Pierre Pincemaille, after having obtained five First Prizes from the national Music Conservatory in Paris (Harmony, Counterpoint, Fugue, Organ Interpretation, and Organ Improvisation) went on to successively win five International Prizes : First Prize in the International Improvisation Competition in Lyon (1978), Grand Prize in the European Organ Competition in Beauvais (1987), First Prize in the International Improvisation Competition in Strasbourg (1989), Grand Prize in the International Improvisation Competition in Montbrison (1989), Grand Prize in the International Improvisation Competition in Chartres (1990).

In November 1987 Pierre Pincemaille, amongst keen competition, was named Titular Organist of the Cathedral in Saint-Denis, near Paris. The Cathedral’s magnificent organ is known world wide as being the first instrument constructed by Aristide Cavaillé-Coll, the famous 19th century organ builder.

In addition, he pursues a career as an international recitalist (France, Germany, England, Austria, Netherlands, Denmark, Switzerland, Italy, the United States and Canada).

An uncontested virtuoso, Pierre Pincemaille displays an additional talent for giving colour to each of his recitals : by the magic of his registrations, he is able to fully exploit the many sounds of an organ, leaving an audience that is used to certain sounds of the instrument to discover new and unsuspected sonorities.

His public is even more fascinated by the masterful improvisations with which he traditionally finishes his concerts. In this art form, Pierre Pincemaille is recognized as having unsurpassed talent.

Pierre Pincemaille has recorded on CD : Improvisations, several works for organ, organ and orchestra and transcriptions for organ by himself of orchestral works.

Pierre PINCEMAILLE – Chartres 2011

http://pierrepincemaille.fr/

Béatrice Piertot is professor of organ and harpsichord at the Conservatory of Abbeville and co-titular organist at St. Lawrence Parish in Paris.

Prize winner of several international competitions, she is the guest of prestigious festivals.

She studied with famous scholars such as Laurent Cabasso, Marie-Louise Langlais, Éric Lebrun, and Francoise Levéchin and attended masterclasses with Marie-Claire Alain, James-David Christie, Pierre Hantai, Francoise Lengellé, Olivier Latry and Daniel Roth. She studied harpsichord with Élisabeth Joyé and currently studies viola da gamba with Pedro Slobodianik since 2009 and baroque dance with Cecilia Gracio-Moura since 2008.

She is the author of a Master’s thesis carried out at the Sorbonne entitled “The Treaties of Improvisation of the organ in France from 1900 to 2002” and pursues musicological research. She was the artistic adviser (organ) for the Festival of Saint-Riquier (2006-2010).

She is interested in contemporary music and on occasion she had the opportunity of working with composers (Jean-Louis Florentz, Naji Hakim, Vincent Paulet, and Bruno Mantovani). Several composers have dedicated their works to her (Lebrun, Nemoto, Paulet, and Werner). Her recording of the Prélude de l’Enfant Noir by Jean-Louis Florentz at St. Eustache (Paris) appeared under his direction in the book-disc of Marie-Louise Langlais “Jean-Louis Florentz, l’œuvre d’orgue, témoignages croisés” on the Symétrie label. In 2010, she recorded for Ctésibios, for the review “Orgues Nouvelles” as well as for Bayard Musiques (Twenty Mysteries of Éric Lebrun’s rosary, “Jesus found in the Temple” with Andréa Garnier). In 2012, two new records : “Orgue en Alsace, volume 7”, at the historical Organ of MOLLAU with Yannick Merlin, and Jean-Jacques WERNER for Ctesibios, with the Choir of Notre-Dame (Lionel Sow), Frédéric Werner (flute), Elsa Grether (violin) and Yannick Merlin (organ).

http://beatrice.piertot.voila.net/index.htm

Odile Pierre succeeded Jeanne Demessieux as Organist of the Madeleine in 1969 and held the post until 1979.

Born in Normandy, she was inspired to become an organist at the age of seven when she heard a recital given by Marcel Dupré on the famous Cavaillé-Coll organ of Saint-Ouen in Rouen.

