The Pradella Organ Workshop has been located in the Valtellina province of Sondrio since 1993.   Its owner, Giovanni Pradella, learned the art of organ building in several Italian organ workshops at an early age, but soon decided to start out on his own.  Building the organ at the Church of Saint Anna in Sondrio was the first in a long series of new, as well as the restoration of antique, organs.The true passion and talent for his work make this man an artist in organ design.   However, in addition, the study and research of past instruments and the examination of every restoration detail have proven to be an unending source of information and experience for this work.

And so the organ at San Rocco was born like this, inspired by the Bacchius  instruments of Northern Germany, the Mossini organ in Sondrio, the Benedictine Sisters organ at the Viboldone Abbey in Milan, and the Somaggia organ in Valchiavenna.

His most recent instrument, the organ at the Colorina Valley Sanctuary, tuned to A415, was used by Lorenzo Ghielmi to record a CD with an orchestra of original Baroque instruments.

All Pradella organs are works of art, designed to enhance the acoustics and the character of churches where they will be heard and to add dignity to the liturgy, as precious concert instruments.

Even when more difficult or costly, Giovanni’s choice is to produce everything in the workshop, from the organ’s smallest mechanical piece to its glorious casing, all in hand finished hardwood. Quality workmanship is always reflected and is what distinguishes the Pradella organ.  The taste, the colour and the beauty of sound is what is sought with hours and hours of work to voice the organ pipes. It is exactly for these reasons that the pipes of the instrument are produced in the workshop, so that step-by-step even the smallest parameter can be corrected, to have a melodic material that responds fully to the needs of the technician tuning and voicing the instrument.