Christopher Bowers-Broadbent

Glasgow University Memorial Chapel Wednesday, March 7, 2018, 1.10pm Organ Recital by Christopher Bowers-Broadbent Prelude and Fugue in A minor, BWV 543 J S Bach (1685-1750) Six Fugues on BACH, Op. 60 (1845) Robert Schumann (1810-1856) 1. Grave – Nach und nach schneller 2. Allegro 3. Mit sanften stimmen 4. Mässig, doch nicht zu langsam 5. Lebhaft 6. Mässig, nach und nach schneller - Lebhafter Christopher Bowers-Broadbent was appointed organist and choirmaster to Gray’s Inn, London in 1983. He began his musical education as a chorister at King's College, Cambridge, later going on to study organ and composition at the Royal Academy of Music in London, where he soon progressed to become a Professor and a Fellow from 1975 until 1992. He held the post of Organist and Choirmaster at St Pancras Parish Church from 1965 until 1988 and since 1973 has also been Organist of the West London Synagogue where he was appointed as the Director of Music in 2012. His international organ recitalist career began with his debut recital in 1967 at the Camden Festival. This was followed by major recitals at the Royal Festival Hall (1970’s -), the performance of his first opera, The Pied Piper, in Holland Park in 1972 and his first appearance as a soloist at the Proms in 1972. In 1976 he won the 3 Choirs Festival Composers Competition for Deo Gratias. A keen exponent of contemporary music, he has given first performances and been part of ground breaking work with the Hilliard Ensemble and Arvo Pärt, and with many others including Gavin Bryars, Henryk Górecki, Philip Glass, Stephen Montague, Robert Simpson, and Priaulx Rainier. He has made many recordings, particularly with ECM (Trivium, Gorecki and Messiaen) and with other labels including Harmonia Mundi, Hyperion, Nimbus and Priory. His composition 7Words, an organ solo in seven movements commissioned by the Leipzig Gewandhaus, was further commissioned by the Estonian Chamber Choir in 2006 as a 13 movement work for choir and organ. He has written three short operas, the third of which, The Last Man, was performed in Hall in 2003. He recently composed a fourth opera, The Face, to a libretto by Campaspe Lloyd-Jacob, a barrister of the Inn, which was performed in Hall in October 2012. The Wednesday Series March 14 Jonathan Salmond Including music by Pachelbel, Mendelssohn and Arthur Milner March 21 Tiffany Vong: Old Wine in New Bottles, 2 Including music by J S Bach, Purcell and Elgar March 28 To the Edge of Madness and (hopefully) Back, 1 Including Variations 18 & 19 from the middle movement of Sorabji’s 2nd Symphony for Organ April 4 To the Edge of Madness and (hopefully) Back, 2 Including Variations 27 & 28 from the middle movement of Sorabji’s 2nd Symphony for Organ April 11 John Butt April 18 John Butt April 25 Tiffany Vong: Old Wine in New Bottles, 3 May 2 To the Edge of Madness and (hopefully) Back, 3 Including Variations 37 & 38 from the middle movement of Sorabji’s 2nd Symphony for Organ May 9 Kemp English (New Zealand) May 16 Andrew Steinberg (Colorado) May 23 Tiffany Vong, Old Wine in New Bottles, 4 May 30 Kevin Bowyer – Tunes for Kev. Tell Kevin what you want to hear… Old Wine in New Bottles played by Tiffany Vong March 21, April 25, May 23 This concert series will feature organ transcriptions and arrangements based on pre-existing music. A wide variety of genres will be covered, including choral, orchestral, chamber, and opera. To the Edge of Madness and (hopefully) Back Three concerts played by Kevin Bowyer On May 20th Kevin Bowyer will, God willing, perform Sorabji’s 2nd Organ Symphony (1929-32) once again, this time in the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg, a brand new concert hall seating 2,100. Tickets sold out for this event in November 2017. The work and anxiety involved in preparing this piece is without parallel in all keyboard music and, unsurprisingly, only one chump has ever attempted it. In these three concerts you can hear some short extracts from this piece, together with some of the music that helps keep Kevin within sight of sanity during its preparation. March 28, April 4, May 2, 1.10-1.50 Sounds from the Silent Land, 4 Kevin Bowyer Friday, October 26, 2018 at 6pm Scherzo, Intermezzo and Toccata – John Rose “Hebridean” Organ Symphony – Erik Chisholm Generously supported by the Ferguson bequest For future concerts, see organrecitals.com .

Load more