Joachim Wagner

Joachim Wagner (13 April 1690 – 23 May 1749) was an important Brandenburg organ builder.

Origin Wagner was born as the son of the pastor Christoph Wagner (1653-1709) and his wife Anna Dorothea née Tiefenbach in Karow, Duchy of Magdeburg. His brothers, the pastors Johann Christoph Wagner (1683-1750, since 1710 his father's successor in office in Karow), and Friedrich Wagner (1693-1760), later had an influence on his work.

Work

It is possible that Wagner learned the organ building trade from Schnitger's student Matthäus Hartmann (died ca. 1745). Evidence shows that Christoph Treutmann the Elder (c. 1673-1757) in Magdeburg was Wagner's teacher.Andreas Kitschke: Der Lehrmeister von Joachim Wagner. In . Vol. 59, 2011, . As a journeyman, Wagner went on the road and also worked for Gottfried Silbermann in Freiberg for two years. He came to Berlin in 1719.Andreas Kitschke: Der Orgelbauer Joachim Wagner. In Evangelische Kirchengemeinde Schönwalde: Die historische Wagner-Orgel (1739) in der Dorfkirche Schönwalde. Schönwalde-Glien 2015, pp. 10f. He completed his masterpiece there in 1723 with the organ in the St. Mary's Church, Berlin (already consecrated in 1721), which had three manuals and 40 stops. In Berlin, he also built his largest work with 50 stops on three manuals in the newly built Berliner Garnisonkirche between 1724 and 1726. (rebuilt in 1892, burned in 1908).

He was by far the most important organ builder of the Baroque period in the Margraviate of Brandenburg, as conditions were particularly favourable during the reign of the Soldier King Frederick William I of Prussia (1713-1740) offered favourable conditions for this. He is sometimes referred to as the "Märkischer Silbermann".

Wagner apparently died in Salzwedel while working on his last organ for the Marienkirche there at age 59, as it was completed by Gottlieb Scholtze.

Students Among his pupils who continued his traditions were:Christhard Kirchner, Uwe Pape: Joachim Wagner. In Uwe Pape, Wolfram Hackel, Christhard Kirchner (ed.): Lexikon norddeutschet Orgelbauer. Vol. 4. Berlin, Brandenburg and surroundings. Pape Verlag, Berlin 2017. Matthias Kallensee, since 1720, later Werkmeister, died in 1741. Johann Peter Migendt, since 1731/32, since 1741 Werkmeister, took over the workshop in 1749 (c. 1703- 1767) Heinrich Andreas Contius, 1732 to about 1738, thereafter most important organ builder in the Baltic (1708- 1795) Georg Neumann, 1732-1742 Gottlieb Scholtze, 1740/44 carving for Wagner, afterwards organ builder's pupil (c. 1713- c. 1782) Johann Gottlieb Mehnert, at the latest since 1746, afterwards organ builder in Stettin Ernst Julius Marx, possibly only with Migendt after 1749?, afterwards organ builder in Berlin

Organs Sphere of influence In the course of his life, Wagner built over 50 individually designed organs, both for large churches and for smaller village churches, of which 15 have been preserved in larger parts, as well as eight cases or smaller remnants.

From his workshop in Berlin, his sphere of activity extended mainly to the northern German Prussian Hohenzollern states, in addition to the residential cities of Berlin (8 organs) and Potsdam (4) and Brandenburg an der Havel (3) to the entire Margraviate of Brandenburg including Altmark (Werben (Elbe), Salzwedel), Uckermark (Angermünde, Gramzow, Schwedt/Oder) and Neumark (Königsberg), in Pomerania (Stargard, Wartin) and the Duchy of Magdeburg. But also in Kursachsen (Jüterbog) and Norway (Nidaros Cathedral in Trondheim) he built organs. Today, 15 organs with the largest original components have been preserved, the most valuable in the St. Peter and Paul Cathedral Brandenburg, as well as 8 cases or smaller remains.

Characteristics Wagner built instruments that combined and further developed Central German and North German elements of organ building. However, the work principle cultivated in the baroque period of northern Germany was abandoned in favour of sound fusion and a single overall case. The sound characteristics include the powerful intonation, the well-staffed pedal keyboard (without pedal coupler), mixtures and the manual transmissions built into some instruments.

