Organs of St. Martin, Pipe organ in St. Martin's Church, Memmingen, Germany

The Organs of St. Martin is the pipe organ of the Stadtpfarrkirche St. Martin in Memmingen, a three-aisled basilica begun around 1325 and completed around 1500. The present instrument was built in 1998 by Orgelbau Goll and voiced after models of the French Romantic organ. Its gilded case carries a statue of King David that stood on the central tower of Andreas Schneider's 1598/1599 organ.

The first organ was mentioned in 1453, acquired around 1400 and installed on a swallow's-nest gallery on the south wall of the nave after 1420; chronicler Jakob Friederich Unold reports it was first played in services in 1478. It was removed in 1528 during Memmingen's Reformation, and in 1598/1599 Andreas Schneider of Lower Lusatia built a new gilded organ with carved angel heads for 5,000 guilders. Joseph Gabler repaired it over 15 months from 1758, and the present instrument was built by Orgelbau Goll in 1998.

The 1598/99 organ by Andreas Schneider carried a gilded case with carved angels' heads and a statue of King David on its central tower; that statue now stands on the balustrade of the 1998 Goll organ. The instrument is played in services, concerts and masterclasses, and is often used for recordings.

The best time to visit is during church services or special concert events when the instrument is actually played. You should check the current schedule beforehand to ensure you can hear it being performed live.

The 1598/1599 organ by Andreas Schneider carried a gilded case with carved work and many angel heads, topped on the central tower by a statue of King David. That figure now stands on the balustrade of the 1998 Goll organ, so a carving from the late Renaissance instrument survives in the present church.