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Subject:
From:
Andrés Günther <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Andrés Günther <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Thu, 24 Jun 2004 15:59:28 -0400
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Andres Gunther
[log in to unmask]

40 Years Kleuker Organ of La Resurrección LC, Caracas, Part 03
HISTORY OF THE ORGAN

From the first moment when the German Preacher Congregation was rejoined
under the Pastorate of Dr. Falk she feeled the need to own a good pipe organ
someday. But obviously that project had to wait for several years and the
Congregation had to conform with a "Lindholm" reed organ, which still stands
in the Multi-purpose Hall of the Center; and an horrible 'first
generation' electrium whose squeaks and wails still ring in my ears, and
which fortunatedly disappeared in 1970.
My father was the first Director of Music from 1952 to 1956 (the history of
the organists will be related further on). In 1956, Mrs. Ruth Gosewinkel
took over the position. Her main goal was to get a valuable pipe organ for
the church, which was dedicated in 1957. The project had to wait however
until the internal decoration and furnishing of the church were finished.

In 1961, Fund Raising for the Organ was started. The whole income of the
Christmas Bazaar of that year was for the new organ! Mrs Gosewinkel made
the tonal design of the new instrument. In early Fall 1962 the Commitee
submitted the project to several organ firms in Germany, and Detlef Kleuker
Orgelbau in Bielefeld was chosen in a meeting at Spt 24.
Kleuker Orgelbau got their reputation because OBM Detlef Kleuker developed
several patented organ building methods to create instruments that a) could
resist the tropical climate and the pests there, and b) remain in
functioning condition for long periods without maintenance. Further, their
instruments had a great artistic and tonal quality (Neo Baroque Concept).
In 1963, the organ was manufactured in Mr. Kleuker's workshop. In mid-July
1964 the organ was packed into five boxes and shipped to Venezuela, where it
arrived Aug 30 in La Guaira (our main seaport), and from there in Caracas on
Spt 08.

On Spt 16th 1964 Mr. Miklis, Chief Technician of the Kleuker Firm, started
the organ assembly in the church. Exactly a month later, Oct. 16th 1964, the
organ was approved and taken over by the Mrs. Gosewinkel, the Commitee and
the Congregation Board, and two days later, Oct 18th 1964, it was dedicated
and played for first time in worship.
Dec 10 and Dec 12 1964 the new organ was used for first time in the
traditional Christmas Concert of the congregation.
In August 1965 the last payment to Mr Kleuker was made. Mr. Miklis came to
Caracas to re-tune and re-adjust the instrument, and Prof. Ernst Ulrich von
Kamecke, Director of Music of the St Petri Church in Hamburg, gave the first
Soloistic Recital on it.

The organ had costed 75.000 Bolivares (17.442 US-Dollar at that time). It
has two 56 note compass manuals and a 30 note compass pedal; tracker action,
13 stops, and is a typical Neobarroque instrument. It is made of termite
resistant wood (mostly Mahogany and phenolic resin-treated high density
plywood) and incorporates modern materials like metal trackers and plastic
components.
The most interesting building features are the tone channels which are
scaled rectangular tubes of reinforced phenolic resin glued together into a
block that conforms the chest; and the acrylic sliders, witch run enclosed
in polished brass guide rails mounted atop the "channel-block". The (swimmer
type) wind regulators are attached directly to the pallet box and the lower
side of the chest. This system is very compact and can work in severe
conditions for many years without major maintenance (the acrylic sliders
however tend to break at the stress points).

The facade is a modern "Werkprinzip" concept to match with the sober,
geometrical lines of the church. Two side turrets contain each the five of
the largest Pommer 16' pipes; the Hauptwerk (GO) is at the top with the 4'
Principal pipes in façade, and the Brustwerk is below the Hauptwerk enclosed
in a box. The specification is as follows:

Hauptwerk [GO] (manual I): Koppelfloete 8', Prinzipal 4' (tin, in facade),
Waldfloete 2', Mixtur V

Brustwerk [Pos] (manual II, enclosed behind massive doors): Gedakt 8',
Rohrfloete 4', Prinzipal 2', Quint 1-13', Sesquialtera, Zimbel III -
Tremulant.

Pedal: Pommer 16' (Copper, 8 pipes in facade), Gemshorn 8', Choralbass 4'
II-I, II-Ped, I-Ped

The records show that Detlef Kleuker Orgelbau was well appreciated by the
german lutherans in Venezuela. In December 1970 a 4 stop positive of the
same firm was erected in the Chapel of the Center, substituting the dreadful
electrium I mentioned above. The new instrument was donated by the Letonian
congregation. In 1971 a small 6 stop organ was erected in the Lutheran
Church in Valencia (Carabobo State). In 1974 Mr. Kleuker submitted a swell
shutter project for the Brustwerk of the organ in La Resurreccion LC, which
wasn't realized. This is a pity, because the organ would gain a lot with it.
Other two never realized projects from Mr Kleuker were a concert organ for
the National Library in Caracas and an organ for the Teresa Carreño
Culture Complex. In 1983, Kleuker Orgelbau restored three of our six
Cavaille-Colls, and assembled together and tonal-finished the II/40 organ of
the Tucupita Cathedral in Delta Amacuro State.

Until 1982 Mr. Kleuker and his staff cared regularly for their instruments.
In 1984, the economic slowdown made it impossible to the congregations to
pay services by foreign organ technicians anymore, and Mr Kleuker authorized
a humble servant to take over the care and maintenance of the three
instruments in 1985. I am in charge since then- more after Mr Kleuker died
in early 1988 and the firm was dissolved. The organ is heavily used and
needs a maintenance every 3 to 5 years. The little organ in Valencia gets
maintenance and repairs every 7 to 8 years average- a true sign for the
technical quality of these instruments.
In Summer 2001 an extensive releathering and overhaul to both the Organ and
the Positive in Caracas was due. The congregation hadn't the money to pay
the job, but a wealthy member sponsored the project.

Next October 2004 the organ will have its 40th anniversary. Since organ
building aesthetics have changed since 1964 the organ is becoming an
interesting showpiece and a "tonal document" of a past aera. Precisely for
that I vetoed a Re-voicing and mixture re-designing project, proposed by a
very respectable german organ firm in 1991 (anyway it would have been too
expensive). The organ would have lost some of its originally intended
character. This way it conserves a sound that is ear-splitting close to the
organ but becomes silvery-bright in the church nave. I designed and made a
special miniature tuning cone for the tiny treble pipes in the mixtures,
which have an almost ultrasonic pitch, and more important, I learned how to
tune them without making myself crazy.

The special technical features are unimitated as far as I know. The
expensive and complicated slider design is obsolete; nevertheless I admire
the beautiful metal work every time I have to disassemble the organ- mostly
for cleaning purposes only. I am not informed if the idea with the RPhR
channels glued together was taken over by somebody. I know that many organ
builders cringe regarding this, but for tropical organ building it is worth
a serious consideration.
The only problem is that the organs are extremely "compact". The pipes stand
too narrow together; to releather a regulator half of the instrument has to
be disassembled. This difficults their tuning and maintenance.

In the next installments I will write about the organists who played on the
organ of the Resurreción church in Caracas and the music activities there.
Stay tuned...
================================
First was the cat, then was the Orgler.
The Orgler got a pet and the cat got something to wonder about.

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