Lionel Rogg facts for kids

Lionel Rogg (born Geneva, April 21 1936) is a Swiss organist, a musician who plays the organ. He is also a composer, meaning he writes music, and a teacher of musical theory. He is famous for playing the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, a very well-known composer. Lionel Rogg has recorded all of Bach's organ music three times!

Early Life and Musical Training

Lionel Rogg started playing the organ at a young age. When he was just 15, he became the organist at St Boniface church in Geneva. Later, he went to the Conservatoire de Musique de Genève, a famous music school. There, he studied with a teacher named Pierre Segond.

During his studies, Rogg learned a lot about music. He earned special awards for subjects like harmony and fugue, which are types of music theory. He also won prizes for playing the organ and piano, and for being able to read music very quickly. In 1959, he won second prize in an important organ competition in Munich, Germany. He even studied with a famous pianist, Nikita Magaloff.

Performing Bach's Music

After finishing his studies, Lionel Rogg began to perform a lot. In 1961, he played ten concerts in Victoria Hall in Geneva. In these concerts, he performed all of Bach's organ music. This was a huge achievement!

After these concerts, he traveled to many countries to play the organ. He performed in France, Spain, Belgium, and the Netherlands. He also played in Switzerland and England, including famous places like Royal Festival Hall in London. In 1962, he played two concerts at the International Festival of Montreux, focusing on Bach's Orgelbüchlein. He also took part in music festivals in Bayreuth and Nuremberg.

Recording Bach's Complete Organ Works

Soon after his concerts in Geneva, Lionel Rogg was asked to record all of Bach's organ music. He made these recordings on a special organ in the Zurich Grossmunster church in Switzerland. This organ was built by a Swiss company called Metzler & Sohne Orgelbau.

The recording project started in September 1961 and finished in September 1964. It took ten recording sessions, each lasting three evenings. The recordings were made by Radio Zurich and later prepared in England for Oryx Records. These recordings were released on the Bach Recordings label.

Rogg also recorded Bach's complete organ works for another music company, Harmonia Mundi. These recordings were first released in 1970. They were later re-released on CD in 1992 and 2000. For these recordings, he used a special Silbermann organ in Arlesheim. This organ was built in 1761 and later restored.

Other Musical Activities

Besides playing organ concerts, Lionel Rogg also wrote his own music. He played the harpsichord, which is an old keyboard instrument similar to a piano. He also made recordings with small groups of musicians.

He recorded music for the Swiss Broadcasting Company. One of his recordings included Bach's 6 Trio Sonatas. He played these on his own Wittmayer pedal harpsichord, which is a harpsichord with foot pedals like an organ.

Lionel Rogg also wrote a book about counterpoint, a type of music composition. He returned to the Conservatoire de Musique de Genève to teach counterpoint and fugue. One of his recordings, featuring Renaissance Dances, won important awards like a Grand Prix du Disque and an Edison Award. In this recording, he played a small organ and led a group of musicians playing old instruments.

In 1969, Rogg recorded Bach's Die Kunst der Fuge. This piece was unfinished by Bach, so Rogg added his own ending to it. He performed this on organs in places like St Peter's Cathedral in Geneva and Santa Maria della Mercede in Rome.

See also

In Spanish: Lionel Rogg para niños