An interview with our Musical Director, Andy Lumsden

As well as rehearsing and conducting three performances for The Waynflete Singers in 2025, and conducting our Normandy tour, our esteemed musical director Andy Lumsden has been busy with many other musical positions and projects. He was kind enough to spare some of his valuable time with Wayns Augmented in the run-up to our Christmas performance of The Messiah to answer a few of our questions about what he’s been doing…

Andy, welcome to Wayns Augmented and thanks for joining us! So during this year, as well as continuing to direct and lead us, you have been involved in a whole host of new and exciting roles- temporary director of music at New College Oxford, radio DJ, performer… anything else that should be added to this list?!

Adapting to, and enjoying, married life!

How did it feel returning as director of music to New College Oxford, the place where you first sang as a chorister yourself at the tender age of eight?

Initially it was a very emotional. Seeing the chapel, and particularly the organ, looking almost exactly as it did when I left in 1976 was heart-warming. (Luckily they have updated what was the rather archaic lighting system in use in my day!) The music library has grown immeasurably but it has been amusing to see that some of the music boxes still have the blue Dymo tape labels that my sisters had made in the mid 1970s!

Your father was also Director of Music at New College. How did it feel to be following so directly in your father’s footsteps?

A mixture of fear and honour. There are very few places that have had both a father and son as Directors of Music so there is an element of uniqueness in the mix as well.

What would you say are the main differences between the position of Director of Music at an Oxford college compared to the equivalent role at a cathedral?

Apart from the very generous dining rights of the former?! The obvious answers are the shorter terms in a college (only eight weeks compared with the longest term in a cathedral of about 13 weeks), more rehearsal time with the full choir and (in the case of New College) no Sunday morning services. The expectations of the very best standards are the same in each, but the choice of repertoire needs to perhaps be a bit more on the ‘refined’ side in the College, as the chapel only has to relate to the College whereas a Cathedral has to cater to the needs of the whole diocese.

Have you enjoyed your term at New College? What have you enjoyed most?

It’s been a great term and, as I write, I have two weeks to go and will miss it very much indeed.  The College is a very friendly place and my work seems to have been appreciated. I have really enjoyed working with a world class choir.

Tell us more about your role as the host of a classical music show on Voice FM. How did this come about?

Leona very kindly bought me a Christmas gift from Experience Hampshire, which was to be a live radio presenter on VoiceFM, to create a quiz for their lunchtime show and then present it. The station manager, Xan, seemed to be suitably impressed with my ‘radio voice’ and asked if I would like to present a regular classical music show - I didn’t take much persuading!  Xan was amused that I was the only presenter he knew at the station who had his own Wikipedia page!  We did a few dry runs and the show started in earnest in February this year.

Had you ever done anything like it before?

Not presenting, no. I have played, sung and conducted in numerous broadcasts since I was 10 years old, and had been interviewed many times through my cathedral work. I have always enjoyed that side of things but never thought the chance would come up to have my own show. I have always been a great fan of radio and tv production and still get childishly excited when the BBC vans arrive for outside broadcasts. 

What do you enjoy most about doing it?

Broadcasting live is a big adrenaline rush which I love and to also have the chance to introduce new people to classical music is rewarding. I also like the challenge of selecting the music and timing my spoken links so that the show lasts exactly one hour. Xan is quite relaxed if the show overruns but really by no more than about 20 seconds. I like to try and get it spot on the hour and, in the past few weeks, have managed it, through the use of longer gaps between pieces and speaking slower!  With technology being so good these days, I can record the show on Leona’s MacBook from anywhere with an internet connection. So I have recorded it from home, from a Travelodge in Worcester (where the fire alarm kept going off!), from the Director of Music’s office at St Thomas Fifth Avenue in New York (competing with the noise of the subway which runs right under the church), and even a friend’s guest bathroom in their condo in Charleston.

How much say do you have in the music chosen for each show?

I choose and upload all the music. I also enjoy interviewing people who are either performing in the Southampton area or are involved with classical music locally.

Has doing the show introduced you to any new favourite pieces of music that you may not have otherwise come across?

