Favorite organ.

[Alexander smith]

Hello all organists and organ players. I just wondered which pipe organ Is you'r personal
favorite. I personally like David Tannenburg's Home church organ! Any replies would be welcomed.

[Thomas Dressler]

David Tannenberg's Home Church organ in Winston-Salem, NC IS MY FAVORITE TOO!!! As a matter of fact, I'll be performing there on October 7, 2007, and I AM VERY HAPPY ABOUT IT!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Diaphone Profundo 64]

I had been sometimes in St Paul's London's Anglican Cathedral. The organ is marvellous. This churche's acoustic is also extraordinary. I wish I'll play one day there!!

[acc]

My favourite is the Cavaillé-Coll organ of St-Ouen, Rouen (France).

(Now you know where my avatar comes from.)

[yury habrus]

And my favourites are Walcker's organ in Riga Dom Cathedral, Ladegast's organ in Dom zu Schwerin and Silbermann's Frauenkirche organ in Freiberg.

[acc]

Those three are beautiful, indeed!

Walcker: I tend to prefer the smaller, earlier instruments of the E.F. period, such as Schramberg (1844).

I'm not that fond of Ladegast organs, but Schwerin is probably the post poetic of them all, indeed!

Silbermann: you probably mean the Dom of Freiberg (the "Frauenkirche" is in Dresden and its Silbermann, heavily transformed during the 19th century, was destroyed during the 1945 bombardment). Have you already listened to his other Freiberg organ, in the Petrikirche?

[giovannimusica]

The C-C at St. Sulpice is...the most divine creation by human hands.

Tom Dressler - I thought you were stark raving mad about Flentrop D-10's

Cheers!

Giovanni

[Krummhorn]

There are several -

Mormon Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, UT ... I've actually played it - thrilling, indeed.

Crystal Cathedral, Garden Grove, CA ... I grew up in that city - the church was then called Garden Grove Community Church. The original building still stands and is now home to a rather large pipe organ.

Liverpool Cathedral, London ... I have recordings [vinyl] of Noel Rawsthorne playing there.

Hey - Hi, Giovanni. Great selection there, St. Sulpice ... I have recordings of Marcel Dupre' on that instrument - Did Messiaen ever do any recordings there?

[acc]

St. Sulpice ... I have recordings of Marcel Dupre' on that instrument - Did Messiaen ever do any recordings there?

My guess is that Messiaen never recorded anywhere else than at his own organ at the Trinité. See this database. (However, there is an old Mercury LP where Dupré plays some Messiaen at St-Sulpice.)

[Thomas Dressler]

Giovanni, HAHA, well, I didn't say the Flentrop was my overall favorite, but it was my favorite practice organ at Westminster Choir College. I like a practice organ that is sensitive and shows every flaw in technique. It is easy, then, to transfer over to another instrument, including non-trackers. It doesn't work as well the other way around, however.

Actually, one of the things I love so much about the Tannenberg in NC is its sensitivity, especially its flexible winding system. It's probably the most sensitive winding system I've ever played, and for sure, if you are not sensitive to it, the instrument can sound pretty bad. However, played sensitively, it sounds like there are individual instruments playing. Trios sound fantastic on it!

[giovannimusica]

Hi Tom,

I guess I was successful in eliciting a response from you on Flentrops. An acquaintance sent me some sound files from the Tannenberg in NC and yes, it's a real gem. I've never been too fond of Flentrops - was most disappointed about the Flentrop at Duke University. A little later I got to know the Flentrop at St. Mark's in Seattle. It *saved* me from being disgusted with Flentrop altogether. These days I am partial to the work of Klais, especially the beauty in the Liebfrau-minster in Ingolstadt, Bavaria.

Yes, you read it right - St. Sulpice C-C, Wanamaker and Klais at Liebfrau-minster, and in that order.

Cheers!

[acc]

Although he's not my favourite as a matter of personal taste, I certainly do rank Klais among the better organ builders of the 20th century. I don't know the organ in Ingolstadt, but I do know those in Brussels (St-Servais) and Altenberg, and they're very nice. Many 20th century organs (at least in Germany and France) are of questionable quality, in my opinion - but my bet is that the Klais instruments are here to stay!

[giovannimusica]

Acc,

Here's the stoplist for the beauty in Ingolstadt:

http://www.die-orgelseite.de/disp/D_...nmuenster1.htm

Cheers!

[yury habrus]

Those three are beautiful, indeed!

"Walcker: I tend to prefer the smaller, earlier instruments of the E.F. period, such as Schramberg (1844).

I'm not that fond of Ladegast organs, but Schwerin is probably the post poetic of them all, indeed!

Silbermann: you probably mean the Dom of Freiberg (the "Frauenkirche" is in Dresden and its Silbermann, heavily transformed during the 19th century, was destroyed during the 1945 bombardment). Have you already listened to his other Freiberg organ, in the Petrikirche?"



Exactly, Acc, you are right! I confused the names of Silbermann organs. Sure, I mean the organ of Dom zu Freiberg. And about Silbermann organ in Petrikirche so it didn't make such impressiom on me as the first one.
I also would like to add among my favorites Schnitger organ from Hamburg Jakobkirche.
The modern organs I prefer are the Schuke organs from St. Stanislaw Cathedral in Vilnius and in Gewandhaus in Leipzig.

[Thomas Dressler]

I have not heard any in person, but I've heard recordings of some modern instruments by Rosales on the American west coast, and they are really spectacular on the recordings at least, and some of my friends who have heard them in person rave about them. I haven't heard too much, though, about the Disney organ so I can't comment on that one.

I have played a modern instrument by Paul Fritts at Princeton Theological Seminary http://www.frittsorgan.com/opus020.htm. I still like the Tannenberg in NC the best, but now the Fritts in Princeton comes in second of all the instruments I've actually played.