Hugo Mayer Orgelbau, die Orgelmanufaktur für weltweit geschaffene Instrumente Hugo Mayer Orgelbau, die Orgelmanufaktur für weltweit geschaffene Instrumente Hugo Mayer Orgelbau, die Orgelmanufaktur für weltweit geschaffene Instrumente Hugo Mayer Orgelbau, die Orgelmanufaktur für weltweit geschaffene Instrumente
Orgelbau Mayer
Hugo Mayer Orgelbau Orgelmanufaktur Heusweiler
The organ
in the
Basilika church
in Saarbrücken

Like no other instrument, the organ created and "come alive" through human hands can portray and convey a faith and trust upon the eternal and true life.

Unfortunately, in the Basilika church they did not have an instrument that could have matched the increasing demands of lithurgy and concerts.
Chronology: supplementary to the Organ in the Basilika church in Saarbrücken.

The existing organ was a unit completed in itself which was not to be modified. One option for the extension was adding separate small organ units above the altars of St. Mary Mother of God and St. Louis on the front balconies of the former prince boxes.

The former organ of St. John the Baptist’s Basilika church in Saarbrücken was built by Messrs. Johannes Klais (Bonn) in 1975. About two thirds of the pipe section was new at the time, one third had been taken over from the preceding organ built in 1933. Two major aspects made for the organ concept in those days:

a) An organ framework adequate to the interior church design was to be created with the financial means available for the total renovation at the time. Owing to this request, the wonderful organ organ front was manufactured following the model of Stumm’s organ in St. Louis church in Saarbrücken.
b) The organ disposition of the registers followed the idea of Dr. Theo Klein, the Basilika organist at the time, who found his sound ideal in an organ of the Italian baroque era.

This extension of the registers towards romantic music for once takes into account the original Catholic idea of an appeal to all the senses. Romantic music and its soothing effect on the weary soul has been rediscovered as a "life elixir" in our technicalized world. The idea of contemplation, of music inspiring, strengthening and embellishing prayer only became possible through this harmonization of sound.

The extension of the organ opened up the whole range of organ music, any kind of music of any era at all can be interpreted on that organ now.

While the quality of the organ registers was very good, they only allowed an interpretation in proper style of baroque-era compositions.

So the extension of the organ would fulfill not only musical and concert, but particularly lithurgical demands, too, especially under the aspect of the Basilika church as the central church of the area’s capital.
A matter of location

The existing organ was a unit completed in itself which was not to be modified. One option for the extension was adding separate small organ units above the altars of St. Mary Mother of God and St. Louis on the front balconies of the former prince boxes.

The unique opportunity of organs on different levels in a church promised an extraordinary experience of sound. All organs may resound separately or together, controlled by one organist at the new main keyboard table. This way, "art replaced the prince", and art with its beautiful tunes now serves musica sacra.
Organ of St. Mary
French work

For this organ, we copied the registers of Aristide Cavaillé-Coll. The French organ builder, the "jeweller of Romanticism" was the greatest genius of his trade in his day. He built organs in almost all the big cathedrals around the world. One organ of his manufacture which is particularly famous because it has remained unchanged to this day is in the Catholic church of Notre-Dame in Metz/France, our French sister parish.
We copied the romantic "heart", i.e. the swell of that organ, took over the corresponding scales of the pipe section, and the register intonation could be completed entirely following the romantic model.

A project like that not only held aspects of sound, but also implied political and historical aspects and the demand to preserve traditional values, challenges that became all the more important as we are on our way into a united Europe.

The organ front was designed according to the one at the main organ (identical harp sections, optical pipe scales following those of the big organ, etc.).

The registers now present a separate mechanical organ with two manual keyboards and its own keyboard table. This opens wonderful new lithurgical options:

• workday masses, Lent and Advent masses may be accompanied on that smaller, but very diverse organ

• soloists may perform on the front balcony, so the audience can see them and they are no longer hidden in anonymity

• the whole repertory of music involving two organs (and a choir) may be performed

• all music involving organ and brass in exchange may be performed on both balconies

• the organ may serve accompanying purposes with other musical concerts, etc.
St. Louis organ
Spanish work

Around 1677, organ builders in Spain created the famous Spanish trumpets. These chamade registers had their heydin the 1750’s, just as the foundation stone was laid for our Basilika church. The famous registers owe their phantastic effect to their horizontal arrangement and an increased wind pressure. This organ can only be played from the main keyboard table of the main organ. As a whole, the creation of two symmetrical organ front enhanced the church’s interior architecture with its focus on the high altar, and ultimately also the unity of the high altar as a complete work of art.
Main organ
Italian work

From the main organ's new complete keyboard table with five manual keyboards, all three organs may be controlled either simultaneously or separately up to a grandiose "tutti". This, again, results in almost countless lithurgical and musical possibilities.

If the organ of St. Mary is meant to be used for simpler masses, on the occasion of Saints' Days the epistel organ and main organ combined and on Sundays and Holidays all three organs may be played (for a big entrance, grandiose effects may be obtained playing all three organs alternately).

