Carlo Curley

Carlo James Curley (August 24, 1952 – August 11, 2012) was an American classical concert organist who lived much of his later life in Great Britain.

Curley was born into a musical family in Monroe, North Carolina, USA, and attended the North Carolina School of the Arts and by the age of 15 was organist at a large Baptist church in Atlanta, Georgia. He subsequently studied with Virgil Fox, Robert Elmore, George Thalben-Ball and Arthur Poister. His long-time friend and confidant Robert Noehren was another noted influence. At 18 he was director of music at Girard College in Philadelphia. Curley developed his performance style in the manner of Virgil Fox, with respect to popularising classical organ music popular to a wider audience, which included his arrangements and transcriptions of pieces from other classical genres.

He was the resident organist at the Alexandra Palace in the 1970s and was the first classical organist to perform a solo organ recital at the White House for President Jimmy Carter. He also played before several European heads of state and toured extensively throughout the world, earning the marketing nickname "the Pavarotti of the Organ". He was one of only a few concert organists worldwide who supported themselves exclusively by giving recitals, concerts and master classes, without any supplement from teaching or church position.

Curley used a substantial Allen touring organ where the venue lacked an instrument of sufficient scope to support his repertoire. He recorded commercially for various labels such as RCA, ProArte, Rediffusion and Decca International. He participated in several 'Battle of the Organs' concerts, and his final such concert was in June 2012 at Liverpool Anglican Cathedral with his friend Ian Tracey.

He served as patron for numerous music societies as well as for the newly formed British Academy of Music. He was involved in organ design and construction and served as advisor to numerous clients, including Melbourne City Council (Australia), and The Cube, Shiroishi (Japan). His autobiography In The Pipeline was published by HarperCollins in 1998. One of his Allen organs is now used in the Cathedral of St Michael and St George in Aldershot in the UK.

The sheet organ music 'Carlo Curley Collection' is available from ChurchOrganWorld and consists of three pieces he often opened his recitals with; his unique arrangements of Largo from the ‘New World Symphony’, ‘Ar Hyd y Nos’ and ‘Eternal Father Strong to Save’.

A life-long bachelor, Curley died on Saturday, August 11, 2012, at age 59, in Melton Mowbray, England. His ashes are interred in the grounds of Pershore Abbey in the UK.

Discography