Restoration of Siena Cathedral organs completed. The last intervention in 2000

Theorgan of the Cathedral of Siena, which is constantly undergoing routine checks and tuning to ensure its best efficiency while respecting its considerable historical material, was in such a condition of integrity that it did not require complete restoration. However, the combined action of time, the inevitable deposit of dust and the wear and tear of the most delicate parts necessitated an extraordinary intervention that involved the complete disassembly of the entire instrument.

It is usually used to say “the Cathedral organ.” Actually, to give an idea of the grandeur and complexity of this huge instrument one should use the plural, that is,"the organs." Until after World War II, in fact, there were three distinct instruments in the Cathedral, of which the major one, located above the sacristy, dated as far back as 1508, with additions that had lasted until the nineteenth century, while the other two were located respectively, one exactly opposite the great organ and the other, of Roman Baroque origin, next to the Chapel of the Vow. It was beginning in 1958, through a series of stages that ended in 1977, that on the initiative of then titular organist Giordano Giustarini not only were the three organs further enlarged and brought together through the electrification of the transmission controls, but even a fourth was added behind the high altar, so that the current configuration was arrived at, which sees no less than four separate pipe bodies, operable through a central console with four keyboards. The transmission of the commands uses a radio-controlled system.

The just-completedextraordinary work, entrusted to the prestigious Mascioni firm of Azzio (Varese, Italy), thus consisted of four distinct phases, one for each body of pipes. Given the enormous size of the instrument, the work somewhat resembled construction sites, since in some cases actual scaffolding had to be erected.

It had been more than 20 years, since the Jubilee of 2000, that such an operation had not been carried out. On that occasion the phases were spread over three years, while now, thanks to the determination of the current administration of theOpera della Metropolitana di Siena, they have been concentrated within three months.

With this intervention, in addition to all the actions of cleaning, reshaping and restoration of non-functioning parts, as well as protection of the very many ancient pipes incorporated in the modern instrument, a powerful pedal register, the 32’ Counterblast, has been added to the project of the titular organist Cesare Mancini, and some effects obtainable through current computer technologies have been included.

Restoration of Siena Cathedral organs completed. The last intervention in 2000

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