Anna Lapwood
Friday, April 12, 2024 at 7:30 P.M. AT ST. BERNARD
Organist Anna Lapwood is presented in conjunction with the Organ Artists Series of Pittsburgh. Please visit www.organseries.com for more information about the OAS and to purchase tickets to the pre-concert dinner in Clairvaux Hall.
About Ms. Lapwood
Anna Lapwood is an organist, conductor and broadcaster, and holds the position of Director of Music at Pembroke College (Cambridge), Associate Artist of the Royal Albert Hall (London) and Artist in Association with the BBC Singers. In 2023 she was awarded the prestigious ‘Gamechanger’ Award from the Royal Philharmonic Society, and signed to SONY Classical as an exclusive recording artist.
Having made her debut for the BBC Proms as a soloist in Saint-Saëns ‘Organ Symphony’ with The Hallé conducted by Sir Mark Elder in 2021, Anna gives her Proms recital debut with her programme ‘Moon and Stars’ in July 2023. Anna regularly performs concertos with leading symphony orchestras and conductors, has guested at Classic FM Live and collaborated with artists including Alison Balsom, Bonobo and Benedict Cumberbatch. Highlights of 2023/4 include concerts on the East and West coast of the United States including her recital debut at Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles.
Anna’s debut solo organ album ‘Images’ was released on Signum Records in 2021 and features her transcription for organ of Britten’s ‘Four Sea Interludes’ from “Peter Grimes”. Three further albums with The Choirs of Pembroke College have also been released on Signum to great acclaim. Under Anna’s direction, the Choirs guested on “To Shiver the Sky” on Decca with multi-Grammy-winning composer, Christopher Tin, recorded at Abbey Road Studios. Signing exclusively to SONY in 2023, the relationship launched with an EP – ‘Midnight Sessions at the Royal Albert Hall’ – to be followed by a new album later in the year.
Making her TV presenting debut hosting coverage of BBC Young Musician, she went on to present a televised Prom from the Royal Albert Hall. In 2022, she served as Chair of the Jury for BBC Young Musician and an adjudicator for the televised Welsh choral competition, Côr Cymru. As a radio broadcaster, she is a regular contributor to BBC Radio 3 and Radio 4 alongside independent stations and has been featured in multiple global television and radio programmes and podcasts.
Anna is a terrific protagonist for her instrument, the organ. She is a natural communicator and reaches a huge audience through her concerts and via social media with over 1 million followers across all platforms, amassing tens of millions of views in a short space of time. Anna’s passion for the organ is matched by her mission to support girls and women in music. She was the first female in Magdalen College Oxford’s 560-year history to be awarded the Organ Scholarship and since then has run regular organ workshops for young players around the country, hosted the Cambridge Organ Experience for Girls and organised an annual 24-hour ‘Bachathon’ for to raise money to support musicians in Zambia.
A strong advocate for music education at home and abroad, Anna is dedicated to bringing music to children of all backgrounds. Her commitment to equality and diversity is evident in almost every aspect of her life and work, and new music that she has commissioned features in her recitals across Europe and North America. “Gregoriana” – an anthology of 12 new organ pieces by female composers, curated and edited by Anna for Stainer & Bell – was awarded Presto Music’s Publication of the Year in 2022. Her own compositions are published by Boosey & Hawkes.
Having spent some years being encouraged to “play like a man”, Anna is proud and humbled to see so many adopt her hashtag #playlikeagirl.