Flentrop Orgelbouw Zaandam: pipe organ building, pipe organ restoration
flentrop - the people
Many organ builders work at Flentrop all their lives.
Apart from these very experienced people we also have some young
talents with us.
We invest in people in order to pass on our expertise, experience and
skills and we feel it is important
to contribute in that way to the rich organ culture in the Netherlands.
As jurisdiction is based on the law, but justice is only found in the
courts when judgement is pronounced,
and, similarly, music may be written down but only comes to life when
it is performed, so it is in organ building.
Theories, dimensions, scaling and detailed drawings are of the greatest
importance but true insight into
organ building is found only in the workshops where organs are built.
That is of course why we like to invite potential clients to come and
visit our workshops.
We want to make sure that the building and restoration of organs keeps
being carried out at top level.
We are very pleased that an increasing number of our employees are also
active as musicians.
The following people are all employees of Flentrop Orgelbouw:
Gerrit Passenier
Technical coordinator; with us since 1967.
Gerrit started his career as an organ builder and assembler.
In that capacity he has worked on several projects abroad, particularly
in the United States,
but also in Dunblane, for instance. For many years he was one of our
workshop managers.
Gerrit is a walking library on the subject of construction details.
He retired at the end of 2012.
Ko Boogaard
Assembler; with us since 1968.
Ko has worked as an assembler on the most diverse types of organs. He
worked in places like Jakarta, Tokyo
and many places in the USA.
If it moves, you need Ko! He is the specialist on the action.
He was
involved in making the Barkermachines for Oostende and the
Cavaillé-Coll organ in the Philharmonie in Haarlem.
Ko
worked, to mention two instances, on the restoration of the antique
case of the Strümphler cabinet
of the Bachvereniging in Naarden, and on the restoration of the choir
organ in Alkmaar.
From 1976 to 1986 he built a new organ (II/P/15) with Frits Elshout and two members of the congregation of the Gereformeerde Gemeente in Zaandam. He regularly plays this organ during the services.
Ko retired in 2012, but is regularly available and active for instruction colleagues etc.
Frits Elshout
General Director; with us since 1971.
After finishing High School in the United States, Frits was employed by
Flentrop as a pipe maker.
He worked as a voicer on many projects, including both organs in the
Laurenskerk in Alkmaar, the Sint
Jan in Den Bosch, the Westerkerk in Amsterdam, and on the re-voicing of
the Müller organ in the St. Bavo in Haarlem.
Frits's thorough knowledge of the construction of organ pipes,
especially of tongues, is of invaluable help
in his work as a voicer.
In 1998 he was became Deputy Director, with all
voicing activities under his supervision. After the death of Cees van
Oostenbrugge in December 2008 he was appointed general director of the
company.
Jur Way
Pipe- and reed maker; with us since 1973.
In the 70s, Jur collaborated with Frits on the development of our own
reed stops. During some years he acted as head of the pipe workshop.
As the specialist in this area, Jur worked on the special reed stops
construction of the Trumpet
for the choir organ in Alkmaar, and the turned metal blocks for the
free reeds of Sint Oedenrode.
The making of the Contra Trombone 32 foot for Dublin, too, was a very
special experience.
Rob Oudejans
Organ builder; with us since 1976.
Rob is a specialist in the field of fine woodcraft.
Rob built several organ cases, as well as the keyboard and cheeks of
the main organ in the Laurenskerk
in Alkmaar and those for the four-keyboard Flentrop organ in Chicago.
Jan Ballintijn
Voicer; with us since 1976.
One of Jan's projects was the new cabinet organ in Buren and the
Cavaillé-Coll organ in Haarlem.
The inauguration of the organ in the Lambertuskirche in Essen was a
special moment for Jan, because
it coincided with his birthday.
Jan is the organist of the Spieghelkerk in Bussum.
Paul Winkelmeijer
Assembler/pipe maker; with us since 1979.
Paul was trained as an organ builder in Germany.
He worked on the assembly of various organ projects abroad, for
instance in Chicago, Dunblane, Essen and Kazan.
He recently worked as a pipe maker when making a new front for an
existing organ in London.
