People

Dr Kevin Bowyer was born in Southend-on-Sea in January 1961. His initial studies with Eric Welch led him to the Royal Academy of Music (1979-82), where his teachers included Douglas Hawkridge, Christopher Bowers-Broadbent, Arthur Wills, Paul Steinitz, Arthur Pritchard and Virginia Black. Subsequently he studied with David Sanger on an award from the Countess of Munster Musical Trust. Five international first prizes in organ playing (St. Albans, Dublin, Paisley, Odense and Calgary) led to an early recording career, notably a 13 year contract (1988-2001) with Nimbus Records, producing a large number of CDs, including a 29 CD set of the complete organ music of J S Bach.

In 1987 he gave the world premiere of Kaikhosru Sorabji’s (1892-1988) 2 hour solo Symphony for organ (1924), considered unplayable ever since its appearance in print, and this gave rise to his reputation for playing “impossible” music – a field that keeps him busy to this day – he is regularly called upon to play Brian Ferneyhough, Chris Dench, Iannis Xenakis,  Milton Babbitt, Niccolo Castiglioni, etc.
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He taught organ at the RNCM in Manchester from 1999-2008 but gave up the post in order to concentrate on a six year PhD project, producing the first critical, practice-based edition of the complete organ works of Sorabji (all three solo symphonies – a total of more than 1,000 pages of dense A3, funded by the University of Glasgow Trust). In 2010 he gave the premiere of Sorabji’s monumental Second Organ Symphony (1929-32), at over eight hours in length, the longest solo organ work in existence.
Kevin has played and broadcast throughout the world and is one of the most heavily recorded organists ever, having released more than 100 commercial CDs. He still keeps a small number of students, a few of whom travel more than halfway across the world for their lessons.
Kevin has been Organist to the University of Glasgow since 2005. He has four grown up children, all of whom have steered clear of music. He enjoys, sleeping, reading and wide open spaces.

Dr Katy Lavinia Cooper took up the position of Director of Chapel Music in April 2015, having previously been Lanfine Conducting Scholar and Associate Conductor under James Grossmith. Following the completion of her undergraduate degree in Music at Glasgow, Katy completed an MMus, studying with Warwick Edwards and focusing on 'Songs and Fancies', the first book of secular music to be published in Scotland. In 2016, Katy completed her doctoral thesis on the commonplace book of Robert Edward.

Katy is Musical Director of Scottish Opera's Community Choir and Glasgow Madrigirls.  Katy is also a regular conductor with the University of Glasgow Choral Society. She has worked extensively with work-place choirs, choral societies, chamber choirs (including Cathures) and children's choirs. Katy is a member of Sing for Pleasure's Management Team (as Head of Marketing) and regularly tutors for the organisation in choral conducting.

Recent project work includes vocal director for Emeka Ogboh's sound installation  Song of the Union at the Talbot Rice Gallery (July 2021) and community chorus master for Scottish Opera's acclaimed production Candide (August 2022). Katy also directed the choir for the soundtrack of the feature film Our Ladies (2019, released August 2021).

As a singer Katy  performs with the harmony folk-groups Muldoon's Picnic and Crying Lion and the early music ensemble Sang Scule. She also sings with chamber choirs Serafine and Sine Nomine.

Her compositions and arrangements for choir have been widely published and performed, and she was commissioned by Scottish Opera to write the score of the children's opera "KidO" (four stars in The Herald).

In July 2018 Katy was awarded the Community Music Teacher of the Year award by Hands Up for Trad. 

 Originally from Hong Kong, Tiffany Vong  (ARCO) was organ scholar at Glenalmond College, Perthshire and Oriel College, Oxford, and has been the Lanfine organ scholar at the University of Glasgow since 2016. She currently studies organ with David Hamilton and harpsichord with Jan Waterfield. Previous organ teachers include Robert Gower, Matthew Beetschen, and Stephen Farr. She also studied choral conducting with Paul Spicer during her time at Oxford.

Tiffany completed a Master of Music at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland where she was supported by scholarships from the RCS Trust and ABRSM, studying principal study organ and second study harpsichord. Tiffany was highly commended for the Governors’ Recital Prize for Keyboard and commended for the Bach Prize. She was awarded the Agnes Miller Harmony and Counterpoint Prize and the British Reserve Insurance Prize for Early Music. She is currently studying for a Master of Music in Historically Informed Performance Practice at the University of Glasgow and RCS.
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Tiffany is active as a recitalist, accompanist, continuo player, and choral conductor around Scotland. She has worked with groups such as the University of Glasgow Choral Society, Kelvin Choir, Cunninghame Choir, and the Kellie Consort. She is also a Trustee of the Glasgow Society of Organists.