The Organ As a Mirror of Its Time: North European Reflections, 1610-2000 Text & CD

Because it has always represented a rich collaboration of the music, art, architecture, handicraft, and science of its day, the organ, more than any other instrument, continues to reflect the spirit of the age in which it was built. The Organ as a Mirror of Its Time, the first book to consider this instrument's historical and cultural significance, chronicles the history of six organs in Scandinavia and North Germany, at least one specimen for every century from 1600 to the present: the cabinet organ of Esaias Compenius at Frederiksborg Castle in Denmark, built in 1610; the massive Arp Schnitger organ for Hamburg's St. Jacobi Church, from 1693; the 1728 Johan Niclas Cahman organ at Leufsta Bruk, Sweden; Aristide Cavaille-Coll's 1890 organ for the Jesus Church in Copenhagen; the 1949 Werkprinzip Marcussen organ for Oscar's Church in Stockholm; and a brand-new (2000) instrument crafted in Arp Schnitger's style for Orgryte New Church, Goteborg. A CD with appropriate repertoire played on each of the six instruments accompanies the book.