The organ fesitival weekend was attended by about twelve vintage fairground organs, all worth a seperate story. But it was a very special Gavioli organ that caught my father's special attention.

This Gavioli 87-key organ was orginally built in Waldkirch somewhere around 1905. It's definatley built between 1903 and 1908 because during those years Gavioli owned a factory in Waldkirch. The factory was sold to the Limonaire brothers in 1908. Cornelis Peeters, the father of the current owner Jef Peeters, had the organ bought in the 1930s by Carl Frei Sr. In the early 1980s the organ was restored. During this restoration the organ was (amongst other things) extended to 89-keys and the bellows were replaced by a blower.

The original front of the organ dates from 1963, serving it's time as front of the French Gavioli Organ called "de Leeuw" (translated: "the Lion"), which is owned by the Lions Club in the city of Tiel, The Netherlands. The current maginificent front originally was the front of an organ built by the Bruder Brothers (Gebr. Bruder). So, it's now a unique combination of a Gavioli organ and a Bruder front! Both fronts were made by the artist Josep Dopp who died in 1948.

The organ is now owned by the retired Dutch showman Jef Peeters from the city of Bergen op Zoom, The Netherlands. When still traveling Jef Peeters used this organ in his Cakewalk and Lunapark attraction. In the Netherlands the bridges of a Cakewalk are often placed in a bigger tent. Next to the Cakewalk itself this tent has reciprocating stairs, conveyor-belts for people to stand on and slides with conveyor-belts. The complete arrangement is called a Lunapark. You can imagine these tents were (and are) meeting places and places to be in the fairground! And what would these places be without the good old organ music to sing and dance to?!

At retirement Jef Peeters sold his Cakewalk and Lunapark to the Amusement Park "Land van Ooit" in the city of Drunen, The Netherlands. The organ however stayed in Jef's posession and is presented to the public on a regual basis.

Until next time!

Text by Idius Felix
Photographs by Albert Felix
The Netherlands, January 2003.