However, via its French distributor Enerfluid, the Gast Group has supplied and installed a JUN-AIR OF1202 compressor for Le grande orgue de Notre Dame de Paris, the main organ at Paris’ Notre Dame Cathedral which, receiving over 14 million visitors each year, is the most visited location in the city.
As part of the organ’s pneumatic system modernisation, which started in September 2013, the pneumatic stop tie machines were completely restored and a register system, motorised by high-pressure pneumatic actuators, was supplied to replace the old Cavaillé-Coll system that had been used in the organ since its original installation in 1865.
The oil-free compressor was specified for the new pneumatic system thanks to its combination of low operating noise and for providing a supply of clean compressed air, at is free of oil, water and dust, to the air cylinders, which are opening sets registers to ring the pipes installed in the organ.
The compressor serves as the compressed air source for the control system for the instrument, with the amount of air supplying air cylinders which are activated depending on which sound is desired from the organ. For this type of control, a set of pneumatic cylinders have been installed above the Cavaillé-Coll system and provide a force of 200N on an adjustable stroke of up to 6cms and with a working pressure of 1.2bar. This allows for the full Cavaillé-Coll system to remain in place.
“The compressor has been installed in the north tower room next to the organ and has actually enabled us to use a very similar technology that Cavaillé-Coll has used for 150 years. It’s just more modern and miniaturised,” engineer Laurent Mesme said.
Very little in the transmission of the draw of the original games elements has changed and the operation of the assembly is as quiet as that of the original Cavaillé-Coll pneumatic machinery. Additionally, because the compressor is enclosed in a soundproof box, it is virtually inaudible.
As Mesme continues, the JUN-AIR equipment has also solved a servicing problem for the customer as the OF1202 compressor can run for several thousands of hours without maintenance, which is essential for this installation.