Music has always been important at St Mary’s, which pioneered the liturgical performance of 16th and 17th century choral music from the 1950s onwards.
The Church Choir regularly sing at services and are joined by professional singers (known as the Norbury Singers) for a monthly Choral Eucharist, occasional evensong services and special services at Easter and Christmas.
Organist and Director of Music
Matthew Brown is our principal Organist and Director of Music.
He graduated with a first class honours degree from the University of Bristol specializing in the organ and harpsichord. Whilst at Bristol, he was an Organ Scholar at St Mary Redcliffe Parish Church which prides itself on its high quality music programme. As Organ Scholar, Matthew was responsible for playing for services and rehearsing and conducting the choir, in particular coaching the boys and girls choirs.
He founded the Queenes Chappell, a young professional solo voice consort which regularly perform at St Mary’s.
Matthew is excited to work with and help develop our choir which will be one of his focus areas.
The Frobenius Organ
It was the focus on early choral music that inspired the commissioning of the superb organ installed in the church by Frobenius, Organ builders of Lyngby, Denmark, in 1975.
This outstanding instrument was voiced in the church by Erik Frobenius, and is widely praised for its light, responsive touch and the delightful sweetness and clarity of its sound. It is a smaller cousin of the renowned organ of Queen’s College, Oxford, installed by Frobenius a decade earlier.
The organ is a joy to play and has attracted a number of eminent organists to play, give recitals, and make recordings, including James O’Donnell, James Dalton, Simon Preston, Dame Gillian Weir, Susi Jeans, Ian leGrice, and Oliver MacFarlane. Emma Gibbins, a former Director of Music at St Mary’s, recently made a CD recording of the organ, which is available for sale at the church.
The specification can be found on the National Pipe Organ Register here.
Tenebrae Service – 18th April at 8pm
Tenebrae (/ˈtɛnəbreɪ, -bri/—Latin for ‘darkness’) is a service held during the three days preceding Easter Day, and characterized by gradual extinguishing of candles, and by a “strepitus” or “loud noise”…
Festal Eucharist – Sunday 20th April at 10 am
Join us for our Easter Eucharist, with the church decorated especially and featuring music from the Church Choir and the Norbury Singers to celebrate Easter Morning.
Lunchtime Concert – Thursday 29th May at 1pm
Katherine Dienes-Williams – Organ. We are delighted to welcome Katherine Dienes-Williams who will be performing an Organ Recital at our May Lunchtime Concert. Katherine is the Organist and Master of…
Surrey Bach Festival – July 2025
From 14th to 20th July 2025, St Mary’s will once again host the Surrey Bach Festival with a variety of concerts and events during the week. More information will be…