David Higgs (USA), Chair is one of America's leading concert organists. He is Chair of the Organ Department at the Eastman School of Music and performs extensively throughout the United States and abroad, and has inaugurated many important new instruments including St. Stephan's Cathedral, Vienna; the Meyerson Symphony Center, Dallas; St. Albans Cathedral, England; St. Canice's Cathedral, Kilkenny, Ireland; and the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola in New York City. His performances with numerous ensembles have included the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, the Orpheus Ensemble, Chanticleer, and the Empire Brass. Since his 1987 debut with the San Francisco Symphony, he has played many Christmas concerts to capacity audiences at San Francisco's Davies Symphony Hall, and in recent years, he has continued this tradition at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles.

Mr Higgs performs, teaches, and adjudicates at festivals and competitions throughout the world, including the International Organ Festivals and Competitions of Bremen, Germany; Calgary, Alberta; Dublin, Ireland; Odense, Denmark; Redlands and San Anselmo, California; and the Gilmore International Keyboard Festival. In England he has appeared several times at the Oundle International Festival and Organ Academy, the St. Albans International Festival and Competition, and the Cambridge Summer Festival. His performances for colleagues include national, regional and pedagogy conventions of the American Guild of Organists, as well as national conventions of the American Pipe Organ Builders Association, the American Institute of Organbuilders, the Westfield Center, and the Organ Historical Society; and in London, the Annual Congress of the Incorporated Association of Organists, and the International Congress of Organists.

A native of New York City, Mr Higgs held his first position as a church organist at age ten; as a teenager, he performed classical music as well as rock, gospel, and soul music. He earned the Bachelor and Master of Music degrees at the Manhattan School of Music, and the Performer's Certificate from the Eastman School of Music. His teachers have included Claire Coci, Peter Hurford, Russell Saunders, and Frederick Swann. In New York City, he was Director of Music and Organist at Park Avenue Christian Church, and later Associate Organist of the Riverside Church, where he also conducted the Riverside Choral Society. After moving to San Francisco in 1986, he became Director of Music and Organist at St. Mark's Episcopal Church in Berkeley, Director of Church Music Studies at the Church Divinity School of the Pacific in Berkeley, and Organist/Choir Director at Temple Emanu-El in San Francisco.

In addition to his significant performing career, Mr. Higgs has distinguished himself as a pedagogue. He was appointed to the faculty of the Manhattan School of Music upon graduation from that institution, and has been a member of the faculty of the Eastman School of Music since 1992. His students have won prizes in prestigious international competitions, and hold important positions in leading academic and religious institutions.

Mr Higgs has recorded for Delos International, Pro Organo, Arsis, Loft, and Gothic records.

Jon Laukvik (Norway) received his earliest music training as organist and pianist in his native town Oslo. He went on to study organ and harpsichord in Cologne and in Paris.

In 1980, he was named professor at the University of Music and Performing Arts Stuttgart. Since 2001 he is also professor at the Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo. Jon has toured throughout Europe, Japan, Korea, Israel and the United States. He is frequently in demand to serve on competition juries and to teach seminars and masterclasses. He is author of a highly successful organ tutor Historical Performance Practice in Organ Playing in two volumes, published by Carus-Verlag, Stuttgart.He has also edited the Handel Organ Concerti Op. 7 for Carus-Verlag (together with Werner Jacob). A complete edition of the organ works of Louis Vierne in 13 volumes (edited together with David Sanger) was published by Carus in February 2008. His compositions include works for solo organ, organ with other instruments and vocal and instrumental works.

Jacques Van Oortmerssen (Netherlands) Jacques van Oortmerssen (b1950) has been a prominent figure in the organ world for many years. Internationally renowned for his versatility and for his performances of the music of J.S. Bach, van Oortmerssen studied first in Rotterdam where he completed his soloist diplomas for both organ, as a student of André Verwoerd, and for piano as a student of Elly Salomé. Thereafter he undertook postgraduate study with Marie-Claire Alain in Paris.

He was awarded the Prix d'Excellence in 1976. He was appointed Professor of Organ at the Amsterdam Conservatory in 1979, at an exceptionally young age, and, in 1982, succeeded Gustav Leonhardt as Organiste-Titulaire of the Waalse Kerk in Amsterdam.

Jacques van Oortmerssen enjoys an international reputation as both soloist and pedagogue, in which context he is regularly invited to teach at universities and conservatories throughout the world. A former visiting Professor of Organ at the universities of Gothenburg and Helsinki, as well as at the Conservatory of Lyon, van Oortmerssen was nominated Guest Professor of Organ (Betts Fellow) at the University of Oxford during the academic year 1993/94. He regularly performs throughout Europe, North and South America, Africa, Japan, and South Korea, and is frequently invited to play at prestigious international festivals such as the BBC Proms, the City of London Festival, and the Prague Spring Festival. As a recording artist, van Oortmerssen has featured on more than 50 CD releases for prominent international labels, as well as broadcasting on both radio and television. He is presently under contract to Challenge Classics, for whom he is recording the complete organ works of J.S. Bach; a project which has generated significant international interest and recognition.

David Titterington (UK) was appointed Head of Organ Studies at the Royal Academy of Music in 1996, and since 1997 has been Visiting Professor of Organ at the Liszt Academy in Budapest. He was an Organ Scholar at Oxford University before continuing his organ studies in Paris with Marie-Claire Alain where he won a Premier Prix a l’unanimité avec les félicitations du Jury. 

He made his solo debut at the Royal Festival Hall in 1986 and his BBC Prom debut in 1990. He has performed in recitals and concertos at major festivals throughout the world, including the Bicentennial Festival of Sydney, and the International Festivals of Hong Kong, Israel, New Zealand, Schleswig Holstein, Tokyo, City of London etc. In the BBC Proms 2000, he gave the UK premiere of Hans Werner Henze’s 9th Symphony with the BBC Symphony Orchestra under Ingo Metzmacher; in 2004, he played in the 50th anniversary series at the Royal Festival Hall featuring a commissioned work Toccare Incandescent by Stephen Montague.

Titterington has collaborated with many distinguished soloists, orchestras and composers including Hakan Hardenberger, Christian Lindberg, John Wallace, Lahti Symphony Orchestra, Berlin Symphony Orchestra, La Camerata of Athens, BBc Symphony Orchestra and numerous leading composers have written for him, including Petr Eben (Job 1984), Diana Burrell and Lionel Rogg.

He was organ consultant to Pembroke College, Oxford (1995), the Chapel Royal at HM Tower of London (2000), St Catharine’s College, Cambridge (2002) and is currently organ consultant to both Sidney Sussex College Cambridge and Canterbury Cathedral. In 1999 he was awarded Fellowship (honoris causa) by the Royal College of Organists, and an Honorary Doctorate and Professorship by the State University of Budapest. Engagements in the season 2007-2008, include performances in London, Moscow, Hungary, Germany, Poland, Italy and Austria, and a jury member for the international organ competitions  of St Albans, Basso Friuli, and the Concours Ville de Paris.

In 2007, David was appointed as Artistic Director of the International Organ Festival at St Albans. The International Organ Festival was founded in 1963 by Peter Hurford. Among winners of the Interpretation Competition are the internationally renowned Gillian (now Dame Gillian) Weir (1964) and Thomas Trotter (1979).