From 20 to 28 October the Concert Hall of the Mariinsky Theatre will be hosting the IV International Organ Festival. Festival guests include acclaimed organists from Russia, France, Sweden, Switzerland and Germany.
The festival opens on 20 October with French organist, composer and improviser Thierry Escaich with the Mariinsky Orchestra under Christian Knapp. The concert programme includes works from the traditional organ repertoire (Introduction to Johann Sebastian Bach's Cantata No 29 Wir danken dir, Gott, wir danken dir (arrangement by Marcel Dupré)), Allegro maestoso from Edward Elgar's Sonata in G Major, Marcel Dupré's Cortège et Litanie and Prelude (Generation) for Organ and Strings by Alexandre Guilmant as well as Thierry Escaich's Organ Concerto No 2, Joseph Haydn's rarely performed Organ Concerto and improvisations.
On 21 October at the Concert Hall there will be an appearance by Gunnar Idenstam – a Swedish organist and composer the sphere of whose interests covers religious music, folk and 1970s symphony rock. The concert programme includes works for organ by Max Reger, 18th-19th century Swedish dances, tangos by Astor Piazzolla and the suite from the show Riverdance by Bill Whelan arranged by Idenstam as well as the musician's own compositions from the anthology Metal Angel.
The performance on 22 October will mark the debut of Swiss musician Benjamin Righetti at the Concert Hall of the Mariinsky Theatre. The organist of the Église Saint-François in Lausanne and a regular guest organist at the Kultur Casino Bern will be performing Six Organ Sonatas by Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy.
The concert by St Petersburg organist Daniil Protsyuk (26 October), marking one century since the death of Max Reger, includes works by the great German neoclassical composer in addition to the music of his predecessors (Johann Sebastian Bach) and composers of the 20th century (Philip Glass, Arvo Pärt and Paul Hindemith). Daniil Protsyuk frequently tours throughout Russia and Europe and is known not just as a concert musician but also as a researcher of organ music.
On 27 October at the Concert Hall of the Mariinsky Theatre there will be a debut by Ansgar Wallenhorst – an acclaimed improviser and student of Thierry Escaich and Olivier Latry. Wallenhorst appears in the USA, Europe and Asia and is Music Director of the Sts Peter and Paul Kirche in Ratingen (Germany). The programme includes works by Johann Sebastian Bach, Max Reger, Robert Schumann, Siegfried Karl-Elert and improvisations.
The final concert of the festival will take place on 28 October. Thomas Ospital is one of the most dazzling young representatives of the French organ school and titular organist at the Église Saint-Eustache in Paris; he will be performing works by French and German composers such as Johann Sebastian Bach, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Nicolas de Grigny, César Franck and Maurice Duruflé as well as improvisations.
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