She studied at the conservatoires of Rouen and Paris winning seven ‘Premier Prix’ and her teachers included Maurice Duruflé, Noël Gallon, Norbert Dufourcq and Marcel Lanquetuit. She was the last distinguished pupil of Dupré’s famous organ class in Paris and in 1955 a unanimous jury – which included Jeanne Demessieux – awarded her the Premier Prix in Organ & Improvisation at the age of 23 : she was thus the youngest in the class’s history to win this prize. She undertook further studies performance with Fernando Germani in Rome and in Franz Sauer’s class at the Mozarteum in Salzburg.

In a career of some 2000 recitals she has established a reputation as one of the world’s great organists. She has repeatedly traveled on every continent, including 12 tours of the USA and 6 of Asia (Japan, Korea, Manila, etc) and has performed at many of the most prestigious venues for organ music. As a concerto soloist she has appeared with such famous conductors as Lorin Maazel, P.Dervaux, A. de Bavier and Georges Prêtre. She has made numerous acclaimed recordings for RCA, Mitra, Motette, Festivo, Editions Lade, IFO, etc…

She is well known for her mastery of the entire organ repertoire from the early masters to contemporary scores.

As distinguished teacher she taught at the Rouen Conservatoire from 1959 to 1969 and from 1981 until 1992 was Professor of Organ & Improvisation at the Paris Regional Conservatoire. In addition she is a Professor at the Scuola Internationale d’Alto Perfezionmento Musicale de Perugia (Italy) and has given numerous Masterclasses at colleges and universities worldwide as well as serving on juries at most of the world’s leading international organ competitions.

In recent years she has turned her attentions towards composition and has published a number of organ works (with Leduc, Schott, Edizioni Carrara) and has also edited works by Alexandre Guilmant (with Bornemann).

She has been honoured with many distinguished awards such as Officier of the Legion d’Honneur, Commandeur de l’Ordre National du Mérite and the Silver Medal of the City of Paris. Since 1977 she has served as a Member of the Commission Consultative for the restoration and construction of organ to the City of Paris.

http://www.musimem.com/pierre-odile.htm

Olivier Périn, born in Orléans, took up organ music with François-Henri Houbart in his hometown music Conservatoire where he was awarded a First Prize with merit and a Regional First Prize, both unanimously approved, and a First Prize in musical theory. After studying for further proficiency with Louis Robilliard at the Lyon National Conservatoire – Conservatoire National de Région de Lyon – he graduated with a Superior First Prize. He went on to study in master classes under Michel Chapuis, André Isoir, Jean Boyer, Jan-Willem Jansen, and Jean-Charles Ablitzer and also with Thierry Escaich and Pierre Pincemaille at the Conservatoire de Saint-Maur-des-Fossés where he was awarded a First Prize for improvisation.

At the age of 22 he was entitled to the historic Cavaillé-Coll organ at Cathedral Sainte-Croix, Orléans. Furthermore he has been holding the Saint-Paul-Saint-Louis-du-Marais church organ, in Paris, since 1997, where he concurs ably to a high quality liturgic music and where he perpetuals with subtlety french improvising tradition.

From then on, Olivier Périn started a busy career as a concert performer in France and abroad. He was invited to play in and out of France, especially in Belgium, Germany, Sweden, The United States… He performed in Paris too (Notre-Dame, La Madeleine, Saint-Étienne-du-Mont, Saint-Roch, Notre-Dame d’Auteuil, Saint-Laurent), in Lyon (Notre-Dame de Fourvière) as well as many other French cities and cathedral festivals. He recorded several discs for the XCP label (Montpellier) especially in his own region (“Trois siècles d’orgue en Sologne”) but also abroad. In Stockholm he recorded a disc entitled “From Johann-Sebastian Bach to Post-Romanticism” rewarded with 5 Diapasons and an excellent review and he also recorded the “Complete Christmas by Daquin” on the Stapelmoor French organ in Germany. Recently, he recorded the “Six organ Sonatas” by Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach.