Michel Lagrand
Draughtsman; with us since 1985.
Michel worked as a cabinet maker and assembler on location for the
organs in Kazan, Essen, Frille and Dunblane.
He also built the geometrically complicated case for the new organ in
the Enschede Music Centre.
When he was assembling in Enschede a local carpenter said: "You've got
it easy, you get it all delivered!"
Michel decided to take it as a compliment.
At the moment he is working as a draughtsman on the introduction of
three-dimensional computer drawing.
He has also supplied some impressive hand-drawn presentation drawings.
Nico Ouwehand
Pipe maker; with us since 1986.
Nico is often asked to assemble the conductors in both new and restored
organs, especially when they
are in complicated criss-cross positions.
He has worked as a pipe maker on a number of restorations and
reconstructions.
Martien Spaan
Head of the workshop; with us since 1987.
Martien came to us as an experienced organ builder when the firm
Vermeulen Alkmaar was taken
over by Flentrop.
He started off as a tuner.
Later he worked as an assembler on the new organ in the Enschede Music
Centre, and as a restorer on
the Knipscheer organs in the Jeroenskerk in Noordwijk-Binnen and the
Noorderkerk in Amsterdam.
He has been a workshop manager since 2006.
Geert Spronk
Organ builder; with us since 1990.
From the first, Geert has specialised in wind chest building.
He enjoys working abroad: in Eslöv he assembled the revised
Flentrop organ from 1952, and in New York
he worked on the optimisation of the organ of Queens College.
Geert's other activities, as a guitar and violin builder, testify to
his broad interests.
Ed Lustig
Administrator; with us since 1991.
Ed is responsible for the administrative side of projects, personnel
and finances.
He is always able to present the current state of affairs if and when
necessary.
On occasion Ed will act as a driver or pilot (he is licensed to fly!),
or he may give a hand on location,
where he will also gladly play the odd tune now and then.
Jan Spijker
Voicer; with us since 1991.
Jan is a Conservatoire graduate.
As a voicer he works in the Netherlands and abroad.
His most prestigious work was the restoration of the Van Meere organ in
the Hervormde Kapel in Noordwijk aan Zee.
He is the regular organist at the Zuiderkerk in Enkhuizen.
Marcel Oranje
Organ builder; with us since 1991.
Marcel is our wind supply specialist.
He restored, for instance, the seven wedge bellows of the J.H.H.
Bätz organ in the Lutherse Kerk in The Hague,
and before that he had reconstructed the wind trunks and bellows of the
Cavaillé-Coll organ in Haarlem.
A special detail was the reconstruction of the harmonicas with tracker
wires, sections of which were discovered
close to the organ.
Marcel managed to re-use even the most worn-out parts and got the new
harmonicas to fit in seamlessly
with the existing ones.
Rinus Koole
Head of maintenance; with us since 1993.
Rinus lives in Sprang-Capelle and has been employed as a tuner/voicer in the southern part of the country.
He is the organist of the Houben organ in the Hervormde Kerk of
Sprang-Capelle and is also
active in his children's school.Rinus works with equal enthusiasm on
every organ he maintains.
If asked to select a few highlights he would mention the voicing of the
organs in Middelburg (Nieuwe Kerk),
Elst (St. Maartenskerk) and Tokyo.
Erik Winkel
Deputy director; with us since 1998.
Erik came to Flentrop when he had finished his studies in Civil
Engineering in Delft.
He has worked on several reconstructions, such as the Smits organ in
Sint Oedenrode, and the Cavaillé-Coll
organ in Haarlem.
By researching all the traces, Erik managed to discover the original
situation in, for instance,
the Noorderkerk in Amsterdam and in the organ case of Scheemda now in
the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam.
He likes to reminisce on the making of photogrammetric reconstruction
drawings of the front of the
Catharinen organ in Hamburg. Afterwards, he was involved intensively
with the research and preparation of the reconstruction project of this
organ, and with the realisation of the first building stage.
Erik was appointed Deputy director in January 2009.
He is active as an amateur singer and continuo organ player.
Michel Jongens
Organ builder/assember; with us since 1999.
In 1998 Michel completed a successful apprenticeship as a student
cabinet maker.
