Edward George Power Biggs (March 29, 1906 – March 10, 1977) was a British-born American concert organist and recording artist.

Biography

Biggs was born in

Westcliff-on-Sea Westcliff-on-Sea (often abbreviated to Westcliff) is an inner city area of the city of Southend-on-Sea, in the City of Southend-on-Sea, in the ceremonial county of Essex, England. It is on the north shore of the lower Thames Estuary, about 34 m ...

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and Gr ...

, England; a year later, the family moved to the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the largest and second-most populous island of England. Referred to as 'The Island' by residents, the Isl ...

. Biggs was trained in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

at the

Royal Academy of Music The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is the oldest conservatoire in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the first Duke ...

, where he studied with G. D. Cunningham. Biggs immigrated to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...

in 1930. In 1932, he took up a post at Christ Church in

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most populous city in the state, behind Boston, ...

, the community where he lived for the rest of his life. Biggs did much to bring the classical

pipe organ The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air (called ''wind'') through the organ pipes selected from a keyboard. Because each pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ''ranks' ...

back to prominence, and was in the forefront of the mid-20th-century resurgence of interest in the organ music of pre- Romantic composers. On his first concert tour of Europe, in 1954, Biggs performed and recorded works of

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the ''Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard w ...

, Sweelinck,

Dieterich Buxtehude Dieterich Buxtehude (; ; born Diderik Hansen Buxtehude; c. 1637 – 9 May 1707) was a Danish organist and composer of the Baroque period, whose works are typical of the North German organ school. As a composer who worked in various vocal a ...

, and Pachelbel on historic organs associated with those composers. Thereafter, he believed that such music should ideally be performed on instruments representative of that period and that organ music of that epoch should be played by using (as closely as possible) the styles and registrations of that era. Thus, he gave significant impetus to the American revival of organ building in the style of European Baroque instruments, seen especially in the increasing popularity of tracker organs—analogous to Europe's '' Orgelbewegung''. Among other instruments, Biggs championed G. Donald Harrison's

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

-style unenclosed, unencased instrument with 24 stops and electric action (produced by

Aeolian-Skinner Æolian-Skinner Organ Company, Inc. of Boston, Massachusetts was an American builder of a large number of pipe organs from its inception as the Skinner Organ Company in 1901 until its closure in 1972. Key figures were Ernest M. Skinner (1866– ...

in 1937 and installed in

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher l ...

Busch-Reisinger Museum The Harvard Art Museums are part of Harvard University and comprise three museums: the Fogg Museum (established in 1895), the Busch-Reisinger Museum (established in 1903), and the Arthur M. Sackler Museum (established in 1985), and four research ...

, Cambridge, Massachusetts) and the three-manual Flentrop tracker organ subsequently installed there in 1958. Many of his CBS radio broadcasts and Columbia recordings were made in the museum. Another remarkable instrument used by Biggs was the

John Challis John Spurley Challis (16 August 1942 – 19 September 2021) was an English actor. He had an extensive theatre and television career but is best known for portraying Terrance Aubrey "Boycie" Boyce in the long-running BBC Television sitcom ''Only ...

pedal

harpsichord A harpsichord ( it, clavicembalo; french: clavecin; german: Cembalo; es, clavecín; pt, cravo; nl, klavecimbel; pl, klawesyn) is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. This activates a row of levers that turn a trigger mechanism ...

; Biggs made recordings of the music of J. S. Bach and

Scott Joplin Scott Joplin ( 1868 – April 1, 1917) was an American composer and pianist. Because of the fame achieved for his ragtime compositions, he was dubbed the "King of Ragtime." During his career, he wrote over 40 original ragtime pieces, one ra ...

on this instrument. Biggs' critics of the time included rival concert organist

Virgil Fox Virgil Keel Fox (May 3, 1912 in Princeton, Illinois – October 25, 1980 in Palm Beach, Florida) was an American organist, known especially for his years as organist at Riverside Church in New York City, from 1946 to 1965, and his flamboyant "Heavy ...

