• I f - FoMRHI

38
As regards the second "small" organ it reads in the document: This organ
consists of 7 stops: Principale = Ottava = Quintadecima = Decimanona =
Vigesimaseconda = Voce Umana = e Flauto in Quinta. The keyboard has 45
notes and the short octave in the bass and it has [on the front] 15 tin pipes, the
lowest of which is Elami (E), corresponding to the 13th keyboard note...
From the very detailed report about repairs, materials and costs we know that
there were eight bellows for the great organ and two for the small one. From
the second report, written one year later by Eusanio Gennari 16 , we find out the
name of the builder of the great organ: "Me, organ builder, son of Giovanni
Gennari, constructor of the organ of the Holy Casa del Ponte ..."
We know that 15 of the 2266 pipes were made of wood. After moving to the
Abruzzi, Giovanni Gennari did important work in other towns apart from
Lanciano (for example, in 1809 he built the organ of the cathedral of Citta San
Angelo 17 ), even if it is certain that he and his family were requested to work in
the Frentana region. In fact, almost all of the members of Gennari's family
remained engaged in their father's activity: Eusanio and Quirico, Giovanni's
sons, were organ builders; Gaetano and Lelio, Quirico's sons, also worked as
renowned organ builders. Another constructor of musical instruments,
Quirino, was the son of one of Giovanni's daughters, Cecilia, who was married
to Nicola Vincenzo Cipollone. Luigi Di Diego, together with his brother,
followed Quirino Cipollone in the activity of pianoforte maker and tuner 18 .
About all these persons we have information. As early as 1853 Eusanio restored
"a regola d'arte" (according to the rules) the great organ 19 and in 1865 he was in
charge of its maintenance, after the "maestro di cappella" Francesco
Masciangelo 20 had suggested him to become responsible for its care. In a letter
of 2 June 1865, Eusanio recalls that he was "the brother of the renowned organ
builder Mr Quirico, who cooperated with many others in the restoration of the
big organ of the church of S. Francesco di Paola in Naples" 21 . In 1853, the
period of Eusanio and Quirico German's activity, the above-mentioned Quirino
Cipollone also worked in Lanciano. He was responsible for the care of the
organ of the cathedral, as appears from his letter of 24 June 1864 in which he
demands "the 12 ducats" for the care of the Santa Casa organ 22 . Of the same
Cipollone we have an interesting clue: he built the pianoforte which was
subsequently in possession of the composer Francesco Masciangelo. The
instrument, numbered 56, is preserved by the heirs in Lanciano. When in 1855
Quirino Cipollone was registered as "organista" in the register of Lanciano 23 he
must have been 47 years of age, as he was born on 11th January 1810 (he died
on 24 July 1864 24 ). Formerly he was called "maestro di musica" (composer and
director). Quirino Cipollone lived in the Civitanova quarter; he was twice
married and had six children: Mattia, Vincenzo, Teresa, Lucia, Maria Concetta
and Maria Bambina. Mattia Cipollone, still a renowned composer of Lanciano,
studied in the San Pietro a Maiella Conservatory in Naples and made a brilliant
career; he was called "musico" at the age of 21 in 1858. In fact he was accepted