Biography
Harpsichordist, conductor and composer Jörn Boysen was born in Lübeck, Germany, in 1976. After his studies at the Musikhochschule Lübeck he went to the Netherlands where he studied with Tini Mathot and Ton Koopman at the Royal Conservatory in The Hague. As founder and director of Musica Poetica, guest conductor, soloist or continuo player, he regularly performs in Germany, the Netherlands and France.
Boysen is a also a much sought-after teacher. He is affiliated with the Utrecht Conservatoire (Netherlands) as an accompanist and professor of Historical Keyboard Instruments.
He was invited to conduct or play in European festivals as the Festival Mitte Europa, Göttinger Händel Festspiele, Delft Chamber Music Festival, Itinéraire Baroque and the Utrecht Festival Oude Muziek. Boysen worked with Alina Ibragimova, Lisa Ferschtman and regularly records and performs with Antoinette Lohmann (Furor Musicus).
Critics describe his harpsichord playing as „… affective…, dynamic…“ and „… of délicatesse…“.
Boysen conducted opera proproductions in the Netherlands and France. As artistic director of the concert organisation Musica Antica, he was responsible for early music programming in The Hague between 2011 and 2023.
“[Boysen’s completion of Bach’s St Mark Passion] proved to be holistic, stylistically consistent and emotionally convincing. Not only [his] profound knowledge of baroque music contributed to this, but also his unconditional talent, and I am only too enthusiastic about this experience.”
Boysen composed various orchestral, chamber and vocal works and music for harpsichord. In 2011 he completed the first version of Bach’s St Mark Passion from 1731. He composed all missing recitatives, turba-choirs and arias. Boysen was the first to consistently follow historical procedures in the composition process. The press wrote about this completion: “Finally a convincing alternative to all the other reconstructions. It is even a serious alternative to Bach’s own St John and St Matthew Passions.” In the spring of 2022, he presented the completion of the second version from 1744, which Bach had expanded by two arias.
Boysen’s works have been commissioned and performed by Ton Koopman, Nederlands Bach Society (NL), Musica Poetica (NL), Baroque Chamber Orchestra of Colorado (USA), Pratum Integrum (RU), soloists of the Berlin Philharmonics (D), the Residentie Orchestra in The Hague (NL) and La Risonanza (I) amongst others.