Cover feature

Berghaus Pipe Organ Builders,
Bellwood, Illinois

St. Benedict’s Catholic Church,
Chesapeake, Virginia

From the builder

As most organ projects go, Berghaus Pipe Organ Builders’ instrument for St. Benedict’s Catholic Church proceeded at a rapid pace. The organ was completed just two years and one week after organist, conductor, author, and consultant to the parish Peggy Kelley Reinburg made initial contact with us in June 2012. From our very first meeting in which creative ideas were freely shared, our firm was enthusiastic about collaborating with Ms. Reinburg. Her insight into pipe organs, and in particular her thoughts on tonal design, proved to be invaluable resources. After long conversations with her and consulting her book, Arp Schnitger, Organ Builder: Catalyst for the Centuries (1982, Indiana University Press), we were confident that we could present an instrument with a heart of simplicity and clarity, rooted in North German tradition, that also possessed a distinctive voice, as our company has provided to clients for many years. 

Following the signing of the contract in the fall of 2013, construction was executed over a six-month period, and the organ components were delivered to Chesapeake the day after Easter, 2014.Installation of the organ commenced over a five-week period, and tonal finishing took place over one month.

Our initial site visit revealed an existing south organ chamber that would eventually contain the Hauptwerk. For engineering and site preparation, the church contracted with Spiegel Zamecnik & Shah Inc. of Washington, D.C., to engineer the design and with Sussex Development Corp. of Virginia Beach, Virginia, to penetrate a tone opening for the existing chamber and create a second chamber on the other side of the rose window for the Schwellwerk and Pedal. Berghaus designer Michal Leutsch planned façade pipes and screens to complement the church architecture while hiding the dual enclosures. Initially, we intended to create a cloth screen barrier above the three pipe towers on each side. However, the logistics of creating such a screen prior to the arrival of the organ became impractical, and so its construction became part of the organ installation. Rather than use the ubiquitous grille cloth, we chose stamped metal screening, which would allow for better tonal egress.

Wind pressures are moderately low throughout, measuring 75 mm for the Hauptwerk, and 90 mm for the Schwellwerk and Pedal. This allows for a voicing style on classical lines, and yields pipes that work together with natural, unforced tone. Each chamber is equipped with a single horsepower Ventus blower, which provides ample and steady wind to all chests while keeping a simple yet effective winding plan for the entire instrument. Manual stops are primarily located on Berghaus slider and pallet windchests, which are controlled by Heuss electric pulldown magnets. Within each main chest is a large schwimmer, which provides stable wind. Pedal and unit ranks are located on electro-pneumatic windchests, also constructed by the Berghaus firm.Expression boxes are constructed from 1-3/4″ thick tongue and groove poplar, which allows for a wide range of dynamic possibility.

Both chambers are adorned by rift-cut red oak casework with accented trim, stained to match the church furnishings.The organ is played from a custom-built console of red oak and burled walnut. Keyboards are constructed of maple and walnut, and manuals utilize tracker touch. The combination action is controlled by the ICS-4000 system by Peterson Electro-Musical Products, and contains many features, including a piston sequencer and record/playback.

In the Hauptwerk, the principal chorus is moderately scaled and voiced without gimmicks to improve presence or warmth. Façade pipes are made of 75% tin and continue as such throughout the compass of the stop. The elevated position of the slider chest allowed us to treat pipes without fear that the choir would be offended by full registration, and at the same time, individual voices seem to bloom from within the chambers. The 8′ Hohlflöte is designed to act as a chameleon in registration, and is made from three distinct types of pipe construction: the bass octave is constructed as a stopped flute, the tenor octave is constructed as a Koppelflöte, and the upper octaves are constructed as a Hohlflöte. Deliberate voicing with attention to blending construction types was necessary to the successful finishing of this stop. The result is a flute that morphs well with many registrations. The Hauptwerk mutations are scaled to match the Mixtur IV–V and provide the light clarity of a Sesquialtera, thus providing a Germanic cornet décomposée for the division. In our shop, Berghaus constructed a Bourdon of poplar as our manual 16′ tone, and provided an 8′ Trumpet, which is voiced as a blending reed. Shallots are tapered German and provide warmth and fullness.

Schwellwerk flues are voiced full to support the generosity of the large scale mutations. Strings are made from 75% tin, and are generously scaled to provide adequate foundation tone, while also giving a satisfying sizzle that clarifies homophonic passages found in many pieces of Romantic and 20th-century repertoire. The 8′ Rohrflöte is scaled with large diameter chimneys, which are fully 1/3 of the diameter of the pipe.Together, these foundation stops provide remarkably solid grounding to the division. Once again, the substantial scaling of the mutations provides a powerful and nasal French-sounding Cornet. The Krummhorn is scaled generously to provide fullness to the mutations and is also available in the Pedal at 4′ pitch. The Oboe is designed with a French parallel shallot and is voiced moderately to blend well with the mutations. The Cromorne is scaled and voiced to provide fullness throughout the register.

As is often the case, available space made the luxury of a full and independent Pedal out of the question, and we therefore chose to unify the major principal and flute of the division. The pipes of the 16′-8′-4′ Principal wander back and forth between the Schwellwerk chamber and façade, which contains notes of the 8′ Octave. The bottom twelve notes are made from zinc and use interior Haskell tuners. The façade portion and above are made from 75% tin, as is the Pedal Mixtur. The 16′ Subbass is generously scaled, and was constructed of poplar by Berghaus craftsmen. The 16′ Fagott is made with pine resonators and used an historic Schnitger shallot with very wide reed tongues. The sound of this stop seems to have equal parts fundamental and harmonic development, and so it lends itself well to a broad spectrum of repertoire.

Overall, the organ’s resources create a myriad of tonal combinations, each at home announcing or complementing chant during High Mass, or in performing repertoire from Bach to Distler, from Couperin to Alain. Having both chambers enclosed further enhances the tonal palette and increases its flexibility as an accompanying instrument.

The organ was blessed on August 22 by Msgr. Walter Barrett, followed by Holy Mass in the Extraordinary Form in honor of the Immaculate Heart of Mary with Rev. Neal A. Nichols, FSSP, presiding. Peggy Kelley Reinburg served as organist and Jeanne Dart, director of music, led the choir. A dedicatory recital will be performed on November 22 at 3:00 p.m. by Crista Miller, director of music and organist at the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in Houston, Texas.

The entire team at Berghaus Pipe Organ Builders is extremely grateful for the collaborative efforts of everyone involved in the organ project. In particular, we appreciate the support we received from Fr. Nichols, Jeanne Dart, members of the choir, and parishioners who assisted in the unloading and various stages of installation. Berghaus Pipe Organ Builders’ sincerest gratitude goes out to all who helped make this a truly exciting and rewarding project. Soli Deo Gloria!

—Jonathan Oblander, Tonal Designer & Kelly Monette, Head Tonal Finisher, on behalf of the entire Berghaus Pipe Organ Builders team

From the consultant

After accepting the challenges of serving as organ consultant for a project with the all-too-common and severe limitations of the potential funding base, of being engaged after a new church structure was beyond any major architectural changes, and of having the responsibility of educating the clergy, the musicians, and the congregation regarding the advantages of committing to a pipe organ, I began to become aware of the positive realities of the project at St. Benedict’s Catholic Church in Chesapeake, Virginia. 

First, it was revealed that the pastor, the Rev. Neal A. Nichols, FSSP, and the director of music, Jeanne Dart are both from Richmond, Virginia, my own hometown; and then we discovered we all had been educated, though for different lengths of time, at St. Benedict’s Elementary School! As we began to converse and to follow the natural order of organ consulting, I began to learn of the freedom I was being offered to guide my ninth organ project through its total evolution with no artistic constraints. Financial constraints can cause you apoplexy, but creative hamstringing can damage your soul!

The goals of this project were: 

1) An organ built by a distinctive builder without financially drowning the parish

2) An organ that could support the numerous schools of organ and choral literature while underpinning the rich liturgical heritage of the Latin Mass

3) The creation of an instrument with its own identity, possessing the silvery sheen of a Baroque North German instrument yet supported by an enveloping warmth capable of bringing the worshippers and listeners to the depths of faith and to the heights of emotion

4) A Hauptwerk Prinzipal chorus that would make the congregation want
to sing

5) Provision of four primary reed stops: Krummhorn 8′, Hautbois 8′, Trompete 8′, and Fagott 16′, and of two Cornets décomposé, one scaled and voiced in the French manner and one in the German

6) Consistent nomenclature for the instrument

7) A beautiful encasement and console, which also would be visual works of art

8) Key and stop actions that would enable a marriage of the instrument and musician and also provide a comfortable playing and conducting situation. Mechanical action was desired, but eventually that preference had to be abandoned due to existing gallery design and spatial limitations.

After preliminary visits onsite with five major American mechanical-action builders and two builders known primarily for their other actions, the fact of a too-shallow gallery for an independent encasement and inadequate space for any future choir growth, coupled with cost comparisons, eventually were the deciding factors. The selection of a builder  was also made difficult because of my personal acquaintances and friendships with all but one of the builders represented! Ironically, Berghaus Pipe Organ Builders was the only firm with which I had not had a previous connection; and after performing a recital on their instrument for St. John’s Episcopal Church, Norwood Parish, in Chevy Chase, Maryland, for the Northern Virginia and Potomac AGO chapters, I was convinced that the firm should be considered. 

Every memo I wrote based on involvement with organs and organ building throughout my career and every wish included on my organ “bucket list” has been a consideration in consulting on this particular instrument. The lack of funding for three manual divisions resulted in enclosing both manual divisions and allowing console space for a third, a Rückpositiv, which it is hoped may be added someday. If it is not, the disposition of the organ as it stands has already created the illusion of the presence of a third manual division.

