Schoenstein & Co. video

Part two of two

II.

The balance of this article will explore some of the methods used by Schoenstein in designing symphonic organs.

Tonal Variety

In planning a symphonic organ, no tone color that might be useful is excluded from consideration, and if something new seems appropriate we will develop it. We see no problem in combining individual sounds from French, German, English and American traditions of different periods in one instrument. This may seem like a dangerous approach, and it is . . . for those who must follow only established rules. If, on the other hand, a designer has in mind a well-formed image of the tonal architecture and its end result, the freedom to include elements of rare beauty handed down to us by the great builders of the past can open new avenues of creativity. This approach is only successful when applied with the strictest of discipline. Anything that does not blend and pull its weight in the ensemble or serve in a variety of solo or accompaniment roles should not be included. Collecting multiple elements of different traditions in an attempt to combine two or more repertoire-specific instruments into one is usually disastrous. The once-popular procedure of building an organ with a German Great and Positiv and French Swell or adding a romantic Solo to a neo-classic design are ideas that have, fortunately, lost their appeal. The goal should be to create an ensemble that has integrity in its own right and is able to acquit itself musically in a number of different styles with such conviction that there is no need to claim “authenticity.”

An equally important rule of design is to avoid making an instrument any larger than necessary or practical. No organ should have more stops than it needs to get its musical job done. No organ should be so large that it becomes unseviceable or acoustically chokes on its own bulk. When too much organ is squeezed into too little space and/or spread hither and yon, maintenance and tuning problems are sure to result. An organ should be of adequate size to be considered symphonic, but that size is much smaller than one might think. The smallest organ we have made that can qualify is the 15-voice, 17-rank instrument in the chapel of the University of St. Thomas, Houston, Texas (see stoplist). Certainly 40 to 50 voices provide ample opportunity for design freedom and 60 to 70 voices are all that should be required even for very big buildings. An example of our approach in a large symphonic plan is at First Plymouth Congregational Church in Lincoln, Nebraska (see stoplist). Note that this instrument has 73 voices if the separate gallery organ is not included.

Our stoplists show how we combine various tone colors, but a few explanatory notes may be in order. When combining individual stops into groups, we think of them in these categories: first, traditional choruses of diapasons and reeds; second, stops of moderate power from all tonal families serving in both accompanimental (manual and pedal) and in solo roles; third, ethereal stops--the extremely soft and delicate tones of the flute, string or hybrid type; fourth, bass stops of exceptional depth and power; and fifth, heroic solo stops. Some stops, of course, can fit into more than one of these categories but the classification is useful in reviewing whether or not the organ has all of the tonal characteristics common to a good symphonic ensemble.

Since the diapason is unique to the organ and the tone most often used, we seek to provide several (with appropriate chorus development), each of distinct character, on organs of even modest size. They vary not only in scale, but in mouth width, slotting, etc. We like to include stops of the echo diapason class (dulcianas, salicionals, etc.) as well. During the organ reform movement, open flutes, particularly at 8’ pitch, were not in vogue. We tend to include more open than stopped flutes. Stops of genuine string tone have not been popular either. This is a sad omission and certainly an organ without them cannot be considered symphonic. We like to include a family of strings and celestes from very narrow to very broad scale, all with true string quality rather than the geigen principal type that served as string tone in neo-classic organs. We try to include at least one of each of the color reeds (Clarinet, Oboe, Vox Humana and, where possible, horns, and specialty stops such as the Orchestral Oboe) as well as a complete chorus of trumpet tone (in large schemes, those of both closed and open shallot type). To broaden both dynamic and color ranges, very soft flue stops (often of the hybrid, tapered types) and bold solo stops (usually of the trumpet or tromba class) are important. In small schemes these effects can be had with stops doing double duty through effective expression.

