Marco Enrico Bossi

Marco Enrico Bossi was an Italian organist, composer, improviser and pedagogue. Bossi was born in Salò, a town in the province of Brescia, Lombardy, into a family of musicians.

His father, Pietro, was organist at Salò Cathedral, which has a one-manual organ built by Fratelli Serassi from 1865 (opus 684), which was restored in 2000/2001. He had two brothers, Costante Adolfo Bossi and Pietro Bossi.

He received his musical training at the Liceo Musicale in Bologna and the Milan Conservatory, where his teachers included Francesco Sangalli (piano), Amilcare Ponchielli (composition) and Polibio Fumagalli (organ).

In 1881, Bossi became director of music and organist at Como Cathedral. Nine years later, he was appointed as professor of organ and harmony at Naples Conservatory. In addition, he held directorships at conservatories in Venice (1895-1901), Bologna (1902-1911) and Rome (1916-1923), where he established and implemented the standards of organ studies that are still used in Italy today. His notable pupils included Giulio Bas, Giacomo Benvenuti, Giorgio Federico Ghedini, and Gian Francesco Malipiero. Throughout his career, Bossi made numerous international organ recital tours, which brought him in contact with well-known colleagues such as César Franck, Marcel Dupré, Alexandre Guilmant, Joseph Bonnet, Camille Saint-Saëns, Charles M. Courboin, and Karl Straube.
Recording session with Bossi for the Welte-Philharmonic-Organ, 1912.

In November 1924, Bossi embarked on a recital tour to New York and Philadelphia, where he made important appearances at Wanamaker's department stores in New York and in Philadelphia, where he played the Wanamaker Organ, the world's largest pipe organ. Bossi died unexpectedly at sea while returning from the United States on February 20, 1925.

Compositions by Marco Enrico Bossi appear on

Organs of the Ballarat Goldfields

15 historic organs in the Ballarat region can be heard on this CD released to coincide with the 2005 festival. There is a fully illustrated 16 page booklet which surveys the organ builders, churches and their organs, the music, and the performers.

Composer

The Star of the Sea

A superb programme of Italian and French organ favourites designed to exploit all the resources of this justly famous Grandfather Fincham organ in St. Mary's Star-of-the-Sea, West Melbourne.

Composer

Historic Organs of the Barossa Valley, Volume 2

Volume 2 in this series of stunning performances by Christopher Dearnley and John Stiller on seven more of the historic church organs of the Barossa Valley.

Composer