Baltic Sounds: the Renaissance Organ in Visby
In November 2023, I travelled to northern Sweden to study the famous baroque organ at Övertorneå Church and begin a new research project about northern German baroque organ repertoire. The second chapter of this project has taken me to the beautiful town of Visby on the Swedish island of Gotland in the Baltic Sea. Here I have explored organ music from the Baltic area composed by members of the Praetorius family – as preserved in the Visby Organ Tablature Book – and composers active in Gdańsk. The selected repertoire was recorded at Visby Cathedral on Friday, March 21st 2025. Here follows an in-depth study, enriched by the recordings made during this historically informed performance project. Gotland has a rich history and cultural heritage. Populated since prehistoric times, its largest town Visby became one of the most important commercial centers during the Hanseatic League period, with an established commercial route to many important towns in the Baltic area including Tallinn, Ri...
