English |
Contact |
Go back to the site |
Français |
|
The organ The organ in the church of Saint Nicolas en Havré, Mons is a centrepiece of the Wallonian heritage. It has an extensive history and preserves numerous valuable elements from several eras, forming a remarkable whole due to its coherence and homogeneity. Built in 1792 by the organ builders Jean-Joseph and Eugène ERMEL from Mons, the instrument was installed in a case made by the carpenter GALLEMART and the sculptor MIDAVAINE, one of the creators of the Mons Car d’Or. François LORET-VERMEERSCH from Malines rebuilt the organ in 1860. He re-used certain stops from the old organ. He modified the general aspect of the main case façade and removed the small case of the Positif en balustrade. After about twenty years the organ became unplayable. Pierre SCHYVEN from Brussels completely rebuilt the instrument in 1881, employing all the old material which was still worthwhile. He installed a new mechanical action assisted by a Barker machine, a new expressive Récit placed higher up in the organ, supplied 11 new stops and revoiced the entire instrument. More than a century later, despite legitimate wear and tear making restoration a vital necessity, the organ had remained practically intact since 1881. The aesthetic decision taken for the restoration was to respect its last coherent state: that is, the instrument as conceived by Pierre SCHYVEN in 1881 and the case from 1792, as modified by François VERMEERSCH-LORET in 1860. Its restoration was entrusted to two organ builders as a joint venture: Jean-Baptiste GAUPILLAT from Noviant-aux-Près, and Laurent PLET from Troyes. They dismantled the organ on 11th – 18th November 2010. The organ was entirely moved to the organ builders’ workshops. The restoration there was finished on 14th February 2013. The organ’s installation in the church depended on the progress of works on the church façade and the belfry and in the meantime, the organ remained carefully stored in separate pieces in the workshops for twenty months. Final installation of the organ could start on 3rd November 2014. Despite numerous difficulties caused by other works taking place simultaneously in the church, the restoration was successfully completed on 30th October 2015. The provisional acceptance took place on 27th November 2015, just over 5 years after dismantling. The inaugural recital was given by Léon KERREMANS on 8th April 2016. He recorded the programme of this concert on 28th and 29th March 2016.
|
English |
Contact |
Go back to the site |
Français |