One February day in 2012, the Frauenkirche in Dresden, Germany, was harboring three magnificent musical ensembles: The Staatskapelle Orchestra, the choir of St. Paul’s London, and the trebles of St. Thomas’ Choir School. The cathedral, rebuilt in 1994 after destruction during the 2nd World War, is one of the grandest and most historically significant in the world. Held on the anniversary of said destruction, the concert was one for the ages: beautiful, transcendent, and mystifying. And guess who was performing in it?

None other than Matthew Higgins Iati ‘17, star pianist and chorister of Groton School. The concert, known as the Dresden Requiem, offered only those of the highest quality of musical talent the chance to perform. Matthew was one of the few who possessed such an ability, something that has changed and influenced his life in a remarkable way.

Although he was a member of, as he puts it, “the cheesiest, littlest small kid choir the world has ever seen” in Darien, Connecticut, Matthew’s passion for music was not present during his early upbringing. He enjoyed singing in church about once a month, like his older sister did before him, but it wasn’t anything special. He thought he had an okay voice, and he and his choir director thought it would be “kind of funny” to audition for the highly exclusive spots at the St. Thomas Choir School in New York City.

By no mistake, due to his self-proclaimed “good ear and voice quality” (sorely understated), Matthew was accepted and at the age of nine he joined six other boys at the one-building school in Manhattan. Music, particularly choral performances, quickly “became [his] universe” at the school. Despite living in what must have been an exciting and mystifying city to a nine-year old, he mostly stayed inside the school, only leaving to stroll around Central Park or walk to the church where they would be performing. “It was about twenty hours of practicing and singing per week. Double that during holidays and before trips” he says, but he stresses that this was a positive attribute. He swiftly invested himself into his newfound passion for music and its technicalities. He speaks reminiscently about this: “It was your source of teamwork, of satisfaction… Working hard in choir was where you found deep fulfillment in life.”

Not only was St. Thomas formative on a musical level, but also deeply on a personal and developmental one. Matthew grew up and matured there, looked up to the teachers there, and made lifelong friends there. “I learned respect and hard work from my choirmaster and love and affection from my headmaster… humor and kinship from my friends.” When asked to recall influential memories from his childhood, he confirms that they are all from St. Thomas. Through these connections, developments, and accomplishments, however, there was always one thing tying them together: music. It became a sort of symbol for Matthew, a representation of all the things he holds dear and true.

After coming to Groton in third form, however, this love and passion shifted and morphed as Matthew changed settings. He had to make the difficult transition to a school where academics trumped choir, not the other way around,  but soon found that he still enjoyed participating in the choir here. Over the past four years, Matthew has become an instrumental backbone of the Groton School Choir, and says that he especially finds pleasure in his fellow choristers, not just in the music. “It really is a special group of people” he says, “and I will value all the relationships I have made in the choir here for a long time.” With Groton’s annual Lessons and Carols services quickly approaching, rehearsal schedules have intensified and Matthew is quite busy, ready to sing in his last year of the highly celebrated program.

Matthew also finds the same joy he first felt at St. Thomas in a different field of musical pursuit: instrumental music. He currently works in a tutorial with Mrs. Lanier dubbed “Advanced Music Theory” that invigorates his passion for the technical side of music. His highly advanced piano skills, which he first learned at St. Thomas, aid him in his pursuit to better understand the complexities behind the pieces. He enjoys digging into the music in order to discover what it means as a whole and how the music creates this meaning. From his astounding recitals to his work on the winter musicals, Matthew recaptures the same magic he found at St. Thomas but from a different angle. “I really, really, really enjoyed conducting The Wiz last year… and, this year, although it’s different in some ways, the Musical Revue too… It keeps me fresh and engaged,” he says. These pursuits, along with “the absolute fun with the boys of the Maqupellas,” cement what we already knew: Matthew’s talents are spread across virtually every area of music at Groton.

Throughout his time on the Circle, his love of music has never faded. Matthew is a true, undeniable artist, always seeking to improve and extend himself in order to perform to the highest limit of his talent. He is a master of his music.