Elbphilharmonie Sessions: Anna Lapwood – Vol. I

Anna Lapwood is often called the »Taylor Swift of classical music«, and for good reason: she has more than 500,000 followers on TikTok and her clips have millions of views. The young musician is now one of the world’s most famous faces behind the organ, and she is leading the way not only in popularising her instrument, but also classical music more generally.

The British organist has performed on all the great organs of the world, and as Associate Artist in London’s Royal Albert Hall, she regularly plays the legendary organ known as »The Voice of Jupiter«. So it is high time that she also paid the Elbphilharmonie organ a visit. In the first part of her »Elbphilharmonie Session«, she plays her own arrangement of Ludovico Einaudi’s minimal hit »Experience« from one of the Italian composer’s famous film soundtracks.

Born in High Wycombe near London, Anna Lapwood was 15 when she sat at an organ for the very first time – just a few years later she was already a star. Her remarkable global career began in Oxford, where she was the first woman to be awarded the prestigious organ scholarship in her college’s 560-year history. Today, she gives concerts around the world and is Associate Artist at London’s Royal Albert Hall. Her CD recordings receive rave reviews internationally and her social media channels have millions of followers.

The Cambridge-based musician has always championed the cause of women in the music world, especially in the field of the organ, which was the domain of male (church) musicians for far too long – and not just according to her. When a competition juror advised her to play like a man, the young musician started the popular hashtag #playitlikeagirl, which alongside the clips from nocturnal practice sessions in the Royal Albert Hall is among her most popular platforms. In 2016, Lapwood was appointed Director of Music at Pembroke College (Cambridge), where she also formed the successful Pembroke College Girls’ Choir a few years ago.

Other participants:

Thomas Cornelius Sound Engineer

Katrin Irretier Technical Project Management
Moritz Stahl, Tim Fricke, Nicolaj Feilrej,
Michael Vögler, Jakob Holfert Elbphilharmonie Technicians

Xaver Neumann Dircetor of Photography
Ciro Kavouras Steadicam Operator
Jannick Konstroffer Camera Assistant

Yassin Khateeb Chief Lighting Technician
Milan Paul Lighting Technician

André Neske Creative Producer
Cosmo Bandilla Editor

Julian Conrad, Pauline Hahn, Julika von Werder Production Management

Ludovico Einaudi is probably the most popular classical composer in the world at present. Some of his most successful tracks have even reached the pop charts, and his film music scores have made history. The Italian composer and pianist doesn’t really fit into any genre pigeonholes: »I don’t really like definitions, but ›minimalist‹ is a term that stands for elegance and openness. I’d rather be called a minimalist than anything else,« he explains. His music is indeed predominantly minimalist, and often meditative yet highly expressive. His direct emotional language reaches a broad audience. »Experience« was composed in 2014 as film music for the French tragi-comedy »Samba«. The composer prepared the popular piano arrangement himself, and Lapwood now presents it on the organ in new orchestral colours.  

The Grand Hall is the heart of the Elbphilharmonie. Its 2,100 seats are arranged in the vineyard style, with the stage in the middle, surrounded by terrace-like tiers of seating. Woven into the spectacular architecture of the hall, the enormous Elbphilharmonie organ stretches over several tiers – 15 x 15 metres, 25 tonnes and with 4,765 pipes measuring between eleven millimetres and ten metres.

Artists record exclusive music videos at the Elbphilharmonie and the Laeiszhalle for Elbphilharmonie Sessions – sometimes in unusual locations offstage. Discover the concert halls from the inside. Discover what they sound like.