In the course of his life he built over fifty individually designed organs, both for large churches and for small village churches, no two of which were completely alike. His casings were rich in variation, often bearing sculptural decoration and occasionally moving timpani and trumpet angels in the Silesian tradition, inspired by Johann Michael Röder. All of these instruments are extremely valuable testimonies to a highly developed musical culture, which were also used by the musical greats of their time. On 8 May 1747, for example, Johann Sebastian Bach played the relatively small Wagner organ at Potsdam's Heilig-Geist-Kirche. The organ works of his son Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach were written in the context of the organ built in 1755 by Ernst Marx and Peter Migendt. of the princess Anna Amalia, which is now located in Karlshorst.

Today's holdings Fires, lack of maintenance as well as alterations resulting from the musical zeitgeist of the 19th  century and the consequences of the Second World War have left only 15 more or less originally preserved instruments and eight other instrument remnants, mainly cases (some still with original stock). The Potsdam firm Alexander Schuke Potsdam Orgelbau has rendered great service to the restoration of Wagner organs in the course of its existence.

On 26 August 2006, the Joachim Wagner Society was founded in Rühstädt with the aim of researching and maintaining his unique heritage.

List of works Today, 51 new organs, one disposition design, four conversions and some repairs are known from Wagner.Christhard Kirchner, Uwe Pape: Wagner, Joachim. In: Uwe Pape, Wolfram Hackel, Christhard Kirchner (ed.): Lexikon norddeutscher Orgelbauer. Vol. 4. Berlin, Brandenburg and surroundings. Pape Verlag, Berlin 2017. pp. 599f. with extensive list 15 organs in larger parts and eight pipe organs are preserved, some with small remains. The most important preserved one is located in the St. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Brandenburg.

