engrssc wrote:Romanos wrote:Did you ever play a really old organ with well worn keys anyone?
Rgds, Ed
Over 50 years ago I played the little organ at St. Valentines, Kiedrich on the Rhein.
A very old organ from the gothic period, the lower manual seemed to be curved,
with the keys in the middle of the keyboard noticeably lower than the end keys.
Then I saw that the bottoms of the keys were level, they were just highly worn
down in the middle of the keyboard! All wooden keys of course, and possibly
replaced at some point long ago.
Apparently there are dates inside the organ which indicates that it was first
built in the late 1300s, and then moved to a new loft with a second manual
added around 1490. I suppose you could call these 'well worn keys.'
This church also has famous old stained glass windows and also a book
of music for the choir from the 1300s. These were all saved by storing everything
in the basement as the church was badly damaged in a World War 2 bombing attack.
Steve.