Bologna was a principal center of Baroque music in Italy. The musical organization had been officially instituted by Pope Eugenius IV in 1436; the first regularly paid instrumentalists were added in the late sixteenth century, and in the seventeenth century San Petronio was renowned for its sacred instrumental and choral music, with its two great organs, completed in 1476 and 1596, both still in remarkably original condition; the library remains a rich archival repository. Three successive maestri di capella marked the great age of music at San Petronio: Maurizio Cazzati (1657-71), Giovanni Paolo Colonna (1674-95) and Giacomo Antonio Perti (1696-1756).
Liuwe Tamminga at the organ by Lorenzo da Prato (1471-1475) in the San Petronio Basilica in Bologna:
Andrea Gabrieli (c. 1510-1586) "Io mi son giovinetta" [I'm a young lady] for 4 voices, intabulation Liuwe Tamminga,
organ in cornu Epistola by Lorenzo da Prato (1471-1475)
Marco Antonio Cavazzoni (ca. 1485 - ca. 1569)
1. Ricercare primo
2. Ricercare secondo
Girolamo Frescobaldi (1583-1643)
Fiori Musicali di diverse compositioni,
toccate, Kyrie, canzoni, capricci, recercari (Venezia 1635)
Liuwe Tamminga all'organo
Lorenzo da Prato (1471-1475)/
G. Battista Faccheti (1531)
di San Petronio (Bologna)
Girolamo Frescobaldi (1583-1643)
Il secondo libro di toccate
Toccata quarta per l'Elevazione
Liuwe Tamminga all'organo
Lorenzo da Prato (1471-1475)/
G. Battista Faccheti (1531)
di San Petronio (Bologna)
Principale contrabasso 24'
Raddoppio (dal do#)
Principale 12' (raddoppiato dal do#1, triplicato dal dal do#3)
Flauto in VIII
Flauto in XII (G. Cipri, 1563)
Ottava (raddoppiata dal sib2)
XII
XV
XIX
XXVI
XXIX
Mean Tone temperament A470 Hz. spring chest
Temperamento: mesotonico
Corista: la3: 470 hz.
Somiere a vento
Girolamo Frescobaldi (1583-1643)
Toccata per l'Organo col contrabasso overo Pedale
organist: Liuwe Tamminga
Organ in Cornu Epistolae by Lorenzo Da Prato (1471-75)
and Giovanni Battista Facchetti (1531), San Petronio (Bologna)
Giovanni de Macque (1548/1550 - 1614) Consonanze Stravaganti
Liuwe Tamminga at the Baldassarre Malamini 1596
organ of San Petronio in Bologna
Giovanni de Macque (1548/1550 - 1614) Capriccio sopra Re Fa Mi Sol
Liuwe Tamminga at the Baldassarre Malamini (1596)
organ of San Petronio in Bologna
Giovanni Gabrieli (c. 1553-1612) Sacrae Symphoniae (1597)
Canzon noni toni a 8
Jan Willem Jansen and Liuwe Tamminga at the
Lorenzo da Prato and Baldassarre Malamini organ
of the Basilica di San Petronio in Bologna
Giovanni Gabrieli (c. 1553-1612)
Sacrae Symphoniae (1597) Canzon septimi toni a 8
Jan Willem Jansen and Liuwe Tamminga at the
San Petronio organs in Bologna
Bruce Dickey, cornet Charles Toet, trombone Concerto Palatino
Canzon Primo Tono, in otto parti per due organi
[Canzon First Tone, in eight parts for two organs]
Luigi Ferdinando Tagliavini, organ in cornu Epistola [right-hand side]
by Lorenzo da Prato (1471-1475)
Liuwe Tamminga, organ in cornu Evangelii [left-hand side] by
Baldassare Malamini (1596)
Girolamo Frescobaldi (1583-1643)
Canzon prima
Canzon quarta
Liuwe Tamminga, organo
La Canzona I è eseguita sull'organo Malamini (1596, in Cornu Evangelii), mentre la Canzona IV sul Da Prato (1471-1475, in Cornu Epistolae).