He teaches improvisation at the Toulon Provence Méditerranée Conservatoire, where he was also assistant manager, responsable of Toulon’s institution. In june 2010, he obtained the Aptitude Certificate for Director Functions from Ministère de la Culture. Since 2013, he is Director of the Regional Conservatory of Montpellier Mediterranean metropolis radiation.

He is regularly invited to foreign countries (Philadelphia, Brême, etc) to teach French baroque music particularly.

In competing for the “Concours international d’orgue de la Ville de Biarritz “, he obtained two prizes for improvisation : in 2001 the Special Prize “Prix du public”, and in 2003 the “Grand Prix André Marchal”. Founder in 2006 of the discographic label Yska, wich he’s the artistic director, he also manages the Dimanches Musicaux of Madelein Church in Paris, who invite the best choirs and organistes.

Olivier PERIN – Chartres 2008

http://www.olivier-perin.com/

Born in Arzignano (Italy) in 1974, Pier Damiano Peretti was a organ scholar at Conservatorio Pedrollo, Vicenza from 1991-96 (Antonio Cozza). While there he attended numerous master classes (including : Luigi Ferdinando Tagliavini, Harald Vogel, Jaques van Oortmerssen, Jean-Claude Zehnder, Rinaldo Alessandrini), acted as choir conductor and studied composition with Wolfango Dalla Vecchia, a former pupil of Goffredo Petrassi.

In 1996 he moved to Vienna, where he continued his studies at the Hochschule (now University) for Music and Performing Arts : Organ with Herbert Tachezi and Michael Radulescu, composition with Wolfgang Suppan.

In 1997, he was awarded three first prizes at italian organ competitions and in the following years at numerous international competitions (Pretoria, Bologna, Innsbruck, Hamburg, Toulouse). In 1999 he emerged as winner of the renowned St. Albans International Organ Competition.

From 1999 to 2002 he was awarded a scholarship by the “Stiftung Dr. Robert und Lina Thyll-Dürr” (Basel). In 2001 he spent a semester on an ERASMUS scholarship studying organ in Hamburg with Pieter van Dijk and Wolfgang Zerer.

Pier Damiano Peretti’s concert career to date has taken him to the major centres of European organ music and in Japan, including Vienna, Paris – Notre-Dame, Edinburgh – St. Giles Cathedral, Chartres – Cathédrale, Internationale Orgelwoche Nürnberg, Tokyo – Musashino Hall, Göteborg – Örgryte Church, Alkmaar – Grote St. Laurenskerk, Minsk – Belarusian State Philharmonic, Morioka – Civic Concert Hall, Manchester – Bridgewater Hall, Haarlem – St. Bavo, Festival de Vitoria, Graz – Steirischer Herbst, Festival di Magadino, Moskau – Tschaikowsky Saal, Bilbao – Palacio de Euskalduna, Festival Internazionale Città di Treviso.

He graduated in Vienna in “Orgelkonzertfach” with distinction in 2002. In the same year he took up a position as professor for organ at the University for Music and Theatre in Hanover, Germany. Since March 2009 he has been professor for organ at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna.

Within his broad range of musical interests, he has a strong focus on the historically informed performance approach, dealing particularly with italian and german baroque and J. S. Bach’s output. Additionally, he actively pursues the music of our time : Pier’s repertoire spans seven centuries up to works by Schönberg, Messiaen, Ligeti, Berio, Dallapiccola, Feldman, Huber, Rihm, Bettinelli, Dalla Vecchia, Heiller, Schlee, Radulescu.

Pier Damiano Peretti’s performances have been broadcast by several radio stations (ORF, BR, NDR e SR2). His CD recordings are published by Ursina-Motette, Carrara, IFO-Records and Naxos and includes music by italian and spanish baroque composers, Dieterich Buxtehude’s complete choral-fantasias, Bach’s Dritter Theil der Clavierübung as well as organ works by Marco Enrico Bossi and Bruno Bettinelli.

