Angers, France: Cathedral

My black and white card of the Angers Cathedral organ is unused. On the reverse is found C* des arts Photomechaniques Strasbourg-Schiltigheim" where *=an illegible character. There is no date anywhere.

Organs in Angers Cathedral have a long and colorful history. In 1869 Aristide Cavaille-Coll proposed what amounted to a new instrument, including perhaps pipework from previous instruments. It was finished in 1873 and inaugurated by Alexander Guilmant. It is this instrument which survives to this day after work at various times.  Debierre did work in 1901 and 1937. Beuchet-Debiere did more work after the war 1957-1959. At that time 19 new stops were added though the original pipework remained. This site is dedicated solely to the Angers instrument and includes a handful of fascinating images.

St-Omer Pas-de-Calais (FR): Notre-Dame Basilica

My card is in a striking shade of blue which is unusual in my experience. It shows part of the nave looking west toward the gallery and the organ there. There is no information about the card's publisher on my unused example. The organ of St-Omer is striking for its casework as much as for it's musical aspects. The Piette family of woodworkers spent several years at the beginning of the 18th century building the case. Thomas and Jean-Jacques Defontaines built the organ in 1717. The instrument served its purpose well while being worked on by various builders over the course of 140 years. By 1853 Aristide Cavaille-Coll submitted a proposal for a major reworking of the instrument which was received by the cathedral; that instrument was inaugurated in 1855. Further work was done in 1927, 1973 and 1985, though the instrument still contains pipework from both the 1717 instrument and that of 1855.

Paris, FR, Ste Etienne

The burial site of Ste Genevieve is noted in the 6th century in the 5th arrondissement in Paris. It was quickly realized that the space would not accommodate all who wished to visit. Permission was granted in the 13th century to build a church at the site, incorporating the previous site and facilities and dedicated to St Stephen. A complete reconstruction was again required because of space issues in the 15th century. This is the basis of the present facility.

Two organs grace the church, a rear gallery instrument by Cavaille-Coll from the late 19th century and a smaller orgue du choeur from the earliest years of the 20th century. It is this latter instrument which can be seen in my (unused, black-white) postcard. The wiki site seems to give the tidiest summary of the building and instrument, including a specification. The organ is located just beyond the famous marble rood screen, in the choir stalls. It was built by Puget and has 14 ranks.

 

Chester Cathedral (GB)

The first instrument in Chester Cathedral which can be reliably determined is the 1844 instrument by Gray and Davison. Whiteley Brothers made additions in 1876 including Cavaille-Coll harmonic flutes and reeds. In 1910 William Hill and Son removed the Cavaille-Coll additions in favor of their own. Much of the organ is located at the front of the north transept, with the choir division located on the south side of the choir area. Rushworth and Dreaper did work on the instrument in 1969. Under the care of David Wells since 1991, there have been no further significant changes. The National Pipe Organ Register listing for the cathedral instrument gives detailed information about the specification.

Versailles: Chapel

The first organ in the chapel at Versailles was a Clicquot, installed in 1711. Cavaille-Coll significantly altered the instrument in 1873. That instrument was removed in 1936 and a new instrument was installed by Victor Gonzales. Finally, in 1995 another completely new instrument was installed by Jean-Loup Boisseau and Bertrand Cattiaux, intended to be a faithful replication of the style of Clicquot. This site provided a helpful summary of the organ's history; this one provides even more detail in French. The postcard above is unused, and black/white. It shows the nave and organ from floor level. I have a second card, below, which shows the same contents, but from an elevated gallery. It too is unused and black/white.