Louis Thiry
Encyclopedia
Louis Thiry is a French
organist
, composer
and pedagogue.
Thiry studied at the Nancy Conservatoire, where he received a first prize in organ at the Nancy Conservatory (organ class of Jeanne Demessieux
) in 1952, followed by studies with André Marchal
at Institut National des Jeunes Aveugles
in Paris
. In 1958, Thiry graduated with a first prize in organ performance at the Paris Conservatoire (organ class of Rolande Falcinelli
).
French composer Olivier Messiaen
wrote about him : «Louis Thiry is an extraordinary organist. An accomplished virtuose, an-allround musician, with unequalled memory and skill : he may be classed among the heroes of music (he has given several fine performances of my most difficult organ works -in particular my “Messe de la Pentecôte
”). All those who have heard and all those who will hear Louis Thiry can but admire him.»
He has taken part in many festivals all over the world, including Lille Besançon, Festival estival de Paris
, Haarlem
, the Messiaen Festival in Moscow
, Venice
, Palermo
, Madrid, Vienna, Geneva, Düsseldorf, Koln, Karlsruhe, Luxembourg, Brussels, Antwerp, London
, Helsinki, Copenhagen, Salzbourg, Oslo, Cambridge
, Noumea
(Nouvelle Calédonie), Taipeh (Republic of China
).
James Thomas
, conductor of the Cambridge
Choral Society and Director of music of the Sted Cathedral is one of his former students.
Louis Thiry has recorded the complete organ works of Olivier Messiaen
in 1972 at St. Pierre Cathedral
in Genève(Grand Prix du Disque
de l'Académie Charles Cros
), the Well Tempered Clavier (1972 at the Église Réformée d’Auteuil
, 1975, and The Art of Fugue
by Johann Sebastian Bach
(1993) at Saint Thomas Church (Strasbourg)
.
He is titular organist of the famous Lefebvre organ at the Chapel of the "Charles Nicole" Hospital in Rouen
, as well as Professor of organ at the Regional Conservatoire in Rouen
. In addition, he was honored with the Chevalier de l’Ordre national du Mérite
.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
organist
Organist
An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ. An organist may play solo organ works, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumental soloists...
, composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
and pedagogue.
Thiry studied at the Nancy Conservatoire, where he received a first prize in organ at the Nancy Conservatory (organ class of Jeanne Demessieux
Jeanne Demessieux
Jeanne Marie-Madeleine Demessieux , was a French organist, pianist, composer, and pedagogue.-Biography:...
) in 1952, followed by studies with André Marchal
André Marchal
André Marchal was a French organist and organ teacher. He was one of the great initiators of the twentieth-century organ revival in France.Marchal was born blind...
at Institut National des Jeunes Aveugles
Institut National des Jeunes Aveugles
Institut National des Jeunes Aveugles, , in Paris, was the first special school for blind students in the world, and served as a model for many subsequent schools for blind students.-History:The INJA was created in 1784 by Valentin Haüy.It was not until the late 18th century that society began to...
in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. In 1958, Thiry graduated with a first prize in organ performance at the Paris Conservatoire (organ class of Rolande Falcinelli
Rolande Falcinelli
Rolande Falcinelli was a French organist, pianist, composer, and pedagogue.-Biography:Rolande Falcinelli entered the Paris Conservatory in 1932, where her teachers were noted pianist and pedagogue Isidor Philipp and Abel Estyle , Marcel Samuel-Rousseau , Simone Plé Caussade , Henri Büsser , and...
).
French composer Olivier Messiaen
Olivier Messiaen
Olivier Messiaen was a French composer, organist and ornithologist, one of the major composers of the 20th century. His music is rhythmically complex ; harmonically and melodically it is based on modes of limited transposition, which he abstracted from his early compositions and improvisations...
wrote about him : «Louis Thiry is an extraordinary organist. An accomplished virtuose, an-allround musician, with unequalled memory and skill : he may be classed among the heroes of music (he has given several fine performances of my most difficult organ works -in particular my “Messe de la Pentecôte
Messe de la Pentecôte
Messe de la Pentecôte is an organ mass composed by Olivier Messiaen in 1949–50. According to the composer, it is based on twenty years of improvising at Église de la Sainte-Trinité, where Messiaen was organist since 1931....
”). All those who have heard and all those who will hear Louis Thiry can but admire him.»
