The Lutherkirche on the Zschopauer Strasse in Chemnitz was built in 1908 in neo-roman style. The central tower is 64 m high. The Church and its organ were constructed at the same time - they form a rare unity. The organ was built by Wilhelm Sauer (Frankfurt/Oder) in 1908, two years before he retired. In that one very prolific year, he built 4 organs in Berlin among many others, comprising altogether more than 600 stops! The Chemnitz organ bears opus number 1011 and was inaugurated on April 1st, 1908. It consists of three manuals and pedal with a total of 50 stops. We are lucky to still have this organ with us. The Lutherkirche miraculously survived World War II, while the surrounding area was destroyed.

Ten stops were changed in 1938 by Jehmlich of Dresden according to the ideas of the organ reform movement. The same company provided a thorough restoration in 1966. At that time, it was suggested to change the specification in a complete neo-baroque sense, but those modifications were (fortunately) never realized due to lack of funds. In 2006/2007, a general overhaul and restoration of the instrument was done by the organ builder Christian Scheffler at Sieversdorf near Frankfurt/Oder. This work included restoration and reconstruction of the stops changed in 1938 into their original state. Reinauguration of this precious, late-romantic instrument happened on May 6th, 2007.


When visiting German instruments built around the turn of the 20th century, the visitor soon discovers that their stop lists are all quite similar. A plenitude of foundation stops, including all sorts and shapes of flutes ranging from pianissimo to forte, always paired with string stops for a proper tone balance of each dynamic level. This careful specification provides the smoothest possible dynamic progression. Retaining a consistent overall tone color across the entire dynamic range was one of the requirements for organs of the time. On the other hand, there is usually only a single reed stop on each manual, a Trumpet on the lowest, a Clarinette on the second, and an Oboe on the top-most manual. In Chemnitz, the slightly richer specification also allows for a Fagott 16' on the first manual. These organs have a minimum of aliquotes, and subdued mixtures provide a mild "crown" to the full organ sound that lacks the brilliance typical of earlier instruments. A tremulant is usually absent, probably viewed as a comic device that would spoil the sobriety of the earnest musical ideas conveyed by the coeval music. There is a clear dynamic hierarchy of the manuals: each ascending manual is almost an echo of the previous one.

National and international organists are interested in the Chemnitz Sauer organ. In the summer of 2011, a first CD was recorded by the Norwegian organist Halgeir Schiager, with music by Karl Wolfrum, which was published in Summer 2012 by Oehms Classics, Munich. Also with Oehms Classics, a 2nd recording came out in 2014 with the "Choralvorspiele op. 67" by Max Reger, played by Bernhard Buttmann (Nuremberg). 2016 saw the 3rd CD-recording by Prof. Martin Schmeding/ Leipzig of Reger's op. 65, op. 69, " Choralvorspiele ohne Opuszahl" and Präludium and Fuge gis-moll published by Cybele Records (2 CDs). For the film "Maximum Reger" with 6 DVD about the life of Max Reger, Prof. Graham Barber (Leeds) plays the "Variationen und Fuge über ein Originalthema op.73 (cis-moll Variationen)" and the "Fantasie und Fuge d-moll, op. 135 b.

Additionals: II/I, III/I, Sub II/I, III/II, I/Ped, II/Ped, III/Ped, Generalkoppel, 3 free combinations (general), Forte, Tutti, Crescendo, Swell Pedal (III), Rohrwerke ab

https://www.sonusparadisi.cz/en/organs/germany/chemitz-lutherkirche-sauer-organ.html