We have developed several new voices. Some of these are variations on long established styles such as our Celestiana, which is a very narrow scale, quarter-tapered hybrid of clear but very soft flute tone; the Cor Seraphique with its Vox Angelique celeste is a larger scale version. Our Corno Dolce and Flute Celeste are brighter renditions of the E. M. Skinner Flauto Dolce and Flute Celeste. We find this bright character more generally useful in smaller instruments. The Voix Sérénissime is a small scale string of extremely keen intonation but of soft volume. The Silver Flute is a narrow-mouth, non-harmonic version of our large Harmonic Flute. It may be thought of as a metal Claribel Flute. 

The Symphonic Flute is a new development, also called Bœhm Flute, incorporating many different pipe constructions throughout its compass to achieve an interesting effect found in the orchestra’s family of transverse flutes. The flute of the symphony orchestra is bright and reed-like in its lower register with a full, increasingly powerful and pure, bell-like treble. These tone qualities are carried downward to the alto, bass and contra-bass flutes and upward to the piccolo. The Symphonic Flute was realized after extensive studies with flute players and manufacturers, as well as a careful review of Bœhm’s treatise. The tonal character is achieved, as in real flutes, by maintaining nearly the same diameter from bass to treble. The diameter progresses unevenly to achieve particular effects, but it does not reach the half-way point until the 48th pipe. The pipes in the bass therefore are of string scale progressing through principal, moderate flute, a wide flute, to very wide flute at the top. Pipe construction is of five varieties: slotted; non-slotted; harmonic; double mouth harmonic; and double mouth, double harmonic. This new solo color for the organ is both powerful and beautiful.

We employ high wind pressure for beauty, precision, or smoothness of tone where it is required. Solo flutes and strings and all closed shallot chorus reeds certainly have benefited from this treatment. Loudness can be achieved by other means, but carrying power without harshness is most perfectly achieved through heavy pressure.

A final note on tone is perhaps the most important point in this essay: Beauty of tone trumps all else in organ design. Beauty is perhaps too simple a term. Organ stops of great character can be quite bold and assertive, colorful and mysterious, languid and wistful. They are all forms of beauty to my ear. The secret is committed voicing. By that I mean making tone that has something to say, not simply playing it safe with blandness. Anyone who studies organ tone knows what I mean. Great voicing imparts something extra to energize a tone and make it appealing. A single diapason of beautiful quality will outplay a 100-rank organ that is all bluster and blandness. An organ may look symphonic on paper, but if the character of tone is not beautiful, it cannot qualify. An organ of any type with beautiful tone will surpass a poor symphonic one. However, if beauty of tone can be combined with all of the flexibility promised in the symphonic ideal, the result can be sublime.

Balance

To achieve balance there must be a center of gravity and in the symphonic organ it is at 8’ in the manuals. Each division should lay its foundation at the 8’ level. This, after all, is where the music is written. In our symphonic concept, upperwork is considered a coloring agent, a way of adding a distinctive character to the 8’ line. Therefore, in chorus design, as a general rule, scales decrease as pitch levels increase. Where we have the luxury of two mixture stops in a division, we vary them in color and dynamic rather than pitch: for example, one at mf and another at ff or one with a tierce and one without. Sometimes the mixture is enclosed separately. We avoid flutiness and overemphasis of off-unison pitches in upperwork; pure, clear diapason tone is the goal. Most 8’ stops, particularly those that must blend with related upperwork, have high harmonic content, a satisfying brilliance in their own right. Eight-foot stops are also regulated in a treble-ascendant fashion to emphasize the melody line; pipes become progressively slightly louder as they ascend the compass from the middle of the keyboard.

Horizontal balance is equally important and we believe that all of the manual divisions should be of adequate power to balance one another; the Swell and Great approximately equal and the Choir only slightly below. Reeds and flues should be equally balanced, but in certain acoustical situations the reeds should dominate. In dealing with chambers or in rooms of dry acoustic, open flute, string, and chorus reed tone are far more effective in producing tone of noble and powerful character than is diapason upperwork.

Clarity

One only has to see the density of a Reger, Widor, or Elgar score to realize that clarity is vitally important in romantic and modern music--as much as in early music. Many organs just present great blocks of sound. This may be titillating, but it is not music making. The notes must be heard if the intent is to be expressed. Most of the burden for clarity rests on the organist, who must judge his instrument and his acoustic; but the organ must not stand in his way. Clarity is achieved in an organ by many means including steady wind, precise action, voicing for prompt, clean attack and clear tone that is steady and free of irritating chiff, wild harmonics, and white noise.

Enclosure

There are vital qualities of freshness and presence associated with unenclosed pipework, but we believe that having pipes unenclosed is a luxury that can only be afforded in a scheme that also has a full range of resources, including Pedal stops, enclosed in at least two boxes. In smaller jobs the entire organ should be under expression, although sometimes circumstances dictate otherwise, for example where the Great must be placed forward of the Swell. In very large jobs it is good to have tones of similar character enclosed and unenclosed so that each class of tone can be used in its full range of expressive beauty. The best enclosure is masonry. Hollow brick faced with cement is the preferred construction and this points out the advantage of organ chambers in some situations. If an organ is primarily used for accompaniment where dynamic control and atmospheric, ethereal effects are of utmost importance, a properly designed and located chamber is ideal. An enchambered organ is as different from an encased free-standing one as a piano is from a harpsichord. Each has its advantages and each must be designed differently. The enchambered organ requires a stoplist emphasizing stops scaled and voiced for exceptional projection and carrying power, higher wind pressure, and a layout taking maximum advantage of the opening and preventing echoes within the chamber. In recent years chambers have been thoughtlessly despised. It is time to recognize their value as a means of increasing the range of musical options offered by the organ.

Dynamic Control

The symphonic organ must provide the organist with three distinct types of dynamic control: continuous, discrete-terraced, and sudden. These are all qualities common to the symphony orchestra, but often illusive on the organ. The continuous dynamic is achieved on the organ only through the use of the expression box and shades. A good expression box when fully open should not rob the pipes of clear projection and presence to any great degree, but when closed should reduce loudness from at least ff to p. To achieve this, a box must be reasonably sound proof with adequate density to control leakage of bass and must be well sealed when closed: Gaps are anathema to good expression box control. The shades cannot be too thick because their bulk will not permit a full use of the opening. Shades should be able to open 90 degrees. They must be fast acting and silent. Achieving smooth, continuous expression control is one of the greatest challenges in organ building.

To achieve a continuous dynamic range from fff to ppp we have developed a system of double expression, placing a box within a box. (See drawing.) The inner box is placed at the rear of the outer (main) box so that there is a large air space between the two sets of shades. When both sets of shades are closed, the space contained between them provides a very effective sound trap. We place the softest and most powerful sounds inside the inner box of the division. For example, a pair of ethereal strings and the Vox Humana; the high pressure chorus reeds and a mixture. A balanced expression pedal is provided at the console for each box. On large instruments a switching system allows the organist to select conveniently which shades are to be assigned to each balanced pedal. With the shades not quite fully open, the stops within the inner box are at a normal volume level to balance the rest of the division. With both sets of shades fully closed the soft stops in the inner box are reduced to near inaudibility and the chorus reeds are reduced to the level of color reeds. With all shades fully open, the chorus reeds and mixture are slightly louder than those of the Great. The Vox Humana usually has its own shades with a console switch to shift from pp to mf. There are many expressive possibilities with this system. For example, a crescendo may be started using the ethereal strings with both boxes closed, opening the inner box until the level is equal to the soft stops in the outer box, which are then added. The outer box is opened, adding stops in the normal manner while closing the inner box. The chorus reeds and mixture are drawn and the inner box reopened to complete the crescendo. This is done with ease after a bit of practice. During the installation of our organ in Washington, D.C. at St. Paul’s Church, music director Jeffrey Smith accompanied the Anglican choral service with nothing more than the Swell organ for over a month. It was the double box arrangement that made this possible.

The discrete-terraced dynamic requires having an adequate number of stops of similar or related tonal quality at different dynamic levels so that increased power is achieved in increments by adding stops. This effect is realized by hand registration, pistons, or a well-arranged crescendo pedal.

