Andrew’s work encompasses an extensive range of repertoire from the Renaissance to the present day, including new commissions and recorded premières. He has collaborated with renowned composers and soloists, directed performances for national broadcasts and state occasions, and continues to be in demand as a recitalist, music educator and artistic advisor. Celebrated for his warmth, depth of musical communication and dedication to nurturing young musicians, he remains a significant and influential figure in British choral music today.

He started his musical career as a chorister at New College, Oxford and was educated at Winchester College and the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama.  He became Organ Scholar at St John’s College, Cambridge in 1981. His early career included posts at Southwark Cathedral, Westminster Abbey, and Lichfield Cathedral, before returning to Winchester as Director of Music in 2002. His contribution to British church music was recognised in 2005 when he was awarded an honorary Fellowship of the Royal College of Organists, a Fellowship of the Royal School of Church Music in 2021, followed by an honorary Doctorate in Music from the University of Winchester in 2023. Winchester Cathedral Choir received a Grammy Award for collaborating on the music for a Star Wars video game. In September 2025, Andrew returned to New College, Oxford, to cover a term’s sabbatical directing the Chapel Choir.

He currently hosts a weekly radio show for VoiceFM Southampton, broadcasting and educating the south coast with both historical and modern classical music.

In July 2026 he will be travelling to Australia to take up the position of Acting Director of Music at the Chapel of Trinity College, University of Melbourne, for three months.

Andrew’s time as a Cathedral Director of Music has given him considerable experience of choral conducting, organ accompanying and training to the highest professional standards.  His high expectations have ensured that listeners have a seamless experience, whether at Choral Evensong, at a service of significant national importance, broadcasts, tours or recordings.

Andrew Lumsden Organ

Renowned for his distinctive musical insight and eloquent approach to choral sound, Andrew Lumsden is globally admired as an organist, conductor and broadcaster. For over two decades he served as Director of Music at Winchester Cathedral, during which time the choir developed a national reputation for expressive clarity, liturgical breadth and vibrant tonal colour. He is the conductor of the Waynflete Singers, and has worked with leading ensembles and orchestras across the UK and abroad. These include the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Florilegium, BBC Concert Orchestra, English Chamber Orchestra, London Mozart Players, and Philharmonia Orchestra (Royal Festival Hall). He has also worked with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra and the Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra at the BBC Proms.

In March 2026 Andrew conducted a sell-out performance of Sir Edward Elgar’s ‘The Dream of Gerontius’ in Winchester Cathedral, which was attended by the composer’s great-great niece, who described the perfomance as “one of the very best, if not the best Dream of G’s I’ve ever seen.”

Andrew has broadcast for the BBC for over 40 years.  At one point he was their youngest solo recitalist. He has broadcast live radio recitals from Westminster Cathedral and Huddersfield University, with other recorded recitals from Dunfermline Abbey, Paisley Abbey, and Winchester College. He has regularly worked with the BBC Singers, both conducting and accompanying them since 1985.