A church organ is not quite like another. Much depends on its structure, the quality and material of the pipes, the stability of wind that passes, the environmental acoustics as well as several other considerations. No organ manufacturer is the same either. Perhaps more importantly, no church is equal. Compared to another wind instrument: The human voice, none is like the other. Appreciation becomes a personal matter. Some prefer a Lied singer over an opera hero. Some like a French Cavaillé-Coll Symphonic organ, whereas others love the more intimate sound of the older English ‘Father’ Bernard Smith one. All this crossed my mind when trying to objectively classify the instrument used for this new ARS release.

We are dealing with a new (2021) Wegschneider Organ with two manuals and 27 stops. Wanting to know more, I found on the website of the Berlin-Pankow parish church an illustrated brochure about its manufacturing. It is well worth reading (for those familiar with the German language) showing how this has painstakingly been done in the smallest detail. Nothing left to chance; meriting much respect. The idea was, so we learn from the liner notes, to reconstitute the ‘Buchholz Sound’ of the original but no longer available instrument.

Some may miss the soaring highs and the thundering lows; the sheer power of the best. But that is not my take. The sonority of Wegschneider’s Opus 113 has something else that will appeal to many: A smooth, well-tuned romantic sound pattern that pairs deliciously well with Schumann’s “Werke für Orgel”. Originally composed for a piano that includes a pedalboard “enabling bass register notes to be played with the feet”. It is now common practice to play these on the organ. The liner notes tell us little about the pedal piano, which enjoyed popularity in Schumann’s time but was soon after forgotten.

The one who knows all about it is Professor Martin Schmeding. Some 20 years ago he recorded these works in their original version for ARS Schumann: Complete works for Pedalflügel - Schmeding on a historic pedal piano, a well-preserved 1847 Pleyel upright from the Belgian Heirseele-Schweiger Collection. Comparing the two instruments is a matter of apples and oranges. The piano is more precise but sounds dry and misses the legato the organ produces so handsomely. Moreover, the pedals do not provide the same deep sound. That said, Schmeding’s reading is pianistically of particular interest, giving insight into the difficulties and Schumann’s objectives as embedded in the ‘Studies and sketches’. On the other hand, it was widely assumed that the paddle piano was a perfect instrument to teach young musicians how to play the organ. Best is, to have both! I do and am quite happy with it. It’s still available at this site’s vendors.

The conveyor of these works in their present organ version is Henry Fairs, Professor für Künstlerisches Orgelspiel at the Berlin University of Art. His' may not be a globally recognized household name, but I do love his reading of Schumann’s Six Studies for the Pedalflügel Op. 56, with which the recital opens. Slower than Schmeding, but all the more filled with romance. Letting it float in the air like a haze of fine French perfume the listener can dream along with the way he shapes the beautiful melodious figurative lines. The Six Studies Op. 58 are less familiar but are nonetheless of a remarkable charm as well. The piano sounds more assertive, but Fairs makes well-considered use of the technical possibilities the Wegschneider organ offers. However, Sketch no. III does in my view not work so well on the organ.

As for the Six Fugues, some hold the view that they, if only by their nature, are best played on an organ. I concur. The more so because it invites this newly installed instrument to deliver all its passionately polished allure. If that is the sought-after Buchholz Sound, then we may congratulate player and manufacturer most warmly indeed. And if that is not enough, everything is well-captured and wrapped up by Schumacher & Schumacher.

No point of criticism? Maybe one: I like the front of the organ structure better than the modern lines of the console. But that, of course, is a very personal matter.

Blangy-le-Château, Normandy, France.

Copyright © 2024 Adrian Quanjer and HRAudio.net

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