One of the most eagerly anticipated aspects of the rebuilding and rededication of Dresden's famed Frauenkirche was the construction of a new organ to replace...

One of the most eagerly anticipated aspects of the rebuilding and rededication of Dresden's famed Frauenkirche was the construction of a new organ to replace the historic 1736 Silbermann instrument destroyed along with the church in the 1945 firebombing of the city. (Bach famously played that original organ on a visit to Dresden the same year the instrument was completed.) Although many details of the original organ were matched in its rebuilding (by Daniel Kern)--including the Silbermann's "classical disposition"--this new instrument also has an "additional manual in the French romantic style." And in its modern guise, it's truly an imposing concert instrument, as this recital by Frauenkirche organist Samuel Kummer decidedly proves.

The repertoire for this first recording (made in September, 2005, one month before the church's official rededication) naturally was chosen to show the organ's wide range of colors and voices, as well as to show some of its stylistic versatility. If you're an organ music collector you won't buy this for the definitiveness of any of the performances--there are some glitches (including a sketchy "cello" entrance in the opening Allegro of the Vivaldi, occasional unevenness of tempo, and some registrations that don't allow clear definition of inner parts in the thickest Bach textures)--but you'll want to hear this gorgeous organ put through its paces, especially in the grand and mighty Pièce d'orgue BWV 572 and the equally provocative Duruflé Suite Op. 5, with its stupendous concluding Toccata. In these two works, Kummer is brilliant, his technique, timing, and registration instincts dead-on.

Bach's setting of Vivaldi's concerto Op. 3 No. 11 is a rarely-heard gem, but here it sounds unsettled when it should be rock-steady, and the important inner lines of the Fugue aren't voiced distinctly enough. I wonder how much time the producers and performer had to adjust to acoustics and instrument in this new space. Anyway, the chorale variations heard in BWV 768 are attractively, colorfully configured with Kummer's choices of stops ideally setting off the theme in its various contexts. The disc's other selection is Bach's lively Trio BWV 655, which Kummer plays with delightful simplicity, calling on the beauty of the organ's flutes as the primary voice.

The sound is full and vibrant--a bit too much so in some places!--and the package is enhanced by booklet notes in English (not always the case with Carus), complete information about the organ's disposition and stop selection for each piece, and beautiful color pictures of the organ, cathedral, and city of Dresden.

--David Vernier, ClassicsToday.com