The Canzona I is played on the Malamini organ (1596, in Cornu Evangelii). The Canzona IV, instead, on the ancient Lorenzo da Prato organ (Cornu Episstolae 1471-1475)
Girolamo Frescobaldi (1583-1643) Fantasie e Canzoni Fantasia duodecima sopra quattro
Liuwe Tamminga, organo in Cornu Epistolae Lorenzo da Prato, San Petronio, Bologna
DISPOSITION organ in cornu Evangelii [left-hand side] by
Baldassare Malamini (1596)
in the San Petronio Basilica in Bologna
DISPOSITION OF THE ORGAN
Manual C-c3 (with short octave divided keys Eb/D#, G#/Ab, eb/d#)
Principale I 16' (doubled from b)
Principale II 16' (doubled from f)
Ottava 8'
XV
XIX
XXII
XXVI
XXIX
Flauto in VIII
Flauto in XII
Voce Umana (from f, V. Mazzetti 1812)
A two-storey palatine chapel. The tribune was reserved for the King and the royal family, the side gallery for the ladies of the Court, and the ground floor for the rest of the attendees. Built and decorated from 1699 to 1710 under the direction of Jules Hardouin-Mansart and Robert de Cotte. On the vault The Eternal father in his glory - Antoine Coypel, The Resurrection of the Christ - Charles de Lafosse
The organ was built by François-Henri Cliquot, inaugurated by François Couperin on Easter Day 1711; it is located over the altar, contrary to practice, to face the King.
Versailles Chapel has a splendid historic replica by Boisseau & Cattiau in the original 1710 Robert de Cotte case. The layout is very heavily based on the 1734 Louis-Alexandre Clicquot organ at St-Jacques-St-Christophe- at Houdan. Grand Orgue and Positif sharing the same windchest & no postif de dos case.) This is the 4th organ. The revolution vandalised the original; Cavaillé-Coll devised a 2 manaual in 1871-3 and Gonzales made a replica in 1937, now in Laroque. The Versailles organ was rebuilt in 1936 by Gonzalez and rebuilt again in 1995 by Boisseau et Cattiaux inspired by the Alexandre Clicquot organ in Houdan church.
JEAN –FRANÇOIS DANDRIEU: Dialogue sur le Magnificat; Tierce en taille du 8eme ton. LOUIS MARCHAND: Récit et Dialogue sur le Te Deum –Michel Chapuis (1710 Clicquot-1995 Boisseau et Cattiaux/Royal Chapel, Versailles, France) Plenum Vox CD-004
BELOW: Pastor de Lasala plays the historic 1710 Clicquot organ in the Royal Chapel of Versailles during a visit in July 1996. Works by Guilain, Dandrieu and Clerambault.
1711 erbaut von Robert Clicquot - nur noch das Gehäuse ist erhalten
1736 Erweiterung durch Louis-Alexandre Clicquot
1762 Umbau durch François-Henri Clicquot
1817 Reparatur durch Dallery
1873 durchgreifender Umbau durch Aristide Cavaillé-Coll (F, Paris)
seit 1933 war das Instrument unspielbar
1995 Rekonstruktion der Cliquot-Orgel (Zustand 1762, Gehäuse 1711) durch Jean-Loup Boisseau und Bertrand Cattiaux
+ Tremblant fort und Tremblant doux für das gesamte Werk
I. Grand Orgue 26 (16)
Bourdon 16
Montre 8
Flûte 8 D
Bourdon 8
Prestant 4
Grande Tierce 3 1/5
Nazard 2 2/3
Doublette 2
Quarte 2
Tierce 1 3/5
Cornet V 8
Fourniture IV
Cymbale IV
Trompette 8
Voix humaine 8
Clairon 4
In its present configuration, the Wanamaker Organ has 28,482 pipes in 461 ranks.[2] The organ console consists of six manuals with an array of stops and controls that command the organ. The organ's String Division forms the largest single organ chamber in the world. The instrument features eighty-eight ranks of string pipes built by the W.W. Kimball Company of Chicago.[2] The organ is famed for its orchestra-like sound, coming from pipes that are voiced softer than usual, allowing an unusually rich build-up because of the massing of pipe-tone families. The artistic obligation entailed by the creation of this instrument has always been honored, with two curators employed in its constant and scrupulous care. The organ, with its regular program of concerts and recitals, was maintained by Wanamaker's throughout the chain's history, even as the company's financial fortunes waxed and waned. This level of dedication was maintained when corporate parentage shifted from the Wanamaker family to Carter-Hawley-Hale Stores to Woodward & Lothrop to Lord & Taylor to Macy's.
