George Bernard Shaw used to say the only things worth hearing on a pipe organ were Bach and Wagner. There’s no Wagner here but the spirit of arranging works form other media for the “King of Instruments” dates back to... Bach himself! (It’s been suggested that even the famous Toccata and Fugue in D minor was original a violin solo!)

The symphonic rock music of the 1960s and 1970s aspired to great things and often drew upon classical tropes, particularly those suggesting the gravitas of J.S. Bach, sometimes using direct Bach quote, while at others, as in Penny Lane by The Beatles, suggesting the sound of the Baroque masters.

In these arrangements, the connection between Bach and Rock is underlined by a direct interweaving of rock music with quotations from Johann Sebastian Bach, with the result that the music flows together in a patchwork of baroque organ, Bach and symphonic rock: “STAIRWAY to BACH – Rock classics with a hint of Bach”.

Organist Sven-Ingvart Mikkelsen is one of the most versatile musicians on the Danish music scene, renowned for his surprising and frequently unconventional programmes. Sven-Ingvart is a graduate of the music conservatories in Esbjerg and Copenhagen and is Professor and Head of Department for Organ and Church Music at The Royal Danish Academy of Music. Sven-Ingvart performs extensively throughout Europe, North and South America and Asia.

Featured on this delightful genre-blending programme is the glorious Marcussen organ in the Concert Hall of The Royal Danish Academy of Music.