Performer Christopher Rathbone, composer, organist, choir director.

As an organ recitalist, Christopher has an unusually rich repertoire, including the complete organ music of:

J S BACH

MOZART

FRANCK

LISZT

HOWELLS

WHITLOCK, and

LEIGHTON

and of course his own music as well as many major works by other composers, including:

BUXTEHUDE

REUBKE

WIDOR

VIERNE

DUPRE

MESSIAEN, and

LANGLAIS

Specimen recital programme (Bexhill, 8 November 2008):

Bach: Concerto movement in C (arranged from concerto by Prince Johann Ernst); Rathbone: Sonata no 2 ; Buxtehude: Fantasia on 'Gelobet'; Liszt: Variations on “Weinen, klagen, sorgen, sagen”; Grainger (arr. Stockmeier): Handel in the Strand

(Marlborough College Summer School, 28th July 2010):

Schumann: Fugue on B-A-C-H no 6; Rathbone: A Southwell Suite op113; Chopin arr. Liszt: Two Preludes; Liszt: Prelude and fugue on B-A-C-H

(St Giles's Edinburgh, 7th November 2010):

Rathbone: A Southwell Suite op 113; Leighton: Missa de Gloria op 84

(Bovenkerk, Kampen, Netherlands, 16th June 2012):

Sweelinck: Chromatic Fantasia; Stanley: Voluntary in D op5 no 6; Bach: Prelude and fugue in G BWV 541; Rathbone; 5 preludes from op 109; Langlais: 3 pieces from op 40; Rathbone Southwell Suite op 113; Rawsthorne: March (Dance Suite)

(Bradford Cathedral, 19th June 2013):

Franck: Fantasie in C op 16; Rathbone: Six verses on Redhead 46 op 109 no 10; Vierne: Symphony no 2 op 20

(Predigerkirche, Erfurt, 4th September 2013):

Bach: Wir Glauben, Ein feste Burg; Stanley: Voluntaries in E minor and D minor; Buxtehude: Unser Vater (Partita), Fugue in C, Komm heiliger Geist; CBR: Lasst uns erfreuen; Prelude and fugue op 128 (1st concert performance); Bach Pièce d'Orgue in G; Rawsthorne: Dance Suite (March).

(Het Steiger, Rotterdam, August 16th 2014):

Bach: E minor prelude and fugue BWV 548; Rathbone: A Southwell Suite op 113; Widor: Symphony no 6 in G minor

(St Margaret's, Ilkley, November 3rd 2017):

Rathbone: Miniature Suite op 30; Alain: Première Fantaisie; Buxtehude: Praeludium in G minor; Farrington: Nocturne (Fiesta!); Alcock: Introduction and Passacaglia

Christopher is also known as a pianist (solo and accompanist.) He appeared at Marlborough College Summer School in July 2010 as a lecture-recitalist in piano music by Chopin and Schumann, and recorded solo music by Chopin, Faure, Brahms, Delius, Vaughan Williams, Debussy, Grainger etc as well as 4 of his own Preludes on a double CD set of 'Music from Castle Howard' available from Amphion. The same set has songs by Gershwin, Berlin, Kern etc sung by Victoria Sharp accompanied on the Castle Howard Bösendorfer by Christopher Rathbone. In November 2014 he accompanied a full recital of songs (plus an organ solo) at St Margaret's with Tristram Cooke and friends, at 3 hours' notice ('Majestically', according to Geoffrey Mogridge in the Ilkley Gazette!)

He has also appeared as continuo harpsichordist in Handel oratorios, sometimes directing from the harpsichord. He is also a Tenor solo singer, a former pupil of Fabian Smith, and has sung in most of the well-known oratorio repertoire, most recently in Messiah and in Elijah.

In November 2011 Christopher took part as organist at a recording session of his own chamber music with the Glasgow-based ensemble 'Daniel's Beard'. The 3 day session at the Cathedral of the Isles in Millport, Gt Cumbrae, included three unusual ensemble pieces with organ, Tree, the Organ Quartet and Tarn Hows. The resulting CD is now available from Meridian. His organ playing can also be heard in the music of César Franck on a CD produced for the Bradford Cathedral organ appeal, including Christopher's live performances of the Three Chorales and the C major Fantaisie. (Clematis Records, available from the Cathedral.) A CD of Advent organ music came from Clematis records in late 2018, and a choir and organ CD of mostly Rathbone music for choir and organ is now available under the title 'God is gone up'.