The “Utrechts Orgelarchief Maarten Albert Vente” – a rich source for the future by Jaap den Hertog

Articles

Jaap den Hertog The “Utrechts Orgelarchief Maarten Albert Vente” – a rich source for the future
Het ORGEL 108 (2012), nr. 6, 14-21 [summary]

The historian Maarten Albert Vente (1915-1989) occupied himself intensively with the scholarly study of the history of the Dutch organ, from the gothic to the early baroque. He included Germany, Flanders, and France in his studies as well, to find Dutch influences there. He visited archives, mobilized archivists, and participated in an international network of organ researchers. In this way he built up his documentation to a vast collection of primary sources.
Vente left his collection to the University of Utrecht, where it has been considerably augmented under the leadership of Jan Boogaarts, Joost van Gemert, and Paul Op de Coul. This has resulted in an organ archive with more than 130,000 items. In the present setup it fills ca. 110 running meters of shelf space and two chests. In 2000 the “Stichting (foundation) Utrechts Orgelarchief Maarten Albert Vente” was established, with the goal of conserving and cataloging all the materials, to make them available for research. At present the Utrechts Orgelarchief contains the archives of the organ builders Bätz-Witte, Smits, Ypma, Vermeulen, and Nöhren en Strubbe. It also includes important items from the organ builder Maarschalkerweerd. Further contents include the archives of the organ experts Lambert Erné (1915-1971), Johannes G. Legêne (1915-1996), Klaas Bolt (1927-1990), and Arend Jan Gierveld (1932-2006). In addition, the archives of the preacher A.J. Kret (1928-1993), chairman of the Stichting Orgelcentrum, are found in the Utrechts Orgelarchief.