Jay Berry: Organist, Choir Master and Freelance Accompanist

How it started

My musical journey began at the piano. A teacher once told me I would "never make it" — but a performance with the Bolton Junior Youth Orchestra changed everything. Expecting to play a Steinway grand for the Last Night of the Proms at Bolton's Albert Halls, I was instead led to the hall's four-manual Harrison & Harrison pipe organ — an instrument I'd never touched.

After a brief hunt for a plug that didn't exist, I found a switch marked "Discus", pressed the green button, and the organ roared into life. As the lights came up on the statues beside the console, a lifelong passion was born. The then Borough Organist, Brian Smith, took me under his wing and nurtured that passion.

Experience

I took my first church appointment in 1993, aged 13, at St Ethelbert's in Bolton. In 1999 I moved to Huddersfield to study for my music degree, joining the local organists' circuit and covering parishes across the region. I went on to hold posts in Rochdale and Ringley before being appointed Organist and Choir Master at St John the Evangelist, Worsthorne, near Burnley, in 2007.

Career highlights include several appearances on BBC's Songs of Praise and accompanying Choral Evensong at Blackburn Cathedral.

Working with me

Alongside my residency at St John's, I play as a freelance organist for weddings, funerals, memorial services, concerts and special services. I also run my own IT business, which gives me a lot of flexibility during the week — so I can often help at short notice.

Whatever the occasion, I aim to bring the same things: careful preparation, real musicianship and a calm presence, so every service has dignity and a true sense of occasion.