Guy Bovet
Musical Training
Guy Bovet, born on May 22, 1942, began his musical studies in piano with Jeanne Bovet in Bern, followed by organ studies with Marie Dufour in Lausanne, Pierre Segond in Geneva, and Marie-Claire Alain in Paris.
Awards and Honors
Since 1962, he has received numerous national and international awards and distinctions, including prizes in performance, composition, and recording. Additionally, he was awarded honorary citizenship of Dallas, Texas, and an honorary doctorate from the University of Neuchâtel. He was decorated twice by the Japanese government for his pedagogical work, and by the government of the Philippines in 2011 for his efforts in historic organ preservation and training young organists. He is also a recipient of the prestigious Neuchâtel Institute Prize.
Career as Organist and Educator
He was the titular organist of the Neuchâtel Collegiate Church from 1988 to 2009 and served over twenty years as a professor at the Academy of Music in Basel. He taught regular courses in improvisation at the "G.B. Martini" Conservatory in Bologna (Italy) and lectured on Spanish organ music at the University of Salamanca from 1979 to 1999. As a guest professor, he taught at numerous institutions including Berlin, Detmold, Lübeck, Hamburg, Vienna, Helsinki, Oslo, Copenhagen, Warsaw, Moscow, Dublin, London, Feldkirch, Marseille, Lyon, and Fribourg. He also held extended residencies at the University of Western Ontario (Canada) in 1970, University of Oregon (USA) from 1978 to 1980, Drake University (USA) in 1982, Southern Methodist University, Dallas (as Distinguished Visiting Professor in 1984), and University of Cincinnati in 1986.
Courses and Academies
He regularly teaches courses and at academies, including those in Haarlem (Netherlands), Warsaw (Poland), Salamanca (Spain), Arona and Pistoia (Italy), Greensboro (USA), Brussels (Belgium), New England Conservatory of Music (Boston), Swiss Organ Competition, the University of Lausanne, Neuchâtel’s University of the Third Age, and at numerous national conventions of the American Guild of Organists, the Royal Canadian College of Organists, and the Organ Historical Society (USA). He also participates in the annual academy for Spanish music in Gifu (Japan), multiple Latin American organ conferences in Oaxaca, Mexico, and at Oxford and Cambridge Universities, as well as at the Royal College of Organists in London.
Juries and Associations
Guy Bovet is a member of juries for numerous international competitions. He co-founded the Swiss Organ Competition and the International Academy at Romainmôtier. For twelve years, he presided over the Association of Romand Organists and currently chairs the Jean Tanner Foundation in Neuchâtel as well as the Music Society of that city. Additionally, he is the editor-in-chief of the Swiss magazine "La Tribune de l'Orgue," in which he has published around 2,000 articles on various organ-related topics. He is a board member of the Francophone Federation of Organ Friends and served on the committee of the Gesellschaft der Orgelfreunde (Germany) for several years.
Historic Organ Preservation
From the early days of his professional career, Guy Bovet has been dedicated to preserving and promoting historic organs. He was a member of the Working Group for the Preservation of Swiss Historic Organs, which was dissolved in 2009. He also conducted a major survey of colonial organs in Mexico and Brazil in collaboration with UNESCO and PRO HELVETIA. Together with his wife Marisa, he was instrumental in the rescue and restoration of the Alain family organ, a significant instrument in the history of early 20th-century organ music, now installed in the convent complex in Romainmôtier.
Expertise in Organ Restoration and Construction
An authority in the field of organ restoration and construction, Guy Bovet acts as an expert for projects worldwide, spanning Europe, the Americas, and the Far East.
Publications and Musical Editions
Guy Bovet is also active in music publishing: among other works, he has published pieces for two organs discovered at Einsiedeln Abbey, organ works by Spanish composer José Lidón, and pieces for and with organ by Neuchâtel composer Paul Mathey. In 2007, his "magnum opus" was published: the treatise and music of Francisco Correa de Arauxo (1584–1654), translated into French, German, English, and Japanese—a volume of approximately 500 pages (Ut Orpheus editions, Bologna).
Concert Career
His primary focus remains his prolific concert career, where he performs at a steady pace of 50 to 60 concerts per year across the world, in regions where the organ is celebrated: Europe, Asia, Australia, and the Americas.
Music Event Organization
An efficient and imaginative organizer, he presided over the Geneva Concerts Spirituels Society’s activities for 30 years and directed the Neuchâtel Collegiate Church concert society for 20 years, expanding its reputation beyond Swiss borders. He also served as artistic director of the Lahti Organ Festival in Finland for two years.
Repertoire and Historical Practices
His repertoire spans all periods and styles of music. During the 1960s and 1970s, he contributed significantly to disseminating historical performance practices on the organ and in chamber music, notably through numerous collaborations with violinist Chiara Banchini.
Compositional Works
His compositional work now includes over 250 opus numbers across all genres of music: symphonic music, concertos with orchestra, musical theater, opera, chamber music, songs, and solo instrumental pieces, with a particular focus on the organ. Most of his work, however, is dedicated to stage and film music. In this context, he has collaborated with directors and filmmakers such as Hudecek, Mentha, Wod, Lavelli, Karge, Langhoff, Soutter, Tanner, Goretta, Joris, and, notably, his childhood friend François Rochaix, who entrusted him with the composition for the opening performance of the Swiss National Exhibition Expo.02 on the Neuchâtel "Arteplage" and for the performance "Calvin, Geneva in Flames" in 2009. A comprehensive catalog of his works is in development in collaboration with the Public and University Library of Lausanne, which houses all his manuscripts.
Languages
Interested in languages, Guy Bovet speaks French, German (including Bernese dialect), Italian, English, Spanish, Dutch, Finnish, Russian, and Japanese.
