One of Slovakia’s most successful businessmen, British owner of the world-renowned AquaCity resort Poprad, Czech born Mr. Jan Telensky, has brought church music back to the community of Poprad in north east Slovakia with his generous sponsorship of the restoration of an unique Baroque church organ.
Mr. Telensky paid for the 18th century organ to be restored and installed in the Church of St. Egidius in his wife’s home town after hearing of his plight while visiting Poprad for the mayoral elections.
The organ, which took 18 months to restore, will be blessed by the Bishop on Sunday 20th April in a `Christening’ service at which the British Ambassador to Slovakia, Mr. Michael Roberts, an accomplished organist, will play a half hour recital.
Built in the Austro Hungarian town of Orava in 1786, the organ was neglected and gradually fell into decay, before being dumped and in the mid 1990’s. Hearing of its plight, the Dean of Poprad, Father Oparti, pleaded with his colleagues in Orava not to throw it on the scrap heap and took it to the 13C church of St. Egidius in Poprad.
Mr. Telensky, who also owns the neighbouring, world-renowned AquaCity Resort, one of the region’s largest employer, offered to pay for the total restoration of the organ, which included reclaiming the ivory from two Viennese grand pianos and sourcing ebony from sustainable forests in Africa.
The organ was rebuilt by local organ masters, using pipes made in the Czech town of Kutma Hora, and an additional register to the existing 20 registers, made in Germany, making it unique for a Baroque organ.
The opulent decoration on it includes gold angels, seated at different levels, to represent Slovakia’s three mountains of Tatra, Matra and Fatra. Two of the angels are watching the other playing a flute. Mr. Telensky said, “The decoration is symbolic of the spirit of our times. We live in a world where a small minority of people create the opportunities, the others criticise them and put them down”.
The British Ambassador to Slovakia, Mr. Michael Roberts, a distinguished organist, will perform a half an hour recital during the service. Mr. Telensky, himself an accomplished musician, will join him, playing violin, and AquaCity marketing manager, Mr. Jan Profant, playing double bass, performing Vivaldi’s second movement of the Concerto in D Minor for violin, organ and strings.
Commenting on the cost of the restoration, Mr. Jan Telensky said “The bible tells us that `When the left hand gives the right one must never know about’. The restoration of Christianity following communism is priceless and to give such an instrument to the oldest church in this region, which in the past didn’t have an organ, is something you can’t put a price on”.
The `Christening’ service for the newly restored organ will take place at 10am CET and members of the public and press are warmly invited to attend.
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Press contact: Mary Stuart-Miller, 0044 1403 738844. e-mail m.stuart-miller@virgin.net
Further information:-
The Church of St. Egidius is an early Gothic, Roman Catholic church in the centre of the north eastern Slovakian town of Poprad, dating from the late 13th century, housing wall paintings from the 15th century. It was closed during the communist era under threat of subsidence, though vagrants and the homeless were allowed to reside there.