He is regularly invited to give guest lectures and master classes : in the last years he worked as a guest teacher at the Internationale Orgelwoche Nürnberg, Edinburgh Organ Academy, Hochschule Stuttgart, GOART Göteborg, Norddeutschen Akademie Stade, Organeum Weener, Piteå Music Academy, Associazione Italiana Organisti di Chiesa, Leipziger Orgelakademie, Korean Organists Convention and other institutions.

Pier Damiano Peretti received important inspirations for his work as composer from Wolfango Dalla Vecchia and Thomas Daniel Schlee. He furthemore attended masterclasses in Composition at the Darmstädter Ferienkursen für Neue Musik (working with Wolfgang Rihm and Brian Ferneyhough) and at the Accademia Filarmonica di Bologna (with Azio Corghi).

As a free-lance composer, he increasingly accepts commissions mainly in the field of sacred music (“Die sieben letzten Worte Jesu” for vocal ensemble and string quartet, 2007; “Hortus animae”, oratorio for mezzosoprano, tenor, choir and ensemble, 2009 ; “Peje IS je” for baritone, cello, organ and percussion, 2010/11, “Vigilia” for string quartet and organ, 2011 ; “Magnificat” for soprano, choir and orchestra, 2011).

Some of his works have been awarded at composition competitions and are published by Carrara (Bergamo), Strube (München), H&H Musikverlag (Helmstadt) and Alexander Meyer (Vienna).

http://www.pdperetti.com/#/?page=English_Italiano

Born: July 4, 1903 – Tielen (near Turnhout, in the Antwerp Kempen region), Belgium Died : July 4, 1986 – Antwerp, Belgium.

Flor Peeters was a Belgian composer. He studied at the Lemmens Institute in Mechelen and received highest honours : the Prix Lemmens-Tinel, in 1923. He was the youngest laureate of this distinction in the history of the school.

In 1923 Flor Peeters was appointed second organist at the cathedral and second teacher at the Lemmens Institute in Mechelen, both tasks as assistant for his organ teacher Oscar Depuydt, who, together with Lodewijk Mortelmans, can be seen as his most important teacher. After Depuydt died in 1925, Flor Peeters became first organist at the cathedral and head teacher of organ at the Lemmens Institute. In 1931 he was appointed teacher of organ at the Royal Conservatory of Gent and in 1935 teacher of organ and improvisation at the Roman Catholic College in Tilburg (Netherlands). He taught at the Lemmens Institute from 1923 to 1952 ; at the Conservatory of Gent from 1931 until 1948. In 1948 he became teacher of organ at the Royal Flemish Conservatory of Music in Antwerp ; from 1952 until 1968 he was also director of the Flemish Conservatory. He retired in 1968 and was given the assignment of an International Masterclass in the cathedral of Mechelen by the Ministry of Flemish Culture. He fulfilled this task until his death.

Flor Peeters was a member of the Royal Academy of Sciences, Letters and Fine Arts of Belgium and an honorary member of the Royal Academy of Music in London. With Olivier Messiaen he was nominated adviser for the Vatican Council II, but neither of them was ever consulted.

Flor Peeters was made doctor honoris causa in music by the Catholic University in Washington (1962) and by the Catholic University of Louvain (1971). Also in 1971 King Baudouin of the Belgians gave him the title of baron. A few weeks before his death he received the State Award for an artistic career from the Belgian Government.

Organist Flor Peeters’ first assignment was that of church organist (1923-1986). He was a genuine liturgical improvisator, who could skilfully embellish the liturgical action with short pre- and postludes with rich tone colouring put into short patterns. He published a Practical Method for the Accompaniment of Gregorian Chant (1942). Each Sunday after High Mass, between 1968 and 1986, he performed a short recital for friends and tourists. He kept his large repertoire in good condition and this playing was a necessity for him as a mean of communicating beauty to others.

Very early in his career he was attracted to the concert life. He started in 1924 in Belgium and in 1928 in the Netherlands ; in 1929 Denmark followed and in 1934 Germany and Italy ; in 1935 Paris. After the Second World War his concert career was widely extended outside Western Europe : the United States, Great Britain, the Soviet Union, South Africa, New Zealand, Australia and the Philippines. He gave ca. 1200 organ recitals in churches of all denominations and in concert halls.

