To mark the 20th anniversary of the Festival International Bach Montréal, Saint Joseph’s Oratory of Mount Royal presents the complete organ works of Johann Sebastian Bach, presented in an exceptional series of 16 concerts over four years. This musical journey will bring together some of the greatest interpreters of Bach’s organ works, hailing from eight countries. Each recital will feature a selection of works representative of the composer’s diverse styles and periods, enhanced by the majestic sound of the Oratory’s grand Rudolf von Beckerath organ. To make this experience accessible to as many people as possible, an all-inclusive ticket price of $20 will be offered for the entire duration of the Complete Works series, through 2029.
To kick off this four-year series of 16 concerts, we welcome Christian Schmitt, one of the most prominent concert organists of his generation. A winner of ten national and international competitions, he performs in the world’s leading concert halls and at major festivals. His discography includes more than 35 recordings. He is a lecturer at the Internationale Bach Akademie in Stuttgart and serves as technical advisor for the organ at the Stiftung Berliner Philharmoniker.
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In this second recital, Vincent Boucher, the Rudolf von Beckerath Organist at Saint Joseph’s Oratory, will present a selection of early works, including the Organ Piece and the famous Toccata and Fugue in D minor, and will perform for the first time at the Festival the two organ chaconnes by Bach that were discovered in 2025.
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The tradition continues: following in the footsteps of Telemann, Handel, Pachelbel, Marchand, Widor, and many others, this time we will imagine a meeting between Johann Sebastian Bach and Louis Vierne, the famous French organist and titular organist of Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris, who deeply admired Johann Sebastian Bach. In particular, he transcribed Bach’s popular Sicilienne (BWV 1031) for organ and regularly included Bach’s works in his recitals, attesting to the enduring influence of the Leipzig Cantor not only on the French organ tradition but also in the composition of the magnificent Messe solennelle for choir and two organs.
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Benjamin Alard is a French organist, harpsichordist, and clavichordist, recognized as one of today’s leading interpreters of Bach. As titular organist at Saint-Louis-en-l’Île in Paris and a winner of international competitions, he is undertaking a monumental recording project: the complete keyboard works of J. S. Bach, from which he presents three landmark works here.