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BACH-BUXTEHUDE
Dietrich Buxtehude, Johann Sebastian Bach

Benjamin-Joseph Steens

BACH-BUXTEHUDE

Price: € 19.95
Format: CD
Label: Evil Penguin
UPC: 5425008376189
Catnr: EPRC 0003
Release date: 06 November 2007
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Label
Evil Penguin
UPC
5425008376189
Catalogue number
EPRC 0003
Release date
06 November 2007
Album
Artist(s)
Composer(s)
EN

About the album

Belgium-born Benjamin-Joseph Steens is titular organist of the Cattiaux organ in the Saint Remi Basilica of Rheims and the Bernard Aubertin organ in Vertus. On these great instruments he recorded a recital with music by Bach and Buxtehude, the giants of the Baroque organ. The authoritative music critic Aart Van der Wal called Steens “a formidable organ player” on account of this recording, “both from the point of view of technique and interpretation.”

Artist(s)

Benjamin-Joseph Steens (organ)

A native of Bonheiden (Belgium), Benjamin-Joseph Steens obtained a master's degree in musicology at the Catholic University of Louvain and at Paris-IV Sorbonne. At the same time, he studied at the Lemmens Institute (Louvain) and at the Conservatoire d'Orléans, then at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse in Paris, where his studies were crowned with several First Prizes and Higher Education Diplomas in organ (class of Michel Bouvard and Olivier Latry), harpsichord (class of Pierre Hantaï then Olivier Baumont) and basso continuo. In addition, he obtains the Organ Aptitude Certificate (pedagogy department). His attraction to old keyboards was enriched by contact with Jos van Immerseel, with whom he studied at the Conservatory of Antwerp. He developed a passion...
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A native of Bonheiden (Belgium), Benjamin-Joseph Steens obtained a master's degree in musicology at the Catholic University of Louvain and at Paris-IV Sorbonne. At the same time, he studied at the Lemmens Institute (Louvain) and at the Conservatoire d'Orléans, then at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse in Paris, where his studies were crowned with several First Prizes and Higher Education Diplomas in organ (class of Michel Bouvard and Olivier Latry), harpsichord (class of Pierre Hantaï then Olivier Baumont) and basso continuo. In addition, he obtains the Organ Aptitude Certificate (pedagogy department).
His attraction to old keyboards was enriched by contact with Jos van Immerseel, with whom he studied at the Conservatory of Antwerp. He developed a passion for the clavichord, becoming one of the few contemporary keyboardists to play this instrument in recital and to use it in chamber music. His natural curiosity for all repertoires also led him to take an interest in 19th, 20th and 21st century music and to collaborate with composers to prepare creations, including the Ricercar for organ by Bert van Herck given in Reims in 2006. One of the first organists to play the monumental work of Jean-Louis Florentz Debout sur le soleil, he was able to perform it in particular on the great organs of Notre-Dame de Paris in 1998 and 1999.
Holder of the great Cattiaux organ of the Saint-Remi Basilica in Reims, of which he is also curator, responsible for the Bernard Aubertin organ in Vertus (Marne), Benjamin-Joseph Steens is regularly invited by European festivals (Festival de Flandres, Toulouse- les-Orgues, Flâneries Musicales de Reims ...) for recitals, chamber music concerts or orchestral productions. Its performances are periodically recorded by radio or television. He teaches organ, harpsichord and basso continuo at the CRR in Reims and at the Levallois Conservatory (Paris region), as well as the clavichord as part of the Master in Interpretation of Ancient Music at Paris Sorbonne University. He is also regularly requested as a guest professor or jury in renowned institutions such as the Opéra Bastille or the CNSMDP.
His discography includes several CDs made for the Epr-classic Label. In 2007 the CD / DVD Bach - Buxtehude appeared on the great organs of Saint-Martin de Vertus and Saint-Remi de Reims. His clavichord recordings: the Goldberg Variations by JS Bach (2010) and Bach and Sons, sonatas for flute and obligatory keyboard of the Bach family with Jacques-Antoine Bresch au traverso (2011) are a great public success and are acclaimed by critics international, especially in France with 5 tuning forks.

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Composer(s)

Johann Sebastian Bach

Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer and musician of the Baroque period. He enriched established German styles through his skill in counterpoint, harmonic and motivic organisation, and the adaptation of rhythms, forms, and textures from abroad, particularly from Italy and France. Bach's compositions include the Brandenburg Concertos, the Goldberg Variations, the Mass in B minor, two Passions, and hundreds of cantatas. His music is revered for its technical command, artistic beauty, and intellectual depth.  Bach's abilities as an organist were highly respected during his lifetime, although he was not widely recognised as a great composer until a revival of interest in and performances of his music in the first half of the 19th century. He is now generally regarded as one of the greatest composers of all time.  
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Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer and musician of the Baroque period. He enriched established German styles through his skill in counterpoint, harmonic and motivic organisation, and the adaptation of rhythms, forms, and textures from abroad, particularly from Italy and France. Bach's compositions include the Brandenburg Concertos, the Goldberg Variations, the Mass in B minor, two Passions, and hundreds of cantatas. His music is revered for its technical command, artistic beauty, and intellectual depth.

Bach's abilities as an organist were highly respected during his lifetime, although he was not widely recognised as a great composer until a revival of interest in and performances of his music in the first half of the 19th century. He is now generally regarded as one of the greatest composers of all time.


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Dietrich Buxtehude

Among the general public, Dieterich Buxtehude is mostly known due to the admiration Johann Sebastian Bach had for his organ and composing skills, for which Bach traveled to the North German city of Lübeck to stay with him for four months, no less. This says quite something about the quality of Buxtehude's performance, but even more so about the influence it had on Bach and all composers after him. Yet, nowadays Buxtehude's music does not need Bach to survive, as a matter of fact it is extraordinarily beautiful just by itself! Buxtehude was originally Danish, but he spent most of him life in Lübeck. His so-called 'Abendmusik', which was a series of evening concerts outside of the liturgy, grew famous. In the works...
more
Among the general public, Dieterich Buxtehude is mostly known due to the admiration Johann Sebastian Bach had for his organ and composing skills, for which Bach traveled to the North German city of Lübeck to stay with him for four months, no less. This says quite something about the quality of Buxtehude's performance, but even more so about the influence it had on Bach and all composers after him. Yet, nowadays Buxtehude's music does not need Bach to survive, as a matter of fact it is extraordinarily beautiful just by itself! Buxtehude was originally Danish, but he spent most of him life in Lübeck. His so-called 'Abendmusik', which was a series of evening concerts outside of the liturgy, grew famous. In the works he wrote for these occasions, his enormous fantasy and creative freedom truly shows. As an organ player, Buxtehude was widely famous. If you would listen to his Organ Preludes, you would quickly know why. Buxtehude manages to combine an unprecedented virtuosity with a large variety of styles and techniques. No wonder Bach traveled all that way to see him!
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