Composer Flor Peeters was a prolific composer He wrote for himself and accepted commissions from publishers. Composing was a necessity for him. His compositions have influenced his organ playing and the concert life his compositions. He mainly composed for his instrument and for choir. His compositions are characterised by a fluent invention, strongly leaning towards the Gregorian melos and the modal harmony, a preference for classical forms, the use of polyrhythm and polytonality and after 1966 also of atonality and seriality.

The esthetical evolution of his work started as late Franckian virtuosity, and went via vitalistic neo-classicism, to an introvert and sober vitality, strongly moving rhythms, contrasting in colours and with an intense lyricism. The major seventh and the minor second are the corner stones of his compositions. His spiritual choir music (a.o. 10 Masses and numerous motets) is to be seen as a personal assimilation of the Motu Proprio of Pope Pius IX of 1903. It is adapted to the possibilities of amateur choirs in the thirties. He also wrote many songs (Lieder), piano and chamber music, and concerti for organ and other instruments.

Flor Peeters is author of the largest published chorale work ever undertaken : opus 100 Hymn Preludes for the Liturgical Year (1959-1964) ; it contains no less than 213 chorale preludes on ecumenical church hymns for the complete Liturgical Year. Raymond Schroyens will dedicate two lectures to the chorale oeuvre of Flor Peeters. We will also have a lecture on some important organ works of the master.

Flor Peeters was also a teacher highly in demand between 1930 and 1980. He has educated hundreds of organists in his own country and again hundreds during his yearly master classes in the United States. He published an extensive organ method Ars Organi (1952) in three volumes and in four languages, besides the Little Organ Book (1957 with examples played by himself on his studio organ). He edited various volumes of Old Netherlands Masters for organ (1938, 1945, and 1948) and Alte Orgelmusik aus England und Frankreich, Altniederländische Meister (1958).

He brought the art of the organ to a larger public and published with others The Organ and its Music in the Netherlands 1500-1800 ; this lavish book was also available in Dutch, French and German versions (Mercatorfonds Antwerp – 1970) ; it treated the organ building (Dr.M.A.Vente), organ music (Flor Peeters) and the social position of the organist (Piet Visser), all these aspects put into a broad cultural and historical view (Guido Peeters). Through its colour pictures, charts, maps and music examples and with the two LP’s Flor Peeters made to accompany the book, it remains a unicum in the world of the organ art.

http://www.bach-cantatas.com/Lib/Peeters-Flor.htm

JOONHO PARK was born in 1985, in Seoul, South Korea.

At the age of 15, he began organ playing and got enrolled in the pre-college program of the Korea National University of Arts (KNUA) in the class of Prof. Jakyung Oh, from which he graduated with the degrees of Bachelor in 2007.

Since 2008, Joonho has been studying under tutelage of Professor Jon Laukvik at the University of Performing Arts and Music in Stuttgart, and has completed his Master degree. Currently, he is pursuing further studies in Stuttgart.

Joohno Park won many prizes in international competitions : first prize Jangcheon-Klais competition in Korea (2003) ; first prize and Bach Contest in Graz (Austria) in 2006 ; second prize and special prize at the International Mozart Competition in St. Moritz (Switzerland) in 2007 ; Third Prize and Audience Award at the International Competition Musashino-Tokyo (Japan) in 2008, and first prize at the International Competition in Nuremberg (Germany) in 2009.

In 2011 he won first prize at the International Competition of Dublin (Ireland).

In 2012 he won the second prize for interpretation – International Competition of Chartres.

At home, he runs ‘Noon-hour Concerts’ at the Seoul Presbyterian Church where he served as organist for several years. He peforms regularly as a solo organist and with KNUA Symphony Ochestra in Seoul. His international performing tours have taken him to Germany, England, Japan and now to Ireland.

