Saint-Nicolas-

du-Chardonnet

23, rue des Bernardins, 75005 Paris

Gallery organ Choir organ >

This church was built between 1656 and 1763. Its clocktower is a remainder of an older building (1625). Due to the construction of the Boulevard Saint-Germain, the main entrance was moved and the absis was remodelled. The principal (neo-classical) facade was finished in 1937, the facade Rue des Bernardins with a beautiful wooden door, dates to 1669. Since 1977, the church houses the members of the Society of St. Pius X.

E6 The organ of Saint Nicolas du Chardonnet comes from the former parish church of Saints-Innocents, built by François Thierry between 1723 and 1725 (IV/24). 1766 François-Henri Clicquot carried out repairs on the wind system. 1787–1790 The organ was transferred to Saint-Nicolas-du-Chardonnet and enlarged to IV/37 by François-Henri Clicquot. After his death in 1790, the work was completed by his son Claude- François Clicquot. 1820 The instrument was renovated by Pierre-François Dallery, including some changes to the reed stops. 1897 Merklin was commissioned to rebuild the instrument, reducing it to II/24. The former wooden gallery was replaced by a stone one. At that time, the *Positif de dos* case was placed above the *Grand Orgue* to conceal the expressive box of the Récit. 1927 The organ was restored by P.-M. Koenig, who took the opportunity to enlarge and revoice it. 1935–1936 A new gallery was installed, and the *Positif* was moved back to its original position by Victor Gonzalez, who also expanded the instrument. The pipework from Merklin’s former Récit was placed in the Positif case, the shutters were removed, and several new stops were added, shifting the tonal palette toward a neo-classical style: 4’ Flûte, Nasard, Quarte, Tierce, and a IV-rank Plein Jeu. 1961 The instrumental section was reconstructed by Roethinger and Robert Boisseau. All the pipework was inventoried and classified. The new stoplist was drawn up under the advice of organist Léon Souberbielle and inspired by Dom Bedos’s fifth design in his “descending classification” — for a large eight-foot organ — with eight ranks of Plein Jeu at the Grand Orgue and four ranks at the Positif. The organ was brought to 43 stops distributed over three manuals and pedal. The action was electrified, and a detached console was installed. 2007-2009 Reconstruction of the organ by Michel Gaillard (from the Aubertin firm): • addition of a fourth manual • restoration of the original proportions of the case and console; furthermore, the organ case was raised by 50 centimetres to create additional height for the addition of a 32-foot Basson • modification of the Stoplist, addition of new stops • the chamades, coming from St Eustache, have been rebuilt and moved from the top of the Swell to the front of the case. • full revoicing • Improvement of the reliability of the electric traction. 2025 Overhaul by Sébastien Braillon and installation of a new combinator by Christophe Cailleux The organ contains a non-negligible amount of material dating from Clicquot (pedal windchests and a few reeds).

Titular organist Marie-Agnès Grall-Menet (grand-orgue) Philippe Ourselin (suppléant) Organistes célèbres ayant illustré l’instrument par le passé: Jean-Nicolas Geoffroy (1633–1694), Charles Tournemire. Parish website Videos Marie-Agnès Grall-Menet (grand-orgue) Axel de Marnhac Photos Buffet : Jeroen de Haan Eglise : Vincent Hildebrandt