Viola di Alta Italian? Viola di Alto Italian?

Locher mentions this stop, saying only: “Bergner, of Riga, has on the first manual of his organ a Viola di Alto of wood, possessing a Gamba-like string tone.” Audsley says even less: “On the Second Manual of the Organ in the Cathedral of Riga, there is a Viola di Alta, 8 ft”.

Examples

Viola di Alta 8', Schwellwerk; St. Martin, Dornbirn, Austria; Behmann/Kuhn 1927.

Viola di Alta 8', Brustwerk (manual II); Riga Cathedral, Riga, Latvia; Walcker 1883 (restored Flentrop 1993). (Two specifications are given in Osiris, one of which spells this stop “Viola di Alte”.)

Bibliography