Göteborg Youth Organ Camp
(Admission fee: 700 SEK)
(For ages 8–14)

Kersten Cottyn

Stephen Craig
Camille Bloche
Sven-Åke Svensson, a.o., teachers
(Detailed program in Swedish)
(In collaboration with Foss parish)

19:00–20:00
Varnhem Church
(Admission free)
(Regional concert)
Kimberly Marshall, organ
Festival premiere of the new Magnus Gabriel de la Gardie organ!
Music by Cavazzoni, Schlick, Sandresky, Sweelinck, Gardane and Buxtehude

12:00–12:30
Gothenburg Cathedral
(Admission free)
Organ students from the Academy of Music and Drama, University of Gothenburg
(Program TBA)


16:00–17.00
German Church
(Admission free)
Opening concert of the Göteborg International Organ Festival 2026
Welcome notes by Grith Fjeldmose, City of Gothenburg
AnnaSara Perslow, West Sweden
Maria Bania, University of Gothenburg
Hans Davidsson, GIOF
Roots in new music for organ and saxophone quartet
Stockholm Saxophone Quartet
Jörgen Pettersson, director
Mila Thoors, organ
Hans Davidsson, organ
Music by Victoria Borisova-Ollas, Paula af Malmborg Ward (premiere), Miklos Maros (premiere), Reza Mortazavi (new work for saxophone quartet and organ commissioned for the festival), and Agneta Sköld (premiere).


19:00–20:30
Gothenburg Cathedral
(Tickets sold on-site: 250/125 SEK)
Festival Gala Concert
Maria Lindal, violin
Jörgen Pettersson, saxophone
Tom Poulson, trumpet
Ligita Sneibe, organ
Indra Riše
Natura Siderum (Nature of Stars) (2024)
(Swedish premiere of the full organ cycle of 12 movements)

11:00–12:15
Gothenburg Cathedral
(Admission free)
Solemn High Mass
Organ and liturgy from 18th-century Gothenburg
Gothenburg Cathedral Choir
Michael Sager, conductor
Mikael Fridén, organ
Music by Anders Bonge


13:00–14:00
Gothenburg Synagogue
(Admission free)
Our common roots
A concert with Jewish liturgy and organ music in the Gothenburg Synagogue
Ingrid Lomfors, historian
Kimberly Marshall, organ
Johannes Landgren, organ
Max Åkervall, cantor
Ingrid Elam, moderator
Program on the Marcussen organ (1854)
Music by Louis Lewandowski, Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, Florence Price, William Grant Still, and Abraham Baer.
(Mandatory registration)
(In collaboration with the Jewish parish, the Jewish salon and the Diocese of Göteborg)


15:00–16:30
Örgryte New Church
(Tickets sold on-site: 200/100 SEK)
European roots in vocal and instrumental music of the 17th century
IMPULSE – Music import to the Hansa Cities
The European Hanseatic Ensemble
Manfred Cordes, director
Program on the North German Baroque organ (Arvidsson, van Eeken, Yokota, 2000)
Music by Johann Wanning, Thomas Simpson, William Brade, Matthias Weckmann, Christoph Bernhard, Thomas Vierdanck, Johann Stobäus, Johann Eccard, Vincenzo Albrici, Luca Marenzio, Nicolaus Orgas, Marco Scacchi, Claudio Monteverdi, Ambrosius Profe, a.o.


18:00–20:00
Gothenburg Concert Hall
(Tickets: GSO)
Organ music from past and present by women composers
Isabelle Demers, organ
Program on the Rieger concert hall organ (2021)
Music by Rachel Laurin, Elsa Barraine, Joséphine Boulay, Sara Wennerberg-Reuter, Clara Schumann and Johannes Brahms (transcription by Demers).
(In collaboration with Göteborg Symphony Orchestra)

8:30–11:00 (Backa Church)

9:00–11:30 (All other venues)
Morning workshops


8:45–9:45
Gothenburg City Library, Hörsalen
(Admission free)
(For school classes, ages 6–12)
Organ Builder Workshops
Send registration and/or questions to: kersten.cottyn@organacademy.se


10:00–11:00
Gothenburg City Library, Hörsalen
(Admission free)
(For school classes, ages 6–12)
Organ Builder Workshops
Send registration and/or questions to: kersten.cottyn@organacademy.se


12:00–12:50
Örgryte New Church

(Admission free)
Lunch concert
Roots in French vocal music: Between the opera and the church, from ouverture to offertoire, from air to motet
Maria Forsström, mezzo-soprano
Joris Verdin, organ
Music by Couperin, Cherubini, Stradella, Schmitt, Saint-Saëns and Bizet. Afterwards organ soup will be served in Örgryte Parish Hall (for presenters and registered participants only).


