after the completion of its reconstruction

Yesterday, city officials inspected the progress of work on the reconstruction of the Omsk Organ Hall. By the end of the year, one of the three buildings of the organ complex will be put into operation. Builders expect to complete the reconstruction in 2006. In total, the project will require 200 million rubles. Kommersant The Hall of Organ and Chamber Music of the Omsk Philharmonic was opened in Omsk in 1983 in St. Nicholas Cathedral, where an organ from the Czech company Rieger-Kloss was installed. The Omsk organ was played by such famous performers as Harry Grodberg, Oleg Yanchenko, Alexander Fiseysky, Andrei Chulovsky. In 1990, the organ hall in the cathedral was closed, and the instrument was dismantled and moved to a building on Partizanskaya Street, built in 1917. The building is an architectural monument of the early twentieth century. The architectural complex in which the organ hall is located consists of three buildings on Partizanskaya and Lenin streets.

Let us remind you that the reconstruction of the complex of buildings of the Hall of Organ and Chamber Music of the Omsk Philharmonic has been underway since 1996. Funding comes from the regional budget. At the first stage of reconstruction, the builders restored the premises on Partizanskaya Street, where the organ itself and its equipment are located. In addition, the basement, first and second floors of the building were restored, ventilation and air conditioning systems were installed, and the third and fourth floors were strengthened. The restored part of the complex was put into operation at the end of December 2003, after which work stopped due to insufficient funding. The decision to resume reconstruction was made in January of this year.
Yesterday, officials from the Omsk City Hall inspected the progress of work on the reconstruction of the organ hall. Led by the mayor of Omsk, Viktor Schrader, and the director of the Omsk Philharmonic, Vasily Evstratenko, they walked through the dusty labyrinths of the complex, meticulously interested in the purpose of this or that room. According to Vasily Evstratenko, the complex will house administrative premises (today the entire administration of the Philharmonic is located in the Concert Hall), the first museum of musical instruments in Omsk, rehearsal rooms, dressing rooms, recording studios, video recordings, a buffet, as well as a small hotel for musicians. As it turned out, Vasily Evstratenko is most concerned about the problem of flooding the basements of the organ hall. “We are constantly flooded three times a year. We need a storm drainage system,” Mr. Evstratenko addressed the builders and officials. The chief architect of Omsk, Anatoly Til, hastened to reassure the director of the Philharmonic: “Now we will save what was previously completed.” According to Vasily Evstratenko, the Philharmonic plans to organize its own musical instrument workshops, but their implementation is hampered by companies occupying premises on the ground floor of the organ complex building. “Many uncertainties remain from the 90s. We need to figure out who occupies the building and on what basis,” said the director of the Philharmonic. “We’ll figure it out,” the mayor of Omsk assured Vasily Evstratenko.
During the inspection, final plans for the reconstruction of the organ complex became known. According to the director of the Omsk Philharmonic, one of the three buildings of the complex will be put into operation by the end of this year. The builders plan to complete all reconstruction work by the end of 2006. The total amount of project financing is 200 million rubles, 45 million rubles. builders have already mastered it. According to Vasily Evstratenko’s plan, on the basis of the new organ complex it will be possible to create an organ center, a conservatory, where musicians will be trained. “We already have some experience in this direction. I’m sure they will come here,” said Mr. Evstratenko. In addition, to prevent wear and tear on the organ, a small organ will be purchased for rehearsals and children's programs. According to preliminary estimates, it will cost the Philharmonic 4-5 million rubles.
Ekaterina Kudryavtseva

Kommersant (Omsk) No. 183 dated 09.29.2005, p. 12

The organ hall will become a conservatory