Sonus Paradisi St. Guilhem le Desert J. P. Cavaille Organ [Hauptwerk]

The organ of the Abbey Church of Abbaye de Gellone is one of the most remarkable surviving examples of the French Classic organ tradition. Its construction took place between 1782 and 1789 by Jean-Pierre Cavaillé, the grandfather of the renowned organ builder Aristide Cavaillé-Coll. Conceived as a convent instrument of the "petit huit pieds" type, it was originally planned with twenty-seven stops distributed over three manuals and a French-style pedalboard. However, the upheavals surrounding the French Revolution prevented completion of the instrument, leaving the Positive unfinished, with only its case, keyboard, and preparations for the stop controls in place on the rail of the gallery. The organ narrowly escaped destruction on several occasions during the revolutionary period. In 1792, the resident organist, Jacques Laffond, reportedly saved the instrument from having its pipework melted down for metal by performing revolutionary airs at the moment of confiscation. Later administrative plans in 1804 proposed transferring the organ to the church of Notre-Dame-des-Tables, but Laffond cleverly altered the official documents, substituting another parish name and thus ensuring the instrument remained in Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert. A further attempt to move the organ to Lunel in 1818 was similarly thwarted by local opposition, allowing the instrument to remain in situ. During the nineteenth century, the relative poverty of the parish paradoxically contributed to the organ's preservation, sparing it the extensive "modernisations" that altered many historical instruments. Minor interventions were carried out, including maintenance in 1866 by Baptiste Puget, yet the essential structure remained nearly intact. In the early twentieth century the instrument was rediscovered by the organologist Félix Raugel during the period of World War I. He immediately recognized its exceptional historical significance. Subsequent restorations included work by Maurice Puget in 1941 and a more substantial intervention in 1968 by Alain Sals, which helped establish the organ's international reputation. The instrument was officially protected when it was classified as a historic monument in 1974. A major restoration campaign under the direction of Alain Sals was completed in 1984. This effort finally completed the long-unfinished Positive, restored the Grand-Organ mechanism and pipework, and reinstated the original wedge bellows. Additional restoration work in 2000 focused on the original windchests and mechanical transmission, while further maintenance has been overseen since 2010 by the Italian organ builder Michel Formentelli. Architecturally and acoustically, the organ remains an exceptionally authentic witness to late eighteenth-century French organ building. Its two-part case, carved in walnut with limewood ornamentation in a Rococo idiom, encloses largely original pipework by Jean-Pierre Cavaillé. The console retains its historic keyboards with ebony naturals and bone sharps, alongside a traditional French pedalboard and entirely mechanical key and stop action. The wind system comprises three wedge bellows located in the tower chamber, operable either manually or by electric blower. Tuned today around A = 415 Hz and employing a modified fifth-comma meantone temperament inspired by the writings of Dom Bedos de Celles, the instrument preserves a distinctive tonal palette characteristic of the French Classical style. Features: Sample Quality The samples are offered in 24bit/48kHz quality, multiple releases. Hauptwerk version 9 or higher required for use. Advanced Hauptwerk version recommended. (There is an ODF for HW 4.2, if someone would like to downgrade, but it does not have the pedal "ravalement", because the technical solution for this was unsupported in HW 4.2.) The reverberation time is about 3 seconds. The Compass The original compass of the manuals is 51 keys (C-d3). Récit 32 keys (g0-d3). The original pedal compass is 18 keys (C-f0). In the virtual model, we extended the compass of the manuals to 54 keys (up to f3) and the pedal compass was extended up to f1. Tremulants All ranks were recorded with and without tremulants for the most convincing tremulant behavior. It is possible to select to use the artificial tremulant instead if desired (the switch is located on the mixer tab). Requirements: Surround: 8 channels (direct, diffuse, distant, rear) 24 bit, all other features default, memory compression on: 42 GB 20 bit, all other features default, memory compression on: 33 GB 16 bit, all other features default, memory compression on: 22 GB Surround format The sample set is offered in a Surround variant (8 channels). There are direct channels, diffuse channels, distant and rear channels. To reproduce the surround format, an audio card with at least 4 output channels is required, dedicating the direct and diffuse and distant channels for the front speakers, and other two channels for the rear speakers. Sonus Paradisi St. Guilhem le Desert J. P. Cavaille Organ