Our history

Early history of organ building in Lidköping

Lidköping has a rich history of organ building dating back to 1892, when Carl A Härngren started his business in the town. Born in 1868, Härngren began his apprenticeship at the age of seventeen with Salomon Molander in Gothenburg in 1885 and later continued his training with J A Johanson in Mösseberga. Härngren built organs in a rather conservative style, just as his mentor Molander had done before him. He developed his own mechanical slider and voiced his organs with a rich and thorough sound. During his time in Lidköping he built some fifty organs, mostly in Skara diocese, and most of them mechanical and equipped with slides.

Transition and new ownership

In 1912, the firm was taken over by Nordfors, Karlén and C-G Smedman and operated under the name H Nordfors & Co. During this period, the company used a pneumatic action and a more romantic intonation, which was typical of the era.

Smedmans Orgelbyggeri AB

Orvar Smedman, son of C-G Smedman, became the sole owner in 1952, and the company eventually changed its name to Smedmans Orgelbyggeri AB. Under Orvar Smedman’s leadership, the company returned to building mechanical organs in the spirit of the organ movement. In 1981, Orvar’s son, Lars-Inge Smedman, took over the company. Examples of organs from this time can be found in St. Nicholas Church in Lidköping and in Ljungs Church in Linköping Diocese.

Karl Nelson Orgelbyggeri AB

In 1998 the company was sold to Karl Nelson, and in 2002 it changed its name to Karl Nelson Orgelbyggeri AB.

Karl Nelson’s background

Karl Nelson was born in St. Peter, Minnesota (USA) and educated at Deerfield Academy in Massachusetts, St. Olaf College in Minnesota, and Portland State University. In 1987, Karl began his career as an organ builder while a music student at Portland State University. He had the opportunity to participate in the installation of a 55-voice organ at Trinity Episcopal Church in Portland with Manual Rosales, an organ builder from Los Angeles. Karl worked for Rosales for a year before taking a position with John Brombaugh in Eugene.

In 1991, Karl came to Sweden in connection with the installation of John Brombaugh’s organ opus 28 in the Haga Church in Gothenburg. There Karl met his future wife Karin, who was then organist at the Haga Church. With the exception of a year in Eugene, Karl and Karin have lived in Sweden since 1992. Their son Erik was born in 1993 and their daughter Elsa in 1996.

Before Karl took over Smedmans Orgelbyggeri, he ran a small business in Gothenburg under the name K Nelsons Orgelvård. During this time he renovated several historical instruments, including the Marcussen organ in Gothenburg Synagogue and the Eskil Lundén organ on Käringön.

The leadership of Karl Nelson

In 1998, Karl Nelson bought Smedmans Orgelbyggeri after moving to the small community of Lovene, outside Lidköping, with his newly started family. For several years, the business was run in close proximity to the family’s house, where machines and tools were moved after the purchase of the company. Karl’s first own organ building was for Östhammar church, where the organ was completed in 2000. Since then, Karl has built, renovated and maintained organs in Sweden and Austria. In 2008, the workshop moved to its current premises at Industrigatan 1 in Lovene.

The journey of Elsa Nelson

Elsa Nelson grew up surrounded by music, especially organs. In upper secondary school, she attended the Birger Sjöberggymnasiet in Vänersborg, specializing in classical music. Her main instrument was the French horn. After high school, it was natural for Elsa to join the family business, where she worked together with Karl for two years, mainly with the maintenance of organs around Sweden.

After a short period of study in history at the University of Gothenburg, Elsa moved to Massachusetts, USA, in early 2019. There she joined the Noack Organ Company, where she participated in the installations of Noack’s opus 163, 164 and 165. One of the highlights was the installation of the 85-part opus 164 in the Catholic Cathedral in Birmingham, Alabama, where she also assisted Nami Hamada during the intonation.

After three years with Noack, Elsa was employed by C. B. Fisk, where she spent two and a half years learning pipe making. Worth noting from this time is a second intonation work done together with Nami Hamada. This time it was not for a new building, but a renovation of a Klais organ built in 1977 for St. Paul’s Church in New York City.

In 2024, Elsa moved back to Lidköping, now ready to work side by side with Karl in the workshop in Lovene.