San Juan Bautista Coixtlahuaca (S)
Region: Mixteca Alta
Church construction date: 1576
Organ construction date: ca. 1720 - 1730
Organ builder: unknown
Last played: unknown
Organ classification: 2´ table (processional) organ
Tonal base: 4´ bardón
Pitch: unknown
Case measurements: height 1.19 m, width 0.99 m, depth 0.51 m
Keyboard: missing; it had 45 notes C- c''' with a short octave, registers divided c'/c#'
Bellows: missing; there would have been two wedge bellows on a table behind the organ
Similar organs: Tlazoyaltepec (1724), Cholula, Nuxiño, Tamazulapan, Ixtaltepec (1730)
The small organ of San Juan Bautista Coixtlahuaca is one of a group of six 2´ table organs that are nearly identical in construction. The case is exuberantly decorated with flowers and images of religious figures: Archangel Raphael on the left side, Saint John the Baptist on the left door, Archangel Michael on the right door, and Archangel Gabriel on the right side. The interior doors are painted with angel musicians playing a bassoon on the left and a cornet on the right (defaced). Once the organ stopped functioning and was emptied of its pipes and interior components (the few pieces of the chest that remained confirmed the disposition), it was repurposed in the 1950s as a pretty piece of furniture for the priest's bedroom. A drawer was installed where the windchest had been and a shelf was inserted in the middle. Thanks to this reutilization, the organ case was preserved, although the table was lost.
SPECIFICATIONS (proposed)
Left hand: 21 notes C-c’ with a short octave
1. Quincena 1/2´*
2. Docena 2/3´*
3. Octava 1´
4. Flautado 2´
5. Tambor
6. Bardón 4´
*breaks back, repeats previous octave
Right hand: 24 notes c#’-c’’’
1. Quincena 1/2´*
2. Docena 2/3´*
3. Octava 1´*
4. Flautado 2´
5. Pajaritos
6. Bardón 4´
*breaks back, repeats previous octave