The opportunity of meeting at the workshop the majority of craftsmen who participated in this project and the pleasure of building a working relationship with them during the installation have been added delights. I have enormous respect for so many, especially those who have added to my deeper understanding and enjoyment of this facet of our beloved profession. I have only the utmost respect for the director of engineering and operations, Michal Leutsch, and for the tonal gurus, Kelly Monette, head tonal finisher, Jonathan Oblander, tonal designer, and Steven Hoover, tonal finisher and reed specialist. The gorgeous console with its burled walnut music desk and stop jambs is the exquisite work of console artist Jordan Smoots. Transformation of thousands of components into the organ as an entity was due also to the skilled work of Joe Poland, Ron Skibbe, Mitch Blum, Eric Hobbs, Kurt Linstead, and Casey Robertson. The administrative coordinator, Dawn Beuten, is embracing her new role in the company with enthusiasm; the firm’s office manager for six years and newly named vice president, Jean O’Brien, is the epitome of organization, efficiency and graciousness; and Brian Berghaus, president, leads the firm with admirable business acumen and a firm hand, peppered with a calming sense of humor, in his journey to maintain the integrity of the history of organ building while introducing the best of new technological developments to this art.

—Peggy Kelley Reinburg

Organ Consultant

All photos credit Deborah P. Spidle except as noted

Glück New York Organbuilders, New York, New York
Union Church of Pocantico Hills, Tarrytown, New York

From the pastor: Our latest chapter When Marc Chagall and Henri Matisse never miss a service, and a church is blessed with a warm, close, and giving congregation, special events in the life of a church somehow become even more special. The commissioning of the Laurance Spelman Rockefeller Memorial Pipe Organ was a remarkable milestone in our history, and a finishing touch to our beautiful sanctuary, 85 years after its cornerstone was laid. The instrument was funded by Mr. Rockefeller’s brother, David, his daughter, Dr. Lucy Rockefeller Waletzky, and other members of the family, supplemented by the generosity of their fellow congregants and friends.
Planning for the organ began several years ago and proceeded at a careful pace. Several organbuilders were consulted before selecting Sebastian M. Glück of New York City. An organist, organbuilder, and preservation architect, he was sensitive to all of our concerns, knowing that his creation could neither upstage our worship nor compete with the peerless stained glass that adorns our landmark church. The long process of on-site voicing and tonal finishing resulted in the “perfect fit” of this outstanding pipe organ. The congregation’s sense of the holy is lifted as the clear tones of the organ fill the space. Praising God in the sanctuary soars here to new heights!
—Rev. Dr. F. Paul DeHoff

From the consultant: Looking forward through the rear view mirror

Building an organ for a small space is a challenge for both design and execution, and these challenges have been creatively met in this installation. The builders have carefully engineered the instrument to fit the space, providing good tonal egress and ample accessibility for ease of tuning and maintenance. The instrument possesses character and a distinctive personality, and the magnificent windows by Matisse and Chagall made it seem fitting to emulate the orgue de chœur of the French tradition. Choral and congregational accompaniments are the important functions of this organ, and it contains surprising resources for playing a considerable variety of organ literature.
Essentially a two-manual instrument, a third manual division has been derived from the tonal scheme through studied extension and duplexing. This “found” Positif adds to the versatility of the organ in which each stop must pull its weight, individually and in ensemble. The success of this master plan is in its careful scaling and meticulous tonal finishing.
All of the ranks embody individual character, yet blend effectively in the total ensemble. Some of the ranks deserve special mention because of their creativity and success in this installation. The 16' Contrebasse gives clarity and definition to the pedal, and in combination with the stopped 16' Sous Basse provides a firm foundation. The Contrebasse can also be used beneath the Récit strings, which have a delightful, sizzling, French edge as well. This is a welcome relief from the ubiquitous 16' Gedeckt extensions found on most organs. As the bass to the principal chorus, the 16' Contrebasse undergirds with clarity. An interesting historical aspect of this stop is that it was typical of French Baroque churches to have a double bass playing with the orgue de chœur for additional sonority. On the manuals, this same rank (playing as the 8' Violoncelle) has a desirable incisive quality that is important for color and contrast in the family of foundation stops.
Another stop that serves multiple functions is the Clarinette. It provides gravity and weight as the 16' manual stop for the Récit reed chorus without competing with the Pédale 16' Bombarde. As an 8' solo stop it is more refined than a Cromorne, but has more color and personality that most other Clarinet stops. This is an effective solution for a small instrument.
The removal of the carpet from the chancel revealed an attractive hardwood floor that adds warmth to the music of the organ and the Union Church Choir.
This project was the outcome of a happy collaboration among organist, organbuilder, and consultant. The congregation and its pastor have been most helpful in making this a successful project with rewarding musical results. I am happy to be associated with this organ installation, from the initial discussions, through the building phase, to the dedication and inaugural recital.
—Dr. Gordon Turk

From the director of music: An about-face in the right direction

My service at Union Church began in 1999 when our last organ had aged precisely 30 years. Replacing Wurlitzer’s 1922 Opus 548, it had been assembled by a local organ man utilizing pipes imported from Holland. Unfortunately, the electric valve action of this heavily unified instrument had not withstood the test of time, and Union Church faced the pressing need to replace its console, relays, and playing mechanisms, as well as address the obvious tonal imbalances. After much discussion, the church decided that a new instrument would be a better investment.
The thin, prismatic sound of the old organ, truly a product of its time, actually required amplification to reach our small sanctuary, and from the outset Sebastian Glück had suggested a completely different approach, based upon his ongoing fascination with the orgues de chœur and orgues de salon of fin-de-siècle France. I had the opportunity to play his Opus 10 at Our Lady of Loretto in Cold Spring, New York, a small new organ in this French Romantic style, and I became convinced of both the concept and the builder.
Our consultant agreed with my stipulation that the instrument should be a worthy vehicle for choral accompaniment. He also concurred that Mr. Glück’s focus on a French symphonic character would serve our worship better than yet another neoclassical design, as it could more effectively support our choir with its abundance of properly scaled unison ranks. We were hopeful that the sound generated in the right chancel chamber would somehow fill the entire room, a feat dependent upon Sebastian’s scaling and voicing, as no changes could be made to the historic building. Ironically, all of these ideals represented the opposite of the situation with which we started!
Mr. Glück and I pored over the smaller documented Cavaillé-Coll designs, and I shared his excitement when he returned from his close examination of the famous Merklin/Mutin organ at l’Église Réformée du Saint-Esprit on Paris’s Rue Roquépine as he prepared for his tonal work at Union Church. Although the prototype instruments by Cavaillé-Coll and Mutin usually found their way into highly reverberant rooms, he was correct in asserting that an organ of this character would bloom with a greater presence in our intimate setting than another neo-Baroque organ.
I am elated that the entire church family and the local organ community have expressed nothing but admiration and enthusiasm for this new musical instrument. Its frank sound and rich color activate every corner of the room without ever sounding “loud.” It is thrilling to launch a virile grand chœur in the context of our worship, and satisfying to employ the fonds d’huit without apology. These marvelous attributes do not preclude the performance of music from other schools of literature, as this organ embraces the components of a respectable plein jeu as well as solo stops and ensembles of great clarity.
I often ponder the fact that our new pipe organ continues to be a gift each and every time it is engaged in its sacred function. I wish to express my sincere gratitude to Dr. David Rockefeller, Dr. Lucy Waletzky, Dr. Paul DeHoff, Dr. Gordon Turk, Mr. Sebastian M. Glück, Mr. Albert Jensen-Moulton and the entire Glück staff, as well as all of the donors at the Union Church of Pocantico Hills who made this amazing instrument a reality.
—Thomas Zachacz

From the organbuilder: A French recipe from an American chef

The Laurance Spelman Rockefeller Memorial Pipe Organ is a 21st-century instrument inspired by the school of organbuilding that flourished late in the reign of Napoléon III and during the first 30 years of the Third Republic. The French Romantic organ is characterized by bold, warm, and rich colors. Despite their strong individuality, these organs’ diverse voices form a cooperative community akin to a superb ensemble of celebrated actors, in which the sum of the distinctive parts is exceeded by the exhilarating effect of the whole.
French pipe organs and music of the period exhibit the same passion and spiritual freedom as the painting, sculpture, architecture, and dance of the era, a phenomenon that has captivated the Rockefellers for generations. The family had commissioned the Aeolian company to build large organs for their homes, so in addition to growing up with historically pivotal visual arts, they appreciated the pipe organ in a secular, purely musical context, in addition to what they heard in church.
I made it clear from the start that this would not be an historical copy. The copyist develops solid technique, but does not always make artistic progress as he reproduces the flaws and limitations of his models along with their glories.
The Rockefeller family and Union Church have consistently managed to balance strong tradition with a keen eye for the new. Since my own mindset has always been on “the cutting edge of the passé,” I felt immediately comfortable with them. I could create something new that still took its cues from the past, and they would understand what I was doing. As Dr. Turk said at his dedicatory recital, the organ comes with its own character, but “it has a definite French accent.”

Historical antecedents of the design
Le Grand-Orgue

The structural blueprint of the Grand-Orgue was influenced by Cavaillé-Coll’s 1879 design for the same division in the II/18 instrument in Le Château du Compte de Liminghe, Gesves, Belgium, an orgue de salon for which Lemmens served as consultant. It struck me as a sensible and still-modern concept for the main division for nearly any school of composition. Such compact specifications usually bore either a 2' chorus member or a mixture, but rarely both. The inclusion of both, to the exclusion of yet another 4' flute, seemed to afford more options for the interpretation of a broader range of repertoire. The Fourniture II–IV begins as a Progression Harmonique, adding lower pitches without breaking, then moves to classical plagal breaks in the treble. With slightly smaller scales and higher cutups, the mixture is one that melds smoothly, adding brilliance and line without the harsh separation one might encounter from a “neo-classical” mixture.
Supplying the fonds d’huit would prove more difficult, simply because of space. While the 16' Bourdon was most often “duplexed” to the Pédale in such instruments, I reversed the procedure, extending the substantial 16' Sous Basse upward, making it available at 16' and 8' pitch. The 8' proved a bit too large for proper balance, so I provided a new treble with narrower scales and higher mouths. The 8' Violoncelle is large, warm, vibrant, and nearly reedy, furnishing the third member of the 8' quartet, but we had run out of room.' The 8' Flûte Harmonique was almost pulled out of thin air. I opted to transmit the Récit 4' Flûte Octaviante an octave lower, with one personal quirk. While traditionally one would build an open wood 8' octave (as opposed to the American practice of switching to non-matching stopped pipes), the compromise was to use the stopped poplar pipes of the Récit 8' Cor de Nuit for the first eleven notes, and then build a single low BB pipe of open spotted pewter to complete the octave. My reasoning? I cannot bear to hear the final left-hand note in Franck’s Prélude, Fugue, et Variation land on a stopped pipe, and I was determined that it not happen here. It is a smaller, less soaring sound than normal, being based upon the Récit scale, but provides an essential component that otherwise would be omitted.

