Enyedi, Ştefan: Orgile istorice din judeţul Satu Mare (Satu Mare, 2004)

Historical pipe organs in Satu Mare county

Historical pipe organs in Satu Mare county

The organ appeared in Satu Mare in the 15-th century, when Iancu de Hunedoara ordered the organ from the Baia Sprie church to be taken apart, and to be delivered to the fortress of Zólyom from West Hungary. The route of this instrument went trough Satu Mare.

First document about the instrument in town says that the Franciscans stabilized in 1316 „in 1535 they choosed Kárpáti Valentin as guardian, Dombai Nicolae as predicator, and Buday loan as organist“. The Franciscans where stabilized in Mintiu, probably in Satu Mare too (in the casde there had already been an organ). After the Reform, the monks remained loyal to Catholicism, but in 1556 were chased away. We don't have data about what happened to the organ. On the setjond Refomed Synod held in Ardud (24 Frebruarie 1555), the believers of Oar are critisized for „throwing out the icons and the altar wihout the hospodar's approval“.Because the organ isn't mentioned, we presume that it didn't exist. At the Second Reformed Synod) from Debrecen, in 24-26 Febuary 1567 have decided that: „Icons, altars ,organs ,priests clothes, the holding out of the hands, the kneelings should be erased.“ About Peter Meliusz Juhasz predicator, who contributed to spreading protestantism in our region too: „Was so puritánt, that he couldn't stand organs, icons, altars, priests costumes and even ringing the bell for the dead.“ Antireformed activities in the 17th century in our region had no effect.

After the peace treaty in Satu Mare (1 May 1711), count Alexander Károlyi started the colonization of the Swabians in the region of Carei.The Swabians being catholic, used organs in the church. The organ was first mentioned, when the church in Urziceni was enlarged in 1725 „they have built a balcony (with an organ) and sacristy“. In the 18th century organs slowly begin to appear again in our teritory, first at the Catholics, then after the Synod of the Reformed Church in Mugeni (1761) at the reformed too. Thus we can certify the existence of organs at: Lazuri(1748), Urziceni (1751), Pişcolt (1785), Halmeu (1799), Livada(1799), Ardud (1812), Satu Mare Church with Chains (1814), Mintiu Church (1814) the Catholic Cathedral (in 1821 de old organ is disassembled, and a new one is built with 20 registers).

The beginning of the 19-th century is the start for organ building activity in our district, and the first organ builder stabilized in Satu Mare is George Galii with his son Anthony. They have built the organ from the Church with Chains, and also, we think, the chruch of Mintiu. In the middle of the 19-th century works Samuel Blahunka, from his workshop come the organs of the reformed churches of Seini (1848), Oraşu Nou (1857). Comparing the organs from Seini and the ones in Apa and Hodod, from the aspect of the console we presume that these instruments are built by him. The organs built by Samuel Blahunka are instruments of small dimensions, with a single keyboard, 54 keys, at Seini and Apa the pedalboard has only 22 pedals(the one in Apa was enlarged to 24 pedals) , yet the organ in Hodod has no pedalboard at all. At the registers we found comun Mixtura with 3 rows, Bourdon 8', Flauta 4'and Octava 2', The greatest similarity between them is in the arrangement of the keyboard (the keyboard cheek, the arrangement of the drawstopknob, the cover and the profile of the console). There are known other instuments, built by this organ builder in the reformed church of Teceu (1853), Hust (1861) and Fancika (Ukraine), but there are a few in Slovakia too. He also repaired and upkept the organs of Satu Mare.

In the same period works Steven Strosz from Mérk, which in that time was in Satu Mare district, now it's in Hungary. Until 1867 he built 25 organs, two of them in Satu Mare and one in each of the following: Berekszász (now Beregovo n.a.), Mérk, Császlócz, Jánk (in Hungary), Iojib, Hurezu Mare, Királyháza (now Korolevo), Kerepecz, Bártháza, Mezőkászony, (in Hungary), Ardud, Socond, Berea, Tiream, Vállaj (in Hungary), Curtuiuşeni, Berveni, Fábiánháza, Szamosszeg, Badalló, Dara, Ciumeşti şi Zajta (in Hungary). From the six still existing in the district all have one single keyboard division with 54 keys, pedalboard with 18 pedals (duckbiel pedal) and 12 sounds, the organcáse evolved from simple, with a flat (Berveni, Turulung), with 3 flat towers and 2 intermediate flats (Ardud, Berea and Tiream); to the monumental, classic, with 3 flats and a triangular cornice (Ciumeşti). The registers disposition and the keyboard in two rows, we find everywhere, also the disposition with 8 registers for the keyboard and 2 for the pedals are identical. We don't know if he worked after 1867.

Another builder who asserts himself at the end of the 19-th is Andrew Dukász in Carei. This builder

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