Lionel Rogg facts for kids
Lionel Rogg (born in Geneva, Switzerland, on April 21, 1936) is a famous Swiss organist, composer, and music teacher. He is especially known for playing the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. In fact, he has recorded all of Bach's organ works three times!
At just 15 years old, Lionel Rogg became the organist at St Boniface church in Geneva. He later studied at the Conservatoire de Musique de Genève. There, he learned from Pierre Segond, who was a student of the well-known organist Marcel Dupré. Rogg earned degrees in music theory, including harmony, counterpoint, and fugue. He also won many awards, including scholarships and prizes for organ, piano, and sight-reading. In 1959, he won second prize at an international music competition in Munich. He also studied piano with the famous pianist Nikita Magaloff.
Amazing Concerts
After three years of intense study, in 1961, Lionel Rogg performed all of Bach's organ works in a series of ten concerts at the Victoria Hall in Geneva. After these successful concerts, he played organ recitals in many countries like France, Spain, Belgium, Holland, and England. He performed at famous places like St Albans and the Royal Festival Hall in London. In 1962, he played two concerts featuring Bach's Orgelbüchlein at the International Festival of Montreux. He also took part in music festivals in Bayreuth and Nuremberg.
Recording Bach's Masterpieces
Soon after his Geneva concerts, Rogg was asked to record all of Bach's organ works. He recorded them on a new, special organ built by Metzler & Sohne Orgelbau in the Zurich Grossmunster church. This organ was built between 1958 and 1960. He started recording in September 1961 and finished in September 1964. The recordings were made by Radio Zurich and later released by Oryx Records.
Rogg also recorded all of Bach's organ works again for another record company, Harmonia Mundi. These recordings were first released in 1970 and later on CD in 1992 and 2000. For these recordings, he used the historic Silbermann organ in Arlesheim. This organ was built in 1761 and restored in 1959-1962.
More Musical Talents
Besides playing organ concerts, Lionel Rogg also composed his own music. He played the harpsichord and recorded music with small groups of musicians. He made many recordings for the Swiss Broadcasting Company, playing the organ, harpsichord, and piano. One special recording was of Bach's 6 Trio Sonatas, which he played on his own Wittmayer pedal harpsichord.
Lionel Rogg also wrote a book about counterpoint, which is a way of composing music. He returned to the Conservatoire de Musique de Genève to teach counterpoint and fugue. His recording of Renaissance Dances, where he played the organ and led a group of Renaissance instruments, won two big awards: a Grand Prix du Disque and an Edison Award.
In 1969, Rogg recorded Bach's Die Kunst der Fuge, a very famous and complex piece. He even included his own idea of how the unfinished part of the piece might have ended. He performed this work on organs in places like St Peter's Cathedral in Geneva and Santa Maria della Mercede in Rome.