14:30–17:00
Örgryte New Church
(Admission free)
Afternoon seminar
Vocal roots in organ music
In this seminar we will explore Manuel García’s Nouveau Traité Sommaire de L’Art du Chant (1856) and Hints on Singing (2nd ed.,1894) as guides for expressive organ playing. We will take a closer look at general principles for the performance of melodies, including expression and phrasing, and the function of a score and whether it was considered an instruction manual or a source of imagination. We will also follow the roots of the long tradition of organ accompaniment to hymn singing, and finally get an overview of the Swedish 19th-century organ tradition.
L’Art du chant – roots of French organ performance in the mid 19th century
Joris Verdin and Maria Forsström, presenters
Hymn singing and organ accompaniment
William Porter, presenter
Roots of Swedish organ art in the 19th century
Jonas Lundblad, presenter


19:00–20:15
Vasa Church
(Admission free)
Come and sing!
Hymn festival
The Roots of north European organ culture in hymn singing and organ accompaniment
William Porter, organ
Vasa Church Choir
Per Högberg, director


21:30–22:30
Örgryte New Church
(Admission free)
Night Visions II
Kuhnau and the temple of Solomon
Joel Speerstra, organ
Romina Zanon, photography
Johann Kuhnau (1660–1722)
Frische Clavier Früchte (1696)
A complete performance of Kuhnau´s seven keyboard sonatas accompanied by a new film by renowned visual artist Romina Zanon that imagines the works as the temple of Solomon.

8:30–11:00 (Backa Church)
9:00–11:30 (All other venues)
Morning workshops


8:45–9:45
Gothenburg City Library, Hörsalen
(Admission free)
(For school classes, ages 6–12)
Organ Builder Workshops
Send registration and/or questions to: kersten.cottyn@organacademy.se


10:00–11:00
Gothenburg City Library, Hörsalen
(Admission free)
(For school classes, ages 6–12)
Organ Builder Workshops
Send registration and/or questions to: kersten.cottyn@organacademy.se


12:00–12:50
Gothenburg Concert Hall
(Tickets: GSO)
Lunch concert
Bach to the Roots!
Lisa Rydberg (Zorn Badge Bearer), violin
Gunnar Idenstam, organ
Join us as Father Bach is invited to dance side by side with the Swedish polska! Together, National Folk Musician Lisa Rydberg and organist Gunnar Idenstam create a unique groove of their own, as the concert hall’s mighty organ brings Bach and Swedish folk music together. Afterwards sandwiches will be served at the back of the Vasa Church - Grab and Mingle (for presenters and registered participants only).

(In collaboration with Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra and the Göteborg Chamber Music Society)

(Recorded by Radio Sweden, P2)

14:00–19:30
Gothenburg Concert Hall
(Admission free, for invited participants only)
The Royal Swedish Academy of Music visits Gothenburg
Since it was founded in 1771, the first ordinary session of the Royal Swedish Academy of Music located outside the Swedish capital of Stockholm takes place at the Concert Hall this afternoon.


14:30–17:00
Vasa Church
(Admission free)
Afternoon seminar
French and Nordic perspectives of organ art
The organ music by Elsa Barraine (1910-1999)
Lucile Dollat, presenter
The search for new perspectives by Carl Nielsen´s in Commotio, Opus 58, sometimes entitled his last symphony
Benjamin Kjell, presenter
A new edition of organ music by Sara Wennerberg-Reuter
Jan H. Börjesson, presenter
Swedish Organ Building before 1800
Paul Peeters, presenter


20:00–21:00

German Church
(Tickets sold on-site: 250/125 SEK)
(Introduction 19:30 by Hans Davidsson and Andreas Edlund)
Vocal and instrumental concert
Anna Maria Friman, soprano
Amanda Flodin, alto
Tore Sunesson, tenor
Karl Peter Eriksson, bass
Chamber orchestra with period instruments (musicians from Karlsson Barock)

Gabriel Bania, concertmaster

Roger Illa Prats, fortepiano
Ulrike Heider, conductor
Joseph Martin Kraus (1756–1792)
Overtura from Incidental Music to Olympie (VB33)

Benedictus Schindler (late 18th century, resident in Göteborg (1771-1790)
Frälsarens svåra lidande – Passions-musique (1775)

The Severe Suffering of the Saviour – Passion music for soloists, choir and orchestra.
The earliest known large vocal and instrumental work composed in Göteborg. First performance since the 18th century.
(In collaboration with the Göteborg Chamber Music Society and with generous support by the Royal Swedish Academy of Music and the Royal Society of the Arts and Sciences in Gothenburg)

10:00–15:00
Ågrenska Villan
(Admission free, registration by invitation only)
Festival symposium
Pasquini, Patronage, and Partimento: The cultural world of Queen Christina in Rome
We celebrate the 400th anniversary of the birth of Queen Christina with a conference focused on her cultural world in Rome, including the celebrated harpsichord builder Girolamo Zenti and a new study of Bernardo Pasquini’s opera Sant’Agnese.
Alessandro De Marchi
Elia Pivetta
Peter van Tour
Mattias Lundberg

Susanne Rydèn
Eleanor Smith-Guido
Erik Kjellberg
Joel Speerstra

Massimiliano Guido

Karin Nelson, a.o., panelists
Eleanor Smith-Guido, moderator

(Hosted by the Rem@ke Project in collaboration with Ågrenska Villan, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg International Organ Academy, and the Academy of Music and Drama, University of Gothenburg)


