Rogg, Lionel

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Rogg, Lionel

Rogg, Lionel , eminent Swiss organist, harpsichordist, pedagogue, and composer; b. Geneva, April 21, 1936. He studied at the Geneva Cons. with Charles Chaix (harmony, counterpoint, and composition), Pierre Segond (organ; 1st prize, 1956), and André Perret and Nikita Magaloff (piano; 1st prize, 1957), and then with André Marchai in Paris. From 1960 he was a prof. at the Geneva Cons. After performing all of Bach’s organ works in a series of recitals at Victoria Hall in Geneva in 1961, he toured throughout the world as an organ and harpsichord virtuoso. He also gave master classes in keyboard interpretation and publ. a course on organ improvisation. Rogg’s exhaustive repertoire ranges from Bach and Buxtehude to Hindemith and Ligeti. He is especially known as a master of improvisation. Among his compositions are an Organ Concerto (1992) and numerous solo organ pieces, piano music, and vocal scores, including a Missa Breves for Chorus and Orch. and a cantata.

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire

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