LISTEN TO THE ORGAN:
Music played in the above program
SIR ARTHUR SULLIVAN: H.M.S. Pinafore Overture
ROBERT HEBBLE: Homage to Fritz Kreisler (Londonderry Air)
LEONARD BERNSTEIN: Candide Overture
MARCEL DUPRÉ: The World Awaiting the Savior, from Symphonie-Passion, Op. 23
Music played in the above program
SIR EDWARD ELGAR: Empire March
ELGAR: Nimrod, and Finale, from Enigma Variations, Op. 86
Music played in the above program
LOUIS VIERNE: Toccata, from Pieces de fantasie, Op. 53
MARCEL DUPRÉ: Nativité-Crucifixion-Résurrection, from Symphonie-Passion, Op. 23
The Wanamaker Grand Court Organ, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the largest operational[1] pipe organ in the world, located within a spacious 7-story court at Macys Center City (formerly Wanamaker's department store). The largest organ is the Boardwalk Hall Auditorium Organ (which is barely functional). The Wanamaker organ is played twice a day, Monday through Saturday, and more frequently during the Christmas season. The organ is also featured at several special concerts held throughout the year, including events featuring the Friends of the Wanamaker Organ Festival Chorus and Brass Ensemble.
History
The Wanamaker Organ was originally built by the Los Angeles Art Organ Company, successors to the Murray M. Harris Organ Co., for the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair. It was designed to be the largest organ in the world, an imitation of a full-size orchestra with particularly complete resources of full organ tone including mixtures. In addition to its console, the organ was originally equipped with an automatic player that used punched rolls of paper, according to the Los Angeles Times of 1904.[3] It was designed by renowned organ theorist and architect George Ashdown Audsley.
Wild cost overruns plagued the project, with the result that Harris was ousted from his own company. With capital from stockholder Eben Smith, it was reorganized as the Los Angeles Art Organ Company, and finished at a cost of $105,000, $40,000 over budget. The Fair began (in late April, 1904) before the organ was fully installed in its temporary home, Festival Hall. It still was not entirely finished in September of that year, when Alexandre Guilmant, one of the most famous organists of the day, presented 40 very well-attended recitals on the organ.
Following the Fair, the organ was intended for permanent installation by the Kansas City Convention Hall. Indeed, the original console had a prominent "K C" on its music rack. This venture failed, bankrupting the L. A. Art Organ company after the Fair closed. There was a plan to exhibit the organ at Coney Island in New York City, but nothing came of this. The organ remained in its original home, the 1904 World's Fair.
The organ languished in storage at the Handlan warehouse in St. Louis until 1909, when it was bought by John Wanamaker for his new department store at 13th and Market Streets in Center City, Philadelphia. It took thirteen freight cars to move it to its new home, and two years for installation. It was first played on June 6, 1911, at the exact moment when British King George V was crowned. It was also featured later that year when U.S. President William Howard Taft dedicated the store.
Despite its then-unprecedented size (more than 10,000 pipes), it was judged inadequate to fill the seven-story Grand Court in which it was located, so Wanamaker's opened a private organ factory in the store attic, which was charged with enlarging the organ. The first project to enlarge the organ was the addition of 8,000 pipes between 1911 and 1917.
Wanamaker's sponsored many historic after-business-hours concerts on the Wanamaker Organ. The first, in 1919, featured Leopold Stokowski and the Philadelphia Orchestra with organist Charles M. Courboin.[2] Every sales counter and fixture was removed for the free after-hours event, which attracted an audience of 15,000 from across the United States. Subsequently more of these "Musicians' Assemblies" were held, as were private recitals. For these events Wanamaker's opened a Concert Bureau under Alexander Russell and brought to America master organists Marcel Dupré and Louis Vierne, Nadia Boulanger, Marco Enrico Bossi, Alfred Hollins, and several others. (This agency, which worked in partnership with Canadian Bernard R. LaBerge, evolved into the Karen McFarlane Concert Agency of the present day.)
