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GLENN GOULD BACH FELLOW 2026-28

ELINA ALBACH

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Elina Albach began playing the harpsichord at the age of five, immersed from the outset in a family tradition rooted in Baroque and Church Music. This early exposure shaped a distinctive artistic voice - one that combines deep historical insight with bold, contemporary imagination. Today, she is internationally acclaimed as an award-winning harpsichordist and the founder and artistic director of CONTINUUM, an innovative ensemble redefining early music performances.

 

Educated at the Scholar Cantorum Basiliensis under Jirg-Andreas Botticher, Albach has conducted leading ensembles including the Vokalconsort Berlin and the Karajan Academy of the Berlin Philharmonic, and has held teaching positions in Dresden and Detmold. Her performances span major festivals and concert halls across four continents. A recipient of the prestigious #bebeethoven Fellowship, she has pioneered new approaches to repertoire, instrumentation, and concert design--positioning herself at the forefront of a vibrant, forward-thinking early music movement. 

Using live electronics and modern sound design to transform the harpsichord's traditional sound world, Elina's project will develop an intense modern sound experience - whilst also linking it to the Baroque practice of the Affektenlehre. In the process, the project aims to shed light on the solo repertoire of Johann Sebastian Bach and Elisabeth Jacquet de la Guerre. Inspired by Glenn Gould's view of the recording studio as creative medium, Elina intends to create a lasting artistic artefact that bridges the Baroque era and the present day.  

Elina will undertake the following Fellowship milestones:

April 2026: Fellowship begins

September 2026: first residency at City of Weimar

October 2026: Mid-year presentation before Monitoring Committee. 

April 2027: completion of the first part of the Fellow's Project. Presentation at Thuringer Bach Festival 2027.

September 2027: second residency at City of Weimar

October 2027: Mid-year presentation before Monitoring Committee

April 2028: Presentation of completed project at the 2028 Thuringer Bach Festival. 

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FELLOWSHIP MILESTONES 2026-2028

© 2026 Philip Loubser Foundation

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