Santa Maria Tiltepec Organ Stamp

This post features the Santa Maria Tiltepec organ stamp from Mexico in 2013. The village of Santa Maria Tiltepec is in the Mixteca Alte region of Oaxaca. Organ postage stamps are rather common. A great resource about these stamps is the Pipe Organs of the World on Postage Stamps blog by Michael R. Barker. This site features organ postage stamps from Austria, France, Germany, and Belgium, among others.

This stamp is one of a set of six honoring historic organs from the state of Oaxaca, Mexico from 2013. The set actually is a tribute to the work of the IOHIO (Institute of Historic Organs in Oaxaca). This organization restores and preserves historic instruments in Oaxaca. Of particular interest to stamp collectors, the organization is housed in the Oaxaca Philatelic Museum (MUFI). This is the second article about the Oaxacan organ stamps. Read about the stamp of the organ in the Oaxacan cathedral here.

The stamps are the design of Sergio Barranca and M. Cristina Anguiano using the photographs of D. Hillbert. The range in price from 7 Mexican pesos to 13.50.

Oaxacan Organs

An excellent resource about the importance of Oaxacan organs (and these specifically) is this article by David Warren Steel that I highly recommend. I want to quote his opening paragraph to add some important description:

“The state of Oaxaca is one of the most culturally diverse in all Mexico; it is also one of the richest repositories of historic pipe organs in the New World: some 65 organs have been identified, nearly all in a distinctive regional style, with some instruments dating back to 1690 or earlier. While most are in various states of deterioration, and some are clearly endangered, seven have been restored in recent years to playing condition.”

Musically, the organs in Oaxaca are special and I will quote steel again:
“The musical resources of these organs are modeled on those of Spanish organs in the 17th century. Oaxacan organs have a single manual, and no pedal keyboard. The keyboard is recessed in a rectangular “window” in the case; up till around 1850, this consisted of 45 keys, or four octaves, from C to c”’ with short octave in the bass. The organ is divided between middle C and C-sharp: stops are drawn separately above and below this dividing point. In fact, on most Oaxacan organs, the selection of stops varies from treble to bass, with some stops available only in one hand. Pitch is low, around A=392 Hz.” 

The Church

The organ from Santa Maria Tiltepec is in a rather amazing Dominican Church that sits on a hilltop in a very rural part of Oaxaca. Perhaps dating back to the 16th century, the impressive stone church has two squat towers, the taller with several bells. Between the towers is an ornately decorated baroque entrance that may be from the 17th century. The inside is large with stone cut arches, including a very large supporting arch for the choir. You can read a fuller description at this site.

The Organ

The information about this organ comes from the IOHIO website. The organ sits next to the choir. The instrument is from the early eighteenth century and is unsigned. It has a rather impressive case that is 14 feet tall with baroque decoration. It has a single keyboard with a short octave in the bass.

DISPOSITION

Left hand: 21 notes C-c’ with a short octave
1. Flautado mayor 4´
2. Quincena 1´
3. Bardón 8´
4. Tapadillo 4´
5. Octava 2´
6. Docena 1 1/3´
7. Veintidocena 1/2´?
8. Tapado 2°? (escala angosta)
9. Trompeta real 8´
10. Pajaritos

Right hand: 24 notes c#’-c’’’
1. Flautado mayor 4´
2. Quincena 1´
3. Bardón 8´
4. Tapadillo 4´
5. Octava 2´
6. Docena 1 1/3´
7. Veintidocena (…idos) 1/2´?
8. Cascabeles II
9. Trompeta real 8´
10. Tambor

While the organ is not playable, the following video shows a man ringing the church bells. It also shows the rural area surrounding the church.