A Cathedral Organ in Miniature: The Organ at Hammar Church

Hammar Church is a monumental rural church built in the 1820’s in replacement of a smaller chapel. It is part of the parish of Askersund in the Diocese of Strängnäs and it houses the organ which I consider to be the most beautiful example of the Swedish romantic organ in the area of central Sweden where I work and live. I first came across this organ when looking for some suitable instruments to record Mankell’s Sonata n.5. A first class instrument, absolutely unaltered since its building and hidden in a large church on the countryside!

Looking to the façade one can suppose it is a baroque organ. The façade is baroque indeed and was part of the first organ placed in the new church: this instrument was built in 1753 by the famous organ builders Jonas Gren (1715-1765) and Petter Stråhle (1720-1765) for Kungsholmens Church in Stockholm before being sold in 1832 to the parish of Hammar. The single-manual instrument with pull-down pedals was absolutely under-dimensioned for the huge church interior (around 1.350 people can take place inside the church!). A project for a new organ was submitted in the early 1900’s and a new pneumatic organ was completed by the organ building company Åkerman & Lund in 1907. The new organ was installed behind the 1753 façade, now again painted in blue and gold as it was in the 18th century. The new organ is actually quite small, it has only 15 stops on two manuals and pedals, and looks even smaller in the large organ gallery, but its quality of materials and elegant intonation, combined with the glorious acoustics of the church, make it an authentic jewel, a cathedral organ in miniature! Here is the disposition:

Two Manuals (54 notes, C-f3). Pedal (27 notes, C-d1).

1 Man (Great, partially enclosed): Borduna 16, Principal 8, Gamba 8, Dubbelfljöt 8, Oktava 4, Oktava 2, Trumpet 8.
2 Man (Swell enclosed): Basetthorn 8, Salicional 8, Rörflöjt 8, Fleûte octaviante 4, Waldflöjt 2.
Pedal: Subbas 16, Violoncelle 8, Basun 16.

I-P, II-P, II-I, I-I 4, II-II 16. Piano, Mezzoforte, Forte, Tutti.

Thanks to the kindness of the parish staff, I can sometimes play behind closed doors to enjoy this exceptional instrument. The Dubbelflöjt 8 is possibly the most beautiful stop of this instrument, together with a lovely Gamba 8 and an impressively loud and warm Basun 16. Here are some recordings I made at Hammar Church: