Wikio - Top Blogs - Religion and belief

Monday 20 March 2017

The genius of Monsieur Lefébure-Wély





Each Friday at St Stephen Walbrook a free weekly lunchtime organ recital is held featuring a different organist each week.

For three weeks this year, however, our organist will be Dr Anthony Gritten sharing the genius of Monsieur Lefébure-Wély (1817-69) as he performs L’Organiste Moderne (1867) written 150 years ago and performed to celebrate the composer’s 200th birthday. Book 1 - 4 will be on 24 March, Book 5 - 8 on 9 June and Book 9 - 12 on 17 November.

Dr Anthony Gritten is a Fellow of the Royal College of Organists, and studied with Harry Gabb, David Sanger, and Anne Page. He gave the first complete performance of Daniel Roth’s magnum opus, Livre d’Orgue pour le Magnificat, and has performed four times in St. Sulpice, Paris, including a recital as part of Roth’s 70th birthday celebrations. He has also performed numerous works by Richard Francis, including the premiere of a four-movement symphony on themes by Lefébure-Wély. Other projects have included anniversary performances of the complete works of Tunder, Buxtehude (a 6½ hour recital), Homilius, Brahms, and Mendelssohn. Many of Anthony's recitals are listed at organrecitals.com/anthonygritten.

Anthony was an organ scholar and research student at Cambridge University, writing his doctorate on Stravinsky. He has worked at the University of East Anglia and Royal Northern College of Music, and is currently Head of Undergraduate Programmes at the Royal Academy of Music. His publications include two books on Music and Gesture and essays on Igor Stravinsky, John Cage, and Frederick Delius. Many of his publications can be downloaded from ram.academia.edu/AnthonyGritten.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Lefebure-Wely - Sortie in Eb.

No comments: