ORGANS OF PARIS © 2026 Vincent Hildebrandt HOME ALL ORGANS
A3
Organs have existed in Saint-Nicolas-des-Champs since 1418. They
were medieval plenum organs without stops bought from Bernard
de Montigny, which we find in 1536 in need of repairs.
1564-1571
Jacques Pigache built a new organ placed on the new gallery of
1564. It was a 15-stop instrument with a keyboard and an
independent pedal. The case of this instrument is still partly
present in the current large case.
1608-1611
The organ was rebuilt by Paul Maillard. The side turrets and the
base of the present organ date back to this construction.
1632
The organ was again rebuilt by Crépin Carlier. A Positif case was
added and the great organ was enlarged While there were only 48
notes, winchests have 51 grooves as a provision for split sharps to
differenciate between D shap and E flat in the three highest
octaves. At that time, the instrument had 34 stops on three
manuals and pedalboard.
1688
Antoine Vincent added two keyboards, including an Echo keyboard.
Several changes in the stop list were made and the voicing of the
reed stops was renewed.
1732
Louis-Alexandre Clicquot, a parishioner of St Nicolas, carried out a
complete restoration of the instrument. The keyboards were
moved to D 5 and the split sharps were removed. At the Positif, the
8' Human Voice was replaced by an 8' Trumpet, a new 5-stop
windchest was installed at the Récit, and the Echo keyboard was
removed.
1762-1777
A new organ was commissioned from François-Henri Clicquot. He
did not complete his work until 1777. The 1611 case has been
preserved, but it was moved forward and enlarged by the two side
platforms. Construction of a new back Positive case. New
windchests, with the exception of the 1732 Récit windchest. All the
pipes was renewed, all made of pewter (except the wooden ones,
of course) with the exception of a part of Vincent's Echo Flute made
of cloth This new instrument has 42 stops over 5 manuals and an
independent pedal, 50-note manuals (from c to d5, without the
first c sharp, a large windchest in four sections of 100 grooves and
20 offset toeboards for the Grand-Orgue and the Bombarde. There
are 10 bellows to supply wind with winkers and whose
extraordinary bombardes have a ‘frightening’ brightness.
1825
Pierre François Dallery replaced the Doublettes with Dessus de
Flûte 8 and removed the Pleins-Jeux in favour of a reorganization
of the reed choirs of the Positif and the Grand-Orgue; he also adds
a Dessus de Flute to the Récit on the side of the windchest.
1835
Restoration of Clicquot's ten bellows by Louis-Paul Dallery.
1854
Ducroquet carried out some enlargement work:
•
addition of a German-style pedal
•
an additional pedal windchest containing 6 stops
•
removal of the 16', 8' and 4' Flute from the Clicquot Pedal
•
replacement of the pipes of the turrets of the main case (pre-
Clicquot).
•
new wind tunnel
1871
Joseph Merklin replaced the wedge-shaped bellows with a wind
tunnel consisting of two tanks with parallel tables. Replacement of
keyboards, damaged during the Franco-Prussian conflict.
1927-1930
The instrument was almost unplayable after a long period of
abandonment and a major restoration was carried out by Victor
Gonzalez in 1930.
•
Replacement of the console
•
Creation of an expressive Récit of 56 notes and 12 stops in a
“neo-classical” style, alongside the preserved classical Récit
•
Installation of new Pleins-jeux ranks at the Positif and Grand
Orgue on previously empty chests
•
Replacement of the 8’ Basson (Clicquot) in the Positif with a
Doublette
•
Replacement of the 16’ Contrebasse and 8’ Violoncelle
(Ducroquet) in the Pedal division with Soubasse 16’ and
Bourdon 8’
•
Transfer of the Voix humaine (Clicquot) to the Récit as well as
the 4’ Gambe (Ducroquet) from the Pedal, transformed into a
Voix céleste
•
Removal of the 8’ Flûte (Dallery) from the Récit
•
Addition of Barker machines for the three couplers
•
Pneumatic action for the stop controls.
1955–1980
The organ was kept in playable condition by Philippe Hartmann,
then by Didier Guiraud.
•
The Voix humaine was returned to the Grand Orgue
•
The reed chorus was restored
•
The additional pneumatic treble chests were removed
•
The 1930 Récit was disconnected
•
Several pipes from the Voix céleste (formerly the 4’ Gambe from
Ducroquet’s Pedal division) were installed in the choir organ
•
The Plein-Jeu III of the Positif was partly silenced and revoiced
to form a Larigot
2006–2010
Denis Lacorre carried out
•
Mechanical repairs
•
Re-leathering of the Grand Orgue Barker machine
•
Restoration of the pneumatic motors for the stop action and for
the 16’ Flûte of the Pedal
•
Partial removal and conservation of the Récit pipework
•
The 4’ Gambe of the Pedal (Ducroquet), previously spread
between the Récit of the gallery organ and the choir organ, was
reinstalled on its original chest from Ducroquet’s Pedal division
•
The Plein-Jeu III of the Positif (1930) was restored to Victor
Gonzalez’s original Stoplist.
2018
Summer droughts and then harsh winters dealt a fatal blow to the
main reservoirs of the wind tunnel, forcing the instrument into
silence. The great organ is now silent, awaiting a complete
restoration.
All of the windchests date from before the revolution (F.H. Clicquot,
Récit: L.A. Clicquot). 40 of the 58 stops are old. Mechanical
transmission with Barker at the GO. This organ is probably the most
authentic of all the organs dating from the Ancien Régime in Paris. Its
piping is in relatively good condition, uncut and in its original place on
the windchests.
Site of the organ
The Church of Saint Nicolas des Champs was part
of the former Abbey of Saint Martin des Champs. It
was built after 1420 and enlarged in 1541. The
church in its present form was built in 1615. The
tower and parts of the nave still dates from the
15th century, the top portion of the tower dates
from the 17th. Restauration in the 19th century. It
is the only church in Paris which still has its retable:
a work of the master Simon Vouet created in 1629.
In the plan to maintain the cultural heritage of the City
of Paris, this organ is among the four prestigious and
emblematic instruments, classified as Historic
Monuments, requiring a fundamental restoration.
Restoration issues
Designed specifically for the Church of Saint-
Nicolas-des-Champs, the great organ was
masterfully rebuilt in 1773 by François-Henri
Clicquot, parishioner of the church, from an existing
organ. This instrument of exceptional dimensions
(45 stops) is almost authentic given the amount of
original components preserved. It is the most
important of the classical era that has reached us in
the capital and the first "5 keyboards" in the history
of the organ. The pre-restoration study of the
organ, carried out by Christian Lutz, a state
consultant technician, presented to the National
Commission of Historic Monuments on 11 June
2015, was approved. Based on the program
established in this study, the work will consist of
restoring the Clicquot state of the organ while
retaining the contributions of 19th century organ
factors, François Dallery around 1815 and Pierre
Alexandre Ducroquet in 1854, the later elements
being deposited. The restitution, or not, of an
important part of the Grand Plein Jeu, will be
studied during the complete dismantling of the
instrument, in view of the detailed analysis of all the
pipes.
This work concerns the entire organ: the buffet with
its sculpted decoration and statuary, the wind
tunnel, the wind chests, the console, the
transmissions and the pipes. Ancillary work is also
needed: upgrading the organ's electrical
installation, pre-restoration work on the vault of the
building during the dismantling phase of the organ,
possible restoration of the tribune.
Expected work time: 36 months Call to Patronage:
2,250,000 euros, exclusive the costs associated with the
project, which will be taken care of by the City of Paris.
Source
Titular organist
Vincent Genvrin & François Ménissier
Organistes célèbres ayant illustré l’instrument dans
le passé: Nicolas Gigault, Louis Braille et Michel
Chapuis
Parish website
Video
François Ménissier
Jean Boyer
1571 - Jacques Pigache (1)
1611 - Paul Maillard (3)
1632 - Crespin Carlier (3a)
1688 - Antoine Vincent (3b)
1730 - L.A. Clicquot (5)
1777 - F.H. Clicquot (3)
1825 - P-F Dallery (6)
1835 - L-P Dallery (6)
1854 - Ducroquet (2)
1871 - Merklin (6)
1930 - Gonzalez (3a)
1955-1980 - Hartmann & Guiraud (6)
2010 - Denis Lacorre (6)
V/64 - mechanical traction
Stoplist
Silent since 2018
Silent since 2018
The organs of Paris
ORGANS OF PARIS © 2026 Vincent Hildebrandt ALL ORGANS
A3
Organs have existed in Saint-Nicolas-des-Champs since 1418.
They were medieval plenum organs without stops bought from
Bernard de Montigny, which we find in 1536 in need of repairs.
1564-1571
Jacques Pigache built a new organ placed on the new gallery of
1564. It was a 15-stop instrument with a keyboard and an
independent pedal. The case of this instrument is still partly
present in the current large case.
1608-1611
The organ was rebuilt by Paul Maillard. The side turrets and the
base of the present organ date back to this construction.
1632
The organ was again rebuilt by Crépin Carlier. A Positif case
was added and the great organ was enlarged While there were
only 48 notes, winchests have 51 grooves as a provision for
split sharps to differenciate between D shap and E flat in the
three highest octaves. At that time, the instrument had 34
stops on three manuals and pedalboard.
1688
Antoine Vincent added two keyboards, including an Echo
keyboard. Several changes in the stop list were made and the
voicing of the reed stops was renewed.
1732
Louis-Alexandre Clicquot, a parishioner of St Nicolas, carried
out a complete restoration of the instrument. The keyboards
were moved to D 5 and the split sharps were removed. At the
Positif, the 8' Human Voice was replaced by an 8' Trumpet, a
new 5-stop windchest was installed at the Récit, and the Echo
keyboard was removed.
1762-1777
A new organ was commissioned from François-Henri Clicquot.
He did not complete his work until 1777. The 1611 case has
been preserved, but it was moved forward and enlarged by the
two side platforms. Construction of a new back Positive case.
New windchests, with the exception of the 1732 Récit
windchest. All the pipes was renewed, all made of pewter
(except the wooden ones, of course) with the exception of a
part of Vincent's Echo Flute made of cloth This new instrument
has 42 stops over 5 manuals and an independent pedal, 50-
note manuals (from c to d5, without the first c sharp, a large
windchest in four sections of 100 grooves and 20 offset
toeboards for the Grand-Orgue and the Bombarde. There are
10 bellows to supply wind with winkers and whose
extraordinary bombardes have a ‘frightening’ brightness.
1825
Pierre François Dallery replaced the Doublettes with Dessus de
Flûte 8 and removed the Pleins-Jeux in favour of a
reorganization of the reed choirs of the Positif and the Grand-
Orgue; he also adds a Dessus de Flute to the Récit on the side
of the windchest.
1835
Restoration of Clicquot's ten bellows by Louis-Paul Dallery.
1854
Ducroquet carried out some enlargement work:
•
addition of a German-style pedal
•
an additional pedal windchest containing 6 stops
•
removal of the 16', 8' and 4' Flute from the Clicquot Pedal
•
replacement of the pipes of the turrets of the main case
(pre-Clicquot).
•
new wind tunnel
1871
Joseph Merklin replaced the wedge-shaped bellows with a wind
tunnel consisting of two tanks with parallel tables.
Replacement of keyboards, damaged during the Franco-
Prussian conflict.
1927-1930
The instrument was almost unplayable after a long period of
abandonment and a major restoration was carried out by
Victor Gonzalez in 1930.
•
Replacement of the console
•
Creation of an expressive Récit of 56 notes and 12 stops in
a “neo-classical” style, alongside the preserved classical
Récit
•
Installation of new Pleins-jeux ranks at the Positif and
Grand Orgue on previously empty chests
•
Replacement of the 8’ Basson (Clicquot) in the Positif with a
Doublette
•
Replacement of the 16’ Contrebasse and 8’ Violoncelle
(Ducroquet) in the Pedal division with Soubasse 16’ and
Bourdon 8’
•
Transfer of the Voix humaine (Clicquot) to the Récit as well
as the 4’ Gambe (Ducroquet) from the Pedal, transformed
into a Voix céleste
•
Removal of the 8’ Flûte (Dallery) from the Récit
•
Addition of Barker machines for the three couplers
•
Pneumatic action for the stop controls.
1955–1980
The organ was kept in playable condition by Philippe
Hartmann, then by Didier Guiraud.
•
The Voix humaine was returned to the Grand Orgue
•
The reed chorus was restored
•
The additional pneumatic treble chests were removed
•
The 1930 Récit was disconnected
•
Several pipes from the Voix céleste (formerly the 4’ Gambe
from Ducroquet’s Pedal division) were installed in the choir
organ
•
The Plein-Jeu III of the Positif was partly silenced and
revoiced to form a Larigot
2006–2010
Denis Lacorre carried out
•
Mechanical repairs
•
Re-leathering of the Grand Orgue Barker machine
•
Restoration of the pneumatic motors for the stop action
and for the 16’ Flûte of the Pedal
•
Partial removal and conservation of the Récit pipework
•
The 4’ Gambe of the Pedal (Ducroquet), previously spread
between the Récit of the gallery organ and the choir organ,
was reinstalled on its original chest from Ducroquet’s Pedal
division
•
The Plein-Jeu III of the Positif (1930) was restored to Victor
Gonzalez’s original Stoplist.
2018
Summer droughts and then harsh winters dealt a fatal blow to
the main reservoirs of the wind tunnel, forcing the instrument
into silence. The great organ is now silent, awaiting a complete
restoration.
All of the windchests date from before the revolution (F.H. Clicquot,
Récit: L.A. Clicquot). 40 of the 58 stops are old. Mechanical
transmission with Barker at the GO. This organ is probably the
most authentic of all the organs dating from the Ancien Régime in
Paris. Its piping is in relatively good condition, uncut and in its
original place on the windchests.
Site of the organ
Silent since 2018
Titular organist
Vincent Genvrin & François Ménissier
Organistes célèbres ayant illustré l’instrument dans le passé:
Nicolas Gigault, Louis Braille et Michel Chapuis
Parish website
Video
François Ménissier
Jean Boyer
1571 - Jacques Pigache (1)
1611 - Paul Maillard (3)
1632 - Crespin Carlier (3a)
1688 - Antoine Vincent (3b)
1730 - L.A. Clicquot (5)
1777 - F.H. Clicquot (3)
1825 - P-F Dallery (6)
1835 - L-P Dallery (6)
1854 - Ducroquet (2)
1871 - Merklin (6)
1930 - Gonzalez (3a)
1955-1980 - Hartmann & Guiraud (6)
2010 - Denis Lacorre (6)