The size of the instruments is indicated in the fifth column by the number of manuals and the number of sounding stops in the sixth column. A capital P stands for an independent pedal, a small p for an attached pedal. An italicisation indicates that the organ in question is no longer preserved or that only the facade is still by Wagner. Year Location Building Picture Manual Register Notes1720–1723BerlinSt. MarienIII/P40Front and register preserved, integrated in new building by Alfred Kern & fils (2002)1722–1723PotsdamOld GarnisonkircheII/P25Set up in the Jerusalemkirche, Berlin, in 1732; Dismantled around 1878 when the church was rebuilt; not preserved1725Brandenburg an der HavelDom St. Peter und PaulII/P33Prospect, stops and pipes almost completely preserved in the original, largest preserved and functioning Wagner organ. → Orgel1724–1726BerlinGarnisonkircheIII/P50Not preserved1724–1726BerlinReithausII/P18Not preserved1726–1727BlumbergDorfkircheI7Not preserved1726–1727Brandenburg an der HavelSt. KatharinenIII/P40Front preserved → Orgel172BerlinSt. GeorgenII/P16Not preserved1727BerlinGroßes Friedrichs-Hospital, WaisenhauskircheI/P9–10Not preserved1728Bad Freienwalde (Oder)St. NikolaiII/P24Façade preserved1729–1730WriezenSt. MarienIII/P34Not preserved1730TemplinMaria-Magdalenen-KircheII/P30Not preserved1730PotsdamHeilig-Geist-KircheII/P22Not preserved1730–1731StargardJohanniskircheII/P21Not preserved1731BerlinSt. Gertraud, HospitalkircheI9Not preserved1731–1732BerlinParochialkircheII/P32Not preserved1731–1732PotsdamGarnisonkirche III/P42Not preserved1733ZehdenickStadtkirche ZehdenickII/P18Not preserved1732–1734Berlin-SpandauSt.-Nikolai-KircheII/P31Not preserved1734BerlinFranzösische FriedrichstadtkircheI/P13Not preserved1734–1735Village churchI6Not preserved1734–1736Königsberg in der NeumarkSt. MarienIII45Not preserved1735–1736Nahausen bei Königsberg in der NeumarkVillage churchI7Not preserved1735Schwedt/OderSchlosskapelleI/P oder II/P15 oder 21Drafts from 19 September 1735, implementation unknown.Entwurf Manuskript Institut für Orgelforschung BrandenburgEntwurf Institut für Orgelforschung Brandenburg (pdf)Foto der historischen Orgel Institut für Orgelforschung Brandenburg1736GramzowEv. Stadtkirche St. MarienI/P9In the Dorfkirche Sternhagen since 1857, 2001-2009 restored and reconstructed by Alexander Schuke Potsdam OrgelbauOrgel in Sternhagen, retrieved 14 February 2021.? um 1736Zachow (Czachów), NeumarkDorfkirche I7Side-playing parapet organ without pedal, rebuilt in 1837 by Buchholz with pedal, 1945 all metal pipes disappeared, 2003 discovery of Wagner authorship by Karl Richter, today empty facade with Buchholz pedal wood pipes preserved.Schinkel und ein Rätseltext von Karl Richter, mit Geschichte und Dispositionen (pdf)Foto Institut für Orgelforschung Brandenburg1736–1737Brandenburg an der HavelSt. GotthardtII/P31Not preserved1737PotsdamKirche des MilitärwaisenhausesI8in the St. Marien in Pritzerbe since 1792.Year of implementation after www.garnisonfriedhofberlin.de, retrieved 14 February 2021.1737JüterbogLiebfrauenkircheI/P13Largely preserved → Orgel1737–1738Bochow (Niedergörsdorf)Village churchI/p7 oder 9Not preserved1738RühstädtDorfkircheI/P10Casing and some stops preserved, rest reconstructed.Orgel in Rühstadt, retrieved 19 February 2021.1737–1739BrüssowSt. SophiaI/P11Not preserved1739SchönwaldeDorfkircheI/P12Preserved → Orgel1738–1740MagdeburgHeilige-Geist-KircheIII/P46Not preserved1737–1741JüterbogSt. NikolaiII/P32The front has been preserved; it was built by J. Ch. Angermann from 1737 to 1741, as was the organ. Parts of the previous organ from 1602 were used in the construction of the organ. → Orgel.Marie-Luise Buchinger, Marcus Cante: Denkmale in Brandenburg, Landkreis Teltow Fläming, Part 1: Stadt Jüterbog mit Kloster Zinna und Gemeinde Niedergörsdorf. Wernersche Verlagsgesellschaft, , .1739–1741TreuenbrietzenSt. MarienII/P30Preserved1739–1741TrondheimNidaros CathedralII/P30Restored in 1994 → OrganTime data according to Nidaros Cathedral: Wagnerorgelet , retrieved 14 February 2021.1741TreuenbrietzenSt. NikolaiI/P18?Not preserved1741NeuruppinSankt MarienIII/P42Not preserved1742Wusterhausen/DosseSt. Peter und PaulII/P29Redisposed several times; restored in 1978.Orgel in Wusterhausen, retrieved 14 February 2021.1741–1742BötzowSt. NikolaiI/P10Modified several times1742–1744AngermündeStadtpfarrkirche St. MarienII/P30Four timpani angels can be operated from the pedal. Painting of the facade in 1773; 1845 and 1899-1901 redispositions; 1967-1976 restoration in two sections by Schuke1743–1744WartinEv. KircheI/P9durch Christian Friedrich Voit erweitert; zum großen Teil erhalten1744–1745GranseeSt. MarienII/P21Front and some pipes preserved.Zeitangabe nach Orgel in Gransee , retrieved 14 February 2021.1744–1745PassowDorfkircheI/P9Modified several times; Preserved casing and partial pipework1744–1745 ? ? II12only preserved Transmission organ Wagner's, original location unknown; since 1802/03 in Warsaw, church of St. Benon, from 1824 in Pruszyn, dismantled and put into storage in 1969, restored in 2008-2010 and re-installed in the diocesan bishop's house in Gmina Siedlce.ca. 1745Ev. KircheI9Changed several times1745FlemsdorfVillage churchI8Poorly preserved1745–1746Ragow (Mittenwalde)Heilige-Geist-KircheI/P8Not preserved1747Werben (Elbe)St. JohannisII/P27Converted to pneumatic by Albert Kohl in 1916, front and 11 stops preserved. Restoration in the spirit of Wagner is planned.www.volksstimme.de: Professor will Werbens Orgel retten, vom 29. November 2017, retrieved 14 February 20211748BerlinSt. PetriIII/P50Added by Migendt in 1751, lost in fire in 19081748–1749SalzwedelSt. MarienIII/P39Completion by Scholtze, front preserved

References

Further reading