Heinrich Andreas Contius, also Cuntius (1708 – 1795 in Valmiera, Livonia, Russian Empire) was one of the most important organ builders in the Baltic states in the 18th century.Alexander Fiseisky: Die Geschichte der Orgel und der Orgelmusik in Estland. In , 29, 2006, 11–32.
Life Contius was born in 1708 as the son of the organ builder Christoph Cuntzius in Halle an der Saale, Duchy of Magdeburg. In 1732 he is recorded as a journeyman of Joachim Wagner.Uwe Pape (ed.): Lexikon norddeutscher Orgelbauer. Vol. 1: Thüringen und Umgebung. 2009. . He initially had his own workshop in Altenburg. From 1736/37, Contius worked in Halle and the surrounding area. From 1748, a letter of recommendation from Johann Sebastian Bach in his favour for the planned new organ building in the is known, then a letter to Contius himself.Werner Neumann: Schriftstücke von der Hand Johann Sebastian Bachs. Vol. 2. Bärenreiter, Kassel 2012. , führt den undatierten Brief an Contius an (englisch The Organs of J. S. Bach. A Handbook. University of Illinois Press, 2012 S. XXV) Brief vom 12. Januar 1748 erwähnt Den Auftrag erhielt er aber nicht.
In 1760, Contius moved to Riga in Courland, where he built an organ for the St. James's Cathedral, Riga.Imants Lancmanis: Libau. Eine baltische Hafenstadt zwischen Barock und Klassizismus. Böhlau, Cologne 2007, , . He then worked in Tallinn in Estonia and became the leading organ builder there. In 1771, he returned to Riga and in 1773 was commissioned to build a new building in the great Holy Trinity Cathedral, Liepāja (Libau), which was completed in 1779. In Valmiera, Contius opened a workshop together with Johann Andreas Stein (1752–1821) from Augsburg, who subsequently built further organs in Courland (1787 Cēsis, St. Johannis, 1788 Evele Wohlfahrtskirche).Alexander Fiseisky: Die Geschichte der Orgel in Lettland. In Acta Organologica, 28, 2004. . Summary
Works (selection) Contius is known to have built several new organs, as well as repairs and a maintenance contract in the Duchy of Magdeburg, Courland and Estonia. Preserved are most of the Holy Trinity Cathedral, Liepāja, as well as the casing in the St. James's Cathedral in Riga. A replica of the organ in Liepāja has been under construction since 2016 in Leuven, Belgium. Year Location Church Picture Manual Casing Notes1739Halle (Saale)St. UlrichRenovation of the organ1743Halle (Saale)St. BartholomäusII/P22New building.1750AnnenkircheII/P22New building1751WallwitzNew building1759MerseburgSt. MaximiStop for repair with 120 Taler, not executed1762 (?)MerseburgCathedralSupervision and maintenance of the castle and cathedral organ.Holger Brülls: Ladegast-Orgeln in Sachsen-Anhalt. Imhof, Petersberg 2005, , .1760–1763Riga, Kurland St. James's Cathedral II/P 25Casing preserved, Neubau1768Tallinn, EstlandSt. Nicholas ChurchIIIRenovation of the organ from 16681773–1779LiepājaHoly Trinity Cathedral II/P38 New construction in facade and with parts of the organ by Johann Heinrich Joachim from about 1750, extended several times, lastly by Barnim Grüneberg in 1885 to become the largest organ in the world at that time, with IV/P, 131; preserved. → Organ of the Holy Trinity Cathedral, LiepājaOrgel Trisvienibasfonds.lv (deutsch) seit 2016 Replik in Sint Michiel in Leuven (Belgien).Informationen Contiusfoundation, 2016 (Dutch, Englisch, French) 1780 Valmiera, Livland St. Simonis 1783 Riga Reformierte Kirche II/P 14 New construction, not preserved
References
Further reading : "Die Geschichte der Orgel und der Orgelmusik in Estland". In , 29, 2006, 11–32. Alexander Fiselsky: "Die Geschichte der Orgel in Lettland". In Acta Organologica, 28, 2004. . Summary