He has taken part in many festivals all over the world, including Lille Besançon, Festival estival de Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, Haarlem
Haarlem
Haarlem is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland, the northern half of Holland, which at one time was the most powerful of the seven provinces of the Dutch Republic...
, the Messiaen Festival in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
, Palermo
Palermo
Palermo is a city in Southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Province of Palermo. The city is noted for its history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,700 years old...
, Madrid, Vienna, Geneva, Düsseldorf, Koln, Karlsruhe, Luxembourg, Brussels, Antwerp, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, Helsinki, Copenhagen, Salzbourg, Oslo, Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
, Noumea
Nouméa
Nouméa is the capital city of the French territory of New Caledonia. It is situated on a peninsula in the south of New Caledonia's main island, Grande Terre, and is home to the majority of the island's European, Polynesian , Indonesian, and Vietnamese populations, as well as many Melanesians,...
(Nouvelle Calédonie), Taipeh (Republic of China
Republic of China
The Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan , is a unitary sovereign state located in East Asia. Originally based in mainland China, the Republic of China currently governs the island of Taiwan , which forms over 99% of its current territory, as well as Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu and other minor...
).
James Thomas
James Thomas
James Thomas is the name of:* James Thomas , served as the 23rd Governor of the state of Maryland* James Thomas , civil engineer who was Director of Public Works in Western Australia, 1876–1884* James Thomas , American professional basketball player* James Thomas, 1st Viscount Cilcennin...
, conductor of the Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
Choral Society and Director of music of the Sted Cathedral is one of his former students.
Louis Thiry has recorded the complete organ works of Olivier Messiaen
Olivier Messiaen
Olivier Messiaen was a French composer, organist and ornithologist, one of the major composers of the 20th century. His music is rhythmically complex ; harmonically and melodically it is based on modes of limited transposition, which he abstracted from his early compositions and improvisations...
in 1972 at St. Pierre Cathedral
St. Pierre Cathedral
The St. Pierre Cathedral is a cathedral in Geneva, Switzerland, today belonging to the Swiss Reformed Church. It was begun under Arducius de Faucigny, the prince-bishop of the Diocese of Geneva, in the 12th century, and includes an eclectic mix of styles. It is best known as the adopted home church...
in Genève(Grand Prix du Disque
Grand Prix du Disque
The Grand Prix du Disque is the premier French award for musical recordings. The award was inaugurated by l'Académie Charles Cros in 1948 and offers prizes in various categories. The categories vary from year to year, and multiple awards are often made in any one category in the same year...
de l'Académie Charles Cros
L'Académie Charles Cros
The Académie Charles-Cros, is an organization in France that acts as an intermediary between government cultural policy makers and professionals in music and the recording industry....
), the Well Tempered Clavier (1972 at the Église Réformée d’Auteuil
Auteuil
Auteuil may refer to:* Auteuil-Neuilly-Passy, an area of Paris* Auteuil, Quebec, a borough of Laval, Quebec, CanadaAuteuil is the name of several communes in France:* Auteuil, Oise* Auteuil, YvelinesAuteuil is also a surname:...
, 1975, and The Art of Fugue
The Art of Fugue
The Art of Fugue , BWV 1080, is an incomplete work by Johann Sebastian Bach . It was most likely started at the beginning of the 1740s, if not earlier. The first known surviving version, which contained 12 fugues and 2 canons, was copied by the composer in 1745...
by Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque period and brought it to its ultimate maturity...
(1993) at Saint Thomas Church (Strasbourg)
Saint Thomas Church (Strasbourg)
The Saint-Thomas Church is a historical building in Strasbourg, eastern France. It is the main Protestant church of the city since its Cathedral became Catholic again after the annexation of the town by France in 1681...
.
He is titular organist of the famous Lefebvre organ at the Chapel of the "Charles Nicole" Hospital in Rouen
Rouen
Rouen , in northern France on the River Seine, is the capital of the Haute-Normandie region and the historic capital city of Normandy. Once one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe , it was the seat of the Exchequer of Normandy in the Middle Ages...
, as well as Professor of organ at the Regional Conservatoire in Rouen
Rouen
Rouen , in northern France on the River Seine, is the capital of the Haute-Normandie region and the historic capital city of Normandy. Once one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe , it was the seat of the Exchequer of Normandy in the Middle Ages...
. In addition, he was honored with the Chevalier de l’Ordre national du Mérite
Ordre National du Mérite
The Ordre national du Mérite is an Order of State awarded by the President of the French Republic. It was founded on 3 December 1963 by President Charles de Gaulle...
.