Düren - Piotr Grabowski

Düren is a city in the North Rhine-Westphalia region of Germany. The city was totally demolished after the bombing during the second world war. The Annakirche (St. Anne’s church) was built between 1954-56, as the previous gothic church was completely destroyed. The only remaining part of the old church is the historic portal, which was integrated into the new building. The modern church hosted a 3 manual organ, however it was considered to be of low quality, not possessing any big artistic value.

Thanks to the efforts of many people, it was decided to build a new instrument. The work was entrusted to the much appreciated organbuilder Metzler from Switzerland. Inaugurated in 2010, it is conceived as a 3 manual organ with 48 stops and is split into 4 divisions. The main part of the organ case (above the player) houses the Hauptwerk (2nd manual) and Pedal divisions. Behind the player the Rückpositiv (1st manual) is placed. Finally, the enclosed Schwellwerk (3rd manual) is located in the back of the organ loft. The organ was designed to follow the baroque concepts, however there are a lot of French influences in its composition. One can say it merges two rather different concepts. It is most visible in the Schwellwerk with its full reed chorus (Basson 16′, Trompette harmonique 8′, Clarion 4′), harmonic flutes (Traversflöte 4′, Octavin 2′) and a celeste stop (Voix céleste 8′). In the pedal, we won’t find a Posaune, but a Bombarde 16′ instead. The Hauptwerk division shows further French influences with its Flûte harmonique 8′ and banked Cornet V (starting from c1 (C4)). This interesting mix makes a unique composition, where each division has its own distinct character and each of them adds a lot to the full organ sound. They not only clearly differentiate from each other thanks to their different acoustic locations, but also through their voicing and conception. A very useful addition to the stoplist is the Chamade 8′ stop (horizontal trumpet), playable from the Hauptwerk division. When playing the real organ, the organist receives a bit of a deafening experience when it’s engaged! It is a prominent stop, with sharp attack and loud tone, which works fantastic as a solo stop. It also compliments the full organ sound and crowns the whole organ with a certain edge.

Overall, the organ combines two rather different concepts which may not look like they get along too well on paper, however once hearing the sound of the organ, any preoccupations vanish. A fantastic voicing and thoughtful choice of stops makes this instrument a very versatile and characteristic instrument, which can play baroque music authentically, while still being able to be open to a broad range of repertoire.