Pipe Organ MapA. Schuke Potsdam
| Founded/Born - Closed/Death | 1820 - ??? |
|---|---|
| Still active? | yes |
| mail@schuke.de | |
| Webpage | https://www.schuke.de/ |
Alexander Schuke Potsdam Orgelbau GmbH is a German organ-building company founded in 1820 in Potsdam.
The organ builder Gottlieb Heise founded the company in 1820 in Potsdam, establishing a workshop in the courtyard of a residential complex in the Dutch Quarter. In 1848, his pupil Carl Ludwig Gesell took over the company, initially with Gustav Schulz, who soon became independent. From 1868, Carl Eduard Gesell led the company. When he died childless in 1894, Alexander Schuke bought the company and made it one of the most well-known organ-building firms in Brandenburg. After his death in 1933, his sons Karl Ludwig Schuke and Hans-Joachim Schuke jointly led the company.
Hans-Joachim Schuke was captured by the Soviets during World War II. In 1950, the brothers decided to establish a second workshop in Berlin, anticipating economic constraints in post-war Germany. Hans-Joachim continued running the Potsdam firm, which remained privately owned. Karl Schuke moved to Berlin in 1953 and separated the Berlin workshop from the Potsdam operation, continuing it as Karl Schuke Berliner Orgelbauwerkstatt GmbH. In 1972, the company in the DDR was nationalized and operated as VEB Potsdamer Schuke-Orgelbau. Organ master Matthias Schuke, who had joined in 1974, successfully reprivatized the company in 1990 during the economic and political changes and became its owner and managing director. In January 2004, the company moved to a new workshop at Otto-Lilienthal-Straße 33 in the Havelauen in Werder (Havel).
Schuke received important commissions for new organs for the Cathedral of Erfurt, the Cathedral of Magdeburg, the Cathedral of Kaliningrad, and the Cathedral of Zamora in Mexico. In the 20th century, the company became one of the leading German organ-building firms with a worldwide reputation.
Due to difficulties delivering new organs to Ukraine and Russia and payment defaults from these countries due to economic sanctions against Russia, the company filed for bankruptcy in November 2014. In solidarity with the traditional organ-building company, some customers brought forward planned orders. A Chinese art lover purchased the completed instrument for a Russian luxury hotel and additionally ordered a smaller organ for training music students in Shanghai. In January 2017, the Potsdam District Court unanimously accepted the insolvency plan, saving the company. At the end of October 2017, Matthias Schuke announced the gradual transfer of the company to his sons Johannes (*1985) and Michael (*1989). In October 2018, Johannes and Michael Schuke took over the management of the traditional company in the fourth generation. In November 2018, they received a major contract to restore and expand the organ in St. Katharinen Church in Brandenburg an der Havel, which Schuke had already rebuilt in 1936.
Alexander Schuke initially built the cone chest, which he had learned from his mentor Eduard Gesell. He combined this technique with tubular pneumatics in solid construction. The company soon developed into one of the leading organ-building firms in Brandenburg alongside Dinse and Sauer. After World War I, electric action was standardly introduced. Following the organ reform movements led by Albert Schweitzer and Hans Henny Jahnn, Schuke returned to the principles of classical organ building and reinstated mechanical slider chests. By the late 1950s, the first restorations of historical instruments were undertaken. The company is known for significant restorations, such as the Scherer organ in Tangermünde (1624) and the Wagner organs in Brandenburg an der Havel (1725) and Angermünde (1744).
In collaboration with Schuke, the University of Potsdam develops measurement methods to determine the authentic sound of historical organ pipes.
Musicologists appreciate the "romantic and symphonic sound" of Schuke organs, attributed to the careful selection and processing of pipe materials in their own workshop. Unlike the typical development in organ building, the Schukes use lead and tin along with trace elements in the raw materials, resulting in high stability and durability.
