No Static Sanctums

The handiwork of organ builder Phillip Klais is as multifarious as the places where it’s located: Beijing, Athens, Sydney, Cologne, Milan. Heir to a long line of organ builders from Bonn, Germany, there is still no such thing as a standard pipe organ for Klais. Each one is built individually, with love, passion, time, and a lot of money. Although Klais has worked in the industry for a long time, new technologies and modern and futuristic ideas are welcome in the old family business. Always searching for new challenges, he found one in constructing the organ for the Elbe Philharmonic Hall in Hamburg. It is a project that polarizes and fascinates at the same time. The concert hall is planned as a landmark for Hamburg’s cultural image, and Klais designed the first touchable and accessible organ. And since the goal is to bring cultural access to the public, Klais is presenting a combination of well-known tradition and design experimentation.

Learn more about Phillip Klais HERE and the Elbe Philharmonic Hall HERE.

Editorial Lead by Agi Habryka / Produced and Directed by Mario Prein / Camera and Photos by Erik Hartung / Edited by Christian Söder / Sound and Music by Bao Vu / Animation by Ralph Heinsohn