— Reorganization of the Pedrini organ —
The Cathedral of Piacenza houses two organs: a historic Tamburini organ from 1905 and a Pedrini organ from 1982.
The Cathedral St. Mariä Himmelfahrt and St. Justina, is located in the Diocese of Piacenza-Bobbio in the Emilia-Romagna region and has the status of a minor basilica.
The cathedral was built in Romanesque style with Gothic elements, probably between 1122 and 1233. The façade is made of pink Veronese marble and sandstone. The 72.5-meter-high brick bell tower is crowned by a gilded copper sculpture depicting an angel, called “Angil dal Dom”.
The Kronos Museum, which belongs to the cathedral, displays a rich artistic and cultural heritage spanning from the 12th to the 20th century. The exhibits come from the cathedral itself and other churches in the region and offer a comprehensive overview of the region’s religious art and culture over several centuries.
The Pedrini organ was built as an Italian-style instrument. Unfortunately, it is currently in very poor condition. The electric stop action has failed. The sections can now only be played with fixed registrations.
A thorough examination has shown that normal restoration will not lead to a satisfactory result. The very poor mechanical tone action, coupled with the poorly constructed windchests, require a fundamental rethinking of the overall situation. The cathedral organist, Mr. Federico Perotti, has clear and specific ideas about how the instrument can best support his compositional work in the future.
After careful consideration of all options, it was decided to fundamentally reorganize the organ. Overall, the mechanical action will be abandoned, but the windchests from the pedal, positive, and main division will be reused after thorough restoration and conversion. The windchest of the recitativo and the two swell cases from the positivo and recitativo will be newly constructed. In addition, a new solo section with increased wind pressure will be installed in the gallery above the organ.
The existing console will be discarded and replaced by a new, freely movable console with purely electric control. The new console will be prepared for possible control of the existing historic Tamburini organ.
In the first phase, we will manufacture the new console and the new solo division. After the solo division is commissioned in 2026, the main organ will be partially dismantled and prepared for reorganization in 2027.
A commemorative photo of the ceremonial signing of the contract
From left to right: Frank Weimbs, Federico Perotti, Don Giuseppe Basini (Vicar General), Don Serafino Coppellotti (dean of the cathedral)
some impressions from the construction of the organ