During his first recital on the organ, Dupré was so impressed with the instrument that he was inspired to improvise a musical depiction of the life of Jesus Christ. This was later published as his Symphonie-Passion.
In 1924, a new project to enlarge the organ began. Marcel Dupré and Charles M. Courboin were asked by Rodman Wanamaker, John Wanamaker's son, to "Work together to draw up a plan for the instrument. Use everything you have ever dreamed about." They were told there was no limit to the budget.
This project resulted in, among other things, the celebrated String Division, which occupies the largest organ chamber ever constructed, 67 feet long, 26 feet deep, and 16 feet high. During this project, the organ's current console was constructed in Wanamaker's private in-house pipe-organ factory, with six manuals and several hundred controls.
By 1930, when work on expanding the organ finally stopped, the organ had 28,482 pipes, and, if Rodman Wanamaker had not died in 1928, the organ would probably be even bigger.[4]
Plans were made for, among others, a Stentor division, a section of high-pressure diapasons and reeds. It was to be installed on the fifth floor, above the String Division, and would be playable from the sixth manual. However, it was never funded, and the sixth manual is now used to couple other divisions or play various solo voices from other divisions that are duplexed to this keyboard. [5]
Rodman Wanamaker was not interested in mere size, however, but in artistic organbuilding with finely crafted pipes and chests using the best materials and careful artisic consideration. The Wanamaker Organ console, built in the store organ shop by William Boone Fleming, is a work of art in its own right with heavy, durable construction, an ingenious layout of its pneumatic stop action and many unique features and conveniences.
Wanamaker also had a collection of 60 rare stringed instruments, the Wanamaker Cappella, that were used in conjunction with the store organs in Philadelphia and New York, and went on tour. They were dispersed after his death.
Following the sale of the store to the May Department Stores Co., in 1995, the Wanamaker's name was removed from the store (first as Wanamaker-Hecht's) in favor of Hecht's, but the organ and its concerts were retained. During the local re-naming of the Hecht's stores to Strawbridge's, the historic Wanamaker Store briefly took the name of its longtime rival Strawbridge's. The May Company began a complete restoration of the organ in 1997, as part of the store's final May Co. conversion into a Lord & Taylor. At that time the store area was reduced to three floors and additional panes of glass were put around the Grand Court on floors four and five, greatly enhancing the reverberation of the room.
The Philadelphia Orchestra returned to the Grand Court on September 27, 2008 for the premiere performance of Joseph Jongen's Symphonie Concertante (1926) on the organ for which it was written. The ticketed event, featuring soloist Peter Richard Conte, also includes the Bach/Stokowski arrangement of the Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, Marcel Dupré's Cortege and Litany for Organ and Orchestra, and the world premiere of a Fanfare by Howard Shore, composer for the Lord of the Rings films. Shore visited the store in May 2008 to meet with Peter Richard Conte and hear the Wanamaker Organ. The Philadelphia Orchestra Concert was co-sponsored by the Friends of the Wanamaker Organ and was a benefit for that organization.[6]
Architectural layout
A view of the string division.