Joonho PARK – Chartres 2012

During his university studies, Janos Palur won the 1st prize of the Flor Peeters competition in Mechelen and the 1st prize of the first Zoltán Gárdonyi Memorial Competition in Budapest. From 1995 he studied organ with Olivier Latry in the Perfectionnement class of the Conservatory of Paris (CNSM). During these two years he was regularly given organ classes in the Notre Dame. In 1997 he won the Grand Prix of Paris of the second International Organ Competition. Following that he has been invited to perform in the concert series of the greatest French cathedrals.

Since that same year he has been titular organist of the Fasor Reformed Church in Budapest and in 1998 was appointed by competition organ teacher at the Ferenc Liszt Academy of Music. He is the first in Hungary to record Schumann and Duruflé’s complete organ works and his improvisation recordings are also remarkable. His concerts were broadcast live by the Hungarian, French and Slovakian radio. The organ reconstruction of the Fasor Reformed church proceeds according to his plans.

http://palur.hu/test/index.php

David Palmer has performed from coast to coast in Canada, and has given recitals in such American centres as San Francisco, Washington and New York. In Europe, he has played in England and France, including recitals in the cathedrals of Chartres and Notre-Dame in Paris. CBC Radio has broadcast nationally many of his performances, both solos and appearances with the Windsor Symphony Orchestra. He has been a judge for several organ playing competitions, among them the nationals of the Royal Canadian College of Organists, and the semi-final round of the Second Calgary International Organ Festival.

David has developed a specialty in the keyboard music of Olivier Messiaen. In the spring of 1981, he studied with the composer’s wife, Yvonne Loriod, concentrating on excerpts from Messiaen’s Vingt regards sur l’Enfant-Jésus and Catalogue d’Oiseaux. Since then, he has given many workshops and lectures, and has written several articles on aspects of Messiaen’s music. In October 1990, he gave the first Canadian performance of Livre du Saint Sacrement at St. James’ Cathedral in Toronto, broadcast on CBC FM, and was invited to perform excerpts of the work at the Fifth International Congress of Organists in Montreal in July 1993. His CD of Méditations sur le mystère de la Sainte Trinité, recorded in the Cathedral-Basilica Mary Queen of the World in Montreal, was released in 1999. In 2005, Canadian Music Centre released his CD, Canadian Organ Showcase, recorded in the Jack Singer Concert Hall in Calgary, Alberta. Double Exposure, a CD of music for organ and piano with colleague Gregory Butler, recorded in Yorkminster Park Baptist Church in Toronto, appeared in 2008.

A native of Victoria, British Columbia, David Palmer holds degrees from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, where he studied with Robert Glasgow. Past-President of the Royal Canadian College of Organists, he is a Professor Emeritus in the School of Music at the University of Windsor, and is Organist and Choir Director of All Saints’ Church, Windsor.

http://sicm.ca/new/index.php?person=dpalmer

André Pagenel studied music at the Instituts for young blind in Paris, under André Marchal, Gaston Litaize, Antoine Reboulot and Jean Langlais. At the same time, he practised the piano with Vlado Perlemutter.

At 21, he got his teaching ability certificats, the Repertoire Prize Maurice Blazy and André Marchai and first prizes in piano, organ, composition, harmony and counterpoint of the I.N.J.A.

In 1958, he was winner at the International Competition Maria Canals of Barcelone (piano) and in 1959, at the International Competition of Geneva (organ). In 1963 he won the First Prize of Performance of the French Union for Sacred Music He is a soloist on Radio France.

After being the organist of the Holy Trinity Basilics of Cherbourg from 1958 to 1966, he has since been the organist of the Cathedral of Bourges.

He has also been organ master at the local Academy of Music since 1968.

He has performed at international Festivals Avignon, Valence, Torino, Toronto, Luxembourg, Salzburg, Frederiskborg, Lahti, Moscow and goes on tour in France and abroad giving many concerts : Germany, Austria, Italy, Turkey, Scandinavia, Russies, U.S.A.

He gives classes of interpretation in France, Germany, Switzerland, U.S.A. and participated in juries for organ competitions.

Artistic Director of the organ Festival «The very rich hours of the organ in Berry», he recorded a dozen records, cassettes and CDs…

http://www.encyclopedie-bourges.com/pagenel_andre_1.htm