The organ
The Angster organ
The organ of St Stephen's Basilica: who built it, how it was rebuilt, and the Bach and Widor toccatas that organ programmes tend to list.
Reserve a seat in the basilica ↗Quick answer
The organ of St Stephen's Basilica was built by József Angster in 1905, and the basilica's own page gives it 93 stops and 7,544 pipes after rebuilds in 1932, 1937 and 1992 to 2004. The programmes name two famous toccatas, Bach's in D minor and Widor's, among other pieces.
Who built the organ
The basilica's page on its organ says József Angster built it in 1905, the year the church was consecrated. Wikipedia names the Pécs organ-building firm of Angster, a recognised maker of the era. The original instrument had 65 registers, three keyboards and pedals, and pneumatic control, according to the basilica. The cabinet was designed by József Kauser, the architect who worked on the interior, and made at the Endre Thék furniture factory. The basilica says a trumpet choir projects horizontally from the façade of the case.
How it has changed
The basilica says the organ was converted to four manuals in 1932 and that the Rieger Organ Factory converted it again in 1937. The most recent work, by the Budapest firm Váradi and Sons from 1992 to 2004, added a computer-controlled movable console and an electric action and renovated the windchests. The cabinet was re-gilded in that restoration using 22-carat gold leaf. The page now gives the organ 93 stops and 7,544 pipes, from 5 millimetres to 10.5 metres long. So the instrument you hear is a 1905 organ that has been rebuilt more than once.
What the programmes list
Organ programmes on both tickets list Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D minor. Wikipedia describes it as a short free toccata, a four-voice fugue and a brief coda, usually about nine minutes long, and says its date is uncertain, with estimates from around 1704 to the 1750s. Its attribution has been questioned since 1981, when Peter Williams suggested it might have begun as a violin work by another composer, while Christoph Wolff believes Bach wrote it. The main ticket's organ programme also lists the Toccata from Widor's Organ Symphony No. 5, which makes a good pair of contrasting toccatas.
Voices and other instruments
An organ concert in the basilica is rarely organ alone. The separate organ listing names an organist, a Hungarian bass singer and a flautist, and its programme includes Verdi's Prayer of Fiesco from Simon Boccanegra, which Wikipedia says was first staged in Venice on 12 March 1857 and revised for La Scala in 1881 with a libretto adaptation by Arrigo Boito. Fiesco is a bass role, and the prologue aria is Il lacerato spirito. Guests on the main ticket name organ, violin, trumpet and two opera singers. So plan for a mixed evening in which the organ is the anchor.
Widor's toccata
Widor wrote his Organ Symphony No. 5 in 1878 and 1879, during his years as organist of Saint-Sulpice. The Toccata is its fifth and last movement and lasts around six minutes, according to Wikipedia. It is often used as recessional music at festive services and weddings, and it replaced Mendelssohn's Wedding March at the 1960 wedding of Princess Margaret. Heard in a basilica with a long echo, a fast toccata is a test of the organist, since the room smears quick notes, and it is one of the pieces that shows why organ music was written for big churches.
Who this isn't for
Guests describe sightlines to the musicians as limited, so this is a poor choice for watching the organist at work. If you want a full recital of one composer, the programmes here are mixed bills with voices and other instruments. If you prefer a small, dry-sounding room, the long echo of a large church will not suit you. And if you want the organ to play loudly throughout, remember that the programmes also include quiet pieces such as the Ave Marias and the Adagio. The separate organ concert listing names an organist, a bass singer and a flautist, which makes it a mixed evening as well.
Frequently asked questions
Who built the organ?
József Angster built it in 1905, according to the basilica's page on the organ. It has since been rebuilt, most recently from 1992 to 2004.
Which Bach piece do the programmes list?
The Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 565, appears in the organ programmes. Whether Bach wrote it is debated.
Is the organ concert separate from the main ticket?
Yes. The main ticket has an organ programme among three, and a separate listing sells an organ concert with its own line-up and seat classes.
Can I see the organ?
It is a large instrument in the church, and guests describe limited sightlines to the musicians. Ask which class gives the better view.
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