Since then he has developed into a flexible and versatile organ builder
who has worked regularly on
various assembly jobs.
He was involved in the assemblies at Queens College, New York, the Paul
Gerhardtkirche in Berlin and in Sint Niklaas in Belgium.
Dick Koomans
Voicer; with us since 2000.
Before Dick came to Flentrop he had a flourishing career as a
professional musician.
He is an organist as well as a composer, and he has several CDs to his
name as a recording technician.
Dick's enthusiastic approach sometimes results in concerts or
recordings, for instance in Goes and in Landskrona.
The most photogenic moment was the cleaning and voicing check of the
organ in the Sint Jan in Den Bosch.
From the scaffolding the details of the magnificent organ case were
clearly seen; a unique view.
Dick regularly voices in Sweden, the United States and Japan.
Jeroen Rijpkema
Pipe maker; with us since 2000.
Jeroen became our colleague after an in-house pipe maker training at
Flentrop.
He is also an expert in casting the metal plates for organs.
One of his best memories as a pipe maker is the first Dulcian he made
all by himself for Middenbeemster.
Jeroen is the organist of the Doopsgezinde Gemeente in Wormer.
Arjen de Boer
Head of pipe workshop; with us since 2001.
Arjen became a pipe maker with Flentrop after his Conservatoire
studies.
Since then he has been trained as a fully-fledged pipe maker and since 2010 he leads our pipe workshop.
He has also been working as a voicer. His first voicing
project was the Flaes organ in Zaandijk.
Arjen has proved to be a talented reed stops voicer.
He was very pleased with the results of the new reed stops in "his"
Noorderkerk.
Arjen is the organist of the Protestant church of Wognum and surroundings.
Yu Nagayama
Voicer/pipe maker; with us since 2003.
In 1997, Yu moved from Japan to Holland.
After her Conservatoire studies she started work in the pipe building
section of Flentrop.
Yu is at present working on the voicing of the Flaes organ in
Wormerveer and the Westzijderkerk in Zaandam.
She is particularly proud of her restoration and voicing activities on
the Quintadena 8 of Zaandam.
Yu is also a professional musician and as such has her own website.
Jan Roeleveld
Tuner; with us since 2003.
Jan is active as a tuner in the north and the middle of the country,
and in Germany.
After his architectural training at a technical college he worked with
several other pipe and organ builders.
His most special experience was the cleaning and revision of the organ
in the Nieuwe Kerk in Middelburg.
Mees Qualm
Organ builder; with us since 2004.
Mees has a long career behind him as an organ builder with Willem de
Jongh.
His considerable experience makes him a great asset in our workshop.
Mees made a beautiful authentic pedal chest for the oldest Flaes organ
in Wormerveer.
He also assisted at the disassembling, restoring and assembling of the
Flaes organ in Zaandijk.
Rutger Boogaard
Organ builder; with us since 2006.
Rutger successfully finished the four-year course in furniture making
in Amsterdam.
He then worked for six years as a furniture maker with two different
companies.
Recently Rutger assembled the Vereecken-organ in Sinaai (B) and worked
on the case of the organ for Christ Church Chelsea. The most beautiful
project he worked on was the case of the Rückwerk for the new
organ in Hamburg, St. Katharinen.
Michiel Meeuws
Organ builder; with us since 2009.
Nfter a 10-year career in model building in several different branches,
Michiel is now being educated as an organ builder at Flentrop.
From childhood on Michiel has had a keen interest for wood working and music. He combines these two in that he builds musical instruments, writes music for them and records this music in his selfmade home studio.
At Flentrop he also finds this combination, in the organ builders profession and in his colleagues, and he is looking forward to the projects to come.
Helèn Smeenk
Management assistant; with us since 2009.
Helèn works on Monday through Thursday.
After her higher vocational education (languages and economics) she worked in customer service, as a media intermediary, Human Resource employee and during the last few years as a Management Assistant at a reintegration and habituation company.
She is impressed by the special world of organ building and
by the enthousiasm and the professional expertise of her
colleagues!
She likes to listen to music, read, cook and bake pies.
tel. +31 (0)75-6168651