Organs of the Marienbasilika (Kevelaer)
The Marienbasilika in Kevelaer has an organ system which, with its 135 registers, is the largest German-Romantic organ in the world. It consists of the main organ on the west gallery and a remote control on the north transept gallery without its own play area.
history
The organ of the Marienbasilika is largely based on an instrument that was built in the years 1905–1907 by the organ building company Ernst Seifert (then: Cologne). It replaced the first large basilica organ, which was built by the organ builder Wilhelm Rütter (Kevelaer) around 1874 ; the organ work by Rütter was partially transferred to the parish church of Kevela.
Ernst Seifert built a large organ on the west gallery, initially with 104 registers. At the same time he set up an instrument with 18 registers on a manual and pedal on a small gallery in the north transept , which was housed in a swell box. This instrument served as a choir organ ; it had its own play system and was playable via electropneumatic actions as remote control from the fourth manual of the main console of the main organ.
The entire organ system had pneumatic membrane shutters ; they were carried out according to the system invented by Ernst Seifert in 1882. The free-standing gaming table on the west gallery had numerous playing aids. Worth mentioning are the pneumatic cross-acting octave couplings between II / I and III / II; remarkably, the three expression pedals for the remote station, the Hauptschwellwerk were (in addition to the registers of the III. Manual work were in some pedal register) and a Pedalschwellkasten sill tremolo in which a Vox is humana 8 'and a Gedackt 8' were located.
Around 1926 it was decided to enlarge the organ stage so that the choir and orchestra of the basilica could also find space there. In the course of this, the organ was electrified by Ernst Seifert and received a new, mobile console. In addition, the coupling options were expanded (now 27 individual coupling and one melody coupling) and the disposition expanded; u. a. the swell received a French tongue battery, corresponding to the "Récits" by Cavaillé-Coll and Mutin; in addition, new mixtures were installed, as well as a celesta. The number of registers in the organ system increased to a total of 131 registers.
The remote plant was destroyed in a bomb hit in 1945. The main organ survived the war almost undamaged and only suffered immediately after the end of the war, when large parts of the prospectus in particular were removed and burned.
Shortly after the war, the instrument was provisionally restored, with some voices being given up and parts of the instrument being changed. The prospectus was only restored provisionally and simplified. In the course of a comprehensive restoration in the years 1976–1981 by the organ builder Romanus Seifert (Kevelaer), the historical prospectus was reconstructed, including the tin pipes that had to be delivered for armament purposes in the First World War. In addition, the instrument was partially "baroque" by exchanging some mixtures for new ones with sharper intonation. On the occasion of Pope John Paul II's visit in 1987, three horizontal chamade tongues (Tuba magna 16 ', Tuba mirabilis 8' and Cor harmonique 4 ') were installed behind the main housing. These registers are a copy of the Chamade work of the Cavaille-Coll organ in the cross- domed Sacré-Cœur church in Paris . The instrument now had 128 registers.
A fire in the church in 2002, which the instrument survived unscathed, was used as an opportunity to return the instrument to its historical state of 1926. The remote mechanism was also reconstructed, but without its own play system, as another instrument had meanwhile performed the function of a choir organ. The four-manual, free-standing general console on the west gallery was also reconstructed and equipped with an electronic typesetting system. Currently 3 registers are still vacant.
In 2018 the auxiliary work was removed. It had 13 registers (Pommer 16 ', Principal 8', Gedackt 8 ', Salicional 8', Dulziana 8 ', Unda Maris 8', Octave 4 ', Koppelflöte 4', Viola 4 ', Larigot 1 1 ⁄ 3 ', Cor Anglais 16 ', Hautbois 8', Clairon 4 ').
Disposition
The organ of the basilica today has 149 sounding stops (no transmissions !) On four manuals and pedal. The neo-Gothic prospectus case has a height of 14 meters, a width of 9 meters and a depth of 10 meters.
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Pairing :
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Normal coupling: II / I, III / I, IV / I; III / II, IV / II; IV / III; I / P, II / P, III / P, IV / P
- Bombard clavier and seraphone celesta can be linked to any manual and pedal
- Super octave coupling: I / I, II / I, III / I, IV / I; III / II, IV / II; III / III, IV / III; IV / IV; I / P
- Sub-octave coupling: II / I, III / I, IV / I; III / II, IV / II; IV / III
- Special couplings : Melodiekoppel (Sup.Okt.) I / I, Quintkoppel P / P
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Normal coupling: II / I, III / I, IV / I; III / II, IV / II; IV / III; I / P, II / P, III / P, IV / P
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Playing aids :
- Two free combinations
- Fixed combinations: principal choir, gamba choir, violin choir, flute choir, Forte I, Forte II, Forte III, hand registers, tutti, fortissimo, forte, mezzoforte, piano, pianissimo, forte Fernwerk, piano Fernwerk
- Register Crescendo , Automatic Pedal III, Automatic Pedal IV,
- On / Off: Manual pipe works off, Manual pipe works closed, Seraphone closed, Crescendo off, Crescendo off remote unit, From main organ, From remote unit
Organists
From 1983 to 2000 Wolfgang Seifen, best known as an improviser, was organist at the Marienbasilika. His successor is Elmar Lehnen .
literature
- Karl-Heinz Göttert : The large Seifert organ in the Kevelaer Marienbasilika . In: Ars Organi . 55th year, no. September 3 , 2007, ISSN 0004-2919 .
- Gregor Klein: The large Seifert organ of the Marienbasilika in Kevelaer . In: Ars Organi . 29th year, no. September 3 , 1981, ISSN 0004-2919 .
Individual evidence
- ↑ In detail on the history of the organ: Gregor Klein, Geldern: The great Seifert organ of the Marienbasilika in Kevelaer , in: Ars Organi , Volume 29, Issue 3, September 1984
- ↑ For the history of restoration after the Second World War, see Karl-Heinz Göttert: The large Seifert organ in the Kevelaer Marienbasilika , in Ars Organi , 55th year, volume 3; Cologne: September 2007
- ↑ To the disposition of the auxiliary work on the website of Orgelbau Seifert
- ↑ For disposition on the website of Orgelbau Seifert