Following on the success of the first Boston Bach International Organ Competition in 2018, the second Boston Bach International Organ Competition will be held in Boston, Massachusetts between September 3 and September 11, 2022.
The BBIOC is open to emerging and highly qualified organists from all over the world, now embarking on their careers. The competition is intended to:
The BBIOC is open to emerging and highly qualified organists from all over the world, now embarking on their careers. The competition is intended to:
- promote further artistic development of players already engaged in professional careers;
- increase the general public’s awareness of the breadth and scope of Bach’s organ music; and
- showcase Boston as a leading center of historically informed organ building and performance practice, and home to many internationally prominent organists.
Boston, Organs, & Bach
Located on New England's scenic coast, Greater Boston is an international center of finance and of innovation in science and medicine. It is also home to many of the world’s most famous universities, including Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and to major cultural organizations, including the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Handel and Haydn Society, and the Boston Early Music Festival.
Founded in 1630, Boston is America’s oldest major city. The opening battles of America's war for independence from Britain took place here, which is reflected in Boston's historic sites: the Boston Massacre site, the Bunker Hill Monument, Paul Revere’s House, Old North Church, Faneuil Hall, and the USS Constitution. Along with historical artifacts, Boston also includes multiple world-class museums, an acoustically outstanding Symphony Hall, numerous architectural masterpieces, an important Public Library, five schools of music, and many other cultural attractions.
Colonial Boston was home to one of the first church organs in the country, a small English chamber organ willed to the then-Anglican King’s Chapel in 1714. Other organs, both imported and locally made, would soon follow. From the early 19th century on, a flourishing organbuilding industry grew, eventually including E. & G.G. Hook, which became the largest American firm in that period, along with later ones such as George S. Hutchings and Ernest M. Skinner (later Aeolian-Skinner). Today the tradition is continued by nearby firms such as Andover, C.B. Fisk, David Moore, and Noack, whose organs can be found throughout the United States and in other countries.
During the second half of the 19th century, Boston became a distinguished center for organ performance and pedagogy due to the influence of John Knowles Paine and other important figures who had studied in Germany. They introduced Boston audiences and students to the organ music of Johann Sebastian Bach through their recitals and teaching. Paine became the first chaired Professor of Music at Harvard and was an advocate for Bach throughout his long career there. The Boston-based Handel and Haydn Society gave the American premiere of Bach’s St. Matthew Passion in 1879.
Founded in 1630, Boston is America’s oldest major city. The opening battles of America's war for independence from Britain took place here, which is reflected in Boston's historic sites: the Boston Massacre site, the Bunker Hill Monument, Paul Revere’s House, Old North Church, Faneuil Hall, and the USS Constitution. Along with historical artifacts, Boston also includes multiple world-class museums, an acoustically outstanding Symphony Hall, numerous architectural masterpieces, an important Public Library, five schools of music, and many other cultural attractions.
Colonial Boston was home to one of the first church organs in the country, a small English chamber organ willed to the then-Anglican King’s Chapel in 1714. Other organs, both imported and locally made, would soon follow. From the early 19th century on, a flourishing organbuilding industry grew, eventually including E. & G.G. Hook, which became the largest American firm in that period, along with later ones such as George S. Hutchings and Ernest M. Skinner (later Aeolian-Skinner). Today the tradition is continued by nearby firms such as Andover, C.B. Fisk, David Moore, and Noack, whose organs can be found throughout the United States and in other countries.
During the second half of the 19th century, Boston became a distinguished center for organ performance and pedagogy due to the influence of John Knowles Paine and other important figures who had studied in Germany. They introduced Boston audiences and students to the organ music of Johann Sebastian Bach through their recitals and teaching. Paine became the first chaired Professor of Music at Harvard and was an advocate for Bach throughout his long career there. The Boston-based Handel and Haydn Society gave the American premiere of Bach’s St. Matthew Passion in 1879.