Francis Grier

Composer

Francis Grier has led a varied musical life. He was organ scholar at King’s College, Cambridge, and Assistant Organist and then Organist of Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford. He has made many recordings and broadcasts as organist and choir director, including playing La Nativité by Messiaen at the first ever Prom concert given over to a solo performer.

As chamber music pianist he currently plays with the soprano Dorothee Jansen in the Jansen-Grier-Duo. They are starting to perform and record a series of all-Schubert programmes, entitled Schubert: New Perspectives. They have given recitals at Bayreuth, Luxembourg, Antwerp, Parma, Florence, Geneva, at the Bonn Beethovenfest and at the Wigmore Hall in London.

As a composer he has written much for the Anglican choral tradition, having pieces commissioned and performed from Westminster Abbey, King’s College, Cambridge, as well as Durham, Edinburgh, Salisbury and Winchester Cathedrals. St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle, commissioned a setting of Psalm 150 to celebrate the Queen’s 70th birthday. He has also written several large-scale works, including My Heart Dances for the Three Choirs Festival, Embracing The Tiger for the Quaker Festival Chorus and Orchestra, Around the Curve of the World for the centenary of the city of Christ Church, New Zealand, and Five Joyful Mysteries for a European Broadcasting Union Christmas broadcast from King’s College, Cambridge by The BBC Singers. He has also written many instrumental pieces. In 2003 David Goode played his In Nomine, originally commissioned by the BBC, at an organ recital in the Aldeburgh Festival. Grier is currently working on a setting of the Passion.

Grier is also a psychoanalyst and couple psychotherapist in private practice and a Visiting Researcher at the Tavistock Marital Studies Institute.