Le Récit-Expressif

The Récit had to be an economically designed powerhouse, faithful to its French spirit without locking out other schools of music. Since the French Romantic tradition is one that specifies a string and its undulant under expression, the effect had to be authentic. There would be no washed out, noncommittal, characterless Violas here. Cutting, pungent, keen, energized strings of narrow scale and high tin content were the order of the day, emitting the tone color known and expected by composers and organists of the era.
Cavaillé-Coll would modify his choir of 8', 4', and 2' harmonic flutes in his small organs, and I did so as well. Still stylistically appropriate, the chimneyed 8' Cor de Nuit is a fine stop for continuo use and vocal accompaniment, and it combines beautifully with the Viole de Gambe and Voix Humaine. The 2' Flûte Conique adapts to all music, from Baroque trios to modern choir accompaniments. While unidiomatic to the size and genre of this organ, the 4' Prestant has proven itself to be indispensable, a tonal anchor for the secondary manual in northern literature, and a binding element for anthem accompaniment.
A shortage of space placed the burden of all reed tone upon the Récit. The “usual suspects” (Trompette, Basson et Hautbois, and Voix Humaine) had to be included, tailored to the intimate church and its non-reverberant acoustic. The first step was to acknowledge that a full-throttle blaze of French reeds would work against our goals, so a bright English trumpet with harmonic resonators fit the bill. Despite its modest scale this voice speaks with remarkable authority.
The 8' Basson et Hautbois is a variation of what I had observed in France. French practice called for single-taper resonators and closed, tapered shallots for the bass and tenor octaves, and stem-and-bell resonators and open, domed, parallel shallots for the remainder of the stop. Such a break would have been abrupt and evident in Union Church’s acoustic, so a structural compromise was struck: Bertounêche shallots throughout, with traditional, coned-in Hautbois resonators for the treble, and stem-and-bell resonators with lifting lids for the 8' and 4' Basson octaves.
The huge, woody 16' Clarinette-Basse is a rarity of great impact if properly scaled, built, and voiced. The inspiration for this stop was Cavaillé-Coll’s 1894 design for the III/46 instrument in the salle de concert in the hôtel particulier of the erudite Baron de l’Espée at 55 Avenue des Champs-Élysées. It was the only 16' manual reed in the organ, residing in one of two powerful Récits.
Half-length cylindrical reeds such as this effectively resonate the fundamental, whereas half-length inverted conical ones do not. It is for this reason that the half-length 16' Bassoon extensions so often built sound weak and thin. I opted for an enormous scale, a world away from the anæmic 16' Dulzians that plagued this nation’s Swell divisions in decades past. Its sound latches on to the 8' Trompette and gives the impression of a 16' Double Trumpet when accompanying English anthems and adds complex color to the ensemble.

Le Positif (perdu et trouvé)

When Union Church embarked on this journey, I maintained the position that I would build a smaller, finer instrument than the one they were using, and that a three-manual organ was not possible; I have seen grand dreams push organ projects to unsatisfactory results, and was ethically bound to protect the clients. As the two-manual design was in the process of refinement, Dr. Turk, Mr. Zachacz, and I collectively admitted that despite the sumptuousness of our little banquet, we still felt pangs of hunger. Could we have a third manual for dessert, even though our stomach was full?
While I could not add a third manual division, I could extract one from the material at hand. Cavaillé-Coll’s designs revealed that there were many ‘givens’, trends, and features within his œuvre, but there were no “standard” specifications, beyond the marketed stock models, which were so often customized for the client. A creative license had been granted.
The 8' extension of the 16' Clarinette-Basse, speaking from the Grand-Orgue in the two-manual design, was the first resident of the new Positif. The mezzo-forte fluework was duplexed to this manual, and two 4' extensions, exclusively in this department, provided it a distinctive timbre and center of gravity. Having lived with this organ since its completion, no one involved can imagine it as a two-manual instrument in light of the returns on this small investment.

La Pédale

Two-manual organs of this style often had pedal divisions borrowed entirely from the manuals. As I had no desire to fall back upon historic precedent as an excuse for absent majesty, I asked organbuilder and consultant Randall Wagner, a longtime friend, to help our firm engineer my desires into the available space.
In addition to the aforementioned 16' Sous Basse unit, there is a 16' Contrebasse, an extension of the 8' Violoncelle. It is built with Haskell re-entrant tubes to save space, and maintains bowing string tone all the way to 16' CCC. The 16' string extension is something I had used in Opus 5, Opus 8, and Opus 9, lending variety, pitch definition, and clarity in lieu of the dull “Echo Lieblich” so often found over the past century.
The 4' Quinzième is an independent principal stop essential to the pedal line. Experience confirms that a 4' pedal voice borrowed from a manual unit interferes with the inner voices of polyphony, contributing to “missing note syndrome” and never quite balancing correctly. When funds and space are rationed, such a measure saves the pedal line.
The 16' Bombarde, with full-length resonators, is an extension of the 8' Trompette. The combined result of all of these ideas results in a more effective pedal division.

The nuts and bolts

The organ’s playing action is electro-pneumatic, combining pitman windchests with individual-pouch unit chests for extensions and duplexed voices. The pipe ranks are planted in major third formation, a centuries-old arrangement that assures both easy access and stable tuning. A turbine located beneath the organ delivers wind at a pressure of four inches water column through single-rise reservoirs, providing a stable, unfailing wind supply, even when the tout ensemble is unleashed. The intake is routed from the church itself for added temperature stability, and the entire organ is built on the same level, with the exception of the 16' octaves.
The console is constructed of mahogany and white oak, bearing manual keyboards of cow bone and walnut. The drawknobs and toe studs are turned from pao ferro, and the pedal clavier is constructed of maple and rosewood. I carved the music desk with a medallion that adheres to this firm’s ideals of “opulent restraint.” It acknowledges 19th-century French harmonium grilles as well as the Art Nouveau botanical forms in Matisse’s rose window, his final work, the design for which he completed two days before his death.
While the console is patterned after the work of Aristide Cavaillé-Coll, there are some concessions to make the contemporary American organist feel more at home, such as the inter-manual couplers front and center, controlled by Skinner-style dominos. The Grand-Orgue is normally played from the second manual keyboard, but the order of the two lowest manuals can be switched to conform to standard 19th-century French layouts. A 256-level combination action provides the freedom of kaleidoscopic registrational changes, so the ventils for the jeux de combinaisons have been foregone.

Where thanks is due

As I said at the service of dedication, my staff does everything, and I do the rest. They are all degreed musicians (oddly, all professional singers) with high standards and amazing work ethics. Albert Jensen-Moulton has kept every single project (and me) on track, and his uncanny attention to detail has enhanced each achievement this company has made since he joined the firm. Dominic Inferrera and Joseph DiSalle were the two principal organbuilding pillars supporting the success of this instrument, and their loyalty is deeply appreciated.
Thomas Zachacz maintains a modest front for somebody who knows as much as he does, and his love for this school of organbuilding and composition surfaces with every discussion. From the start, Tom “got it,” and the process of working for him was not just rewarding, it was fun.
The experience was enhanced by the guidance of a knowledgeable, worldly, and supportive consultant, Dr. Gordon Turk, and when he played the dedicatory recital, it was obvious to all that he understood the nuances of instrument he helped to create.
Pastor DeHoff, the Board of Trustees, and the congregation of Union Church form a rare group of cultured, inquisitive, progressive minds, and their willingness to embrace this project will always remain a notable feature of this period in our lives.
Without the donors, this road would not have been traveled. Without their trust and insight, the results might have been different. Buying a great painting is one thing. Commissioning one from an artist you admire is another. But trusting an unknown to build you a mysterious machine that some time in the future will produce sounds you have never heard takes a good deal of courage. Some of the donors I have met, others I have not, but it is for their trust and courage that I shall always be grateful.
—Sebastian M. Glück

The Laurance Spelman Rockefeller Memorial Pipe Organ
Union Church of Pocantico Hills,
Tarrytown, New York
Glück New York, Opus 11

GRAND-ORGUE (II)
16' Bourdon (from Pédale)
8' Montre (58 pipes, 50% tin)
8' Violoncelle (58 pipes, 50% tin)
8' Flûte Harmonique (1 pipe, 50% tin) (a)
8' Bourdon (38 pipes, pine, mahogany, & 50% tin) (b)
4' Prestant (58 pipes, 50% tin)
2' Doublette (58 pipes, 50% tin)
II–IV Fourniture (196 pipes, 50% tin)
C1 19.22
C13 15.19.22
C25 12.15.19.22
C37 08.12.15.19
C49 01.08.12.15
8' Trompette (from Récit Expressif)
Grand-Orgue Muet
RÉCIT-EXPRESSIF (III)
8' Viole de Gambe (58 pipes, 90% tin)
8' Voix Céleste (46 pipes, 90% tin)
8' Cor de Nuit (58 pipes, poplar, walnut, & 50% tin)
4' Prestant (58 pipes, 50% tin)
4' Flûte Octaviante (58 pipes, 50% tin)
2' Flûte Conique (58 pipes, 50% tin)
16' Clarinette-Basse (12 pipes, 50% tin) (c)
8' Trompette (58 pipes, 50% tin)
8' Basson et Hautbois (58 pipes, 50% tin)
8' Voix Humaine (58 pipes, 30% tin)
Tremblant (I et III)
16' Récit
Récit Muet
4' Récit
POSITIF-EXPRESSIF (I)
8' Violoncelle (Grand Orgue)
8' Flûte Harmonique (Grand Orgue)
8' Cor de Nuit (Récit-Expressif)
4' Viole d’Amour (12 pipes, 50% tin) (d)
4' Flûte Douce (12 pipes, 50% tin) (e)
8' Clarinette (58 pipes, 30% tin)
Cloches
16' Positif
Positif Muet
4' Positif
PÉDALE
16' Sous Basse (32 pipes, poplar & walnut)
102/3' Gros Nasard (from Sous Basse) (g)
8' Octave Basse (Grand-Orgue)
8' Violoncelle (Grand-Orgue)
8' Flûte (Grand-Orgue Bourdon)
4' Quinzième (32 pipes, 50% tin)
4' Flûte Ouverte (Récit-Expressif)
4' Flûte Bouchée (Grand-Orgue Bourdon)
16' Bombarde (12 pipes, zinc) (h)
16' Clarinette-Basse (Récit-Expressif)
8' Trompette (Récit-Expressif)
4' Clarinette (Récit-Expressif)
Cloches