To give the complete organ the necessary groundwork in sound, we installed a Untersatz 32' and a counter bassoon 32'' behind today's main organ.

The new keyboard table
at the organ of St. Mary
The recit expressif of the organ in the church „Eglise Notre-Dame“ in Metz served as an example.
St. Louis organ: Spanish trumpet section
The horizontal tongue section of the „Cathedral of Salamanca“ served as the model.
Stop list
of the organ of the church of Basilika St. Johann Saarbrücken
Main keyboard
Ist MAINSECTION IInd UPPER SECTION
(Swell):
1. Quintade
2. Principal'
3. Bifaria (ab B)
4. Holzflöte (Klais 1933)
5. Octave
6. Blockflöte (Klais 1933)
7. Quinte
8. Superoctave
9. Mixtur 5f.
10. Cymbel 3f.
11. Cornet 5f.
(ab b, aufgebänkt,
Klais 1933)
12. Trompete'
13. Vox humana
14. II-I
15. III-I
16. IV-I
17. V-I
 16'
8'
8'
8'
4'
4'
2 2/3'
2'
2'
1/2'
8'


8'
8'
 1. Holzgedeckt
2. Salicional
3. Principal (vor den Jalousien)
4. Rohrflöte'
5. Octave
6. Spitzflöte Klais 1933)
7. Larigot (Klais 1933)
8. Scharff 4f.
9. Sesquialter 2f. (Klais 1933)
10. Cromorne
11. Hautbois
12. Tremulant
13. III-II
14. IV-II
 8'
8'
4'
4'
2'
2'
1 1/3'
1 1/3'
2 2/3'
8'
4'
IIIrd ORGAN OF ST. MARY
Récit expressif
 IVth BRAETH SECTION
1. Bourdon*+Ped.
2. Diapason*
3. Flûte harmonique*
4. Flûte traversière*
5. Octavin*
6. Plein jeu 4f-5f.*
7. Trompette harm.*
8. Viole de Gambe**
9. Voix céleste**
10. Cor de nuit**
11. Basson**
12. Clairon**
13. Hautbois**
14. Tremulant*/**
 16'
8'
8'
4'
2'
2'
8'
8'
8'
8'
16'
4'
8'
 1. Rohrflöte (Klais 1933)
2. Gedackt
3. Nasard (Klais 1933)
4. Doublette (Klais 1933)
5. Terz (Klais 1933)
6. Sifflet
7. Acuta 4f.'
8. Holzregal
9. Tremulant
 8'
4'
2 2/3'
2'
1 3/5'
1'
1/2'
16'
Vth SOLO
Ludwigsorgel
 PEDALSECTION
1. Trompeta magna
2. Trompeta real
3. Clarin
Solo-Voix humaine
(schwellbar)

Röhrenglockenspiel

Zimbelstern		 16’
8’
4’
8’
 1. Untersatz (Mayer 2000)
2. Principal
3. Subbass (Klais 1933)
4. Octave (teilw. Klais 1933)
5. Spielflöte
6. Superoctave
7. Waldflöte (Klais 1933)
8. Hintersatz 4f.
9. Kontrafagott (Mayer 2000)
10. Posaune
11. Holztrompete
12. Schalmey
13. I-P
14. II-P
15. III-P
16. IV-P
17. V-P
 32'
16'
16'
8'
8'
4'
2'
2 2/3'
32'
16'
8'
4'
4138 Pfeifen
Johannes Klais 1975 (außer Angaben in Klammern)
Manualumfang: C-a'''
Pedalumfang: C-g'
mechanische Spieltraktur (außer III. und V., elektrisch),
elektrische Koppeln (außer II-I, mechanisch),
elektrische Registertraktur,
8 x 8 x 100 = 6400 Setzerkombinationen,
Tutti, Auslöser, Sequenzer
Organ of St. Mary
of the Basilika St. Johann Saarbrücken (French-romantic Choir Organ)

separater Spieltisch mit 2 Manualen vom Hauptspieltisch spielbar
Ist MANUAL
 IInd MANUAL
1. Bourdon
2. Diapason
3. Flûte harmonique
4. Flûte traversière
5. Octavin
6. Plein jeu 4f.
7. Trompette harm.

Tremblant „forte“
 16'
8'
8'
4'
2'
2'
8'
 8. Viole de Gambe
9. Voix céleste
10. Cor de nuit
11. Basson
12. Clairon
13. Hautbois

Tremblant „forte“

Mensurenverläufe
nach A. Cavaillé-Coll
 8'
8'
8'
16'
4'
8'
PEDALSECTION
Soubasse
Transmission
 16'
Die Ludwigsorgel
in the Basilika St. Johann Saarbrücken (Spanish trumpet section)
1. Trompeta Magna
2. Trompeta real
3. Clarin
 16'
8'
4'
 Cups raised at the Schalltrichter according to the Spanish model.