The third character of dynamic--sudden change--is usually done with manual shifts, second touch, very fast-acting expression shades, or a silent, fast and uniform stop action controlled by either the combination action or the Crescendo pedal and backed up by a steady, responsive wind system. Without this, a symphonic approach to organ playing is impossible. Clattery mechanism is annoying under any circumstances but especially so when sudden changes are required in the midst of a phrase, for example, to underscore an anthem or hymn text. We have introduced a device that adds another means of accent: the Sforzando coupler. It is a simple device wherein a coupler, for example Solo to Great, is made available through a momentary-touch toe lever. A fff combination can be set on the Solo and added to a ff combination on the Great at a climactic point with a brief touch of the toe to create a sforzando effect.

Wind System

There has been much discussion in recent decades about the virtue of flexible or “living” wind. If the wind supply were under the direct control of the player to be manipulated at will, there might be some point to argue. Since it is not, unsteady wind has no place in the symphonic organ. The whole point of the symphonic approach is to seek absolute control by the organist of all resources. So-called flexible wind is set in motion according to the design of the system and the demands being placed upon it. The organist can strive to achieve a reasonably pleasant effect, but he cannot have full control over the result. We believe in providing absolutely steady wind using a multiplicity of regulators, not only to make available different wind pressures, but to assure consistent response from all pipes under all playing conditions. Most chests are fed by at least two steps of regulation, each with spring control, so that the final regulator in the system does not have too much differential for which to compensate. A moving bass line should not upset the treble; intervals and chords should not de-tune when wind demand is high. It’s also important for the wind system to have more than adequate capacity to handle any demand and to have quick refill response so that staccato tutti chords will sound firm and full as they do in the orchestra. All too often, organs with great nobility of sustained tone turn into gasping caricatures when the forward motion of the music goes beyond their limits.

Another important wind system effect is a beautiful vibrato. We have developed a Variable Tremulant device, which allows the organist to control the speed of the beat from a balanced pedal at the console. We employ this normally on solo stops such as our Symphonic Flute. The normal, completely metronomic tremulant of the organ seems a bit unnatural when applied to lyrical passages. The Variable Tremulant allows the organist to simulate the more subtle vibrato used by first class instrumentalists and singers. The Vox Humana is also provided with a slow/fast tremulant switch, to fit both general and French Romantic repertoire.

Action

Speed and precision of both key and stop action are critical to the success of a symphonic organ. Key action must be lightning fast on both attack and release and respond uniformly from all keys regardless of the number of stops or couplers employed. Stop action must be fast and clean, i.e., without any hesitation or gulping on draw or release. Again, the entire action system must be silent. To meet these requirements we use electric-pneumatic action with an individual-valve windchest. (See illustration.) The expansion cell provides a cushioning effect similar to that of a note channel in a slider chest. It also allows placement of all action components near one another on the bottom board to reduce action channeling and increase speed.

The most important musical advantage of individual valves is to eliminate interdependence of pipes. With the exception of mixtures, where all pipes of a given note always speak together, we consider it a serious musical defect to place pipes on a common channel where the wind characteristics are different depending on the number of stops drawn and where there is a possibility of negative interaction within the channel. This is especially true, of course, with combinations of reeds and flues on the same channel and/or several large stops using copious wind. Each pipe should produce the same sound each time it is played no matter how many others are combined with it. As with flexible wind, the organist loses a degree of control over his instrument if random changes in pipe response can occur.

The most important reason for absolute uniformity of chest response under all conditions is the fact that pipes do not have the flexibility to adjust for variations in attack, wind supply, and release as do other wind instruments. A trumpet player, for example, can adjust attack, tone color, and release to an amazing degree of subtlety through precisely coordinated changes in breath, diaphragm, throat and mouth shape, tongue motion and position, embouchure, mouthpiece pressure, etc. In an organ, all of the analogous elements of control are set in place permanently by the voicer with the sole exceptions of wind regulator (diaphragm) and pipe valve (tongue motion). The pipe cannot change to accommodate variations in valve action and wind supply. As described before, wind supply cannot be controlled by the organist. This leaves the valve as the only means of control—and that control is limited even on the best mechanical actions. I submit that this element of control is actually a negative because variations in valve action, being different from the one experienced by the voicer, will be more likely to degrade pipe speech than to enhance it. If the key touch can affect attack and release but not all the other elements of tone production, then it follows that the organist is placed in the position of devoting his thought and energy toward avoiding ugly effects instead of concentrating on elements of performance that can be under precise and complete control. By maintaining absolute uniformity the performer knows what will happen every time a pipe is played.

