The large organ with 34 registers is located on the west gallery of the central dome hall. In the niches on both sides of the opposite choir arch there are two further galleries with organs, on the right above the Altar of the Descent from the Cross the Epistle organ with 16 registers, on the left above the Petrus altar the Gospel organ with eight registers. The positive and the shelf (both portable) are used in the choir . The association "Friends of the Muri Monastery Church", founded in 1992, organizes regular organ concerts. There is room for more musicians with their instruments on four galleries, so that the monastery church is particularly well suited for scenic oratorios .
In the first Romanesque monastery church there was probably a swallow's nest organ as early as the 12th century , but details about this organ have not survived. The first tradition comes from the year 1557, when master Balthasar Mygel built a new organ on behalf of Abbot Johann Christoph vom Grüth . Like an organ he built almost at the same time in Einsiedeln Abbey , it should have had 18 stops. The organ builder Peter Johann Rietsch dismantled the medieval swallow's nest organ in 1586 and relocated it to the epistle side of the rood screen in a new condition ; numerous parts were reused. In 1663 Father Jodocus Schnyder replaced Rietsch's organ with a new one. Organ maker Melchior von Zuben built another organ for the gospel page in 1697 .
Big organ
Big organ
Abbot Johann Jodok Singisen attached great importance to the musical design of the services. In 1619 he gave Thomas Schott the order for a new main organ to replace Mygel's organ. Since Schott carried out further orders in Saint-Ursanne and Rouffach at the same time , the organ in Muri could not be completed until 1630. The total costs including the artistic equipment amounted to 5,338 guilders . In 1662, Father Jodocus Schnyder and Bernhard Hüsser carried out the first renovation of the Great Organ. When the monastery church was converted into a baroque octagon , it was dismantled at the beginning of 1695 and reassembled in October 1696 on a newly built gallery. Two new rooms were created on both sides of the organ. The bellows were located in the south, while the north was an annex to the library and is now used as a small organ museum.
In 1743/44 Joseph Bossart and his son Victor Ferdinand Bossart expanded the organ by nine to 34 registers, and it was given a completely new wind mechanism . Franz Josef Remigius Bossart (Victor Ferdinand's grandson) made minor changes to the disposition , the bellows and the registry in 1826 . In 1834 Conrad Bloch transferred the Rückpositiv about the main plant. This involved an adaptation of the play and register mechanics as well as the wind tunnels. After the abolition of the monastery in 1841, the organ remained unused for almost ten years. In 1851/52 Friedrich Haas repaired the damage that had occurred in the meantime and replaced defective parts. In 1903/04 Friedrich Goll replaced the entire winch. The large organ was increasingly considered out of date and no longer corresponded to the taste of the time. Regardless of the historical substance, the case was completely cleared out by Orgelbau Goll in 1919/20 . The organ was given a pneumatic tube with a romantic disposition and a free-standing console . Around half of the original pipes were lost during this radical renovation. The Goll company denied the allegations soon afterwards that the organ had construction defects and justified their approach with severe corrosion damage. Repairs had to be carried out several times in the following years. The large organ was reconstructed between 1965 and 1972 under the direction of the restorer Josef Brühlmann and the organ builder Bernhardt Edskes von Metzler Orgelbau . Care was taken to restore the original state wherever possible. Pipes that had been preserved were reused, missing pipes were made according to historical models.
The Renaissance - brochure is color coordinated and stylistically to the parapet of the west gallery. Except for the middle section, the housing completely fills the gallery space. The main work in the middle is enclosed on both sides by the harp fields of the two-part pedal . The Rückpositiv inserted into the parapet is a replica of the main work on a half-scale. The prospectus is structured as follows: In the middle a low round tower flanked by two flat fields, next to each a slender rectangular bass tower. The case is decorated with numerous intricate carvings (plant motifs, grimaces and fantasy figures). The coat of arms of the builder is attached to the base of the Rückpositiv central tower. On the towers of the main work are three life-size statues by the sculptor Michael Wickart; they represent Our Lady , St. Martin of Tours and St. Benedict of Nursia .
