The "eleventh" is celebrated
On May 25, the Mecklenburg Organ Museum in Malchow inaugurates the restored Sauer organ at an open day.
It is over a hundred years old, the eleventh organ in the Mecklenburg Organ Museum Malchow. It was built in 1907 by the renowned Wilhelm Sauer company from Frankfurt an der Oder. A short time later, it was installed in the church in Warbende near Neustrelitz. "This instrument was state of the art at the time and made it possible to play at the highest level," says Friedrich Drese, director of the organ museum and organ expert. The "Queen of Instruments" in Warbende then served for many years, but was not maintained as it should have been. "It was no longer playable after reunification at the latest. Moisture and ageing had done their work on it. Numerous pipes had also been stolen," continues Drese. The parish in Warbende then wanted to get rid of the organ because they were planning to use its space for other purposes. Friedrich Drese took the parts to the organ museum and initially wanted to reassemble the instrument properly himself. "But I quickly realized that it was too much for me." The Kultur- und Sportring Malchow (KSR) e. V., which runs the museum, applied for and received funding to have the organ restored commercially. Leonhard Walz, a patron of the museum from Freudenstadt, made the necessary personal contribution. The companies Arnold from Plau and Scheffler from Sieversdorf restored the Warbender organ. Since then, it has already been played several times on a trial basis. But it will be "officially" inaugurated at a museum festival and open day on the afternoon of May 25. In addition to Friedrich Drese, the Malchow cantor Martin Hebert will be playing the stops.
Other older treasures that are not in the organ museum will also be honored at the festival. "We would like to take this opportunity to open the special exhibition on the "Organ Anniversaries 2025" in the church. We are presenting thirteen organs that can be found in Mecklenburg churches and are celebrating milestone birthdays this year." The oldest of these is the one in Russow, which was built in 1700. The instrument in Bad Sülze, which is 250 years old, and the one in Bristow, which looks back on 150 years, also have their place. The organ in Lexow, which was installed 150 years ago, is represented from the region. With the open day, which starts at 2 pm, the organizers around Friedrich Drese also want to celebrate the fact that the renovation of the pastorate building on the monastery, in which part of the museum is located, is largely complete. The official part of the ceremony will begin with organ music and several words of welcome. Afterwards, all interested parties are invited to the pastorate building with its garden for coffee, cake and conversation. "Those who want to find out for themselves how an organ is constructed can also work on our self-built organ. There, prefabricated parts are put together to form an instrument. If you're skilled, you can do it in thirty minutes," says Friedrich Drese.
The schedule:
2 p.m. Festive event in the monastery church with words of welcome and music
Followed by a tour of the organ house and the garden with coffee and refreshments