Rather than searching for the elusive quality of touch control on the organ, we believe it is best to enhance speed of response and accuracy. The best way for an artist to achieve lyrical phrasing, clear articulation, and accent is through absolute control of timing. This is facilitated by keyboards with an articulated touch, providing a definite feel of the electric contact point, and an action that is immediately responsive both on attack and release. A sensitive player can then realize the most intricate and subtle musical ideas on what is essentially a large machine. The more the mechanism gets in the way of performance, forcing certain techniques, the less artistic freedom one has and the further the organ strays from the mainstream of instrumental and vocal music.

Flexible Control

We seldom acknowledge that the organist assumes the roles of orchestrator, conductor and instrumentalist—a daunting task to say the least. In effect, he is given nothing more than the kind of three-stave sketch that a composer might give to an orchestrator. The decisions an organist must make about registration are directly analogous to the orchestrator deciding on instrumentation, doubling, voice leading, chordal balance, etc. Since the organ is really a collection of instruments, the organist also has the conductor’s job of balancing the dynamic levels of individual sounds, accompaniments, inner voices of ensembles, counter melodies, and so on. As an instrumentalist he must have virtuoso keyboard technique. To achieve all of this requires great flexibility of control. The temptation is to load the console with a bristling array of playing aids. However, it is easy to pass the point where complexity becomes self-defeating. Here are some of the guidelines we use in designing consoles. First, the console must be comfortable. Dimensions should be standard and then, as far as possible, adjustable to conform to different organists. In addition to the adjustable bench, we have on several occasions provided adjustable-height pedalboards. We use a radiating and concave pedalboard and also non-inclined manual keys on the theory that when changing from one keyboard to another it is important that they be uniform. Controls must be placed in positions that are easy to see, memorize and reach. The combination action should be as flexible as possible providing the organist the opportunity to assign groups of stops to a piston at will. For example, on our combination action with the Range feature the organist can, while seated at the console, change divisional pistons into generals and vice-versa, assign pedal stops to a manual division, rearrange reversibles, etc. Multiple memories, of course, are now standard and of great value.

In addition to the multiple, assignable expression boxes, Variable Tremulant, and Sforzando coupler mentioned elsewhere, we like to include three special Pedal accessories on larger instruments. The first is a coupler bringing the Pedal to the Choir to facilitate fast pedal passages in transcriptions of orchestral accompaniments. The second is a Pedal Divide which silences the Pedal couplers in the low notes and silences the pedal stops in the upper notes. This allows the simultaneous playing of bass and solo lines on the pedalboard. The third is Pizzicato Bass, with a momentary-touch relay activating pipes of the Pedal Double Open Wood at 8¢ pitch. This provides a clear, pointed attack to the bass line reminiscent of divisi arco/pizzicato double bass writing for orchestra. This effect has been very useful in articulating bass lines, which on the organ are otherwise clouded rhythmically. The octave note is hardly noticeable, but the increase in buoyancy of the pedal line is quite amazing.

The most valuable and perhaps most controversial flexibility device is unification (extension). Certainly nothing other than tracker action has caused more argument over the last 50 years. The individual valve system obviously makes unification both simple and economical. Unification offers several musical advantages as we will see, but there are great dangers as well and it is most unfortunate that it has been so misused that some cannot see any of its advantages. We employ unification in symphonic organs, large and small, wherever a positive musical advantage can be achieved. Unification is, after all, merely coupling of individual stops rather than entire divisions. Whereas coupling is generally accepted, unification is not despite the fact that coupling of individual stops can offer a far more artistic result.

