Orgelbau Pirchner

Orgelbau Pirchner is an Austrian manufacturer of pipe organs based in Steinach am Brenner in Tyrol. Its history reaches back to 1817, when Franz Reinisch established an organ-building workshop in nearby Gries am Brenner. The business moved to Steinach as early as 1825, establishing the location that later became associated with the workshop's long-term development. In 1935, Johann Pirchner Sr. took over the company, giving the enterprise the Pirchner name and beginning the family period that continues to define its identity. Production was interrupted during the Second World War. After 1945, however, the workshop resumed organ building and produced more than 120 pipe organs between 1945 and 1973. This post-war period formed the foundation for the company's modern reputation and accumulated practical knowledge in the design, construction, voicing, and installation of church instruments. In 1973, Johann Pirchner Jr. succeeded his father and continued the family tradition. Under his direction, the company concentrated particularly on organs using slider chests and mechanical tracker action, a design approach that emphasizes a direct physical connection between the player's keys and the organ's valves. The workshop expanded its facilities with a new building in 1997. Following that investment, Johann Pirchner Jr. transferred the company to his son Martin Pirchner. Martin had completed the Meisterprüfung, Austria's master craftsman qualification in organ building, in 1996. The succession preserved the workshop's family character while placing its management in the hands of a new generation trained in the craft. Orgelbau Pirchner builds instruments for churches, concert halls, universities, and schools. Its work is centered on individually designed pipe organs rather than standardized mass-produced products. The company's principal technical focus is the construction of slider-chest organs with tracker action. In the voicing and tonal design of its instruments, Pirchner draws on a modern interpretation of the principles associated with the German organ builders Andreas and Gottfried Silbermann. This combines historical reference with contemporary workshop practice and the acoustic and functional requirements of each installation. The company therefore occupies a specialized position within the musical-instrument and craft-manufacturing sectors. Its output is site-specific, technically complex, and intended for long service lives in institutional and ecclesiastical settings. Publicly available reference material identifies the Austrian workshop, its family succession, its post-war production record, and its emphasis on tracker-action organs, but does not provide a complete current catalogue, detailed financial information, or a full list of completed installations.

Orgelbau Pirchner traces its origins to 1817, when Franz Reinisch founded an organ-building workshop in Gries am Brenner, Tyrol. The workshop moved to Steinach am Brenner in 1825, creating the geographic base from which the company later developed. The business became associated with the Pirchner family in 1935, when Johann Pirchner Sr. took it over. Its manufacturing operations were suspended during the Second World War. The workshop resumed production after 1945 and built more than 120 pipe organs during the period from 1945 to 1973. These decades established a substantial body of experience in the construction and installation of large, technically specialized musical instruments. In 1973, Johann Pirchner Jr. assumed responsibility for the enterprise. He continued the family tradition while giving particular attention to organs with slider chests and tracker action. In such instruments, the slider chest forms the structural basis for registering the pipes, while tracker action provides a mechanical connection between the organist's controls and the sound-producing mechanism. A new workshop was constructed in 1997. Around the same period, ownership and management passed from Johann Pirchner Jr. to his son Martin Pirchner. Martin had obtained the master craftsman's qualification in organ building in 1996, providing formal professional training before taking over the family workshop. The succession marked the continuation of Orgelbau Pirchner as a multigenerational specialist business rather than a change to a larger industrial ownership structure. The company builds organs for a range of institutional settings, including churches, concert halls, universities, and schools. Its work is primarily based on new construction and the detailed adaptation of instruments to the architectural and acoustic requirements of each site. The workshop's stated technical orientation favors slider chests and mechanical tracker action. Tonally, its pipe scales and voicing represent a modern interpretation of principles associated with Andreas and Gottfried Silbermann, historically important German organ builders. Available reference material presents Orgelbau Pirchner as an active, family-linked Austrian organ builder operating from Steinach am Brenner. It documents the company's origins, major succession points, post-war production volume, new workshop construction, and principal design philosophy. It does not establish a comprehensive list of present executives beyond Martin Pirchner, a complete catalogue of instruments, detailed international market coverage, or public financial data.

• 1997

  New workshop and generational handover

  [1]Orgelbau Pirchneren.wikipedia.org

  After a new workshop was built, Johann Pirchner Jr. handed the company to his son Martin Pirchner.

• 1996

  Martin Pirchner completes the master qualification

  [1]Orgelbau Pirchneren.wikipedia.org

  Martin Pirchner passed the Meisterprüfung in organ building before assuming responsibility for the family business.

• 1973

  Johann Pirchner Jr. continues the family workshop

  [1]Orgelbau Pirchneren.wikipedia.org

  Johann Pirchner Jr. took over and emphasized the construction of slider-chest organs with tracker action.

• 1945

  Post-war production resumes

  [1]Orgelbau Pirchneren.wikipedia.org

  Following an interruption during the Second World War, the workshop returned to organ production.

• 1935

  Johann Pirchner Sr. takes over

  [1]Orgelbau Pirchneren.wikipedia.org

  Johann Pirchner Sr. assumed control of the organ-building business, beginning the Pirchner family's ownership period.

• 1825

  Relocation to Steinach am Brenner

  [1]Orgelbau Pirchneren.wikipedia.org

  The workshop moved from Gries am Brenner to Steinach am Brenner, its long-term base in Tyrol.

• 1817

  Workshop founded in Gries am Brenner

  [1]Orgelbau Pirchneren.wikipedia.org

  Franz Reinisch founded the organ-building workshop that later became Orgelbau Pirchner.

A specialist Austrian organ builder combining family workshop traditions, mechanical tracker action, slider-chest construction, and historically informed tonal design for churches, concert venues, universities, and schools.

• Musical instruments

  Pipe organs

  Orgelbau Pirchner's central product is the custom-built pipe organ. The company makes instruments for churches, concert halls, universities, and schools, where the design must respond to the building's acoustics, intended repertoire, and liturgical or educational use. Its organs are individually constructed rather than presented as a standardized consumer line. The workshop's documented emphasis is on slider chests, mechanical tracker action, and tonal work informed by a modern interpretation of Andreas and Gottfried Silbermann's organ-building principles.

1. 1Orgelbau Pirchneren.wikipedia.org