The 2020 Bach Medal for Angela Hewitt

Angela Hewitt, recipient of the 2020 City of Leipzig Bach Medal – a tribute

Never since the Canadian Glenn Gould has there been an artist who has placed Bach interpretations on the modern concert piano at the centre of their work as much as Gould’s compatriot, Angela Hewitt. Born in 1958, the daughter of the organist of Ottawa Cathedral, she won the international Bach Piano Competition in Toronto in 1985 and later set standards with her award-winning recording of Bach’s entire keyboard works for Hyperion (1994–2006), which is a reference for every pianist of the younger generation.

A critic for BBC Music Magazine paid tribute to her recording of the Well-Tempered Clavier with the words: »Hewitt has set a new benchmark. Her touch is admirably clear and light ... and she is uniquely attuned to Bach’s supple, sprightly rhythms. A ›48‹ of exceptional grace and beauty. I know of no musician whose Bach playing on any instrument is of greater subtlety, beauty of tone, persuasiveness of judgement or instrumental command than Hewitt's is here«. For the Goldberg Early Music Magazine, Hewitt’s interpretation of the English Suits is »the finest set of English Suites on the piano«.

Indeed, Angela Hewitt awes critics and audiences alike with her clear, transparent, extremely cantabile yet rhythmic piano playing, her soft touch and her Bach interpretations which radiate from the inside out, are always natural, never contrived. With her cyclic performances of works such as the Well-Tempered Clavier or Bach’s Clavierübungen in virtually all the major concert halls in the world, Hewitt has greatly contributed to the fact that, the historically informed performance movement aside, the keyboard music of Johann Sebastian Bach is still part of the core repertoire of pianists – notably with her spectacular Bach World Tour, which from 2007 to 2008 took her to 25 countries in 14 months.

But Hewitt’s musical horizon ranges far beyond Bach. Around the globe she has performed works by Louis Couperin, Rameau, Beethoven, Chopin, Schumann, Fauré and Messiaen and has made dozens of recordings. She is a proven partner of numerous symphonic orchestras in the classical concerto repertoire.

In 2000 Hewitt received the title of Officer of the Order of Canada and in 2015 was made a Companion of the Order of Canada – the country’s highest honour. In 2006, the now London-based artist was made an Officer of the British Empire and in the same year was named Artist of the Year by the renowned British music magazine Gramophone.

Besides numerous other distinctions, Hewitt has received honorary doctorates from six Canadian universities and Open University in London. She has also been the artistic director of the Trasimeno Music Festival in Umbria since 2005. There and in master classes all over the world, she passes on her knowledge of and insights into Bach’s keyboard works to younger generations. Her lively lecture concerts, pre-concert talks and essays on Bach are legendary and much-loved.

For her many-sided and longstanding commitment to the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, her genuine impact as a Bach ambassador all over the world and her benchmark Bach interpretations on the concert grand piano, Angel Hewitt has been awarded the 2020 City of Leipzig Bach Medal. This makes her the first woman to receive this distinction, which has been awarded annually since 2003. Warmest congratulations, Angela Hewitt!

Burkhard Jung, Mayor of the City of Leipzig

and the Bach Medal jury members:
Prof. Dr. Ton Koopman – President of the Leipzig Bach Archive Foundation
Prof. Martin Kürschner – Former Rector of the University of Music and Theatre »Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy«
Maestro Andris Nelsons – Gewandhauskapellmeister
Prof. Gotthold Schwarz – Thomaskantor
Prof. Dr. Dr. h. c. Peter Wollny – Director of the Leipzig Bach Archive Foundation