Kuhn Organ Builders Ltd, 2023
Transformation
www.orgelbau.ch/ope=114830
V/P/73
Switzerland, Valais
Abbaye
Merging the worlds - into the 21st century
The beautiful thing about organ building is that good instruments ideally outlive several generations. Over time, however, the tastes and demands of performers and listeners change. Music evolves, and interpretations require ever more sophisticated organ technology. At some point, however, the technical requirements and capabilities of an older instrument are no longer able to meet the new demands.
From an organ builder's point of view, the challenge is often to find a balance between these two periods, so that, after the overhaul, the historic instrument in itself is still convincing as an overall concept in terms of both technical aspects and sound.
This was precisely the challenge we faced in the basilica of the Monastery of St-Maurice. The main organ with its 66 speaking stops, built in our workshop in 1950, was to be thoroughly cleaned and subjected to a technical overhaul, in particular the Barker machine. The next task at hand was to add additional colours to the historical stop list by constructing a new solo organ and then to connect the 14-stop chancel organ to the main organ. This further necessitated the construction of two new 5-manual consoles, one permanently installed in the gallery and a portable console in the nave.
This challenging project has produced fascinating results - the new solo organ merges wonderfully with the existing specification, complementing it with new tonal nuances, from the 32' register and the new reed stops to the mutation stops (Tièrce, Quinte, Septième, Neuvième). The technical opportunities provided by the new consoles combined with the modern capture system have successfully and impressively merged to master the balancing act between the two worlds!
Translation: RS 2024