Ahead of his recital at Festival Bach 2026, French harpsichordist and organist Benjamin Alard presents a lecture-with-coffee event designed to deepen audience engagement with the programme he will perform.
The talk focuses on the third instalment of his ongoing survey of Bach's complete organ works. Works under discussion include the celebrated Schübler Chorales, the dramatically demanding Concerto in D minor after Vivaldi, and selected pages from Clavierübung III — one of the few collections that Bach personally supervised through publication and one of the landmarks of the organ repertoire.
Using musical examples and historical context, Alard will illuminate the central role of the Lutheran chorale in Bach's creative output and examine Bach's skill as an arranger who transformed Italian concerto models into fully idiomatic organ masterpieces.
The event serves as an ideal preparation for those attending the subsequent organ concert, offering a richer appreciation of both the music and its historical background. Benjamin Alard is organist at Saint-Louis-en-l'Île in Paris.