Organ matiné with Sebastian Johansson

Through Konserthuset’s popular organ matinée subscription, audiences get to hear leading organists perform on the venue’s own organ, which with its 6,100 pipes is one of the largest in Europe.

The young organist Sebastian Johansson was born and raised in Jönköping and began playing organ at the age of 11. Two years later, he began substituting as a church musician and then became a student at the organist programme in Malmö. In autumn 2019 he will begin the master programme in organ at the Royal College of Music in Stockholm. In addition to the classical repertoire, he has significant interest in improvisation and at this concert he will be given a theme on which to improvise. He also gladly plays jazz and pop and will perform Avicii’s Wake Me Up, a song that was released in 2013 and quickly became a global hit.

J.S. Bach’s Prelude and Fugue were nicknamed St. Anne because a theme in the fugue resembles the melody of a psalm by that name by British composer William Croft. The piece is part of the third section of Bach’s Clavier-Übung, and stands out in his organ repertoire as one of his loveliest compositions.

French organist Jeanne Demessieux was a student of Marcel Dupré and had a fantastic international career, having received special acclaim for her improvisation. She composed Te Deum in 1965.