, who was known for a more flamboyant and colorful style of performance. Fox decried Biggs' insistence on historical accuracy, claiming that it was "relegating the organ to a museum piece". Artistic rivalries aside, many observers agree that Biggs "should be given great credit for his innovative ideas as far as the musical material he recorded, and for making the organs he recorded even more famous."Richard Torrence, ''Virgil Fox: The Dish'', Circles International (2005) Despite different approaches, both artists enjoyed hugely successful careers and Biggs rose to the top of his profession. In addition to concerts and recording, Biggs taught at the

Longy School of Music Longy School of Music of Bard College is a private music school in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1915 as the Longy School of Music, it was one of the four independent degree-granting music schools in the Boston region along with the New En ...

, at various times in his career and edited a large body of organ music. Biggs was elected a fellow of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, ...

in 1950. For his contribution to the recording industry, Biggs has a star on California's

Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a historic landmark which consists of more than 2,700 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, Califo ...

at 6522 Hollywood Boulevard. He was one of the artists honored to celebrate the

New York Philharmonic The New York Philharmonic, officially the Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc., globally known as New York Philharmonic Orchestra (NYPO) or New York Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra, is a symphony orchestra based in New York City. It is ...

's 125th birthday celebrations in December 1967.

Selected discography

Biggs recorded extensively for the

Columbia Masterworks Records Columbia Masterworks was a record label started in 1924 by Columbia Records. In 1980, it was separated from the Columbia label and renamed CBS Masterworks. In 1990, it was revived as Sony Classical after its sale to the Sony Corporation. Histor ...

and

RCA Victor RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also ...

labels for more than three decades. Between 1942 and 1958, he also hosted a weekly radio program of organ music (carried throughout the United States on the

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

Radio Network) that introduced audiences to the pipe organ and its literature. He was represented by Mercury Music in the 1950s. * ''Works for Organ: Essential Classics'' (1961) * ''Bach: Organ Favorites'' recorded on the Flentrop Organ in the Busch-Reisinger Museum of Harvard University, MS 6261 (1961) * ''The Golden Age of the Organ'', Columbia Masterworks M2S 697 (A tribute to German organ builder

Arp Schnitger Arp Schnitger (2 July 164828 July 1719 (buried)) was an influential Northern German organ builder. Considered the most paramount manufacturer of his time, Schnitger built or rebuilt over 150 organs. He was primarily active in Northern Europe, es ...

), organs in Germany and the Netherlands (1963) * ''Bach Organ Favorites, Vol. 2'', Columbia Masterworks MS 6748 (1965) * ''Mozart: The Music for Solo Organ—Played on the "Mozart" organ at Haarlem'', Columbia Masterworks MS 6856 (1966) * ''Bach Organ Favorites, Vol. 3'', Columbia Masterworks MS 7108 (1968) * ''E. Power Biggs' Greatest Hits'', Columbia Masterworks MS 7269 (1969) * ''Bach Organ Favorites, Vol. 4'', Columbia Masterworks MS 7424 (1970) * ''Plays Bach in the Thomaskirche'', Columbia Masterworks M30648 (1971) * ''Bach Organ Favorites, Vol. 5'', Columbia Masterworks M 31424 (1972) * ''Bach Organ Favorites, Vol. 6'', Columbia Masterworks M 32791 (1974) * ''Bach: Four Great Toccatas & Fugues (Cathedral of Freiburg)'', Columbia Masterworks M 32933 (1974) * ''Bach Eight Little Preludes and Concerto in D after Vivaldi'', Columbia Masterworks M 33975 (1975) * ''Stars and Stripes Forever: Two Centuries of Heroic Music in America'', Columbia Masterworks 81507 (1976) * ''Variations on Popular Songs'', Columbia Masterworks AMS 6337 * ''A Festival of French Organ Music'', Columbia Masterworks MS 6307 * ''Buxtehude at Lüneburg'', Columbia Masterworks MS 6944 * ''The Organ in America'', Columbia Masterworks MS 6161 * ''Historic Organs of England'', Columbia Masterworks M 30445 * ''Historic Organs of France'', Columbia Masterworks MS 7438 * ''Historic Organs of Italy'', Columbia Masterworks MS 7379 * ''Historic Organs of Spain'', Columbia Masterworks MS 7109 * ''Historic Organs of Switzerland'', Columbia Masterworks MS 6855 * ''The Four Antiphonal Organs of the Cathedral of Freiburg'', Columbia Masterworks M 33514 (music of Handel, Purcell, Mozart, Buxtehude, et al.) * ''Bach on the Pedal Harpsichord'', Columbia Masterworks MS 6804 * ''Bach: The Six Trio Sonatas (Pedal Harpsichord)'', Columbia Masterworks M2S 764 * ''Holiday for Harpsichord'', Columbia Masterworks ML 6728 * ''A Mozart Organ Tour'', Columbia Masterworks K3L 231 * ''Bach: The Little Organ Book'', Columbia Masterworks KSL 227 * ''The Art of the Organ'', Columbia Masterworks KSL 219, recorded on twenty different European organs."E. Power Biggs" (PDF). The Diapason. 47 (2): 27. January 1, 1956. * ''Heroic Music for Organ, Brass, and Percussion'', Columbia Masterworks MS 6354 * ''Mozart: Festival Sonatas for Organ and Orchestra'', Columbia Masterworks MS 6857 * ''Haydn: The Three Organ Concertos'', Columbia Masterworks MS 6682 * ''The Magnificent Mr. Handel'', Columbia Masterworks M 30058 * ''The Organ in Sight and Sound'', Columbia Masterworks KS 7263 (A technical discussion of the organ and its history) * ''The Organ Concertos of Handel, Nos. 1–6'', Columbia Masterworks K2S 602 (with Sir

Adrian Boult Sir Adrian Cedric Boult, Order of the Companions of Honour, CH (; 8 April 1889 – 22 February 1983) was an English conductor. Brought up in a prosperous mercantile family, he followed musical studies in England and at Leipzig, Germany, wi ...

) * ''The Organ Concertos of Handel, Nos. 7–12'', Columbia Masterworks K2S 604 (with Sir Adrian Boult) * ''The Organ Concertos of Handel, Nos. 13–16'', Columbia Masterworks K2S 611 (with Sir Adrian Boult) * ''The Organ'', Columbia Masterworks DL 5288 * ''Bach at Zwolle'', Columbia Masterworks KS-6005 * ''Hindemith: Three Sonatas For Organ'', Columbia Masterworks MS 6234 * ''Famous Organs of Holland and North Germany'', Columbia Masterworks M31961 * ''Music of Jubilee'', Columbia Masterworks ML 6015 (Bach Sinfonias, with Zoltan Rozsnyai) * ''Soler: Six Concerti for Two Organs'', Columbia Masterworks ML 5608 (with Daniel Pinkham) * ''Plays Scott Joplin on the Pedal Harpsichord'', Columbia Masterworks M32495 * ''Heroic Music for Organ, Brass & Percussion'', Columbia Masterworks MS 6354 (with the New England Brass Ensemble) * ''Music for Organ and Brass: Canzonas of Gabrieli and Frescobaldi'', Columbia Masterworks MS 6117 * ''Music for Organ, Brass and Percussion: Music of Gigout, Dupré, Campra, Widor, Strauss, Purcell, Clarke, and Karg-Elert'', Columbia Masterworks M31193 (with the Columbia Brass and Percussion Ensemble, Maurice Peress, conductor) * ''Mendelssohn in St. Paul's Cathedral'', Columbia Masterworks MS 6087 * ''The Glory of Gabrieli'' Columbia Masterworks MS-7071 * ''What Child Is This?'' Traditional Christmas Music, Columbia Masterworks MS 7164 * ''Bach: Toccata in D Minor'', Bach's Toccata in D Minor recorded on 14 of Europe's finest organs, Columbia Masterworks ML 5032 * '' Rheinberger: Two Concertos For Organ and Orchestra'', Columbia Masterworks M32297

Awards and recognition

Grammy Award for Best Chamber Music Performance The Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by m ...

: * Vittorio Negri (conductor), E. Power Biggs & the Edward Tarr Ensemble, for ''Glory of Gabrieli Vol. II: Canzonas for Brass, Winds, Strings and Organ'' (

1969 This year is notable for Apollo 11's first landing on the moon. Events January * January 4 – The Government of Spain hands over Ifni to Morocco. * January 5 **Ariana Afghan Airlines Flight 701 crashes into a house on its approach to ...

)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Biggs, E. Power 1906 births 1977 deaths Alumni of the Royal Academy of Music American classical organists British male organists Bach musicians Culture of Boston English classical organists British emigrants to the United States Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Grammy Award winners Musicians from Cambridge, Massachusetts People from Westcliff-on-Sea Burials at Mount Auburn Cemetery 20th-century classical musicians 20th-century American composers 20th-century English musicians 20th-century conductors (music) 20th-century American male musicians Male classical organists