Perhaps the most interesting use of the unification is in creating new sounds. For example, to produce the stunning orchestral effect of trombones, tenor tubas, or horns playing in unison, we developed the Tuben (III) stop. This converts a chorus of 16’, 8’, 4’ tubas or trumpets into a unison ensemble by bringing the 4’ stop down an octave, the 16’ stop up an octave, and combining these with the 8’ stop. The three tones of slightly different scale but similar character create a most appealing unison effect and can be further combined with other stops of similar color at 8’ pitch. We have done the same with 16’, 8’ and 4’ Clarinet stops creating unison ensemble Clarinet tone, a common orchestrator’s device and most valuable to the organist for accompaniment and improvisation.

A traditional use of unification is in pedal borrowing from the manuals. We use this device extensively based on observation that one of the most difficult tasks facing an organist is finding a bass of suitable volume and color. We sometimes also borrow stops from one manual to another so that a stop may be used without tying up another manual with a coupler. A common application is transferring the Choir Clarinet to the Great so that it may be played against the Choir mutations. In some cases we derive an entire third manual on a moderate size organ from stops of the Great and Swell. This manual may either contain solo stops selected from both of the other manuals or a combination of solo stops from one manual and a secondary chorus from the other. A recent example is at Spring Valley United Methodist Church, Dallas, Texas. We occasionally extend stops—commonly downward to 16’ in the manuals and occasionally upward. Stops so treated must not be considered substitutes for primary chorus material. In other words, the organ must stand on its own as a completely straight design before any unification is employed. Stops extended upward must have a character of tone such that if a straight stop were to be employed, the scale would be the same or nearly so. Thus, extensions of string stops are much more likely to be successful than extensions of diapason stops.

Unification should not replace the ensemble of straight voices; it should simply make them available in different ways. If a stop can be useful also in another place or at another pitch and if this does not compromise the integrity of the organ’s design then we believe it is wrong not to include the unification. Failure to do so limits the organist’s musical options. The real point of the straight organ design concept is having all of the necessary independent voices even if one must give up some attractive ones to assure good ensemble. Once this is achieved, there is nothing wrong with making the voices you have do double or triple duty. It is interesting to note that in organs of a century ago a solo stop might be contrived through the use of couplers. A stop name would appear on a combination piston, the function of which was to draw a stop, a unison-off coupler, and an octave coupler thus making a 16’ reed, for example, available at 8’ as a solo stop. One can conclude that the earlier builders were not against unification, they simply did not have the practical means to do it. Unification and other devices to enhance flexibility need not be used by organists who do not like them, but to leave them out of the specification is to deprive others the full use of the costly resources the organ offers. Players of other instruments are always searching for ease of control so that their energy can be concentrated on musicianship. Organists might be a happier lot by doing the same instead of idolizing the organ’s ancient limitations.

Conclusion

We may be entering the greatest era in the fascinating life of the organ. The improvement in substitute electronic instruments has released the organ industry from the burden of making cheap pipe organs for customers with low expectations. Builders are working more and more for those with cultivated taste who appreciate an artistic approach to the craft. Organs are seldom purchased as a piece of church equipment as they were in days past. Now there is a place for all types of high quality pipe organs from antique reproductions to historically informed eclectic schemes to modern symphonic instruments. If the organ is to progress musically, it will be through the further development of its expressive—symphonic—qualities and the realization that the organ is a wind instrument ensemble with great potential, not merely a sometimes-awkward member of the early keyboard family.

Reprinted with permission from the Journal of The British Institute of Organ Studies, Vol. 26, 2002. Peter Williams, chairman; Nigel Browne and Alastair Johnston, editors. Positif Press, Oxford.

Organ Conference 2000

For twenty-two years George Ritchie and Quentin Faulkner have developed and presented a wonderful series of organ conferences at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Musicians throughout the United States and abroad have come to expect a superb conference with clinicians, artists and teachers who are among the most respected people in their fields. (See sidebar for a brief retrospective history of the Nebraska Organ Conference.)

