Originally from England, Andrew Chislett moved to the United States at the age of sixteen. He holds a doctorate in music in organ performance and literature from Indiana University’s Jacob School of Music, where his principal organ teachers were Marilyn Keiser and Christopher Young. Andrew previously studied organ in Seattle with J. Melvin Butler. He is also an accomplished pianist and earned both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in piano performance from the Manhattan School of Music, New York City.
As a performer, Andrew has given numerous solo recitals in both organ and piano. As a pianist, he gave his New York debut at Carnegie Recital Hall in 2002. Andrew is presently the Director of Music and Organist at the First Presbyterian Church of Palo Alto, a position he has held since July 2012. Andrew performed his first Bay Area organ recital at First Lutheran Church, Palo Alto in October 2011, and has since performed recitals at St. Mary’s Cathedral, San Francisco, First Presbyterian Church and St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, Berkeley, First Presbyterian Church, Palo Alto, Stanford’s Memorial Church, and First Congregational Church, Palo Alto. In May 2014 he presented a lecture recital at the First Congregational Church, Berkeley, as one of the season events for the San Francisco Chapter of the American Guild of Organists. The lecture recital was titled “The Organ Works of Sir Peter Maxwell Davies,” the topic for Andrew’s doctoral thesis.
As a choir director, Andrew has directed the First Presbyterian Church Choir in performances of Britten’s Ceremony of Carols, Fauré’s Requiem, Vivaldi’s Gloria, Bach’s Cantata Wachet Auf, and Durante’s Magnificat to name a few highlights. Prior to working at First Presbyterian Church, Andrew was organist at the First Lutheran Church of Palo Alto, where he accompanied performances of Mendelssohn’s Elijah, Fauré’s Requiem, and Bach’s Christmas Oratorio. Andrew is also a Deputy Organist at Stanford’s Memorial Church, where he plays weddings and funerals. He has also accompanied Stanford University’s Messiah Sing-a-long at Memorial Church in 2015 and 2017.
In his spare time, Andrew enjoys studying Jazz piano as well as biking or hiking in the Bay Area.