The pipes are laid out across five floors, with the sections situated as follows:
* 2nd floor south - Main Pedal 32′, Lower Swell, Great, Percussions
* 3rd floor south - Main Pedal, Chorus, Upper Swell, Choir/Enclosed Great, Solo, Vox Humana Chorus
* 4th floor south - String
* 4th floor west - Orchestral (adjacent to String)
* 7th floor south - Major Chimes, Ethereal
* 7th floor north - Echo
The 32′ Wood Open, 32′ Diaphone, and 32′ Metal Diapason pipes run the length of a little more than 2 stories, beginning on the second floor.[2]
Sub Principal 32
Contra Gamba 16
Double Diapason 16
Sub Quint 10 2/3
Diapason Phonon 8
Diapason Major 8
First Diapason 8
Second Diapason 8
Third Diapason 8
Fourth Diapason 8
Gamba (2 ranks) 8
Major Tibia 8
Mezzo Tibia 8
Minor Tibia 8
Double Flute 8
Nazard Flute (2 ranks) 8
Octave 4
Mixture VIII
Harmonic Trumpet 8
Contra Bass 16
Violoncello 8
Viol 8
Viol 8
Viola 8
Quint Viol 5 1/3
Octave Viol 4
Violina 4
Tierce 3 1/5
Corroborating Mixture V
Viol Cornet IV
Solo
Double Open Diapason 16
Grand Viol 16
First Diapason 8
Second Diapason 8
Third Diapason 8
Violin Diapason 8
Viol 8
Viol 8
Harmonic Flute 8
Tierce Flute (2 ranks) 8
Chimney Flute 8
Clarabella 8
Gemshorn 8
Nazard Gamba (2 ranks) 8
Grand Gamba 8
Grand Gamba 8
Quintaphone 8
Quint Diapason 5 1/3
Octave 4
Harmonic Flute 4
Harmonic Tierce 3 1/5
Twelfth Harmonic 2 2/3
Piccolo Harmonic 2
Double Trumpet 16
Tuba 16
Trumpet 8
Soft Tuba 8
Cornopean 8
Ophicleide 8
Musette 8
Ophicleide 4
Soft Tuba 4
Grand Mixture VI
Mixture V
Mixture VI
Ethereal
Bourdon 16
First Open Diapason 8
Second Open Diapason 8
Clear Flute 8
Harmonic Flute 8
Double Flute 8
Quint Flute 8
Grand Gamba 8
Grand Gamba 8
Octavo 4
Harmonic Flute 4
Twelfth Harmonic 2 2/3
Harmonic Piccolo 2
Mixture IV
Tuba Profunda 16
Tuba Mirabilis 8
French Trumpet 8
Grand Clarinet 8
Post Horn 8
Tuba Clarion 4
Stentor
Not installed; used for playing any of the floating divisions.
Echo
(Floating)
Bourdon 16
Open Diapason 8
Violin Diapason 8
Stopped Diapason 8
Night Horn 8
Clarabella 8
Melodia 8
Orchestral Viol 8
Soft Viol 8
Soft Viol 8
Unda Maris (2 ranks) 8
Open Quint 5 1/3
Octave 4
Harmonic Flute 4
Mellow Flute 4
Cornet Mixture V
Mixture VI
Double Trumpet 16
Trumpet 8
Capped Oboe 8
Euphone 8
Vox Humana 8
Orchestral
(Floating)
Contra Quintadena 16
Duophone 8
Tibia 8
Covered Tibia 8
Concert Flute 8
Harmonic Flute 8
Mellow Flute 8
String Flute 8
Double Flute 8
Hollow Flute 8
Harmonic Flute 4
Orchestral Flute 4
Covered Flute 4
Octave 4
Harmonic Piccolo 2
Super Octave 2
English Horn 16
Bass Clarinet 16
Bass Saxophone 16
Bassoon 16
English Horn 8
Orchestral Clarinet 8
Orchestral Cromorne 8
Saxophone 8
Orchestral Bassoon 8
Bassett Horn 8
Oboe 8
Orchestral Oboe 8
Orchestral Trumpet 8
First French Horn 8
Second French Horn 8
Third French Horn 8
Kinura 8
Muted Cornet 8
Vox Humana Chorus
(Floating)
Vox Humana 16
First Vox Humana 8
Second Vox Humana 8
Third Vox Humana 8
Fourth Vox Humana 8
Fifth Vox Humana 8
Sixth Vox Humana 8
Seventh Vox Humana 8
String
(Floating)
Violone 16
First Contra Gamba 16
Second Contra Gamba 16
First Contra Viol 16
Second Contra Viol 16
First Viol 16
Second Viol 16
Violin Diapason 8
Gamba 8
Nazard Gamba (2 ranks) 8
