Born in December 1997, Lucile Dollat is the winner of several international competitions, including the Grand Prix and the Audience Prize of the André Marchal – Gaston Litaize International Organ Competition (Paris, 2017), the Prix de la Ville d’Angers as well as a distinction for the best performance of a work in creation at the Concours International d’Orgue Jean-Louis Florentz – Académie des Beaux-Arts (Angers, 2017), as well as the Second Prize ex-æquo at the Concours International d’Orgue “Pierre de Manchicourt” de Béthune – Saint-Omer (2016).

Lucile has a concert career throughout Europe, notably in France, Spain, Germany, England and Italy. She is keen to program varied and surprising works from the 16th century to the present day. She willingly joins forces with various instrumentalists, actors and dancers to reveal new facets of the organ. This is how she performs both as a soloist and with other formations: she has notably played with the Ensemble Intercontemporain at the Philharmonie de Paris, the Orchestre de Chambre de Paris, the Madrigal de Paris, the Chœur de Chambre d’Île-de-France…

In 2016, she received an Organ Prize and an Organ Improvisation Prize at the Conservatoire Saint-Maur-des-Fossés (classes of Éric Lebrun and Pierre Pincemaille) with the highest distinction. She continued at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris in organ with Olivier Latry, Michel Bouvard, in improvisation with Thierry Escaich and Laszlo Fassang, and in writing with Fabien Waksman and Jean-Baptiste Courtois. In June 2018, she obtained her Diplôme National Supérieur de Musicien Professionnel in organ with the highest distinction as well as a Harmony Prize. In June 2019 Lucile obtains a Prix de Contrepoint in 2019 and then the Master’s degree in organ with highest honors in June 2020.

Lucile is titular of the Cavaillé-Coll organ of the church Notre-Dame de la Gare (Paris XIIIe), of the historical organ of the church Notre-Dame des Vertus (Aubervilliers), and substitute of the Abbey symphonic great organ of the church Saint-Vincent de Paul (Clichy-La-Garenne). Lucile is supported by the Mécénat Musical Société Générale and by the Fondation de France.

Fanny Cousseau graduated from the Conservatoire à rayonnement régional (CRR) of Paris and the Conservatoire à rayonnement départemental (CRD) of Saint-Maur-des-Fossés in organ, piano and accompaniment.
She then joined the organ class of the Conservatoire national supérieur de musique et de danse (CNSMD) in Lyon and studied at the Universität für musik und darstellende kunst Wien (MDW) in Austria.
During her studies, she benefited from the teaching of renowned organists such as Éric Lebrun, Christophe Mantoux, Jeremy Joseph and François Espinasse.

In 2019, she won two prizes at the Olivier Messiaen International Organ Competition, including the prize for the best interpretation of Messiaen’s works.
A sought-after musician, Fanny Cousseau regularly performs as a soloist, with choir or with orchestra in various prestigious venues such as the Saint Eustache church in Paris, the Lyon Auditorium, the Algerian Consulate in Tlemcen or the Jesuitenkirche in Austria.
Very attached to vocal music, she co-founded the duo Aloysia in 2015 with the coloratura soprano Géraldine Casey.

Fanny Cousseau is organist at the Temple de Port Royal in Paris.

Born in 1996 in Stuttgart, Sören Gieseler began his organ and piano studies in 2004. In 2012, he began studies at the Musikhochschule Stuttgart in the school’s pre-college program, continued with church music studies in 2014, and is now completing his masters.
Taking advantage the school’s many instructors, he has studied literature and improvisation with Prof. Jürgen Essl, Prof. Jörg Halubek, Prof. Helmut Deutsch, David Franke, Tobias Wittmann, as well as piano with Maria Sofianska.
He is regular attendee of masterclasses, where he has additionally benefitted from lessons with Daniel Roth, Juan de la Rubia, Luca Scandali, Jeremy Joseph, among others.

In 2019 he won the first prize in the 7th International Joseph Gabler Organ Competition.
In addition to his work as organist and choir director, he maintains an active concert career that has taken him to France, Italy, and Spain.

His musical education begins at the age of 11.  In 2016 he graduated from the Parma Conservatory, in the class of  Mario Verdicchio, with a master degree “cum laude” and the jury’s unanimous honors.
At the age of 13 he was appointed co-titular organist of the Basilica magistrale di S. Maria della Steccata in Parma, introduced by the titular organist Ugo Leoni.

