Blackpool Tower Ballroom organist role for renowned Ayrshire musician

Daily Record

2 days ago

Gordon Cree will now perform regularly at Blackpool Tower Ballroom, something he could have only imagined when he was a child.
Darvel's internationally renowned musician Gordon Cree became one of the resident organists at the famous Blackpool Tower Ballroom.
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Gordon said he feels "honoured" to have been asked to be part of a team of organists who play regularly in the ballroom on the historic Wurlitzer organ.
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He added that he may be the first Scot to hold this position since the tower opening in 1894.
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Gordon said: "While neither Blackpool nor the Tower Ballroom itself are attracting the droves of holiday makers they once did, the Tower Ballroom, with its architecture, history and unique atmosphere, is still a very special and magical place, and being among the team of players there is still considered something of a 'holy grail' among organists, so it's a huge honour and gives me great pleasure to have been asked.
"I've done some very exciting things in live performance and broadcasting over my thirty-year career, but this particular job has a special appeal to the ten-year-old boy who's still inside me somewhere - the slightly untypical ten-year-old who was more keen to spend his Blackpool holidays on the balcony of the Tower Ballroom watching and listening to the organists than in amusement arcades or at the Pleasure Beach."
Gordon had his first performance at the ballroom on Friday, August 1, which was scheduled from 2.30pm until 4pm.
Gordon was classically trained in piano and singing at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, now known as the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, before embarking on a professional career which is about to enter its fourth decade.
Beyond Blackpool Tower Ballroom, Gordon contributes to musical projects and performances across the stylistic spectrum, including classical, jazz, traditional Scottish, and music theatre.
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He regularly performs at Glasgow's Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum and serves as organist and director of music at St. Andrew's West Parish Church.
His piano-playing has featured on many commercially-released recordings, as well as on many soundtracks of television, radio and film, and he has acted as accompanist to many stars from the world of music and entertainment - from American opera royalty, Marilyn Horne to British musical national treasure, Dame Vera Lynn.
He has worked as an accompanist to several touring opera companies and as an orchestral piano/celeste player with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. He has sung cameo roles in professional operatic productions, and still frequently appears as an oratorio soloist and guest soloist for choirs throughout the UK.
He also has a few events coming up this year, including Jimmy Cricket's Big Show on October 8; performance at the Saltaire Wurlitzer on November 9; as well as Christmas Classic with his orchestra on December 18 where guests can hear pieces full of Christmas magic and nostalgia