A History of the Organ in Estonia Alexander Fiseisky 1. Historical Sketch Estonia, 1632–38). The fi rst collection of Until the 13th century, the indigenous music was published in Estonia (in 1637) people of the territories of modern Es- by Tallinn’s Gymnasium (founded in 1631 tonia suffered numerous invasions from by Gustavus Adolfus II). From the end of the West, the South, and the East. Nev- the 17th century, lessons at schools were ertheless, they were able to keep their in- increasingly held in the mother tongue. dependence, and the Estonian language The New Testament was translated into emerged in the sixth century. During the Estonian in 1686, followed by the entire 13th and 14th centuries the Estonians Bible in 1739. were Christianized, in the course of which Country parish churches established the southern parts of Estonia were divid- the post of sacristan (Küster in German, ed in 1224 between the German Schwert- köster in Estonian), whose duties includ- brüderorden (a military-religious order) ed instructing young people in reading and the bishops of Dorpat and Ösel. The and writing, prayers, and singing hymns. northern part of the country, together In 1684 Bengt Gottfried Forselius with the city of Reval (Tallinn) founded founded a seminary near Tartu to train by German merchants in 1230, was under young people for such posts, and from Danish rule from 1238 to 1346. the 19th century the köster was also the The country was ruled by the Teu- village schoolmaster and organist. tonic Knights and local bishops, who A tendency towards secular infl uences were supported by the merchants of the is noticeable in the art and religious life towns and the landed gentry. This ruling of that time. The decorative depiction of class was almost entirely ethnic German, saints on organ cases was replaced by al- and the native Estonian farmers fell by legories from non-religious art. The or- degrees into bondage. The church, gan gallery in the chancel of St. Nicholas’ showing no interest in the Estonian Church in Tallinn, fi nished in 1639, was language, had only limited infl uence on decorated with seven wooden sculptures. the local people until the Reformation, The “Allegory of Music” was placed in when, during the 1520s, the Estonian the middle between six other female fi g- people began to take a more active part ures. Together they portrayed the seven in church life. fi ne arts (septem artes liberales). As a result of the Livonian war (1558– Important among organ builders 83), the Order of the Teutonic Knights working in Estonia at this time were collapsed. The northern part of Estonia Johannes Pauli (Pawels, Paulus) from was occupied by Sweden, the south- Riga, who built and repaired several or- ern part brought under Polish–Lithu- August Terkmann organ, 1914, Tallinn, St. Johannis Church gans in Tallinn and Kuressaare (Arens- anian rule, while the island of Saare- burg) between 1611 and 1644, the Swede maa remained Danish. From 1645, all the infl uential Hanseatic city of Tallinn, music from handwritten Kantionalien Andres Bruse (mid-17th century), Estonian territory was under Swedish boasted a total of three organs3: the fi rst (liturgical books) by Lukas Lossius, Ja- and above all Christopher Meinecke jurisdiction. After the Swedish defeat on the west wall; the second in St. Anto- cob Meiland, Melchior Vulpius, Hiero- (Christoff Mencke) from Lübeck, who, in the Great Northern War (1700–21), nius’ chapel; and the third in the chancel, nymus Praetorius, and others. working fi rst with Bruse, was active in which was accompanied by a devastating built in 1502 by the local organ builder Tartu until 1645, and from 1660 in Tal- plague, Estonia fell under Russian rule, and Dominican monk Peter Schmidt.4 3. Culture, religion and musical life linn (St. Nicholas, III/P/3010, 1668). remaining a part of the Russian Empire Tradition hands down the name of one in the 17th and 18th centuries until 1917. more local “Maker of Organs”: Yllies. In 1630, the Swedish King Gustavus Tallinn, St. Nicholas’ Church Under these circumstances, Estonian His name is mentioned in the report of Adolfus II established a Gymnasium in Christopher Meinecke (Christoff culture always developed under the in- the treasurer of St. Olai’s Church (Olev- Tartu for the purpose of strengthening Mencke), 1668 (does not exist) 5 fl uence of the ruling nations, that of the iste) in 1540. Protestantism. Two years later this Gym- HAUPTWERK (upper manual) Germans being particularly strong. The A new organ in St. Nicholas’ Church nasium was transformed into a university 16′ Principal Baltic German aristocracy, the clergy, and was built in 1547 by a certain “Meister (Academia Gustaviana) and became the 16′ Quinta-Thön the merchants of the Hanseatic League Hans.” In 1584 this organ was enlarged most important center of cultural life in 8′ Octava maintained their privileged position in by the organ builder Bartolt (Bartold) Estonia. In Tartu, for the fi rst time in the 8′ Rohrfl öte (4′?) Estonian society, even when the Baltic Fiehoff (Viehoff, Fehoff)6 and fi tted history of the country, the music of an Es- 4′ Super-Octava territories were controlled by Poland, with a Rückpositiv.7 Between 1588 and tonian folk song was printed (Friedrich 2′ Rausch-Pfeife Sweden, or Russia. The church’s admin- 1590 the same builder built an organ of Menius, Syntagma de origine livonorum, Mixtur IV–V 16′ Trommet istration in Lutheran Estonia from the 38 stops for St. Olai’s Church. Dorpat 1635). Another important pub- 8′ Trommet 16th century until Estonia’s declaration of During the 15th and 16th centuries, lication appeared in Tartu in 1640, the independence in 1918 was, for instance, positive organs became fashionable Oratio de musica of Jacob Lotichius, RÜCKPOSITIV (lower manual) always headed by Germans. among the wealthier nobility, citizens, who later became the Kantor of the Ca- 8′ Principal and town offi cials. For instance, in 1499 thedral School in Riga (Latvia). Concerts 8′ Gedackt 2. Organs in Estonia from the 13th the “Domherr” and “Stadtschreiber” and theatrical performances regularly 4′ Octava to the 16th century (Town Clerk) Magister Christianus Czer- took place in the University of Tartu. 4′ Gedackt Early Estonian music developed in nekow bequeathed his positive organ to The churches continued to be centers Tertian II Scharf III monasteries and church schools, founded the organist Matthias: “ . Item domino of musical life, the concerts that regular- 8′ Krumbhorn even during the subjugation of the Esto- Mathie, organiste in summo, positivum ly took place there being contributed by 8′ Dulcian nian tribes by foreign invaders. Twelfth- stantem in camera mea . .”8 The above- choir, organ, solo singers, and the musi- century unison church hymns written in mentioned Bartolt Fiehoff also built a cians in the service of the town. It should BRUSTWERK (played from the neume notation can be found in liturgy positive organ in 1585–86 for the church be noted that organists in Estonia main- upper manual) books preserved in the Tallinn City Ar- of St. Johannis in Tartu (Dorpat). tained a privileged position compared 8′ Quinta-Thön 4′ Gedackt chives. In 13th-century sources, the main With the spread of Protestantism, with town musicians. While the latter ′ churches of Tallinn are mentioned for church music in Estonia acquired new sig- received a payment of 20 Taler per year 2Octava Sesquialtera II the fi rst time: the Cathedral of St. Mary nifi cance. Lutheran hymns, accompanied (with three tons of rye and other food 8′ Regal (1219); St. Nicholas’ Church (1230); and by the organ, became the musical basis in addition), the organists of the Tallinn St. Olai’s Church (1267). It is evident that of the liturgy. Following the guidelines churches of St. Nicholas and St. Olai in PEDAL organs began to spread in parallel with of Martin Luther and Philipp Melanch- the middle of the 17th century received 16′ Untersatz the growing infl uence of the church in thon about education, the Latin school at 100 Taler a year (as well as accommoda- 8′ Octava Estonia. However, the fi rst documented St. Olai’s Church in Tallinn was reorga- tion and other benefi ts).9 8′ Gedackt 4′ Gedackt reference to organs in Estonian territo- nized in 1528 as a Lutheran town school Much attention was paid to church ′ ries dates only from 1329: in Paistu and (Stadtschule). Its curriculum included music; for instance, St. Johannis, the 16 Posaune 16′ Fagotto Helme (northern Livonia) organs were basic studies of Protestant music. Choral main church in Tartu, employed two or- ′ 1 8Trommet destroyed by enemy action. Some years singing was practiced under the direc- ganists in the 1680s—one of them, the 4′ Cornet later (1341), an organist working for a tion of the Kantor—a special teacher who cantor fi guralis, being responsible for church in Tallinn is mentioned.2 also became responsible for the musical the choir, the other, the cantor choralis, Tremolo After the great fi re, which almost accompaniment of the church services. for hymn singing. Koppel completely destroyed Tallinn on 11 Gradually the Kantors became the main Use of the Estonian language had also May 1433, a new organ was built in St. fi gures in the cities’ music life. The fi rst grown. The fi rst attempts at translating Sources: Nicholas’ Church (Niguliste) by the or- Protestant Kantor in Tallinn whose name Lutheran hymns into Estonian had al- Leonid Rojman, Organnaja kul’tura Ėstonii [The Organ Culture of Estonia], Moscow: gan builder “Orgelmaker” Albrecht; it has come down to us was Petrus Mellin ready been made in the 16th century, Gosudarstvennoe muzykal’noe izdatel’stvo was later rebuilt in 1489 by Hermann (1531–2).