François-Henri Jacques-Marie Robert Houbart (born 26 December 1952) is a French church and concert

organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ (music), organ. An organist may play organ repertoire, solo organ works, play with an musical ensemble, ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumentalist, instrumental ...

, improviser, composer of

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be #Relationship to other music traditions, distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical mu ...

, and

pedagogue Pedagogy (), most commonly understood as the approach to teaching, is the theory and practice of learning, and how this process influences, and is influenced by, the social, political, and psychological development of learners. Pedagogy, taken ...

. He is often considered one of France's finest organists.

Biography

Houbart was born in

Orléans Orléans (,"Orleans"
(US) and Loiret Loiret (; ) is a department in the Centre-Val de Loire region of north-central France. It takes its name from the river Loiret, which is contained wholly within the department. In 2019, Loiret had a population of 680,434.

department. He first took up piano lessons at the age of seven and organ at the age of eleven. He later received his musical education from Michel Chapuis, Suzanne Chaisemartin, Pierre Lantier,

Jean Guillou Jean Victor Arthur Guillou (18 April 1930 – 26 January 2019) was a French composer, organist, pianist, and pedagogue. Principal Organist at Saint Eustache in Paris, from 1963 to 2015, he was widely known as a composer of instrumental and voca ...

, and

Pierre Cochereau Pierre Eugène Charles Cochereau (9 July 1924 – 6 March 1984) was a French organist, improviser, composer, and pedagogue. Cochereau was titular organist of the cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris from 1955 to his death in 1984 and was responsibl ...

. He has been organiste titulaire of the grand organ at the

Église de la Madeleine The Church of Sainte-Marie-Madeleine (, ), or less formally, La Madeleine (), is a Catholic parish church on Place de la Madeleine in the 8th arrondissement of Paris. It was planned by Louis XV as the focal point of the new Rue Royal, leading t ...

, in Paris since 1979, succeeding Odile Pierre, and taught organ at the Orléans Academy of Music from 1980 to 2000 (succeeding

Marie-Claire Alain Marie-Claire Geneviève Alain-Gommier (10 August 1926 – 26 February 2013) was a French organist, scholar and teacher best known for her prolific recording career, with 260 recordings, making her the most-recorded classical organist in the worl ...

). He is an Officier of l'

Ordre des Arts et des Lettres The Order of Arts and Letters () is an order of France established on 2 May 1957 by the Minister of Culture. Its supplementary status to the was confirmed by President Charles de Gaulle in 1963. Its purpose is the recognition of significant ...

, and is also a recipient of the Médaille de Vermeil de la Ville de Paris. He is also an organ soloist with

Radio France Radio France () is the French national public radio broadcaster. Stations Radio France offers seven national networks: *France Inter — Radio France's "generalist media, generalist" station, featuring entertaining and informative talk mixed wi ...

. Houbart is a renowned improviser and has given over 1,300 concerts across three continents: Asia, North America, and Europe. Improvisation is a large factor in his recitals. Additionally, he has written two essays regarding the grand organ of

Orléans Cathedral Orléans Cathedral ( French: ''Basilique Cathédrale Sainte-Croix d'Orléans'') is a Roman Catholic cathedral located in the city of Orléans, France. The cathedral is the seat of the Bishop of Orléans. Built on the ruins of a Roman temple from ...

in his hometown. He was nominated for a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

for an album with the works of

Nadia Boulanger Juliette Nadia Boulanger (; 16 September 188722 October 1979) was a French music teacher, conductor and composer. She taught many of the leading composers and musicians of the 20th century, and also performed occasionally as a pianist and organis ...

that he participated in, recorded at La Madeleine; in January 2018.

References

1952 births French classical organists Living people Musicians from Orléans Officiers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres Knights of the Legion of Honour 21st-century French organists French male classical organists {{organist-stub