Matthew M. Brown, a native of North Carolina, will be guest organist at the Festival of Choirs at St. John's Church in October. Matthew most recently served the parish of Grace Church in New York as Intern in Church Music for the 2006-2007 year. In addition to his duties at Grace Church, he maintained an active career as a collaborative artist within New York City, accompanying instrumentalists, choral ensembles, and the voice studio of former Metropolitan Opera soprano, Ms. Rita Shane.Matthew holds baccalaureate and graduate degrees in organ from the North Carolina School of the Arts and the Eastman School of Music, respectively. He also holds the diploma in sacred music from the Institute of Musical Leadership at the Eastman School of Music. While at Eastman, Matthew held graduate awards in organ and accompanying and served as accompanist for the Eastman-Rochester Chorus and the Eastman Chorale, both under the direction of William Weinert. During this time, he also served Third Presbyterian Church in Rochester, New York as Assistant Organist to Peter DuBois, where his primary responsibilities included service playing and accompanying the 65-voice semi-professional choir. In 2005, Matthew had the honor of accompanying this choir on their second tour to the United Kingdom, which consisted of concerts in Ely, Edinburgh, and a residency at Saint Paul’s Cathedral, London.
In competition, he has won top-prizes in competitions sponsored by the Music Teachers National Association and the Atlanta Chapter of the American Guild of Organists.
He is professionally affiliated with the American Guild of Organists, the Royal School of Church Music, the National Association of Pastoral Musicians, the Presbyterian Association of Musicians, and the Association Maurice et Marie-Madeleine Duruflé in Paris.
Matthew currently studies with renowned concert organist, Dame Gillian Weir.
