Dean Catherine Ogle said; “Andy Lumsden has been an outstanding Director of Music at Winchester Cathedral for over two decades. Throughout this time his contribution to the world of English choral music, and sheer musical excellence has been a daily inspiration to congregations and to all fortunate enough to worship here, including growing numbers of people online. In addition to his choral directorship skills, we should not forget his superlative and seemingly effortless playing of the organ. During his time at Winchester Andy Lumsden has trained generations of choristers, contributing not only to their musical and personal formation but also instilling a desire to make worship truly memorable for others. There are many pieces in the cathedral’s repertoire that it will be hard to imagine performed in any other way than with the emotional contours shaped by Andy.”
In recognition of his achievements, in 2023 Andy Lumsden was honoured with an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Winchester.
Dr Lumsden said ‘It has been a real honour for me to work here for the past 22 years and a privilege to work with some wonderful people, not least my fellow organists, the lay clerks and the amazing boy and girl choristers. I am also very grateful to the Waynflete Singers for giving me the opportunity to conduct some of the larger-scale choral works. There are too many highlights for me but one that keeps coming back was the funeral of Sir John Tavener in 2013. The combination of Greek Orthodox liturgy and our own service was breathtaking in its beauty – as the then Dean James Atwell wrote at the time, ‘earth touched heaven’. Thank you to one and all for your support and good luck with whatever the future brings.”
“Andy is greatly loved by his colleagues and our congregations, and he will be much missed” said Canon Andy Trenier, Precentor, “he goes with our deep gratitude and appreciation.”
Andy’s care and nurturing of talent also extended beyond the Cathedral’s young choristers to his assistants, as shown by the recent announcement of the promotion of Claudia Grinnell to the appointment of Director of Music at St Edmundsbury Cathedral. “We are entering a period of perhaps greater change in one moment than anticipated, but we do so with great confidence”, said Dean Catherine, “Andy, along with Claudia, leaves behind a legacy of long-term planning and working in partnership with others to enable the choral tradition in Winchester to continue to flourish well into the future.”
Canon Andy added “we are excited to continue the work that Andy started, moving towards the next stage to safeguard our choral tradition into the future realising the vision and strategy for music.
The Cathedral extends its best wishes to Andy as he embarks on the next phase of his professional and personal journey.