Documenting the Goršič Pipe Organ in the Church of St. Lawrence in Žalna Near Grosuplje

In September 2020, as part of the project of researching the Franc Goršič organ legacy, we documented the organ in the parish church of St. Lawrence in Žalna near Grosuplje. This is Goršič’s 3rd work, dating from 1865.

“Mr. Goršič has so far installed only three new organs in our diocese, in Ternovo, in the old Loka and Žalina; and with this organ he has shown that he can live up to all the claims of a good, fine-voiced organ, made according to the latest rules.”

Journal Zgodnja Danica, January 20, 1866

Scope of documentation

Technical documentation included the following measurements:

• basic dimensions of the church, choir, organ case, and console
• tuning and temperature
• wind system
• windchests and the pipes arrangement on the windchests
• measurements of the pipes and pipe scales

Sound documentation of the instrument
Photodocumentation of the individual parts and details of the organ

Data and findings

Documented: September 12, 2020

Number of pipes: 654 (wood: 128, metal: 526)

The organ is mechanical with a slider chest:

• Number of windchests: 2 (manual: 1, pedal: 1)
  
• Wind pressure: 73 mm water column
  
• Tuning: a1 = 443,8 Hz at 22 °C
  
• Wind system: double bellows with one feeder bellows (electric blower, Aug. Laukhuff GmbH & Co., Type: 2 89S, 100 mmWS, 8cbm/min)

The following modifications to the organ are known:

• In 1987 the organ was rebuilt by Hubertus von Kerssenbrock from Munich.
• In 2016, the organ was restored by the organ builder Brane Košir.
• The organ was moved when the choir was rebuilt.

Notes:

• The pedal tracker action has a constant mechanical suboctave coupling from c0-h0.
• The prospect pipes are not original.
• Some of the wooden and metal pipes are not original.

Dispozicija orgel

Mixtur III 2′