Like creating any concert programme, I try to balance more popular classical music with the less familiar (at least to the station’s listenership), so you might find the slow movement of Beethoven’s Emperor concerto running next to John Dunbar’s theme from Dances with Wolves…followed by some West Side Story. I love the variety.  I also include video game music which is a new genre for me!

Andy presenting his classical music show at Voice FM

You have given organ recitals all around the country this year. Were there any that were more memorable or enjoyable than others?

It was lovely to play again in Lichfield Cathedral, my old stomping ground for 11 years, and seeing many familiar and friendly faces. I also played in Norwich Cathedral in August, where the organ has recently been rebuilt to its former glory.  I always love the challenge of getting to know an unfamiliar instrument and finding ways to get the best possible sound out of it.

I was also honoured to have been asked to play for Martin Neary’s funeral in October which was a very moving and memorable occasion.

Andy has enjoyed having more time to play the organ as well as conduct

Would you say that you prefer conducting or performing?

As a Cathedral Director of Music, you rarely get any time to play the organ as most of your time is spent conducting.  I have really enjoyed doing more playing recently and it has reminded me that that is probably where my heart is, although I love the fact I now have time to do both.

How are you enjoying life as a resident of the village of Ropley following your move there?

Ropley is such a lovely village and Leona and I have been very warmly welcomed. Having been away so much this year, we haven’t been able to participate as much as we would have liked but there is time for that in the New Year.  Leona sings with the Ropley King’s Singers which is a great opportunity to meet other village folk.

Can you tell us about any more music making that you have in your schedule over the Christmas period once our performance of The Messiah in the Cathedral is over?

As ever it is going to be a busy few weeks. As well as The Messiah, I’m conducting New College Choir in a performance of the first three parts of the Christmas Oratorio (not to mention numerous carol services with them).  I’m conducting the Winchester Consort for two charity carol concerts, and I also have three concerts in London, one in Poole and another in Warwick. Finally, I am really looking forward to conducting Midnight Mass at New College, which will be a happy ending to a very enjoyable term.

Let’s turn to The Messiah for a moment. How do you approach the direction of piece like this; one that you must have directed many times before?

Not as often as perhaps you might think. It is a truly astonishing work, particularly when you consider the amount of music Handel was having to write to keep the wolf from the door, and the expectations of his patrons. I always try to find a little something to make it a bit different, but you mustn’t be too glitzy or superficial or the music will not be happy!  The biggest difficulty is fitting it all into a 2hr 40 minute rehearsal when, even with the various cuts, there is no time for hanging around.

Do you seek to have us execute the work in the way that you know works best based on your previous experience, or are there things that you adjust each time in response to the choir that you have in front of you?

Obviously as a conductor you have to make sure that everything is in its proper place regarding tuning, sound quality, blend etc, and that varies depending on the numbers involved, the size of orchestra and the acoustic of the venue. I know that mixing up the choir is not to everyone’s taste but it really does improve the sound. I hope the choir get some enjoyment out of hearing what other people are singing and how the various parts interweave around them.

Is the enjoyment that you get now from directing such a familiar piece any different from your first or second time of directing it?

The final Amen is still to me an absolutely spine tingling moment when the sopranos and trumpets are all flying high!

Are there any new projects in the pipeline for 2026?

There are indeed. Some choral workshops with choirs in London and around the UK and a trip to Boston in the spring. Various other projects are in the pipeline for later in the year but are not finalised enough to publicise yet!

Lastly, you shared with us at the AGM that some people have told you that you seem a lot happier these days, and that they are probably correct, which was a lovely thing to hear. Can you tell us which aspects of this new leg of your life have led to that?

Needless to say the best bit has been marrying Leona, who is a truly amazing person and it is a real privilege to be her husband. Leaving the Cathedral was, in many ways, very sad, but it has opened up a whole new world of organ playing and conducting which had previously been limited, and I am loving it. Not having to attend interminable and often rather pointless meetings has also helped! 

The Wayns is still very much part of the future for me - and I’m obviously very much looking forward to Gerontius.

Andy and Leona enjoying married life

You can keep track of all of Andy’s performances and engagements by visiting his website- AndrewLumsden.com and by following him on Instagram andy_lumsden