I main work C – f 3
Bourdon
16 ′
Principal
8th'
Reed flute
8th'
Octave
4 ′
Pointed flute
4 ′
Smalled up
4 ′
Fifth
3 ′
Fifth flute
3 ′
Super octave
2 ′
Forest flute
2 ′
third
1 3 ⁄ 5 ′
Mixture IV-V
1 1 ⁄ 3
Hörnlein II
2 ⁄ 3 + 1 ⁄ 2
Trumpet
8th'
Tremulant
Birdsong
II Rückpositiv C – f 3
Bourdon
8th'
Quintadena
8th'
Principal
4 ′
Flauto
4 ′
Octave
2 ′
Pointed flute
1 1 ⁄ 3
Sesquialtera II
1 1 ⁄ 3 + 4 ⁄ 5
Cimbel III-IV
1'
Vox humana
8th'
Tremulant
Pedal C – f 1
Principal bass
16 ′
Sub-bass
16 ′
Octavbass
8th'
Bass flute
8th'
Quintad bass
8th'
Octave
4 ′
Peasant flute
2 ′
Large mix VI
2 2 ⁄ 3
trombone
16 ′
Trumpet
8th'
Trumpet
4 ′
Epistle organ
Epistle organ
The refurbishment of the monastery church decided by Prince Abbot Gerold Haimb also included the replacement of the two smaller organs by Schnyder and von Zubens. Joseph and Victor Ferdinand Bossart built two new organs for the gallery niches in 1743 for 2,000 guilders. The Epistle organ originally had 14 registers. In 1818 Michael Gassler built new wind chests in the bass register and a new pedal action. From 1830 to 1832 Franz Joseph Remigius Bossart replaced several pipes in order to improve the sound, and he also expanded the keyboard. In 1852 Friedrich Haas made the organ playable again, six years later he renewed the bellows. There were no further changes for over a century until Orgelbau Metzler carried out a restoration in 1961/62. In 1991/92 another, smaller restoration was carried out by Bernhardt Edskes.
The five-part prospectus has the shape of a harmonious step pyramid over a strong cornice. The central round tower dominates the pipe front and is provided with an acroterion at the top , which is decorated with the coat of arms of Prince Abbot Gerold Haimb. On both sides there are two flat fields with carving in rosette shape. Two angels (hornblowers) making music sit on the segmental arch gable above. Whenever possible, the proportions are in relation to the golden section .
I Manual CDEFGA – c 3
Principals
8th'
Coppel
8th'
Gamba
8th'
Octava
4 ′
Flood dous
4 ′
Nazard
2 1 ⁄ 3
Super octave
2 ′
(Continuation)
third
1 3 ⁄ 5
Sesquialtera III
1 1 ⁄ 3 + 1 ′ + 4 ⁄ 5
Mixture III
2 ′ + 1 1 ⁄ 3 +1 ′
Corno V
8th'
Trompe
8th'
Cleron
4 ′
CDEFGA – a 0 pedal
Sub-bass
16 ′
Octave bass
8th'
Bassoon bass
8th'
Gospel organ
Gospel organ
The Gospel organ, also built in 1743, was far less in use than its counterpart because it is further away from the stairs. Repairs were rarely made and by 1850 it was considered unplayable. This remained so for more than a hundred years, until the restoration by Metzler Organ Builders in 1961/62. In terms of its external appearance, it is almost a mirror image of the Epistle organ, the differences are marginal. There is only an essential difference in the angel statues; here it is trumpet players instead of horn players.
I Manual CDEFGA – c 3
Principals
8th'
Coppel
8th'
Octava
4 ′
Flooding
4 ′
(Continuation)
Super octave
2 ′
Sexquialter II
1 1 ⁄ 3 + 4 ⁄ 5
Mixture III
2 ′ + 1 ′ + 2 ⁄ 3
CDEFGA – a 0 pedal
Sub-bass
16 ′
Small organs
A positive made in 1639 by the organ builder Christopherus Pfleger disappeared from the inventory around the time the monastery was abolished and came into the possession of the Berlin University of Music via a detour ; it was lost during World War II. In 1644 Pfleger also built a shelf that is now in the Richard Wagner Museum in Lucerne . In 1777/78 Karl Joseph Maria Bossart built a positive on behalf of Prince Abbot Gerold Meyer . In 1852 the canton of Aargau sold it to the parish of Mühlau . It was bought by organ maker FM Beiler around 1900 and has been owned by the National Museum in Zurich since 1924 . In 1991/92 Bernhardt Edskes built replicas of the Pfleger shelf and the Bossart positive for the monastery church, which correspond to the historical models in every detail.
literature
Dieter Meier: The organs of the monastery church Muri - history, description, organ builder . here + now , Baden 2010, ISBN 978-3-03919-201-4 .
Dieter Meier, Egon Schwarb: The organs of the monastery church Muri and their history. (Swiss Art Guide, No. 816/818, Series 82). Ed. Society for Swiss Art History GSK. Bern 2007, ISBN 978-3-85782-816-4 .
Web links
Organs on the website Music in the monastery church of "Muri Kultur"
