Simon Howat
Simon Howat grew up in South Buckinghamshire and studied Music at Cambridge University, followed by post-graduate Piano Accompaniment at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.
As the long-standing rehearsal pianist for the Wooburn Singers, Simon has accompanied a wide spectrum of choral repertoire, and highlight performances with the choir have included: Porgy and Bess, Verdi’s Requiem, Elijah, Carmina Burana, The Rio Grande, Belshazzar’s Feast, Petite Messe Solennelle, Symphony of Psalms, The Bells, Dvorak’s Stabat Mater, Dyson’s Nebuchadnezzar and Brahms’ German Requiem.
Over the last three decades, or so, he has been in demand as an accompanist, piano instructor and – for a while – ABRSM music examiner. On the concert platform, Simon has appeared as a two-piano/piano-duet pianist, as an accompanist for instrumental/vocal recitals, and as a concerto pianist with several regional orchestras. Further afield, he has performed at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and the Grimeborn Festival, accompanying opera. Recently Simon has diversified into organ continuo playing, in performances with the Wooburn Singers and the Oxford Bach Soloists.