In 2016, Gabriele Agrimonti was admitted at Paris Conservatory (Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et Danse de Paris) where he is currently studying improvisation and applied composition theory under the guidance of renowned teachers such as Thierry Escaich, Laszló Fassang, Thomas Ospital, Thomas Lacôte, Yves Henri, Olivier Trachier…

Moreover, his participation in numerous master-classes allowed him to receive precious advice from famous organists: Olivier Latry, Jean Guillou, Yanka Hékimova, Baptiste-Florian Marle-Ouvrard, Henri-Franck Beaupérin…

In 2017, he won the Grand-Prix d’improvisation at the international improvisation competition Marchal-Litaize in Paris ; in 2018 he was amongst the finalists at the Haarlem Competition (Netherlands). In 2019 he is the first Italian to win the First Prize (Tournemire Prize) at St Albans’ Improvisation competition (UK) ; he also is awarded the First Prize at the Boëllmann-Gigout Competition in Strasbourg.

Gabriele Agrimonti is enrolling in to a prolific international concertist career all over Europe.

His repertoire is reaching from the Renaissance period to contemporary music, a large part of this performance being dedicated to improvisation.

He is also cooperating with other arts’ categories such as cinema or dancing.

Described by Gramophone magazine as “A brilliant and sensitive musician, achieving greatness through his calm demeanour”, Simon JOHNSON has been the Organist of St Paul’s Cathedral for 12 years.  During this time he has performed for Her Majesty the Queen, the Dalaï-Lama, numerous Prime Ministers and Archbishops, and at all the state occasions that have taken place at St Paul’s during his tenure.

He studied the organ with Anne Page and Marie Claire-Alain and held prestigious scholarships at Rochester, Norwich and St Paul’s Cathedrals.  Recitals have taken him to many of the great venues in the USA and Europe, including a Royal Festival Hall debut in 2017.  Forthcoming work includes two solo tours of the USA, appearances at the International Festivals of Chartres and Berlin, and at the Westminster Abbey Summer Organ Festival.

As a Director, Simon JOHNSON has played an important role in the Cathedral’s ongoing partnerships with leading orchestras in London, conducting many significant works from the repertoire by Bach, Handel, Mozart, Bruckner, Saint-Saëns, Strauss, Gershwin, Poulenc, Duruflé and Messiaen.  Previously he enjoyed a distinguished tenure as Director of St Albans Abbey Girls’ Choir, leading them in several highly-acclaimed recordings and tours.

Simon’s advice and analysis is sought worldwide: in 2018 he was a keynote speaker at the Pontificium Consilium de Cultura at the Vatican, and he is on the Academic Board of The Royal College of Organists, for whom he is also an examiner.

Simon JOHNSON has collaborated with various organisations including NASA and the International Space Station (a sell-out performance of Holst’s The Planets, 2018), the LSO, the RPO, and The Sixteen. He has recorded for Decca and Hyperion, been published by OUP and Peters, and worked on the Oscar-winning soundtrack for The Grand Budapest Hotel.

Born in 1980, Jean-Philippe MERCKAERT began his musical studies in Mons, Belgium. He graduated from the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique in Paris where he studied with Olivier Latry and Michel Bouvard, and earned the first prize in organ. He also obtained his Master’s degree in classical composition at the Royal Conservatory of Mons.

He has won prizes at several international organ competitions, including the second prizes in Freiberg (2007) and Bruges (2009).

In 2003, Merckaert took a year’s sabbatical to become the resident organist at the Sapporo Concert Hall KITARA in Japan. Presently living in Tokyo, he appears regularly in concerts as soloist or with orchestras all over Japan. From 2011 to 2014, he was organist at the Tokorozawa Civic Cultural Center MUSE, and currently at the Nasunogahara Harmony Hall.

A native of the Charente, Thomas PELLERIN studied the organ with Olivier Vernet, Jean-Luc Étienne, Éric Lebrun and Johann Vexo, and also studied the harpsichord with Françoise Marmin in Angers. He completed his training at the C.N.S.M.D. in Lyon, brilliantly gaining two Master’s degrees in organ and continuo, studying under François Espinasse, Liesbeth Schlumberger and Yves Rechsteiner.

He is grand prize winner of the Jean-Sébastien Bach competition in Saint-Pierre-les-Nemours (2017) and he has also won the international Renaissance organ competition in Saint-Julien-du-Sault (2013), the Joseph-Bossard competition in Bellelay (Switzerland, 2013) and the Tremplin d’Orgue of Bolbec (2013).

He initiated the Italian Renaissance organ construction project in Saint Cyhard church in Pranzac (Charente) and is founder and artistic director of the Festival “Au gré des Arts”, whose first edition was held in 2011.

He has appeared as soloist in many prestigious venues and festivals (Festival de La Chaise-Dieu, Toulouse les Orgues, Festival de Lanvellec, etc.). Thomas Pellerin appears regularly as a continuo player in several ensembles (La Fenice, The Furious Arts, Artemandoline).

