Organ Matinée

The organ matinée subscription featuring performances by Sweden’s leading organists has expanded and gained more and more popularity. With its magnificent facade, the organ in Konserthuset Stockholm is one of the most famous in Europe, and with 6,100 pipes, it is also one of the biggest.

The guest soloist at this organ matinée is Anna Holm. Since 2009, she has served as the organist at Kungsholms Church, Västermalm Parish, where she is in charge of concerts. In addition to plentiful concert activity, she has also taught organ at Ersta Sköndal Bräcke University College and the Royal College of Music in Stockholm.

Here, we will hear her in South African composer Surendran Reddy’s jazzy Toccata for Madiba, composed for South Africa’s first international organ competition in 1998. It is dedicated to Nelson Mandela and finishes with variations on South Africa’s national anthem, Nkosi sikelel' iAfrika.

The prelude, fugue and variation for organ solo from Six Pieces by César Franck are popular among organists and audiences alike. Many people recognise the music, even if they are not entirely sure who composed it.

The fact that Bizet composed the unparalleled melodies of the opera Carmen is, however, better known. Many composers have also felt compelled to compose fantasies based on the opera’s theme, such as Edwin Henry Lemare (1865–1934), a British organist and composer active in the US in the latter part of his life.