ASSOCIAZIONE AMICI DELL'ORGANO - GENOVA

The organ of the Oratory of Nostra Signora del Suffragio is an instrument with a rather complex history. The construction of this organ, originally placed in the church of the Albergo dei Poveri in Genoa, was entrusted in 1686 to Giuliano Giovannini, cymbal player at the court of the Medici family of Florence, but brought to completion two years later, in 1688, by Tommaso I Roccatagliata. Purchased in 1861 by the Confraternita of the Nostra Signora del Suffragio, it was repeatedly subjected to maintenance work during the nineteenth and twentieth century, fortunately without suffering any deprivation of original phonic material. It has an original keyboard of 50 keys (C1-F5), with first octave short and division between bass and treble between B2 and C3. The pedalboard has 14 pedals (C1-F2) with first octave short and is constantly coupled to the manual. Another pedal actuates the drum. The stops are controlled by knobs arranged in a column on the right of the keyboard:

A tie rod to the left of the lectern operates the Rosignoli.

Restoration works - completed in 2009 - were carried out by Bottega Organara Dell'Orto & Lanzini of Dormelletto (NO) for the phonic matherial and by the company Aguzzi of Genoa regarding the case and the balcony. Based on the archival research in Liguria, the organ of the Oratory of Nostra Signora del SUffragio is the organ dated oldest in the region.