10:15–12:45
Gothenburg City Library, Hörsalen
(Admission free)
(For the general public — all ages, drop-in)
Organ builder workshops
Sebastian Rolland, workshop leader


12:00–12:50

Caroli Church, Borås
(Admission free)
For children and families (in Swedish)
Trollflöjten med sång, figurer & orgel
Ingrid Berg, sång, skådespel
Veronica Wåhlberg, sång & skådespel
Ingvild Storhaug, sång & skådespel
Louise Jansson, orgel

(In collaboration with Caroli Parish, Borås)


14:00–14:50

Caroli Church, Borås
(Admission free)
For children and families (in Swedish)
Var med och bygg en orgel!
På läktaren i kyrkan står den stora, pampiga orgeln som brukar kallas för instrumentens drottning. Nu får vi tillsammans bygga en liten och helt spelbar orgel, en do-orgel, som fungerar precis som den stora. Efteråt får man gärna prova att spela på den.
Louise Jansson, guide and instructor

(In collaboration with Caroli Parish, Borås)


14:00–15:00
Haga Church
(Admission free)
European roots in organ music
ECHO Young Ambassadors
Francesca Ajossa (Italy/Belgium), organ
Pawel Michalik (Poland), organ
Xinjie Li (China/The Netherlands), organ
Angela Ede (UK), organ
Music by Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck, Heinrich Scheidemann, Matthias Weckmann, Nicolas de Grigny, Kerensa Briggs and Bernard Foccroulle.


15:00–16:45
Gothenburg Concert Hall
(Tickets: GSO)
Orchestral and organ concert
Jonas Lundblad, organ
Samy Rachid, conductor
Lili Boulanger (1893–1918)
Pie Jesu for soprano, organ and harp
Elfrida Andrée (1841–1929)
Organ Symphony no. 2
Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy (1809–1847)
Lobgesang: Symphony no. 2
(In collaboration with Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra)

15.30–16.30

Vasa Church

(Tickets sold on-site: 200/100 SEK)

Det brinner på den ö som heter jorden / There is a fire on the island called Earth A scenic concert where Lars-Erik Larsson's "God in Disguise" meets parts of Hilding Rosenberg's "John's Revelation”. The idea of the concert is to allow the above two perspectives on the past/present to be contrasted and juxtaposed and, through scenic design and musical contrasts, to illuminate the ever-changing conditions of humanity in relation to the dramatic questions of fate of the past/present. In the fusion of the two musical expressions, a streak of hope is formed, formulated in Rosenberg's chorales and in Larsson's humanistic adaptation of Gullberg's texts.

Bach-ensemble Småland with Friends

Johannes Landgren, organ and music arrangement

Christine Löfgren, stage director

16:00–16:45
Caroli Church, Borås

(Admission free)
For youth and adults (in Swedish)
Tikvayoga med orgelimprovisation
Tikva – hebreiska för hopp – kan beskrivas som en fusion av fysioterapi och mjuk yoga, där kropp, själ och ande får samverka till en känsla av helhet. Passet hålls till lugn orgelmusik med inslag av visdomsord. Yogamattor finns att låna på plats.

Anneli Lidén, yoga och Árpád Solti, orgel
(In collaboration with Caroli Parish, Borås)


16:00–16:45
Caroli Church, Borås
(Admission free)
For all ages (in Swedish)
Ghibli goes Organ!
Veronica Wåhlberg, orgel
Studio Ghiblis magiska mästerverk är älskade av både barn och vuxna. Varje film är ett konsthantverk med sagolik stämning, ofta med naturen och människans påverkan som tema. Här spelar organisten Veronica Wåhlberg några av sina favoritstycken ur Spirited Away, Min granne Totoro, Nausicaä, Laputa och Prinsessan Mononoke. Under konserten är det fritt fram att ligga kvar i kyrkbänken, dansa eller sjunga med – om andan faller på.

(In collaboration with Caroli Parish, Borås)


17:00–18:00
Vasa Parish Hall
(Admission free)
Panel discussion
Sweden 1940: music and art in wartime
Johannes Landgren, Tomas von Brömssen, a.o.

Hans Davidsson, moderator


18:30–18:20
Caroli Church, Borås
(Admission free)
Musica Organica Hungarica
Organist and composer Árpád Solti performs his own compositions along with Hungarian organ music from Liszt through to the present day.

(In collaboration with Caroli Parish, Borås)


19:00–20:30
Vasa Church
(Tickets sold on-site: 250/125 SEK)
Symphonic choral concert
Maria Forsström, mezzo-soprano
Tomas von Brömssen, recitation
Camille Bloche, organ
Lux Vocal Ensemble
Ulrike Heider, conductor
Hilding Rosenberg (1892–1985)
From Symphony no. 4, Apocalypse of [St.] John
Version for soloist, choir and organ in seven parts. Original translation of the Swedish text by Arthur King.


20:00–21:00
Caroli Church, Borås
(Admission free)
Pierre Swärd, hammond organ
Legendary jazz-musician Pierre Swärd, performs and tells us about his life as a musician.

(In collaboration with Caroli Parish, Borås)