Nazard Gamba (2 ranks) 8
First 'Cello 8
First 'Cello 8
First 'Cello 8
Second 'Cello 8
Second 'Cello 8
Second 'Cello 8
First Orchestral Violin 8
First Orchestral Violin 8
First Orchestral Violin 8
Second Orchestral Violin 8
Second Orchestral Violin 8
Second Orchestral Violin 8
Third Orchestral Violin 8
Third Orchestral Violin 8
Third Orchestral Violin 8
Fourth Orchestral Violin 8
Fourth Orchestral Violin 8
Fourth Orchestral Violin 8
Fifth Orchestral Violin 8
Fifth Orchestral Violin 8
Fifth Orchestral Violin 8
Sixth Orchestral Violin 8
Sixth Orchestral Violin 8
Sixth Orchestral Violin 8
First Muted Violin 8
First Muted Violin 8
First Muted Violin 8
Second Muted Violin 8
Second Muted Violin 8
Second Muted Violin 8
Third Muted Violin 8
Third Muted Violin 8
Third Muted Violin 8
Fourth Muted Violin 8
Fourth Muted Violin 8
Fourth Muted Violin 8
Fifth Muted Violin 8
Fifth Muted Violin 8
Fifth Muted Violin 8
Sixth Muted Violin 8
Sixth Muted Violin 8
Sixth Muted Violin 8
First Orchestral Violina 4
First Orchestral Violina 4
Second Orchestral Violina 4
Second Orchestral Violina 4
Quint Viol 5 1/3
Quint Viol 5 1/3
Tierce Viol 3 1/5
Tierce Viol 3 1/5
Nazard Violina 2 2/3
Nazard Violina 2 2/3
Super Violina 2
Super Violina 2
First Dulciana 8
First Dulciana 8
Second Dulciana 8
Second Dulciana 8
Third Dulciana 8
Third Dulciana 8
Fourth Dulciana 8
Fourth Dulciana 8
Fifth Dulciana 8
Fifth Dulciana 8
Sixth Dulciana 8
Sixth Dulciana 8
First Octave Dulciana 4
First Octave Dulciana 4
Second Octave Dulciana 4
Second Octave Dulciana 4
Dulciana Mutation V
Percussion
(Floating)
Major Chimes 37 tubular chimes, tenor C to c1
Minor Chimes 25 tubular chimes, G to G
Metalophone 49 metal bars, tenor C to C2
Celeste 49 metal bars, tenor C to c2, Mustel
Piano I (prepared for)
Piano II 88 notes
Harp I 49 metal bars, tenor C to c2
Harp II (prepared for)
Gongs 49 metal bars, tenor C to C2
Crescendo Cymbal
Cymbalstar (attachable accessory)
Main Pedal
Gravissima 64
Contra Diaphone 32
Diaphone 16
First Contra Open Diapason 32 Wood
Second Contra Open Diapason 32 Metal
First Open Diapason 16
Second Open Diapason 16
Third Open Diapason 16
Open Diapason 8
Contra Bourdon 32
Bourdon 16
Soft Bourdon 16
Octave Soft Bourdon 8
Open Flute 16
Soft Flute 8
Flute 4
Violone 16
Gamba 16
Dulciana 16
Soft Dulciana 8
Open Quint 10 2/3
Stopped Quint 10 2/3
Stentor 8
Octave 8
First Tibia 8
Second Tibia 8
First Tibia 4
Second Tibia 4
First 'Cello 8
Second 'Cello 8
Principal 4
Octave 4
Mixture VII
Mixture VIII
Mixture VIII
Grand Mutation X
Contra Bombarde 32
Bombarde 16
Bombarde 8
Trombone 16
Tuba 16
Euphonium 16
Contra Fagotto 16
Octave Fagotto 8
Tromba 8
Clarion 4
Carol Williams on the 1610 Compenius organ in Frederiksborg Castle, Denmark
Frederiksborg Slotskirke The Chapel of Frederiksborg Castle Esaias Compenius o. 1610
Frederiksborg Slotskirke
The Chapel of Frederiksborg Castle
Compenius-orglet / Compenius organ
Esaias Compenius o. 1610 / c. 1610
27 / II / P
Renovated 1988 by Mads Kjersgaard
The console
The stop-knobs are formed as small heads of silver with the abbreviated names of the registers engraved on the foreheads. The fool's head at the right of the upper row activates a special bagpipe effect.
