Jean-Baptiste Robin remembers his seventh birthday well: his father gave him a record to listen to, and he immediately fell in love with the extraordinary tones of the music that flowed out. The organ entered his life and, from that moment, would define his future. “This instrument holds a whole orchestra within it,” he states enthusiastically. Jean-Baptiste studied at the Conservatoire National de Musique et de Danse in Paris and won several prizes and competitions, notably one held at Poitiers’ Saint Pierre cathedral. He is driven by the desire to introduce organ music to a wider audience, outside of its traditional church context, and in particular to promote relatively unknown works by great organists such as Louis Marchand. He was awarded the Diapason d’Or in 2002 for his recordings of Marchand, an 18th-century composer, using period instruments. Geneviève Thiébault, director of record label Les Disques Triton, has always believed in Jean-Baptiste and has passionately backed all his undertakings. For this new project, Jean-Baptiste plans to do for famed 19th-century composer Félix Mendelssohn what he did for Louis Marchand: re-establish his musical genius by recording his complete works, including certain previously unpublished pieces (including a Fugue and an Allegro), played on original period organs used by Mendelssohn himself. When describing the organ, Jean-Baptiste evokes its “strength and tonal colors” but insists that words can never do justice to the emotional strength of the organ: only listening to it can bring the music alive. This extraordinary instrument is endowed with a range of fabulous tones unfamiliar to the layman. It is precisely this depth and intensity that our prizewinner aspires to introduce and share with the general public through his recordings and performances – and, perhaps one day, as a composer.

Achievements since winning the grant
2004: Jean-Baptiste completed his project and Triton released his three-CD effort, which met with critical acclaim.
2005: Jean-Baptiste recorded the complete organ works of François Couperin at Poitiers cathedral (released by Naxos) and then went on to give a series of recitals in Germany.
2006: creation of Emergences, a composition for choir and the great organ, in collaboration with Radio France Maîtrise (a choir school) and Frédéric Champion. Jean-Baptiste also recorded a CD as part of “La Route des Orgues” in Alsace, gave concerts at the international festivals of Toulouse-Les-Orgues, Poitiers (Les Concerts Allumés), Roquevaire and Bad Homburg, Germany. He created and went on a European tour (Nantes, Paris, Turin, Weimar and Athens) with a composition for two pianos and percussion by the Utopik ensemble.
2007: two tours in the US and several concerts in Europe are lined up, and a discography project with Hermès is underway.
Publication of the score "Trois éléments d'un songe" for organ alone  (editions Gerard Billaudot)
January 2008: tour of Japan.
3rd January, Nagoya: New Year’s concert at the NHK (Japanese national television)
6th January, Tokyo, Musashino Hall, 3pm, organ recital
11th January, Seitoku, Recital.