BIOGRAPHY
Stéphane Mottoul – Organist and Conductor
Stéphane Mottoul is a renowned improviser and leading organist, celebrated for his virtuosity, musical sensitivity, and poetic approach to the organ.
He studied at the Staatliche Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst Stuttgart and the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse Paris with distinguished teachers such as Ludger Lohmann (organ), Pierre Pincemaille, Thierry Escaich, László Fassang (improvisation), as well as Jean‑François Zygel and Yves Henry (harmony, counterpoint, fugue). He completed his training with a Master’s degree in Church Music at the Musikhochschule Freiburg and is a Fellow of the Royal College of Organists (UK).
Alongside his career as an organist, Stéphane also dedicates himself to orchestral conducting, studying at the Zurich University of the Arts (ZHDK) with Iwan Wassilievski, in Munich with Hansjörg Albrecht, and in Belgium under the guidance of Guy van Waas.
Recognised for his inventive use of registrations and refined technique (Music Web International, 2018), he has won several international prizes, including the Hubert Schoonbroodt Prize for promising young organists, as well as at the International Organ Competition Dudelange (Luxembourg, 2015), where he received the First Prize and Audience Prize for improvisation, and the Third Prize for interpretation.
He performs across Europe and North America as a soloist, chamber musician, and with orchestras. His repertoire is broad and eclectic, spanning from early Baroque to the 21st century. Stéphane explores the organ in all its dimensions: improvisation for silent films, works with orchestra (Sturm und Klang, Century 21st, Luzerner Symphonieorchester), and on historic and contemporary instruments.
In 2017, he released his first CD on the Aeolus label, featuring the complete organ works of Maurice Duruflé, which received international acclaim.
In October 2020, Stéphane Mottoul was appointed Hof- and Stiftsorganist at the Hofkirche St. Leodegar in Lucerne, Switzerland, where he highlights the church’s monumental organ. Since his appointment, he has led several major projects: the complete organ works of J.S. Bach in 14 concerts (2022), the grand cycles of the Romantic repertoire (2023), and the complete works of Louis Vierne (2024). He also develops his work as a conductor through the Musik am Hof label and concert series, leading the FestivalOrchestra Hofkirche Lucerne.
In 2025, his double CD Lamento e Trionfo (Aeolus), featuring works by Franz Liszt and Richard Wagner, recorded on the Hofkirche organ, was released. The recording was widely praised for its virtuosity, poetic depth, and dramatic vision, received five stars from Orgelnieuws, and was selected among the top organ recordings of the year by Fono Forum.
"A sovereign virtuosity combined with a poetic sensitivity of great subtlety.”
Orgelnieuws, 2018
★★★★★ “Stéphane Mottoul demonstrates supreme artistry and perfect command of the instrument.” Orgelnieuws, 2026
“An inventive and refined use of organ registrations.”
MusicWeb International UK, 2018
★★★★★ “An exceptional artistic and sonic achievement.”
Fono Forum, 2025