The opus list includes 630 new organs built between 1895 and 2015, over 60 restorations (as of the end of 2017), whose proportion has significantly increased since the late 1990s, as well as numerous rebuilds and expansions of existing works.
The organ builder Gottlieb Heise founded the company in 1820 in Potsdam, establishing a workshop in the courtyard of a residential complex in the Dutch Quarter. In 1848, his pupil Carl Ludwig Gesell took over the company, initially with Gustav Schulz, who soon became independent. From 1868, Carl Eduard Gesell led the company. When he died childless in 1894, Alexander Schuke bought the company and made it one of the most well-known organ-building firms in Brandenburg. After his death in 1933, his sons Karl Ludwig Schuke and Hans-Joachim Schuke jointly led the company.
Hans-Joachim Schuke was captured by the Soviets during World War II. In 1950, the brothers decided to establish a second workshop in Berlin, anticipating economic constraints in post-war Germany. Hans-Joachim continued running the Potsdam firm, which remained privately owned. Karl Schuke moved to Berlin in 1953 and separated the Berlin workshop from the Potsdam operation, continuing it as Karl Schuke Berliner Orgelbauwerkstatt GmbH. In 1972, the company in the DDR was nationalized and operated as VEB Potsdamer Schuke-Orgelbau. Organ master Matthias Schuke, who had joined in 1974, successfully reprivatized the company in 1990 during the economic and political changes and became its owner and managing director. In January 2004, the company moved to a new workshop at Otto-Lilienthal-Straße 33 in the Havelauen in Werder (Havel).
Schuke received important commissions for new organs for the Cathedral of Erfurt, the Cathedral of Magdeburg, the Cathedral of Kaliningrad, and the Cathedral of Zamora in Mexico. In the 20th century, the company became one of the leading German organ-building firms with a worldwide reputation.
Due to difficulties delivering new organs to Ukraine and Russia and payment defaults from these countries due to economic sanctions against Russia, the company filed for bankruptcy in November 2014. In solidarity with the traditional organ-building company, some customers brought forward planned orders. A Chinese art lover purchased the completed instrument for a Russian luxury hotel and additionally ordered a smaller organ for training music students in Shanghai. In January 2017, the Potsdam District Court unanimously accepted the insolvency plan, saving the company. At the end of October 2017, Matthias Schuke announced the gradual transfer of the company to his sons Johannes (*1985) and Michael (*1989). In October 2018, Johannes and Michael Schuke took over the management of the traditional company in the fourth generation. In November 2018, they received a major contract to restore and expand the organ in St. Katharinen Church in Brandenburg an der Havel, which Schuke had already rebuilt in 1936.
Alexander Schuke initially built the cone chest, which he had learned from his mentor Eduard Gesell. He combined this technique with tubular pneumatics in solid construction. The company soon developed into one of the leading organ-building firms in Brandenburg alongside Dinse and Sauer. After World War I, electric action was standardly introduced. Following the organ reform movements led by Albert Schweitzer and Hans Henny Jahnn, Schuke returned to the principles of classical organ building and reinstated mechanical slider chests. By the late 1950s, the first restorations of historical instruments were undertaken. The company is known for significant restorations, such as the Scherer organ in Tangermünde (1624) and the Wagner organs in Brandenburg an der Havel (1725) and Angermünde (1744).
In collaboration with Schuke, the University of Potsdam develops measurement methods to determine the authentic sound of historical organ pipes.
Musicologists appreciate the "romantic and symphonic sound" of Schuke organs, attributed to the careful selection and processing of pipe materials in their own workshop. Unlike the typical development in organ building, the Schukes use lead and tin along with trace elements in the raw materials, resulting in high stability and durability.
The opus list includes 630 new organs built between 1895 and 2015, over 60 restorations (as of the end of 2017), whose proportion has significantly increased since the late 1990s, as well as numerous rebuilds and expansions of existing works.
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https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Schuke_Potsdam_Orgelbau