(a) C1–A#11 from Récit Cor de Nuit;
C13–A58 from Récit Flûte Octaviante
(b) Extension of Pédale 16¢ Sous Basse
(c) Extension of Positif 8¢ Clarinette
(d) Extension of Grand Orgue 8¢ Violoncelle
(e) Extension of Récit 8¢ Cor de Nuit
(f) Extension of Grand Orgue 8¢ Violoncelle
(g) Becomes a 32¢ Contre Bourdon at C13
(h) Extension of Récit 8¢ Trompette
Tirasses, Accouplements et Échanges (dominos basculants)
* 8' Tirasse Grand Orgue
* 8' Tirasse Positif
* 8' Tirasse Récit
4' Tirasse Récit

16' Récit au Grand Orgue
* 8' Récit au Grand Orgue
4' Récit au Grand Orgue
16' Positif au Grand Orgue
* 8' Positif au Grand Orgue
4' Positif au Grand Orgue
8' Grand Orgue au Positif

16' Récit au Positif
* 8' Récit au Positif
4' Récit au Positif
Grand Orgue au lieu du Positif

* Piston et Cuillère
Combinaisons (256 levels)
6 adjustable thumb pistons acting upon each manual division
6 adjustable thumb pistons and toe studs acting upon the Pédale division
8 adjustable thumb pistons and toe studs acting upon the entire organ
Tutti thumb piston and cuillère
Annulateur piston
Set piston

Kegg Pipe Organ Builders,

Hartville, Ohio

Bryn Athyn Cathedral

Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania

From the organbuilder

The Bryn Athyn Cathedral organ has been one of the most fascinating and challenging instruments in the history of the Kegg firm. Oberlin graduate and active Philadelphia organist Fred Haas has always admired the work of Ernest Skinner. In the discussion of the new organ for the cathedral, all roads led to a recreation of Skinner’s work. We were asked to marry two modest E.M. Skinner organs, expand the combined instrument in Skinner style using new or vintage pipe work, add a dramatic fourth manual division that complements the theology of the congregation and the dramatic building architecture, all while creating new structure, winding, expression, electrical systems, console, and façade as a new instrument. The result is not a restored Skinner organ but a new instrument in his style with some unusual Kegg touches. 

It is interesting to note that the archives of the church revealed plans for a large Skinner organ when the church was being built in 1917. This organ was never built due to the conditions resulting from World War I, and a “temporary” small unit organ was installed that served for about 50 years. The design of the Skinner-Kegg organ was largely complete when the plans of the original large Skinner were discovered; the specifications of the two organs are remarkably similar. 

The main organ is a three-manual instrument with a specification typical of Ernest Skinner circa 1928. While this organ is indicative of the Skinner company, there are several stops and features that bear closer inspection. The Swell is complete with all that might be desired in such an instrument, including Skinner’s magical Flute Celeste and a reproduction Skinner 16′ Waldhorn. The Mixture in this division is one of the first that Skinner built after his historic visit to Great Britain where he learned of the work of Henry Willis III. This Mixture, the only mixture in the organ, is bright and more aggressive than might be expected and has a most interesting texture. It retains its original voicing as does all the Skinner pipe work in the organ and is impressive. The Great has no mixture and tops out at 2′, which is quite typical of these instruments at this time. 

The Choir division includes signature Skinner color reeds as well as a new Tuba, which is a lyrical stop, both bold and sweet. Its scale accelerates in the bass to provide the main Pedal 16′ reed line. Enclosed in the Choir box, it can be tailored to suit almost any need. 

The Great is enclosed with the exception of the First Open Diapason and the 16′-8′ Violone-Gamba, the bass of which forms the façade. The Trumpet is a new stop and is designed to fill the coupled organ with fire and excitement in the same way that Skinner used his French Trumpet, which would normally be in the Swell along with the Cornopean. There was no room in the Swell for this additional stop so it found a home in the Great. Of course, no Skinner-style instrument can be without a French Horn, and a restored vintage example appears here also. 

The theology of Bryn Athyn Cathedral, the ecclesiastical center of a New Church denomination, includes levels of heaven, the innermost of which is called the Celestial, where meanings are the most clear and thoughts are the most innocent. When there was a suggestion of a division bearing this name placed high in the crossing tower and speaking down into the nave with both delicate and commanding voices, the church and donor readily agreed. This is the most unusual division in the organ. It contains four stops in Echo style along with solo Gambas on 10′′ wind pressure and a Flauto Mirabilis and Tuba Mirabilis, both on 20′′ pressure. The Tuba Mirabilis is done in Willis style, hooded, and commands attention with stately authority. The Flauto Mirabilis is a modified copy of the famous Wanamaker Clear Flute. This wood harmonic flute sings in the building as only a heroic flute of this size and wind pressure can. Flue pipe voicing on 20′′ wind pressure is most unusual, and it was actually a pleasure for me, one that was “enjoyed” by the entire shop as it had to be done not in the voicing room but out in the shop on the final chest. When heard at the intended distance, it is true magic. This division also contains a 14-note set of Deagan Tower Chimes installed inside the building in the Celestial chamber. These massive chimes were designed to be installed outside and to be heard throughout the community. Here we have what is believed to be one of only three installations of such chimes inside a building. The effect is one of grand and elegant dignity. 

The Pedal of this organ is modest but very much in keeping with Skinner models of its day. It enjoys a genuine, newly built 32′ Bourdon. The fact that this sound is produced by real pipes is immediately apparent. 

The console of the organ is new and includes hand-carved details inspired by the pulpit of the church. Its bone and rosewood keys invite you to play, and all accessories are placed where they are most useful. The Virtuoso control system provides all the features expected of a first-class instrument today. The console is easily movable on internal casters for use in recital and oratory.

In keeping with the magical nature of the Celestial division we have incorporated what I believe is a first in the industry. The Celestial manual enjoys second touch keys. Found in theatre organs, the second touch usually brings out a second voice when the key is pressed into a strong spring at the bottom of the normal key travel. In this organ, it is used not for a voice, but to engage the tremolo. The tremolo can be engaged on each note at the desired time while instantly stopping as the organist moves from the key. When one stops on the next note of reasonable duration, the tremolo can be easily and intuitively added in the same manner as a wind or string instrumentalist. The result is much more musical than when engaged by a variable-speed device and it also leaves the foot free to shade the dynamic of the note at the same time. 

The organ has evolved to be an ideal instrument for this unique parish. The grandeur of the building and grounds is a surprise to visitors when discovered. This organ, too, will surprise and, I hope, delight the organist who discovers it. 

We would like to thank donor Fred Haas and the Wyncote Foundation for their confidence in the Kegg firm. We must also lift a glass in heartfelt appreciation to Music Director Graham Bier and Principal Organist Terry Schnarr for their unfailing support, and the cathedral staff for raising the bar to an improbable height for hospitality to an organ-building staff. 

—Kegg Pipe Organ Builders

Charles Kegg, President and Artistic Director

Philip Brown

Michael Carden

William Catanesey

Randall Crawford

Joyce Harper

John Johnson

Philip Laakso

Sean O’Donnell

Nathaniel Riggle

Dwayne Short

With special help from Robin Bier and Robert Schmucker

From the Bryn Athyn Cathedral Music Department

In the spring of 2012, Fred Haas proposed a gift to the Bryn Athyn Church: a unique pipe organ for our historic cathedral. The donation was offered in memory of Mr. Haas’s mother Chara Aurora Cooper Haas, a beloved member of our congregation. Since the church accepted the gift, we have been overwhelmed by the expertise and quality workmanship of those involved in the project. Charles Kegg and employees of Kegg Pipe Organ Builders have taken meticulous care in refurbishing and constructing the instrument, while also graciously supporting our need to continue with church activities during the installation process. Stephen Hendricks of Historic Doors designed and constructed the beautiful woodwork of the façade. Advice on the project was sought from various organ experts, including Curt Mangel and Peter Conte, who respectively curate and play the Wanamaker Organ. Daniel Angerstein and J. Anthony Nichols have been voicing the organ under the direction of Mr. Kegg, working to involve us in the process, and even offering a little aural tour to a visiting class of music theory students. It has been a real pleasure to work with these artists, who are not only brilliant, but also personable and caring.

This project carries an historical significance that goes far beyond simply providing a suitable instrument to accompany worship services. Almost 100 years ago during the construction of the cathedral, donor and architect Raymond Pitcairn was involved in detailed communication with E. M. Skinner about the design of a pipe organ. Due to issues relating to the First World War, this dream was not realized at the time, and instead a temporary stock organ was installed. Despite intentions to return to the original project, the plans for a carefully designed Skinner organ never materialized—until now.

Our archives contain the original designs and correspondence between Pitcairn and Skinner. Kegg Pipe Organ Builders has taken components from two different 1920s Skinner organs and refurbished them, incorporating them into a new instrument that shows remarkable similarities to the earlier plans drawn up nearly a century ago. This 1920s/2014 Skinner-Kegg pipe organ combines many of the advances in organ design with an homage to the past that makes it particularly appropriate for the Bryn Athyn Cathedral.

