Organ - Metz

Notre Dame's Church is located in the very heart of the city centre in Metz. It was built by the Jesuits from 1665 to 1741 in the Baroque Gesu style and is currently being restored. This important and particularly dynamic church welcomes many concerts thanks to the quality of its organ, its excellent acoustics as well as its wide dimensions. It has become a focal point in the musical and organistic life of the city of Metz and the whole region. 

The magnificent case of the great organ was built in 1730 by Jean Nollet for a church in Trier. This instrument was transferred to Metz in 1803 and transformed in 1846 by one of Cavaillé- Coll's disciples: Antoine Sauvage. It was enlarged by Charles Mutin in 1903, and restored by Michel GAILLARD of the Aubertin Manufacture in 1983. Unfortunately the organ has suffered many misfortunes since then. In 1990, as a result of a storm which broke a stained glass window, a great amount of dust settled in the instrument. In 1993, during the restoration works of the façade of the edifice, the organ was watered... and a scaffolding was put up in the bowels to gain easier access to the window...Those unspeakable treatments got the better of this magnificent listed organ. Michel Gaillard expended boundless ingenuity so that this organ could be played in 1995. It provides opportunities for many activities.  This instrument is the only important Cavaillé-Coll organ to have remained intact in the East of France. 

Fugue: Organ in Metz - Notre Dame

Metz St. Martin built by Nollet.