Biography

Aaron Hawthorne is an organist based in North Lanarkshire, Scotland (UK) and graduated in 2019 with a Master of Arts (with Honours) degree in music from the University of Glasgow. Aaron frequently performs recitals, concerts and silent film accompaniments across the UK as well as in mainland Europe and the USA.

It was after a family trip to the Tower Ballroom, Blackpool in his early teens that Aaron discovered his love for theatre/cinema organs, and consequently learned to play church and theatre organ.

Following his 2019 performance at the American Theatre Organ Society’s annual convention in Rochester, New York, Aaron received the ‘ultimate honour’ for a young organist by winning the international Young Theatre Organist competition, having won the UK title two years before. Only a few months later, Aaron was awarded the Ian Sutherland Award by the Cinema Organ Society, an award given “directly to a player who displays outstanding talent and promise as a theatre organist.” Aaron has been active as a committee member for the Cinema Organ Society and the Scottish Cinema Organ Trust.

As a church organist, Aaron began playing at Motherwell Cathedral as a teenager, before taking up residency as principal organist for five years at St Bride’s RC Church, Cambuslang. Aaron then went on to serve as Glasgow Cathedral’s inaugural organ scholar from 2020-2021. He has played for - quite literally - thousands of church services, including hundreds of funerals and weddings. Also acclaimed as a choral conductor, Aaron has conducted various ensembles, including a three-year reign with the University of Glasgow Chamber Choir.

Aaron is also the Arts Development Officer for Music in North Lanarkshire Council, a passionate advocate for the potential of expressive arts in transforming communities.

Renowned for his mastery as a silent film accompanist, Aaron has crafted improvised musical scores for numerous films across the UK, Europe, and beyond. Since 2021, Aaron has embarked on extensive tours throughout the UK and abroad, dedicated to promoting pipe organs and silent cinema. His inaugural tour in 2021 featured collaborative performances with a soprano for "The Phantom of the Opera" (1925), followed by solo renditions for "Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror" (1922) in 2022, and "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" (1923) in 2023 - all to great acclaim.

Since 2017, Aaron has also been a popular house organist at Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum, Glasgow, where he plays for the daily organ recital series.