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Ottobeuren, Dreifaltigkeitsorgel and Heilig Geist Orgel
Karl Joseph Riepp 1755-66
In Ottobeuren abbey there are three organs at present: besides a modern instrument by Steinmeyer 1957 (Klais 2001/2002), there are the two 18th c. choir organs by Riepp, above the stalls designed by Marin Hörmann and carved by Joseph Christian . Although started in 1755 and the Heilig Geist organ completed in 1762 it took another four years to finish the Dreifaltigkeitsorgel causing a delay for the millenial celebrations of the abbey by two years.
After Riepps death in 1775 his pupil Johann Nepomuk Holzhay cared for maintenance. In 1787 he had a first major task, retuning the instruments, since Riepp obviously had tuned the instruments to a low French chamber pitch (maybe c. 400 Hz-ish) making orchestra cooperation difficult, so Holzhay shortened all the pupes by a semitone, probably including adapting the reeds. Therefore the modern sound of the instrument largely represents Holzhay's work. In 1862 the Dreifaltikeitsorgel was renovated by Joseph Bohl of Augsburg by replacing the old bellows by a magazine and replacing the French pedal by a German size one.. In 1914 and 1922 Steinmeyer restored both organs in some of the first organ restorations following modern conservation standards.