
Saint Saviour's cathedral (Cathédrale
Saint Sauveur), which dates from the 11th, 12th
and 13th centuries, is situated in this portion
of Aix. The façade contains a rich portal
in the Gothic style with elaborately carved
doors, and is flanked on the north by an
uncompleted tower. The interior contains tapestry
from the 16th century, other works of art and a
baptism pool from the fourth century.
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The following edited description of the organ in
Aix Cathedral is taken, with acknowledgement,
from the OrganART Media website:
The organ was built in 1854 by Alexandre
Ducroquet. He built the organ on the Gospel side
in the case constructed by Isnard, the famous
organ builder of St. Maximin.
Cavaillé-Coll did tonal adaptions and
restorations in 1880 and added or replaced some
stops.
The pedal compass was enlarged by Merklin in
1915, who also replaced some stops. The
restoration committee of 1972 had the difficult
task to decide to which organ they should revert,
either the original Ducroquet or the modified
Ducroquet-Cavaillé-Coll, but eventually
decided on the latter.
The restoration and reconstruction by organ
builder J. Dunand started in 1973. An
inauguration concert took place on 19 March 1975,
performed by Marie-Madeleine Duruflé and
Maurice Gay. A later restoration took place in
2002.
The Ducroquet-Cavaillé-Coll is a
transitional romantic-symphonic instrument of
very high quality and has been classified as an
historical monument. (right and
below)
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