Dom Zu Freiberg

Not to be confused with Freiburger Münster! Name variants: Freiberger Dom; Freiberg Cathedral; Dom St. Marien; Domkirche Sankt Marien, Freiberg; Freiberg (Cathedral of St Mary) Church of the Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Saxony in Freiberg (Saxony/Germany) in late Gothic style, consecrated in 1512. The church houses two Gottfried Silbermann organs: • the famous Great Organ, a large organ (III/P/45) built 1710-1714 (the largest organ built by Silbermann himself); last restored 1981-83 by Jehmlich Orgelbau / Wegscheider. Tuning: the organ retained its original modified mean-tone tuning presumably until the early 20th century; several attempts to mitigate it were attempted in 1920 and 1933; in 1953, an attenuated meantone was applied, which was retuned again in 1962 and 1978 to a specially adapted well-tempered tuning (only the sharp keys had to be changed, the natural keys could retain their original historic meantone tuning); in the course of the 1981/83 restoration retuned again to a modified mean-tone tuning (following traces found on the historical pipes); due to the tonal limitations of the latter attempt, retuned last in 1985 to a newly designed well-tempered tuning (at the request of the parish). Pitch before 1983: a'=473.7 Hz; pitch from then on: a'=476.3 Hz. • a choir organ (I/P/14) from 1718/1719, originally built for the Johanniskirche (Freiberg); tuned to equal temperament in 1857; transferred to the Cathedral in 1939 (the pitch was then lowered to a'=439.5 Hz); partially restored by Jehmlich in 1996/1997 (retaining the pitch and the tuning).