Keywords: Organ Concert, Subscription Concert
| Sophie-Véronique Cauchefer-Choplin | Organ |
| Buster Keaton | One Week, My Wife's Relations, The Scarecrow |
These events are similar in terms of concept, place, musicians or the program.
Cinematic Symphony on OrganOrgan improvisation complements old cinema exceptionally well, lending century-old films a new dimension. The concept is almost as old as cinematography itself. The first screening with an organ took place in 1908, at the Alcazar Theatre in Chicago. That was how silent movies – accompanied by the one-person orchestra at the manuals – would celebrate their triumphs for the next two decades, until talking movies were invented and popularised in the late 30s and early 40s. The purpose-built instruments even earned their own name: the film or theatre organ. If there was a thing they could not do! Among the sound effects they could imitate, one could find snoring, laughter, and even… kisses. The organ could yell for revenge, frantically pull at something or someone with sharp claws, cry bitter tears of sorrow, weep for love, moan at pangs of conscience, cry like a baby, giggle like a toddler, and even… bark like a dog. A musician who can improvise at the organ for film is a true rarity. They must be able to join melodies, harmonies and counterpoint together into a neat musical form. And simultaneously, to follow the picture being shown at the moment… Concert duration: approximately 150 minutes
Organ improvisation complements old cinema exceptionally well, lending century-old films a new dimension. The concept is almost as old as cinematography itself. Harold Lloyd – the third geniusThis is one of the most easily recognisable shots in the history of cinema, and certainly in the history of slapstick comedy: a young man wearing a suit, a hat and horn-rimmed glasses is hanging off the minute hand bending away from the face of a street clock… Beneath him, a dozen storeys lower, there is the real bustling life of an American city. Safety Last! (1923, dir. F.C. Newmeyer, S. Taylor) is the most famous Harold Lloyd film, which enabled the American comedian to momentarily outshine Charlie Chaplin himself. Nevertheless, for posterity he remained “the third one” of comic geniuses, after Chaplin and Buster Keaton. He was characterised by a charming comicality rooted in his physique (the expressive body and... teeth) and laughter of the most spontaneous kind – one that stems from treating life as a game, approaching it in a purely comedic, slightly mad, fashion, with no need to fix the world (as opposed to Chaplin). In Safety Last!, the joyous madness, capable of infecting audiences with its laughter, has already survived for 101 years! The slapstick gags (panicky escapes, frantic chases, people slipping and falling over, falling ladders and comedy of errors) feel surprisingly fresh, as if the sense of humour had been preserved just for us. And one more thing: the American urge to go “higher still and at any cost, putting safety last” – does it still work? Anita SkwaraConcert duration: approximately 80 minutes
Daniel Roth is currently one of the most exquisite organists of our time and a wonderful improviser. His talent and achievement inspire awe in both critics and melomaniacs the world over. Superficially calm and phlegmatic, at the keyboard he is transformed into a volcano of energy. He can bring any composition to life and render it moving for the contemporary listener as well. The coming organ recital is not just a musical event, but a true celebration of virtuosity for organ music aficionados. The programme of the recital includes works by Johann Sebastian Bach, but also those by lesser-known composers, such as Alexandre-Pierre-François Boëly and Jehan Alain. While Roth’s exceptional musical sensitivity can find its expression in interpretations of both romantic and contemporary works, the culmination of the concert will be his performance of Charles-Marie Widor’s Organ Symphony No. 10 in D major, “Romane”, considered one of the most important pieces in the composer’s entire oeuvre, and simultaneously one of the greatest achievements among all French organ compositions ever to have been created. Alexandra KozowiczConcert duration (intermission included): approximately 120 minutes
As the name suggests, »Insight Organ« focuses on the »king of instruments«. How does an organ work? What is a windchest, what is a stop? Just a couple of the many questions that organist Thomas Cornelius answers clearly at this discussion concert in Hamburg’s Körber Haus. The handful of organ pipes that he has with him and the organ samples on his computer enable him to give a deep insight into how this many-faceted instrument works. If you attended his course, you are sure to discover completely new sides to the king of instruments at your next organ concert: the Elbphilharmonie organ can be heard in all its splendour on 11 March 2024, with Zuzana Ferjenčíková operating the manuals and the pedalboard. The Elbphilharmonie’s »Insight« events give people deeper insights into musical phenomena. Experts in different fields explain aspects from their day-to-day work clearly and entertainingly and are happy to answer the public’s questions.
Through Konserthuset’s popular organ matinée subscription, audiences get to hear Sweden’s leading organists play the building’s organ – one of the largest in Europe, with 6,100 pipes. The season's first organ matinee features Konserthuset's own organist, Ulf Norberg. He is also responsible for curating the entire series and is passionate about presenting the vast organ repertoire to a wide audience. Ulf Norberg is also the organist at Hedvig Eleonora Church in Östermalm in Stocholm.We hear his own arrangement of Clara Schumann's Bach-influenced Prelude and fugue from opus 16, originally for piano, and two well-known Gershwin songs. Organist and composer Anders Börjesson's Fantasy Variations on the Ukrainian National Anthem is a tribute to Ukraine. (Börjesson himself will participate in the organ matinee on February 20). To conclude, Norberg performs music by Prokofiev: the hyper-virtuosic Toccata and the famous march from the opera The Love for Three Oranges.***You are welcome to eat or drink something before or after the organ concert. The bar in the Main Foyer is open at 11.45–12.15 and 13.15–14.15, offering a variety of delicious food and drinks in our beautiful surroundings.
Through Konserthuset’s popular organ matinée subscription, audiences get to hear Sweden’s leading organists play the building’s organ – one of the largest in Europe, with 6,100 pipes. Johannes Landgren has served as a professor and acting vice-chancellor at the Royal College of Music in Stockholm, as well as in the leadership of the Faculty of Fine, Applied and Performing Arts at the University of Gothenburg. Now based in Mölndal and Gothenburg, he works as a freelance musician and conductor. Landgren has toured internationally and has recorded nearly 40 CDs across a wide range of genres.Here, he performs his own compositions Hommage à Duke Ellington and Organ Fantasy on Hymn No. 325: In hope my saved soul rejoices. Bach's Fantasia and Fugue in G minor pays tribute to a Dutch colleague, where Bach uses an old Dutch folk melody. We also hear music by Czech composer Petr Eben, Swedish composer Elfrida Andrée, and Scottish composer Thea Musgrave – who was the focus of the International Composer Festival at Konserthuset in 2018.***You are welcome to eat or drink something before or after the organ concert. The bar in the Main Foyer is open at 11.45–12.15 and 13.15–14.15, offering a variety of delicious food and drinks in our beautiful surroundings.
Through Konserthuset’s popular organ matinée subscription, audiences get to hear Sweden’s leading organists play the building’s organ – one of the largest in Europe, with 6,100 pipes. Latvian Ligita Sneibe is trained as an organist and composer at the Music Academy in Riga, and also holds an organ diploma from the School of Music in Piteå. She has performed around the world but is now most active in Sweden and Latvia, where she often plays on the famous Walcker organ in Riga Cathedral.Ligita Sneibe begins with music from 2023 by her compatriot Indra Riše: excerpts from Natura siderum, or The Nature of Stars. It's about music inspired by human psychological traits according to the zodiac signs. Three of the twelve parts are composed for organ solo: Libra, Capricorn, and Leo.We also hear Bach's magnificent and virtuosic Toccata and Fugue in F major and finally music by Naji Hakim, Chant de Joie – Song of Joy. Hakim was born in Beirut but is active in Paris, where he succeeded Olivier Messiaen as organist at Trinité Church some 30 years ago.***You are welcome to eat or drink something before or after the organ concert. The bar in the Main Foyer is open at 11.45–12.15 and 13.15–14.15, offering a variety of delicious food and drinks in our beautiful surroundings.
Through Konserthuset’s popular organ matinée subscription, audiences get to hear Sweden’s leading organists play the building’s organ – one of the largest in Europe, with 6,100 pipes. Tobias Olofsson has been working as an organist in Nylöse parish in Gothenburg since 2003, where he also obtained his organist degree from the Academy of Music and Drama. Olofsson regularly performs concerts as an organ soloist, as well as in collaboration with symphony orchestras. He is also active as a pianist, accompanist, and arranger.He begins with Prelude and Fugue in A minor, one of Bach's most beloved and performed organ works. It features explosive drama and breathtaking virtuosity, with the fugue possessing an almost dance-like character. We also hear music by Elfrida Andrée, a pioneering figure in Swedish music. Andrée composed a series of works for organ, including the evocative and melodic Cantilena.As a contrast, Tobias Olofsson plays well-known themes from Star Wars and Piazzolla's evocative Oblivion and Libertango. He concludes with his own piece titled Improvisation, Passacaglia and Fugue in G minor.***You are welcome to eat or drink something before or after the organ concert. The bar in the Main Foyer is open at 11.45–12.15 and 13.15–14.15, offering a variety of delicious food and drinks in our beautiful surroundings.
As the name suggests, »Insight Organ« focuses on the »king of instruments«. How does an organ work? What is a windchest, what is a stop? Just a couple of the many questions that organist Thomas Cornelius answers clearly at this discussion concert at Brakula. The handful of organ pipes that he has with him and the organ samples on his computer enable him to give a deep insight into how this many-faceted instrument works. If you attended his course, you are sure to discover completely new sides to the king of instruments at your next organ concert: the Elbphilharmonie organ can be heard in all its splendour on 3 June 2025, with Iveta Apkalna operating the manuals and the pedalboard. The Elbphilharmonie’s »Insight« events give people deeper insights into musical phenomena. Experts in different fields explain aspects from their day-to-day work clearly and entertainingly and are happy to answer the public’s questions.
Through Konserthuset’s popular organ matinée subscription, audiences get to hear Sweden’s leading organists play the building’s organ – one of the largest in Europe, with 6,100 pipes. Anders S. Börjesson has been the organist at Mariestad Cathedral since 2011, where he gives organ concerts every week. He was trained in Gothenburg by Mikael Wahlin, but also in Paris by Sophie-Véronique Cauchefer-Choplin, organist at Saint-Sulpice, one of Paris's largest churches.Börjesson is also a composer, and we will hear his Paraphrase on Alice Tegnér's The Squirrel Sits in the Spruce Tree and Chorale Treatments. Additionally, well-known rock songs by the bands Metallica and Queen arranged for organ. The concert opens with Canadian Rachel Laurin's (1961–2023) both evocative and dramatic Prelude and Fugue, and we also get to hear the captivating March in C major by Frenchman Louis Lefébure-Wély (1817–70).***You are welcome to eat or drink something before or after the organ concert. The bar in the Main Foyer is open at 11.45–12.15 and 13.15–14.15, offering a variety of delicious food and drinks in our beautiful surroundings.
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