall, for the BBC and on record. He is in continual demand as a continuo player, and has played on over one hundred recordings. With the Brandenburg Consort he has recorded Bach’s 5th Brandenburg Concerto twice, for sound and for video. He also plays with the Academy of Ancient Music and played a Handel Organ Concerto for the BBC with them last May. For the past eight years he has taught and conducted at the Britten/Pears School in Snape on courses devoted to Bach and Handel performance. His solo recitals have included Bach’s Goldberg Variations at the Wigmore Hall. Alastair directed the music at High Wycombe Parish Church and St. Margaret’s Westminster for many years, and enjoyed working with young voices.