The Waeldner-organ At Halle

MICHAEL SCHONHEIT

The Wäldner organ of the Halle Cathedral is one of the most important sound monuments of Central German organ building from around 1850. Completed in 1851 in the Halle workshop of Friedrich Wilhelm Wäldner and his son August Ferdinand Wäldner, then leading organ builder in the region at that time, represents the instrument as Early Romanesque document, on the one hand, the classic tradition of organ building, as it has remained alive in Saxon and Thuringia since the era of Silbermann, Hildebrandt and Trosts well into the 19th century. On the other hand, the original sound concept of the instrument made it possible to hear those "new tones" at an early stage, which were built in the middle of the century in the famous monumental organs by masters such as Ladegast (in Merseburg Cathedral), Schulze (in Halberstadt Cathedral) and Reubke (in Magdeburg Cathedral) in completely different, namely cathedral-like dimensions. Although significantly smaller than the Merseburg cathedral organ (the only surviving one of the three mentioned), the Halle instrument - as the largest and most multifaceted organ of the Wäldner workshop - is nevertheless committed to a monumental sound idea and is therefore one of the most important witnesses to the art of organ building of this era. In the 20th century, the cathedral organ suffered several extremely disadvantageous sonic falsifications in the neo-baroque style. A restoration, which is committed to the goal of regaining the sound image of 1851, has therefore long been one of the most important concerns of organ monument preservation in Saxony-Anhalt and was placed in the hands of the Wegscheider organ workshop. The work took place from 2017 to 2018. The present album is the first recording after the restoration has been completed and impressively shows the possibilities of the instrument. It plays Michael Beauty, who as Merseburg cathedral organist has extensive experience with this type of organ.

Price: $27.98

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