As we approach the second century of the cathedral’s service to our community, we look forward to the rich orchestral colors and warm accompaniment that this new organ will provide. As the sounds of its pipes fill the church on Sundays and holidays, we will think of Pitcairn and other early congregants listening in from heaven and perhaps even singing along. At last, their vision has come full circle.

—Graham Bier, Director of Music

Terry Schnar, Principal Organist

Photos by Charles Kegg except as noted

Sebastian M. Glück,
New York, New York
The First Presbyterian Church
in the City of New York,
New York, New York
The First Presbyterian Church took root as a dissenting group of Scots and Irish Protestants who worshipped in a private home in 1706 and organized a congregation a decade later. By 1719, their first church building opened for worship, leading to a long and continuing history of controversial views regarding man’s relationship to religion, scripture, science, and politics. “The Church of the Patriots” survived revolution, fire, and urban expansion, dedicating the present church in 1849.
Among those on Old First’s roster of notable preachers was Harry Emerson Fosdick, who in 1922 declared from the pulpit that The New Knowledge, as postulated by Charles Darwin, was not inconsistent with Christianity. The uproar spread like wildfire; even the Presbytery of Philadelphia met in the home of John Wanamaker to discuss the matter. An unrelenting three-year campaign by notorious fundamentalist William Jennings Bryan led Fosdick to resign (without changing his views). Fosdick, a longstanding friend of the Rockefeller family, subsequently served as pastor of The Riverside Church for nearly half a century.
Only months before the demolition of the World Trade Center, Dr. Jon M. Walton became the Senior Pastor of First Presbyterian Church. He would soon inherit a stunned city and a congregation numbed by the murder of their members and the orphans left behind. Beginning their fourth century, the congregation and their pastor continue to rebuild—spiritually, physically, and emotionally. Out of tragedy, the church has strengthened, grown steadily in membership, and commissioned pipe organs for both the chapel and the sanctuary.

The Guilmant Organ School
During French composer and organist Alexandre Guilmant’s 1898 American tour, he and Dr. William C. Carl, organist and choirmaster of First Church, decided to open the United States’ first school for organ and church music, with instruction based upon the master’s method of teaching. The Guilmant Organ School’s first class was held on October 9, 1899 and offered instruction to church musicians until the early 1970s. The Guilmant Organ Recital Series continues in modern times, as part of the church’s rich music program that includes oratorio performances by the church’s respected choir and orchestra.

Previous instruments
Initially, conservative worship at First Presbyterian did not permit musical instruments or concert literature; unaccompanied psalmody was provided by a vocal quartet. They were permitted to sing the works of Palestrina, Victoria and Orlando di Lasso in the chapel, but only as entertainments and never at worship services.
In 1888 Roosevelt’s III/52 Opus 368 was built for the east tower gallery. When the elaborately carved chancel was added in 1920, the organ was replaced by Skinner Organ Company’s Opus 293, a IV/72 in the north chancel chamber. Its Echo division was given residence in the bell tower, speaking through an impossibly small grille in the ceiling. The doomed division was installed in a giant meat refrigerator with shutters, Skinner’s attempt to defeat the elements.
By the 1960s, the heating system had “baked the Skinner to death,” according to the late Dr. Robert S. Baker (1916–2005), then organist and choirmaster of the church. Tonal tastes had changed, and Austin Organs, Inc. installed their IV/85 Opus 2048, dedicated in 1965. The planned revamped Echo division never came to be, but the meat locker remains.
Upon Dr. Baker’s retirement in 1988, he was succeeded by his student, William F. Entriken. During Dr. Entriken’s ongoing tenure the church commissioned two pipe organs, both of which were designed and built by Sebastian M. Glück. In 2004, the Rees Jones Memorial Organ, a Georgian-inspired instrument tuned in Werckmeister III, was installed in Alexander Chapel. A recording of Opus 8 is available from the Organ Historical Society. The large sanctuary organ, Opus 12, was completed this year, funded by both First Church and the generosity of donors who gave individual stops or entire choruses of pipework in memory or honor of special people in their lives.
—Benito Orso

From the tonal director
There are advantages to not being “the first man at bat” when it comes to designing a pipe organ for a particular room. One benefits from the lessons of the past: what did or did not work tonally, what physical or environmental conditions helped or hindered the making of music, and what resources musicians may have used most often or what they felt was wanting.
Prevailing scaling and voicing practices of the 1960s (small scales, even smaller scales for the reeds, underlength resonators, low cut-ups, minimal languid treatment), coupled with an acoustic that “eats bass” and a chambered installation, conspired to keep the organ’s sound from reaching the listener.
Another characteristic of organs of the era (even very large ones) was the frustrating disposition of stops, often found at the wrong pitches in the wrong divisions for the accurate registration of the established literature. With enough stops drawn, the liturgy, hymnody, and anthem work were adequately accompanied, but registrational authenticity, saturated color, energetic drive, and cohesive clarity remained elusive.

The new approach
Two main divisions share the second manual: the superordinate Werck, inspired (in concept) by the late 16th-century Hamburg school, and the Great, a more familiar-looking Anglo-French amalgam with both 18th and 19th century ingredients.
The previous organ had no Great reeds, a Harrisonian trend that inevitably created balance problems. The provision of the Great Cornet, Trumpet, and Clarion in the new organ enables the rest of the organ’s reeds to fulfill their duties without compromise, and makes the 18th-century repertoire of several cultures come alive.
Both of these divisions can move about the organ via the coupling system, and if the Werck is used as the main division in early Northern literature, the Great can serve as the Oberwerk, the natural foil, distinguished by character more than brute strength.
This permits the Choir division to serve as its namesake, a secondary Swell rather than a penumbral “toy Positiv” of compromised and disjointed identity. Far less bold yet more colorful than the Solo department, the Choir still retains the essential classical elements within its accompanimental palette and cluster of instrumental pastels. A coherent collection of stops duplexed from the Great is available on this manual as well.
Large American Swell divisions have taken on a somewhat inelastic grundriss, the legacy of multicompetent sovereignty bestowed upon them by the English and thriving here through the Skinner school. And so it should be, a sensate plenipotentiary, home to a chorus of diapasons, a choir of flutes, two sets of undulants, the ubiquitous oboe and regal, and a molten battery of harmonic trumpets. Large scales and shallots with parallel walls (brilliance) and flat bottoms (fundamental) conspire to create a controllable, caged beast. My stratagem was not to reinvent the wheel, but rather to strip the execution of the formula of all shyness and vagaries.
Because we retained the cantilevered windchests from the previous organ (what was so bizarrely called “functional display” half a century ago), it was necessary to execute some compensatory tonal maneuvers for the enclosed divisions. Chambered organs of the period added to the disadvantage by drastically underscaling the expressive sections already in a sequestered relationship to the Great.
The Solo division is home to the usual suspects for an organ of this size and style. The soviet of harmonic bombardes is more brilliant yet less richly dense than the Swell battery. The three orchestral reeds, like all the color reeds in the organ, are made of common metal, rather than spotted. The French Horn and flat-top English Horn are legacy ranks from the Skinner, but alas, were so drastically altered in the 1960s (lowered pressures, revised resonating lengths, new tongues, new wedges) that they are merely historic metal, and we cannot claim lineage. Like the Choir Flügel Horn, they were rebuilt for this installation and are successful and convincing.
The Grand Chorus VIII is “the third Great,” the only mixture in the organ to embrace the 16′ harmonic series, voiced on 8″ wind and mounted in a commanding position in front of the Solo enclosure. It is made of spotted metal, although the 16′ rank is almost pure lead and the tenebrous 51⁄3′ contraquint is subdued. This lends gravitas and avoids murkiness.
The Pedal department takes advantage of the instrument’s electro-pneumatic action, supplementing its own structure with stops from the manual divisions. Some excoriate this centuries-old practice, but obdurate modern practitioners and their clients welcome the opportunity to mix mezzo-forte hues for the sake of nuance.
The full-length 32′ Helicon is not overly noisy, but rather a gentle tympani roll beneath the ensemble. The Harmonics of 32′ changes composition as it ascends the scale, maintaining clarity and immediacy of pitch identification in its reedy rumble. The recombinant effect of the two stops makes itself known without the vulgarity of a “loud for the sake of loud” voice that can be more ruinous than dramatic.
America’s half-century love affair with horizontal blatancy seems to have reached its dénouement as musicians and builders realize that a more solid and focused formant may be a wiser choice for a herald stop. The key to success is to avoid the objectionable ends of the bell curve (splatter and honk), and work toward a brilliant, focused, pure tone, devoid of grittiness and fringe harmonics. Here the Tuba projects a definite “aw” vowel, not a nasal, short “a.” After the stop’s inauguration, I returned to revoice it on 12″ rather than the original 10″ pressure. The result is that it speaks with greater authority and majesty, with no loss of focus or nobility.
Are 93 ranks sufficient? Certainly, although in context I do not believe that there is any wasted metal in the organ. Nonetheless, part of First Presbyterian’s liturgical and musical tradition involves the choir singing from the narthex and the east tower gallery as well as the chancel. This is a church that fills its pews with energetic singers. The vision of a Tower division, within the church, encased where the Roosevelt once stood, is the reason for preparing for it in the console. Keeping it within the church itself, at the same level as the main organ, away from bells, frost, and pigeons, should assure a happier fate than “echoes of the past.”
Both the new north balcony façade with its Zimbelstern and the console were designed to match the existing architecture of the room. The console cabinetry is oak, carved to match the window tracery found in the building. The interior is walnut, as are the manual accidentals and Skinner-style key cheeks. Pedal accidentals are rosewood, and the drawknobs are pao ferro. The three medallions that grace the music rack are jade.
The extensive combination action is a modern expectation, especially for a church with such a highly developed music program. We advise our clients that the combination action is likely the first item to need technical attention in a pipe organ, and we do keep more “precious” gadgetry to a minimum. Less-seen features are a separate set of pistons for the couplers, the Pedal on Choir coupler, and varying species of wood used for the toe studs, allocated by category. The divisional tags above each drawknob field, when pushed, cancel the knobs of their respective divisions.
The two organbuilders most responsible for the technical and structural realization of this installation were Robert Rast and Albert Jensen-Moulton, general manager of the firm. During onsite voicing and tonal finishing I was assisted by Mr. Jensen-Moulton at the console, whose ears and judgment I trust to achieve the firm’s tonal signature.
I firmly believe that it is the small organ that challenges the creativity and ingenuity of both the builder and the musician. But an instrument of broad scope does not relieve the designer of the obligation to apply all that history has taught us, especially regarding the literature. The “concert” literature was written by church organists for the instruments they played for worship. The scores are the recipe books, and the surviving instruments the resulting cuisine. The large, eclectic organ is not a cultural grab-bag of incompatible material, but a conceptual coalition that must result in stylistic unity, bearing the sound and personality of the builder.
—Sebastian M. Glück

