MASAAKI SUZUKI PLAYS ARP SCHNITGER ORGANS
BACH AND BUXTEHUDE

Arp Schnitger (1648 – 1719) was one of the most influential among the Northern European organ builders. Of his more than 150 organs built or rebuilt especially in the Netherlands and Northern Germany, a number of these instruments still survive and are being played to the day. The Arp- Schnitger-Organ of the St. Ludgeri Church in Norden has been completed in 1692. It is uniquely constructed in the middle of the church which results in a challenge for the organist to find the right registration to balance the sound in every nave of the church. At the Martinikerk in Groningen, Arp Schnitger built the organ in 1692. It is about a particular register (Holfluyt 8Vt) that Dieterich Buxtehude wrote an essay about as the sound combination was so unique and new in his times. Masaaki Suzuki playing Buxtehude repertoire on this organ promises to become an authentic experience for the TV audience. The St. James’ Church was completely destroyed in 1943. However, as most of the organ pipes had been buried below the church to save them when the bombings started, while the organ has been restored in current times, up to 90% of the original pipes built by Arp Schnitger are in use to date.

In this 4K HDR production, conductor, cembalist and organist Masaaki Suzuki, internationally known as a profound expert of J.S. Bach’s works as well as for his historical performance practice, will travel to three churches in Northern Germany and the Netherlands to play on their historical Arp Schnitger-organs: The Martinikerk in Groningen, the Ludgeri Church in the German city of Norden as well as to the St. Jacobi Church in Hamburg.

At these authentic sites, he performs organ master pieces of J. S. Bach and Dieterich Buxtehude. The program includes some interviews and documentary parts.