Martin Stacey
Born and raised in Somerset, Martin was an organ scholar at Queen's College, Taunton, before joining the Royal Academy of Music where he studied under Nicholas Danby and Naji Hakim among others, winning all the major prizes for organ and early-music. With support from the Countess of Munster Musical Trust he furthered his studies with Nicolas Kynaston and Dame Gillian Weir. Today, his regular concert appearances in the UK, Europe and Scandinavia have established a reputation amongst the foremost exponents of his generation of organists. Engagements in the last few years have included concerts at major venues in the UK, Portugal, Greece and Poland as well as several concert-tours of Finland, some of which have been broadcast on national radio in each country.
In addition to performing, Martin has lectured at Trinity College of Music (London) and the Sibelius Academy (Helsinki) in early Iberian keyboard music, English romantic organ music and historical notation. He has been Director of Music at St. Dominic's Priory in London for 24 years where he has established regular recitals on the famous Willis organ, and installed a smaller Victorian instrument in the Lady Chapel. Martin collaborated with Jennifer Bate in two world-premiere recordings of organ duets by Mendelssohn and also recorded several discs of contemporary music on various labels. A major project to fully restore the 1883 Willis organ is underway and planned commercial recordings are due to be made shortly.
His own compositions are receiving considerable attention worldwide and have received premieres in the USA, Finland and France. Totentanz (a work commissioned by Choir & Organ magazine) was a set-work on the syllabus for the FRCO examination from 2008 to 2020 and he is frequently commissioned to write new music. Several new CDs have been recorded of his music; one by Kevin Bowyer on the organ of Glasgow University including the Little Stanmore Suite and more recently by Eleni Keventsidou at Rugby College (Somerset Scenes for violin and organ) due for release soon.
In 2006 Martin founded AFNOM (the Annual Festival of New Organ Music) to promote the work of contemporary composers of organ music. After a year in the post of organist at Bradfield College in Berkshire, Martin spent two years in sales before resuming a varied musical career. Having taught music and Spanish in various north London schools over the last twenty years, he continues as organ tutor at University College School in Hampstead. Since September 2019, Martin has been Head of Music at Falconer School in Bushey, Hertfordshire.
