A Widely Acclaimed Bach Authority of Today’s International Music Scene Makes His China Debut

• Winner of the Gramophone Award and the Bruges International Harpsichord Competition

Recognized as one of today’s foremost interpreters of Bach, French keyboard master Benjamin Alard will make his first visit to China, presenting two landmark concerts featuring Bach’s greatest masterpieces: The Well-Tempered Clavier (Book II)—often regarded as the “Bible of keyboard music”—and the Goldberg Variations, hailed as an “encyclopedia of polyphonic art.”

Alard possesses profound expertise in both harpsichord and organ performance. In 2004, he won First Prize at the Bruges International Harpsichord Competition, and his deeply insightful interpretations of Bach have earned him numerous prestigious honors, including the German Record Critics’ Award and the Diapason d’Or. In 2022, his commemorative recording of The Well-Tempered Clavier was awarded both “Best Bach Recording of the Year” and “Best Classical Album of the Year” by Gramophone magazine.

His musical journey began in Dieppe and Rouen, where he studied harpsichord and organ under Louis Thiry and François Ménissier. He later continued his studies in Paris with Élisabeth Joyé, and at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis in Basel, where he trained under leading early music specialists including Jörg-Andreas Bötticher, Jean-Claude Zehnder, and Andrea Marcon. Since 2005, he has served as organist at Saint-Louis Church in Paris, presenting seasonal recitals centered on Bach’s music.

As an active soloist and chamber musician on the international stage, Alard frequently performs across Europe, Japan, and the United States. He has collaborated with renowned ensembles such as the Mahler Chamber Orchestra and the Orchestre National de France, and has performed chamber music with artists including flutist Emmanuel Pahud and harpsichordist Élisabeth Joyé.

Since 2017, Alard has undertaken an ambitious recording project of Bach’s complete keyboard works for the Harmonia Mundi label, comprising 17 volumes. Volume III (À la française) received the German Record Critics’ Award; Volume VI (The Well-Tempered Clavier Anniversary Edition) won multiple international prizes; and Volume VIII was nominated for the Gramophone Award for Best Instrumental Recording in 2024. His China debut promises an authentic and profound musical dialogue with this devoted “pilgrim of Bach.”