Composer, Münster Organist and Educator in Basel

Description

In 2026, the death of the Basel composer, educator, and Münster organist Benedict Jucker will be commemorated on its 150th anniversary. Benedict Jucker's extensive musical estate, his autobiographical notes, manuscripts, prints, and letters to him are kept in the University Library Basel. Additional important documents complement the picture of this unjustly forgotten composer. Due to his talent, Jucker received a scholarship from the GGG to study organ and composition in Darmstadt with the famous composition teacher Johann Chr. H. Rinck (1770–1846). After his return, he was appointed Münster organist in 1838; he also worked in Basel as a sought-after educator. Nicoleta Paraschivescu illuminates the life and work of Benedict Jucker using documents, music manuscripts, and sound examples, showing that his traces are still tangible in Basel's musical life today. Recently, she recorded Jucker's organ works on CD for the first time and published two volumes of his organ works. For the exhibition in the reading room of the UB (October–December 2026), she curated three display cases on Jucker's work and achievements. The lecture is a collaboration with the Music Academy Basel and is supported by the Swiss Musicological Society. Nicoleta Paraschivescu teaches organ at the Music Academy Basel and is an organist at the Theodorskirche in Basel. She earned her doctorate at Leiden University (NL) and was awarded the hibou Foundation Prize in 2016 for her research in the field of Partimento practice. In 2025, she received the "Premio Giovanni Paisiello Festival" in Taranto (IT). With the ensemble La Floridiana, she has recorded highly regarded world premiere recordings for the SONY (dhm) label. Concerts have taken her to renowned festivals in Europe. Her publications include books at Schwabe Verlag (Schola Cantorum Basiliensis Scripta 6, 2019) and University of Rochester Press, New York "The Partimenti of Giovanni Paisiello. Pedagogy and Practice" (2022) as well as articles in the Bach Yearbook and at Turchini Edizioni.

Highlights

• Themed evening with Nicoleta Paraschivescu
• 150th anniversary of the death of Benedict Jucker
• Exhibition at the University Library Basel

General Information

The lecture highlights the life and work of the Basel composer and Münster organist Benedict Jucker, whose estate is kept in the University Library Basel. Nicoleta Paraschivescu presents documents and sound examples and shows the significance of Jucker for Basel's musical life.

Location

Schönbeinstrasse 18/20, 4056 Basel, Switzerland

Hide Map

Loading map...

How to get there

Get Directions