WERCK (Manual II)
West Chancel Bay
32′ Quintadehn (Swell) [1]
16′ Præstandt [2] 61 pipes
8′ Octava 61 pipes
8′ Spitzflöte [3] 5 pipes
4′ Supra Octava 61 pipes
Mixtur IV 244 pipes
Zimbel III 183 pipes
16′ Fagott 61 pipes
Werck Silent

GREAT ORGAN (Manual II)
East Chancel Bay
16′ Bourdon (Swell)
8′ First Diapason 61 pipes
8′ Second Diapason [4] 12 pipes
8′ Chimney Flute 61 pipes
8′ Harmonic Flute (Solo)
8′ Erzähler 61 pipes
4′ Principal 61 pipes
4′ Octave [4] 12 pipes
4′ Night Horn 61 pipes
22⁄3′ Twelfth 61 pipes
2′ Fifteenth 61 pipes
2′ Koppelpfeife 61 pipes
Mixture IV 244 pipes
Cornet V [5] 185 pipes
8′ Clarinet (Choir)
8′ Trumpet 17 pipes
8′+4′ Grand Jeu [6] 12 pipes
Great Silent
Chimes (Solo)
Tremulant

SWELL ORGAN (Manual III)
Chamber Level I, West
16′ Bourdon 12 pipes
8′ Geigen Diapason 61 pipes
8′ Stopped Diapason 61 pipes
8′ Salicional 61 pipes
8′ Voix Céleste 61 pipes
8′ Flûte Conique 61 pipes
8′ Flûte Céleste 49 pipes
4′ Geigen Octave 61 pipes
4′ Chimney Flute 61 pipes
2′ Octavin 61 pipes
Full Mixture V 269 pipes
16′ Double Trumpet 61 pipes
8′ Harmonic Trumpet 61 pipes
8′ Hautboy 61 pipes
8′ Vox Humana 61 pipes
4′ Harmonic Clarion 61 pipes
Tremulant
16′ Swell to Swell
Swell Silent
4′ Swell to Swell

CHOIR ORGAN (Manual I)
Chamber Level I, East
16′ Double Gemshorn 12 pipes
8′ Principal 61 pipes
8′ Doppelflöte [7] 61 pipes
8′ Gemshorn 61 pipes
8′ Gemshorn Céleste 49 pipes
4′ Prestant 61 pipes
4′ Flute 61 pipes
22⁄3′ Nazard 61 pipes
2′ Recorder 61 pipes
13⁄5′ Tierce 61 pipes
11⁄3′ Larigot 61 pipes
Mixture III 183 pipes
16′ Bass Clarinet 12 pipes
8′ Trumpet Minor 61 pipes
8′ Flügel Horn 61 pipes
8′ Clarinet 61 pipes
Tremulant
16′ Choir to Choir
Choir Silent
4′ Choir to Choir
Great Stops on Choir
8′ First Diapason
8′ Chimney Flute
8′ Erzähler
4′ Principal
2′ Fifteenth
IV Mixture
Chimes (Solo)
Zimbelstern 8 bells

SOLO ORGAN (Manual IV)
Chamber Level II, West
8′ Spitzflöte (Pedal)
8′ Viola Major 61 pipes
8′ Viola Céleste 61 pipes
8′ Harmonic Flute 61 pipes
4′ Principal 61 pipes
4′ Orchestral Flute 12 pipes
Grand Chorus VIII [8] 370 pipes
8′ French Horn 61 pipes
8′ English Horn 61 pipes
8′ Corno di Bassetto 61 pipes
16′ Bombarde Harmonique 61 pipes
8′ Trompette Harmonique 61 pipes
4′ Clairon Harmonique 61 pipes
Tremulant
16′ Solo to Solo
Solo Silent
4′ Solo to Solo
Chimes 20 tubes

TUBA ORGAN (Floating)
North Gallery Arch
Cornet V (Great)
Grand Chorus VIII (Solo)
16′ Tuba Magna
8′ Tuba Major 61 pipes
4′ Tuba Clarion 12 pipes

TOWER ORGAN (Floating)
East Tower
8′ Principal drawknob only
8′ Holz Gedeckt drawknob only
8′ Viola Dolce drawknob only
8′ Unda Maris drawknob only
4′ Prestant drawknob only
2′ Doublette drawknob only
IV Fourniture drawknob only

PEDAL ORGAN
Chamber Level II, East
32′ Contra Sub Bass 12 pipes
16′ Open Diapason Wood 32 pipes
16′ Open Diapason Metal 32 pipes
16′ Sub Bass 32 pipes
16′ Præstandt (Werck)
16′ Double Gemshorn (Choir)
16′ Bourdon (Swell)
16′ Spitzbass 12 pipes
102⁄3′ Contra Quint 7 pipes
8′ Principal 32 pipes
8′ Stopped Flute 5 pipes
8′ Spitzflöte 32 pipes
8′ Præstandt (Werck)
8′ Stopped Diapason (Swell)
8′ Gemshorn (Choir)
51⁄3′ Quint 7 pipes
4′ Fifteenth 32 pipes
4′ Spitzflöte 5 pipes
2′ Choral Bass 12 pipes
Mixture III 96 pipes
32′ Harmonics of
32′ Helicon [9] 12 pipes
16′ Posaune 32 pipes
16′ Bombarde (Solo)
16′ Double Trumpet (Swell)
16′ Fagott (Werck)
16′ Bass Clarinet (Choir)
8′ Trumpet 12 pipes
8′ Fagott (Werck)
8′ Clarinet (Choir)
4′ Clarion 12 pipes
4′ Rohr Schalmei [10] 32 pipes
Chimes (Solo)
TOWER PEDAL ORGAN
16′ Tower Bass drawknob only

Couplers
Werck to Pedal 8′
Great to Pedal 8′
Swell to Pedal 8′, 4′
Choir to Pedal 8′, 4′
Solo to Pedal 8′, 4′

Swell to Great 16′, 8′, 4′
Choir to Great 16′, 8′, 4′
Solo to Great 16′, 8′, 4′

Choir to Swell 8′
Solo to Swell 8′

Pedal on Choir
Werck to Choir 8′
Great to Choir 8′
Swell to Choir 16′, 8′, 4′
Solo to Choir 16′, 8′, 4′

Werck to Solo 8′
Great to Solo 8′
Swell to Solo 8′

Transfers & Mechanicals
Tuba on each manual and pedal
Tower on each manual and pedal
Great/Choir Transfer
Mixtures Off
Reeds Off
Full Organ I
Full Organ II
Full Pedal
All Swells to Swell

Expression Pedals
Choir, Swell, Solo, Crescendo

Notes
[1] 1–12 resultant
[2] 1–12 wood
[3] Upward extension of Pedal stop
[4] Extension of Werck 16′ Præstandt
[5] G20–G56; mounted in East bay
[6] Extension; draws 8′ Trumpet as well
[7] Wood; two mouths per pipe
[8] Unenclosed
[9] Wooden boots; 8″ wind pressure
[10] Brass; mounted in West bay

Wind Pressures
Main organ: 4″
Solo organ: 8″
Tuba organ: 12″
Tower organ: 31⁄2″
Pedal 32′ Helicon: 8″

Cover photo by Len Levasseur
Interior photos by Albert Jensen-Moulton

Glück New York
170 Park Row, Suite 20A
New York, NY 10038-1156
212/608-5651
[email protected]
www.GluckNewYork.com

Goulding & Wood Organ Builders, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana

Opus 50

The Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd, Lexington, Kentucky

From the organbuilder

“Worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness” could well serve as the motto for the organ project at the Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd in Lexington, Kentucky. The Gothic revival building holds a wealth of architectural and design detail, culminating in an extravagance of carved furnishings in the chancel. Wainscot paneling in the sanctuary depicts scenes from the life of Christ, and the reredos displays a large tableau of the Last Supper. 

Liturgical worship in the parish matches the opulence of the setting, with an unusually well-developed choral program encompassing all ages. Over the past twelve years, organist and choirmaster John Linker has built a music department known throughout the area for excellence. The Good Shepherd choirs have held residencies in English cathedrals and this summer made their first concert tour of continental Europe.

Throughout this period of musical expansion, the congregation has been served by a 1970s neo-Baroque organ of modest resources. Although the instrument was a fine example of its aesthetic approach and served the parish well for forty years, the organ was inadequate for the scope of the music program as it has evolved. It contained only one manual reed and no celeste rank. In short, the organ struggled to keep up with the demands of accompanying Anglican chant psalmody and the choral music of Stanford and Howells. 

Conversation about replacing the organ began nearly a decade ago, yet while the need was never in dispute, external forces seemed to derail the discussion at every turn. Building on the foundation laid by Fr. Robert Sessum, interim rector Fr. Ron Pogue seized the opportunity during the time of transition in leadership to force the issue. The committee moved quickly under the focused leadership of chair Joseph Jones, and a contract was signed after a brief flurry of activity.

