LISBON

PORTUGAL

The City of Lisbon and the Organs

Lisbon’s organ heritage preserves the memory of a strong music tradition, established in the 16th century, which has known its greater increment in the 18th century with a policy of introducing organs in the city’s churches and throughout the country.

This heritage is known through its excellence and has undergone, in the last few years, several actions of conservation and restoration, aiming to retrieve its artistic, aesthetical and musical integrity and enabling the dissemination and development of a culture and of a musical practice closer to the community.

Amongst the main restoration actions, in the last years, we point out the ones undertaken on the historic organ of the Church of São Vicente de Fora, on the Basílica da Estrela, on the Igreja dos Mártires, on the Igreja de Santo António à Sé and on the Igreja do Sacramento in São Pedro de Alcântara.

The FESTIVAL INTERNACIONAL DE ÓRGÃO DE LISBOA has contributed enormously to disseminate this type of music. Created in 1998, by the Lisbon City Council and organised, since 1999, by Juventude Musical Portuguesa (Jeunesses Musicales - Portugal), the Festival’s main sponsor is the Lisbon City Council and its artistic directors are João Vaz and António Duarte. Each year the audience of the Festival (both Portuguese and foreign) becomes stronger and more supportive. The Festival is now a key factor in the preservation of historic organs in Lisbon, which are annually maintained, and also in the development of the interest for organ playing.

The fact that Lisbon is also a founding member of ECHO, has enabled us not only to articulate experiences and events with other member cities, but also to disseminate the organ cultural and historical heritage.

Lisbon City Council
Town Councillor for Culture

José Amaral Lopes