James Lloyd Thomas'
extensive experience as an organist,
conductor, teacher and examiner enables him to offer individually
tailored and comprehensive tuition to each of his organ pupils and to
help them attain their goals as organists, regardless of age or level.
Details of James' organ teaching can be found below.
Eligibility: Lessons are open to all ages and ability levels.
Location: James is based near Heathfield in East Sussex. He is organist and director of music at Holy Cross Church in Uckfield where he does the majority of his organ teaching. If you would prefer to take your lessons elsewhere, this may incur a small extra charge to cover additional travel time and costs. Please contact James to see if he is able to travel to your area.
Content: James' teaching is tailored to each individual pupil and encompasses all technical and musical aspects of playing the organ. These include lesson-by-lesson training in technique, keyboard skills (e.g. sightreading, transposition), graded tuition in registration and organ management, guidance in accompanying church services and preparation for all aspects of graded and RCO examinations. James is able to teach the entire repertoire with historically aware interpretation and to provide detailed advice about practice methods and performance techniques for increasing confidence. James' lessons also cover other important aspects of organ playing including improvisation, relaxation techniques and biomechanics. He also offers training in conducting and choral direction, either as part of, or independently from organ tuition. This training often proves particularly helpful to young organists who are considering applying for organ scholarships at Oxford or Cambridge. For more information about the additional coaching that James can offer to help with the non technical aspects of playing the organ, please visit the further coaching section.
Availability: James is available for lessons throughout the week. Please contact James and he will make every effort to accommodate you.
Cost: James' standard rate for tuition is £40 per hour (for new pupils, payment is required in the form of a cheque to be sent by post at the time of booking). A 5% discount is available when booking a course of 6 lessons.