The organ is thus designed primarily as a handmaiden for musical liturgy in the Anglican tradition as it has been received by the American church. The instrument’s resources are uniquely tailored to the setting it serves in every regard. Recognizing the value of a wide tonal palette, the chancel instrument is double the size of the previous organ, gaining variety in tone rather than increase in volume. A new chamber was created by renovating a second-story storage room, allowing organ on both sides of the chancel for the first time. The existing chamber, formerly housing the Swell, now holds the Choir in intimate proximity to the voices it accompanies. The Swell resides within the new chamber, high in the chancel where its robust voice can speak freely into the room. The Great is divided in twin cantilevered cases facing each other, with the plenum stops on the cantoris side and color stops on the decani. Maximizing the versatility of this arrangement, the two halves of the Great can be silenced through individual Unison Off controls and coupled to the fourth manual separately. This allows, for instance, the Great principal cornet to dialogue with the Great Trumpet.

Early on, the committee determined that having a division in the back of the room would be a top priority. For all the storied choir-centric nature of the Anglican tradition, worship in America resoundingly seeks to involve the assembly in song. With the acoustically compromising arrangement of chancel chambers off the central axis of the room, an Antiphonal organ on the back wall would help unify music-making throughout the church. Whenever the issue of funding was raised, the Antiphonal division was widely recognized as the most palatable sacrifice, yet it remained a strong desire among the committee. Thanks to the efficacy of the fund-raising campaign and the generosity of the Miller and Wrigley families, the committee was able to avoid any limitations. Twin cases frame the majestic western lancet window, and the polished display pipes reflect the colorful light from the stained glass. The polished brass Festival Trumpet completes the visual effect with a regal touch.

Any student of organ design will recognize the predictable nature of stop lists from instrument to instrument across styles of organ building. The distinctive quality of tonal design lies in the careful specification of scales, mouth widths, and voicing techniques. All of these details are meticulously overseen by our head voicer, Brandon Woods, who works with each stop through design to final regulation in the room. In this he is ably assisted by David Sims, who contributes to each step of the process. This instrument features a weight in tone and variety in color consistent with the demands of accompanying voices in a sensitive, supportive manner. Each division includes an 8′ principal stop, each of varying volume and personality. The plenum choruses complement each other in combination as well as stand individually with integrity. As with many of our recent instruments, mouth widths below 1′ C on principal pipes are kept fairly narrow, allowing the upper lips of mouths to rise. This imparts a tone with generous fundamental development. With diapason chorus stops, this yields 8′ and 4′ stops with compelling and distinctive personalities. Higher-pitched stops and mixtures step back in scaling and broaden in mouth width to permit more upper partial development. Volume and speech are reserved in these stops, preventing them from dominating the texture. The result is a chorus with sheen but whose power comes from the fundamental.

The reed stops of the organ traverse a wide spectrum of musical effect. The Great Trumpet has lead resonators of generous scale and shallots with sharply tapered openings. These combine for a sound rich and heavy, blending into the principal chorus seamlessly. The Swell reed chorus features parallel openings on the shallots for a full-throated brilliance that pours from its chamber. The Choir’s Clarinet is gentle and voluptuous in the style of E. M. Skinner stops. The instrument is crowned by two solo reeds, the Choir Tuba and the Antiphonal Festival Trumpet. The Tuba is a typical high-pressure reed, in the style of Willis, with a broad, enveloping tone. The Festival Trumpet is commanding, speaking from its dramatic position, yet mild enough to use (sparingly) in chords.

Celeste ranks are of particular note in this organ. In addition to the ubiquitous strings in the Swell and Dulciana in the Choir, the Antiphonal contains a Diapason Celeste. Both unison and celeste ranks use slotted pipes to encourage the undulation, and the keen tone that derives from the slots makes for a distinctive sound. The timbre is unapologetically diapason in quality, and the vigorous sound of the two ranks together fills the room in a luxuriant wash of sound.

Windchests throughout the organ feature our unique electro-pneumatic slider and pallet design. The combination of tone channels running across stops and wholly pneumatic action enables the pipework to speak incisively yet without any harshness in attack. Further, the stops meld together as they draw wind from a common source. Arranging the mechanics and structure proved to be an extremely challenging task, particularly as the new Swell chamber’s dimensions continued to be a moving target throughout design and even construction of the organ. Staff design engineer Kurt Ryll and shop manager Mark Goulding nonetheless arrived at a layout that, if not commodious, certainly supports maintenance access to every component. Moving about the organ for routine tuning is remarkably simple, belying the complexity of the design necessary to achieve this.

The cabinetry of the organ and console was executed by Robert Duffy and Robert Heighway, culling elements from the room, such as the Tudor roses that adorn the rood screen and ornamental bosses featured in the reredos. The console uses marquetry to separate the divisions within the stop jambs and to frame the burled central panel of the music desk. Throughout the organ, both internal and visible details are finished with an attention to detail consistent with the quality of woodworking in the church.

The sum of all these disparate parts is an instrument that truly speaks forth, carrying the people’s song and supporting the choir in their leadership. While our intention was for it to be specifically suited to the worship of this congregation, we made no attempt to embody shallow or derivative notions of English organ building. This is an American instrument embracing the gamut of organ literature, hymnody, and choral music employed by the congregation. In realizing this goal we gratefully acknowledge the contributions of organist and choirmaster John Linker and committee chair Joseph Jones. We also recognize the steady leadership of the rector, Fr. Brian Cole, who inherited a project already underway and oversaw the completion with a dedication and enthusiasm as if it were his own. We look forward to sharing with the congregation in the upkeep of the organ, watching as it enlivens the worship at Church of the Good Shepherd and enriches the musical life of Lexington.

—Jason Overall

Goulding & Wood, Inc.

Indianapolis, Indiana

Robert Duffy, casework, cabinetry, and wood carvings

John Goulding, reed racking

Mark Goulding, shop foreman, general shop construction

Chris Gray, general shop construction

Robert Heighway, console cabinetry, casework cabinetry, and slider chests

Jerin Kelly, wind chests, general shop construction

Phil Lehman, office manager

Tyler MacDonald, wind chests

Jason Overall, office support and tonal design

Kurt Ryll, case design and engineering

David Sims, system wiring, tonal finishing

Michael Vores, structure, expression boxes, general shop construction

Brandon Woods, tonal design, voicing, and finishing.

From the organist & choirmaster

Goulding & Wood Opus 50 (named “The Miller and Wrigley Organ”) is the physical manifestation of many years of consideration, consultation, site visits, fundraising, and, of course, prayer. On my appointment to the Church of the Good Shepherd in 2001, it was immediately apparent that the previous neo-Baroque instrument had limited resources for accompanying the Anglican liturgy. As more and more electro-magnets and memory capture components failed, it was decided to replace the instrument with an organ more suitable to the fine Gothic architecture of Good Shepherd, and having a more diverse tonal palette, rather than to restore the previous instrument.

Upon his retirement in 2009, former rector Fr. Robert Sessum suggested to the congregation that the next project in the immediate future of Good Shepherd should be to replace the organ. The congregation heeded the advice of Fr. Sessum, and over the next two years an organ committee and organ capital campaign committee were formed under the guidance of the interim rector, Fr. Ron Pogue. Our new rector, Fr. Brian Cole, oversaw installation of the new instrument. It is a privilege to have worked with these three clergymen in seeing the dream of a new instrument for Good Shepherd come true.

In selecting a builder, the committee had their work cut out for them. My personal preference favors mechanical action, as I have found tracker instruments to be superior tools of artistic expression. Early on in the process, however, our committee had to dismiss this as an option due to Good Shepherd’s architecture and our desire to have symmetrically balanced cases on both sides of the chancel, as well as an Antiphonal division at the west end to better support hymn singing. After reviewing numerous designs, specifications, and participating in site visits, the committee unanimously chose Goulding & Wood.

Over many months we worked closely with Goulding & Wood president Jason Overall and head voicer Brandon Woods on a specification that would meet Good Shepherd’s liturgical needs and be unique. We agreed to reuse some of the finest pipework from the old instrument in the new organ. The former Great 8′ Principal and 4′ Octave were revoiced and now reside in the Choir as 8′ Open Diapason and the 4′ Principal. The former 16′ Subbass (which was, in fact, from the parish’s Pilcher organ from the 1920s) was revoiced and at home again in Good Shepherd. The Pedal 4′ Schalmey as well as the Zimbelstern were also worthy of recycling.  

As its primary function is to accompany the Anglican liturgy, a complete and powerful Swell division is a must. The new Swell boasts a complete principal chorus, luscious strings, and harmonic flutes at 4′ and 2′ pitches, as well as a full complement of 16′ through 4′ reeds. While the Swell, Choir, and Pedal divisions appear fairly standard in specification, it is the Great and Antiphonal divisions that have the most innovative design and function. The Great is divided on both sides of the quire, and as such, each side can be coupled separately to the fourth manual to solo out melodies of hymns or other innovative uses. In addition to having a complete principal chorus, the Antiphonal also boasts a “Diapason Celeste.” While a Voce Umana or a Fiffaro might be common in Italian organs, a stop such as this is rarely found on English-inspired American organs. Furthermore, this stop is indeed an open, full-bodied, English-style Diapason. Though its use in repertoire is extremely rare (it is likely not the sound Frescobaldi had in mind!), it is incredibly useful in improvisations. The sound of this celeste is rich and embodying. Indeed, the entire instrument draws a new level of musicality and creativity from those fortunate to play it, and it is the prayerful congregant who receives the greatest benefit.

The people of Good Shepherd take great pride in our choir program, which has attained a high degree of international recognition over the past decade. Attention to and participation in congregational hymn singing is now at an all-time high for this parish. Now that this glorious instrument is in place, matching the beauty of the choir, the architectural environment, and the mighty singing of the congregation, we eagerly anticipate reaching new heights in our spiritual and musical journeys, and discovering new ways in which we are all able to see glimpses of heaven right here on earth.

