Welcome
Welcome to the Internet pages of Europe’s oldest magazine on Organ Art: Het ORGEL [i.e. the ORGAN]. Het ORGEL is a magazine of Dutch origin. This Internet site contains English summaries of articles published in Het ORGEL. Every second month we will add the newest summaries. The site also contains a survey of which festival is happening where in Europe, and an extensive collection of links to other interesting organ sites throughout the world.

The recent issue
The February 2026 issue (volume 122, no. 1) opens with an article by Kees Weggelaar and Jan Smelik on the relationship of the composer and music critic Willem Pijper (1894–1947) to the organ. Although Pijper left no works for the instrument, biographical evidence and his interwar reviews reveal how critically – yet with sustained engagement – he positioned himself in relation to the organ and organ culture.
In his column, Jos van der Kooy focuses on the concept of historical sensation: the personal and emotional engagement with history and heritage, with particular reference to historic organs.
The issue further includes a substantial article by Martin Moree on Johan van Dommele, examining his compositions, pedagogical significance, and place within Dutch church music. The question of whether 'sober yet musical' may also serve as a characterisation of Van Dommele's own oeuvre runs as a unifying thread through the discussion.
Frans Jespers interviews Wim Janssen, former voicer at Verschueren Orgelbouw. Janssen describes the craft of voicing through the metaphor of the conductor. Auke H. Vlagsma continues his series on seventeenth-century French organ façades.
In the article The Art of Organ Pedagogy, Annemiek Zeldenrust discusses a number of organ methods from the Netherlands and Germany, analysed from both didactic and musical perspectives. In the Orgelpark section, Hans Fidom draws attention to the course offered at the Orgelpark.
The Organ-building News section, compiled by Gerrit Hoving, reports on restoration projects in Helmond, Heythuysen, Kapelle, and Oirschot. In addition, the issue contains an article by Sietze de Vries on the De Rijckere organ in the Church of St Augustine in Middelburg. On the back cover, Frits Zwart continues his portrait of Jan Hendrik Storm with the second instalment of Storm in the Tower and at the Organ: A Man of Many Talents.
New articles

The De Rijckere-orgel of the de Sint-Augustinuskerk in Middelburg
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Organ Building News
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The Art of Organ Teaching
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French Organ Façades 1631–1695 (5)
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The Intonator: a Kind of Conductor
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Johan van Dommele
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KVOK
Royal Dutch Association of Organists and churchmusicians
The publisher of Het ORGEL
The paper edition as well as the Internet edition of Het ORGEL are published by the Koninklijke Vereniging van Organisten en Kerkmusici (Dutch abbreviation: ‘KVOK’). This Association was founded on 16 January 1890, and in 1937 became the publisher of Het ORGEL; the first issue of Het ORGEL was published in 1886.
Adress of the editorial staff
Dr. Jan Smelik, editor in chief
H. van Steenwijckstraat 10
8331 KK STEENWIJK
The Netherlands
E-mail:
Do you want to support the work of Het ORGEL?
You can support Het ORGEL and the Royal Dutch Association of Organists and churchmusicians by becoming a subscriber. You can choose between a paper subscription (€101 per year in Europe, €103 per year outside Europe) or a digital subscription (€72 per year). The subscription is for one year and will be automatically renewed if not terminated at least one month before the end of the calendar year.
You will receive Het ORGEL 4 times a year and the digital newspaper NOTABENE 11 times a year.
If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to send an e-mail to the board of the Association