In 2013, he participated in the premiere of Gabriel Marghieri’s work “Mainte nuit sans repos” with the composer and the actor Francis Perrin. Thomas Pellerin holds the Certificat d’Aptitude in organ teaching and a Master’s degree in pedagogy. After teaching organ and harpsichord at Roanne Conservatoire, he has been teaching organ at the Conservatoire à Rayonnement Régional in Angers since 2016.

Thomas Pellerin is Organiste Titulaire of the Dangeville/Cavaillé-Coll/Beuchet organ of Saint Maurice Cathedral in Angers since February 2018.

Born in Bonheiden (Belgium), Benjamin-Joseph STEENS studied musicology at the Catholic University of Leuven and at the University of the Sorbonne Paris-IV, where he earned a Master’s degree in 1994. At the same time, the extensive musical formation that he underwent at the Lemmens Institute (Leuven) and at the Conservatory of Orleans led him to the Higher National Conservatory of Music and Dance of Paris, where his studies were rewarded with several first prizes and diplomas of higher formation in organ (under Michel Bouvard and Olivier Latry), harpsichord (under Pierre Hantai then Olivier Baumont) and basso continuo. In addition, while there, he procured the “Certificat d’Aptitude” for Organ (department of pedagogy, 2004).

His attraction to antique keyboards was enriched by his contact with Jos van Immerseel, with whom he improved at the Antwerp Conservatory. Since that time, he has played more and more clavichord, becoming one of the few contemporary keyboardists to play this instrument in recital and to use it in chamber music (notably with Jacques-Antoine Bresh, traverso).

His natural curiosity for all repertories leads him also to take an interest in the music of the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries and to collaborate with composers in preparing creations such as the Ricercar for organ, by Bert van Herck, at the Saint Remi Basilica of Rheims on June 11, 2006.

Titular of the Cattiaux great organ in the Saint Remi Basilica of Rheims, he is at the same time the instrument’s curator and also responsible for the Bernard Aubertin organ in Vertus (The Marne), Benjamin-Joseph Steens appears regularly in Europe (Festival de Flandres, Toulouse-les-Orgues, Flâneries Musicales de Reims…) for recitals, chamber music concerts or orchestral productions. His performances are regularly recorded for radio or television. He teaches organ, harpsichord and basso continuo at the National Conservatory of Region of Music and Dance in Rheims and at the conservatory in Levallois (near Paris); his clavichord classes at the Sorbonne University are part of a special Master program dedicated to Early Music.

His discography includes several CDs made ​​for the Label Epr-classic. In 2007 appears the CD / DVD Bach – Buxtehude recorded on the great organs of Saint-Martin de Vertus and Saint-Remi in Rheims. His clavichord recordings: the Goldberg Variations by JS Bach (2010) and Bach and Sons, sonatas for flute and obbligato keyboard of the Bach family with Jacques-Antoine Bresch playing Traverso (2011) won considerable public success, were acclaimed by international critics and especially rewarded with 5 Diapasons in France.

Augustin BELLIOT followed musical studies at the National Conservatory of Nantes Region, attending in particular the Violin and Bassoon classes.

Then he was admitted to the Writing classes of the National Superior Conservatory of Music and Dance in Paris, where he obtained the prizes for Harmony, Counterpoint, Twentieth century Writing and Polyphonies of the Renaissance. These studies in Paris allowed him to benefit from contact with musical personalities such as Marc-André Dalbavie, Thierry Escaich and Olivier Trachier. He took the opportunity to study in the same establishment other disciplines, such as Orchestration, Tuning and Temperaments, Treaties of early music, Ethnomusicology, Organology and Iconography. The Diploma in Higher Writing Training is awarded to him with the mention Very Good.

Organist and harmonium player who started out as a self-taught artist, he then decided to train with Frédéric Desenclos from 2004 to 2007. He performed in chamber groups as well as in recital, and regularly heard his art harmonium Couty & Richard (1870) restored by him.

Augustin Belliot is a composer. He started composing at a young age, especially at the start of pieces for liturgical use linked to his organist activity. He is the author of vocal and instrumental works for diverse numbers, ranging from the soloist to the symphonic orchestra with choirs. His music reflects his tastes for symbolism in general, ancient counterpoint, and work on special intervals.

His desire to share music with as many people as possible has led him in recent years to give several cycles of conferences accessible to all, by willingly bringing together different artistic disciplines. This desire was also materialized by the creation of the association “Les Orgues dans nos Campagnes” which he chairs in the department of Cher.

Augustin Belliot is professor of Musical Culture and Composition at the Bourges Departmental Conservatory.