—John Linker

From the organ committee

The organ committee consisted of a cross-section of the congregation, Dr. Schuyler W. Robinson, professor of organ at the University of Kentucky, and our church organist/choirmaster. The committee’s charge was to determine the type, size, and placement of the future instrument, and to set the budget. Its most important task was to find the perfect fit between the church and the company selected to build the instrument. The committee hired a consultant to help it identify the best North American organ builders, and we invited five of them to Lexington to present preliminary designs and cost estimates for the project. The committee then sent our two organists to play instruments representative of each builder. 

After careful deliberation, we chose Goulding & Wood of Indianapolis. Their plan was exciting and seemed to fit our needs perfectly. When the instrument was ready for installation, Goulding & Wood issued an invitation to the congregation to come to their workshop in Indianapolis to hear the organ before their team dismantled it and began to transfer it to Lexington. A few weeks later, the first pipes arrived and were paraded into the nave of the church, led by our bagpiper, and were blessed during a short service. The new and exciting musical voice of the Church of the Good Shepherd is a dream come true.

—J. R. Jones

Organ Committee Chair

From the rector

One of the real gifts of the Episcopal/Anglican tradition is the ability to keep a healthy tension between tradition and change. At Good Shepherd, the arrival of Goulding & Wood Opus 50 (the “Miller and Wrigley Organ”) is a fine example of that gift. 

The builders from Goulding & Wood were very sensitive to the change that takes place when an instrument like this is placed in an historic space. Throughout the weeks of building on site, we welcomed parishioners and community members to visit our church during construction. Numerous photographs and videos, both formal and informal, were taken to record the work. Even though the builders were guests to our space, they served as good hosts, as long-time members and newcomers asked questions while the installation process unfolded. 

Now that it is in place, the organ appears to have always been in our liturgical space. The antiphonal division now frames the glorious Abbott Window in the rear of the church and accentuates the colors of the stained glass. The new organ has also already been a catalyst for more vigorous congregational singing. The old organ console has been refashioned to make a smaller altar for our Sunday evening Eucharist. 

We are all blessed to be a part of Good Shepherd’s story at this time. The Miller and Wrigley Organ, while new, affirms the great strengths of traditional Anglican worship. Because of its incredible versatility, this instrument will serve as an anchor as we expand the musical life of the parish in arts offerings to the Lexington community. 

—The Rev’d Brian Cole

Andover Organ Company, 

Lawrence, Massachusetts

Opus R-345, Christ Episcopal Church, Charlottesville, Virginia

From the builder

In projects, journeys, and lives, there are milestone events that mark progress or achievements. The dedication of Andover Opus R-345 at Christ Episcopal Church in Charlottesville, Virginia, was such an event. It was a milestone for three long journeys: the completion of a seven-year project for Andover; the culmination of a decade-long sanctuary renovation process for Christ Church; and the latest chapter in the 143-year odyssey of a resilient New England organ.

With their simplicity and durability, it is not unusual for well-made old tracker organs to outlast the buildings or congregations for which they were originally made. Happily, they can often be relocated and repurposed to fit the musical needs and budget of a new owner. At Andover, we tune and maintain a large number of 19th-century instruments which are now in their second, third, or fourth homes.

The saga of the Christ Church organ certainly illustrates this! The core of the instrument is a three-manual, 29-stop organ built in 1869 by E. & G. G. Hook of Boston as their Opus 472 and originally installed in Grace Episcopal Church in Chicago, Illinois. In 1902, it was moved to another Grace Episcopal Church, in Oak Park, Illinois. In 1922, it was sold to the Third Congregational Church of Oak Park, where it was rebuilt and electrified by Nicholas Doerr of Chicago. The organ was next moved to St. Ludmilla’s Catholic Church in Chicago, probably in 1937 when the Third Congregational Church merged with another congregation. When St. Ludmilla’s closed in 1991, the organ was put into storage. Andover’s Robert C. Newton, a nationally recognized authority on Hook organs, learned of the organ’s availability and purchased it. Opus 472 then made the long journey back to Massachusetts, where it sat in storage, awaiting its fifth home.

Meanwhile, Christ Church in Charlottesville, Virginia, had formed an organ committee to find a replacement for their failing 50-year-old electro-pneumatic organ. That organ had been cobbled together from a variety of used and new parts, and the builder had gone out of business before the organ was finished. Concurrently, plans were begun for a complete renovation of the sanctuary. After much study, the committee determined that the best location for the new instrument would be at the front of the church, to speak directly towards the congregation. This was confirmed by each builder that the committee interviewed during the selection process. 

Being responsible stewards of the church’s resources, the organ committee also researched the option of installing a rebuilt used organ. They determined that if the original organ was a well-made, quality instrument, the end result could be equal, or in some cases superior, to a new organ—yet at significantly less cost. John Whiteside, who became Christ Church’s music director in 2005, contacted us and learned of E. & G. G. Hook Opus 472. Built in 1869, the organ dated from the “golden period” (1850s–1870s) of the firm’s instruments. 

Because the organ had lost its original case, console, structure, action, and wind system during its travels, the surviving Hook pipes and windchests could easily be rearranged to fit the available space in Christ Church. The most essential parts of any organ are the pipes, which define its tonal signature, and the windchests, which influence how the pipes speak and blend.

The Hook firm was one of 19th-century America’s premier organ builders. Their instruments, highly regarded for their mechanical and tonal excellence, were designed and voiced to work well in the dry acoustics of American churches. Though we at Andover build modern instruments designed to serve the needs of today’s church musicians, we draw insight and inspiration from the surviving work of the brothers Elias (1805–1881) and George Greenleaf (1807–1880) Hook and their successor, Francis Hastings (1836–1916). We have been privileged to work on many of their important surviving instruments, including their monumental 101-rank 1875 masterpiece, Opus 801, at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross in Boston, and the famous 1876 “Centennial Exposition” organ, Opus 828, now in St. Joseph Cathedral in Buffalo.

After careful deliberation, the committee recommended that Christ Church purchase and install Hook Opus 472—which would be completely renovated, rebuilt, and enlarged by Andover—at the front of the church surrounding the rose window. This proposal was approved by the church’s vestry, and in April 2005 a contract was signed. 

The rebuilding work started in 2007, with Ben Mague as project team leader. The Hook pipes were restored and the windchests rebuilt and enlarged to accommodate additional stops. New and vintage ranks, scaled and voiced to be compatible with the original Hook stops, were added to augment the organ’s tonal palette. Ben Mague and Michael Eaton engineered a new console, structure, action, and wind system to fit the renovated chancel area. The new casework was designed by Donald Olson. Noted church architect Terry Eason prepared the plans for the sanctuary renovation.

The organ is laid out with the Swell on the left, the unenclosed Choir in the center, and the Great on the right. The Pedal stops are divided among these three locations. The bass of the Pedal reed is behind the Swell, its treble and all of the 16′ Subbass are behind the Choir, and the Double Open Diapasons are behind the Great. 

The organ’s white oak casework was built in our shop. We take great care to design the exterior of each instrument to complement the architecture of its surroundings. Thus, the blind Byzantine arches of the lower casework were patterned after the existing chancel side wall woodwork. The polished tin façade pipes comprise the lowest notes of the Great 8′ Open Diapason and the Pedal 8′ Violoncello. The detached oak console has walnut interior woodwork and a walnut swirl veneered music rack. The pau ferro drawknobs, with 19th-century-style oblique heads with inset engraved labels, are arranged in stepped terraces. The center-pivoted manual keys have bone-plated naturals and ebony sharps.

The manual key action is mechnical, as are all the couplers. To facilitate the positioning of the Pedal pipes in the most advantageous spaces, all of the Pedal stops are on electro-pneumatic unit chests that we designed and built. The stop action is electric. The Solid State Organ Systems combination action, with 100 memory levels and a piston sequencer, affords the player seamless control of the organ’s resources. 

While the rebuilding was underway, Christ Church’s rector departed for another parish. The church postponed the fund-raising for the sanctuary renovations and turned its attention to finding a new rector. Thankfully, during this period a parish donor continued to fund the organ’s rebuilding so the project would not lose momentum. 

The completed instrument was unveiled at an open house at our shop on November 6, 2010. Although the organ was ready, the church was not. Bids had not yet been received for the chancel renovations. It was discovered that part of a rock ledge beneath the chancel would have to be removed to permit excavation for a basement to house HVAC equipment and the organ blower. This increased the scope of the project.

The organ sat, playable, in our shop until May 2011 when, needing that space for other projects, we shipped it to Charlottesville and stored it in the church parish hall. The chancel renovations were finally begun in the fall of that year and nearly finished when we started the organ’s installation in January 2012. Parts of the organ were playable by Easter, when it was first used. The remaining flues and all the reeds were installed and regulated during the following months. On Friday evening, October 5, 2012, noted organ recitalist and recording artist Bruce Stevens played the dedicatory program to a large and excited congregation. It was a milestone event, the happy ending to a long road!

Just as a great organ is the sum of its parts, a great organ company is the sum of its people. We are blessed to have a team of seventeen dedicated craftspeople who, collectively, have over 400 years of organbuilding experience. Those who worked on Opus R-345 were Ryan Bartosiewicz, Matthew Bellocchio, Anne Doré, Michael Eaton, Don Glover, Al Hosman, Lisa Lucius, Benjamin Mague, David Michaud, Tony Miscio, Fay Morlock, John Morlock, Robert Newton, Donald Olson, Casey Robertson, Jonathan Ross, Craig Seaman, and David Zarges.

—Matthew M. Bellocchio

Andover Organ Company

Photos © William T. Van Pelt

Testimonials

It really is a wonderful organ! I’m playing everything from Franck to Rheinberger to Bach . . . and all of these different-style pieces sound really very fine. I find the key action quite graceful to play. Because so many of the sounds are the golden-period Hook sounds we love, we’re thrilled to have such an organ in Virginia—at long last. Thanks for all that you have done to provide this special, magnificent instrument to a location in our state. The only big disappointment is that it’s not here in Richmond!

—Bruce Stevens

University of Richmond

Thanks for the good work . . . and for giving Virginia an E. & G. G. Hook organ. I believe it is the only organ in the state to have most of its tonal components arising from the brothers Hook during their control of the company.

—William T. Van Pelt

Retired Executive Director 

Organ Historical Society