Stop-knobs. The manuals.
Disposition
Overværk
Gross Principal 8'
Gross Gedact Flöite 8'
Klein PrinciPal 4'
GemsHorn 4'
NachtHorn 4'
PlockFlöite 4'
Gedact-Quint 3'
Kleine Flöite 2'
R.Rancket 16'
Tremulant*
Positiv
QuintaDehna 8'
GedactFlöite 4'
GemsHorn 2'
NaSatt 1 1/2'
Zimbel I
PrinciPal Cantus 4'**
BlockFlöite Cantus 4'**
KrumbHorn 8'
Klein Regal 4'
Tremulant*
Pedal
GedactFlöiten Bass 16'
GemsHorn Bass 8'
QuintaDehn Bass 8'
QuerFlöiten Bass 4'
NachtHorn Bass 2'
PaurFlöiten Bass 1'
Sordunen Bass 16'
Dolzian Bass 8'
Regal Bass 4'
Tremulant*
*)common canal tremulant for manuals; strong tremulant for pedals.
Stop names are abbreviated (using the upper case letters in the names as stated above: GP, GGF etc.)
manual compass: C, D, E, F, G, A-c'''.
pedal compass: C, D, E, F, G, A-d'.
treble compass: f-d'.
coupling locks the keys of the Positiv manual.
Bagpipe.
Bumblebee.
Drum (double pipe, 1693?).
mechanical action.
slider chests.
4 wedge-shaped bellows.
Temperering: middeltonestemning/meantone.
A princely house organ
The Compenius organ was built c. 1610 at the request of Heinrich Julius of Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel, a remarkable intellectual leader who was a pioneer in several areas including theatre management, newspaper publication and organ building.
The idea behind this unusual instrument was primarily to demonstrate how far the art of organ building had progressed, and how many beautiful, subtle sounds could be produced solely from wooden pipes. The duke had chosen one of the leading organ-builders of the time, Esaias Compenius, to carry out the task, and he summoned his court organist, the composer and musical theoretician of many talents, Michael Praetorius, to act as a consultant. After Heinrich Julius's death the instrument was given to his brother-in-law, the music-loving Danish king Christian IV.
Once a week - at a short "Thursday concert" - the façade
doors are opened so that the treasures can be admired.
One can see now that no expense has been saved: the
finest and most exquisite materials have been used, and
even the pedals are covered with genuine ivory.
Thus most tourists see the famous Compesius organ when
they visit Frederiksborg Castle: a closed chest, whose
magnificent decoration suggests that there are rare and
precious things inside. The wood-carvings are by Herman
van de Velde.
All the pipes (of which there are altogether 1001) are made of wood, even the tiniest, for which it would have been far easier to use metal. The principal pipes in the façade are also made of wood with their fronts thickly coated with ivory.
When the organ is played it is as though one is hearing a Renaissance orchestra from the time of Christian IV in the flesh. One really only misses the drums and triangles.
The instrument is often referred to as a "dance organ", but it would be more accurate to call it a "universal" organ; in fact it suits all music of the period, irrespective of whether it was intended for sacred or secular use.
Esaias Compenius
d. 1617 i Hillerød
The German Renaissance organ builder Esaias Compenius has by chance become associated with Denmark, since his most outstanding instrument, the expensive and ingenious house organ for Duke Heinrich Julius of Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel, has been here since 1617. It stands in the Chapel of Frederiksborg Castle (q.v.) and in most of the world is known as the "Compenius organ".
As an employee of Heinrich Julius, Esaias Compenius became a colleague of the composer, musician and musical theoretician Michael Praetorius and through this association contributed to Praetorius’s lexicon on musical instruments, De organographia, which was published in 1619, two years after the death of Compenius.
The Compenius organ’s importance for Danish organ building can hardly be overestimated. Generations of organ builders have admired and studied this masterpiece, and many interesting details in recent Danish organs show evidence of having being inspired by this treasure at Frederiksborg.