The twenty-second conference was no exception to the rich history of this event. Sixty-two organists from 16 states and Canada converged on Lincoln September 14-16, 2000, to experience a very different type of symposium entitled "The American Symphonic Organ." Because Lincoln possesses one of the most unusual new organs built at the end of the last century--the Schoenstein symphonic organ in First-Plymouth Congregational Church--the event was held entirely off-campus. All sessions were held at First-Plymouth Church and were led by four people prominent in their repsective fields of endeavor. David Briggs, director of music and organist at Gloucester Cathedral; Frederick Swann, organist in residence at First Congregational Church in Los Angeles; Jack Bethards, president and tonal director of Schoenstein & Co.; and John Levick, director of music and fine arts at First-Plymouth Church.

The conference opened on Thursday afternoon with an introduction to the First-Plymouth symphonic organ, which comprises the Lied chancel organ and the Ruth Marie Amen gallery organ. Jack Levick began this session by playing a transcription of "Nimrod" from Elgar's Enigma Variations (arr. William Harris). This piece very ably demonstrated two unusual features of this organ: the double enclosed divisions of  the Solo-Celestial and the Gallery-Ethereal, and the variable tremulant control that can be assigned to the crescendo pedal.

Jack Bethards, with the able assistance of Thomas Murray (who dedicated the chancel organ in October of 1998), then introduced the organ with an in-depth discussion and demonstration of the many unique features that Schoenstein has been developing in its series of "American Romantic" instruments. While acknowledging that one can cite many an example of poor Romantic organs from the early 20th century--with their wooly diapasons, imitative voices, and heavy concentration on celestes--the "Neo-Baroque" emphasis in organ building that began in the middle of the last century, while producing many splendid examples of the best in American organ building, caused the wanton destruction of some very great examples of the Romantic organ. It has been only within the last few years that the E.M. Skinners, Kimballs, and even an Aeolian or two have once again been recognized for the magnificent instruments that they are.

To begin with, Jack Bethards expanded on what makes the symphonic ideal. First, the true symphonic organ must possess a wide variety of tonal colors to enable the organist to have the same registrational capabilities as the symphonic orchestrator. Second, the ideal organ must have clarity, which is critical to playing the romantic repertoire. Next, the symphonic instrument must possess maximum dynamic range to enable precise control, either by building on a "terraced" basis without the use of the swell box, or by using normal and double-enclosed swell boxes and by providing for suddenly accented changes. This last requirement has resulted in the development of one of the more interesting features on this organ. By devising a Sforzando coupler that routes a Swell-to-Great or Solo-to-Great coupler through a momentary touch-toe lever, Schoenstein provided a simple way to give an accent to the first beat of a measure played on the Great manual. The fourth requirement is to have a wind system that is absolutely steady and of adequate capacity. Finally, the organ must have an action that is lightning fast in both attack and release, to provide for proper articulation, accenting, and fluid response.

All of these requirements add up to an instrument that is extremely flexible--as flexible as a symphony orchestra. Bethards feels that the symphonic organ can be even more expressive than a symphony orchestra because it is under the complete control of just one artist. He also feels that the symphonic organ concept has nothing to do with slavishly imitating orchestral voices. Rather, it provides a symphonic range of musical tools to the performer.

The First-Plymouth organ possesses an astonishing spectrum of tonal colors, ranging from a wealth of diapason choruses (for Bethards, the diapason chorus is to the symphonic organ what the string section is to the orchestra), to the four tubas on 15≤ wind, to an ensemble of four unison clarinets, to two oboes on the Swell (a capped English Oboe and a piquant French Oboe). One final note about the organ: the gallery organ is really an independent instrument with its own two-manual console, and served as the principal organ at First-Plymouth during the installation of the chancel organ. Though only of twelve stops, the gallery organ is robust and, with its double expression system, is an instrument of wonderful dynamic range that can hold its own against the chancel organ, as was demonstrated later in the evening in the "Kyrie Eleison" from Vierne's Messe Solennelle.

The question inevitably arises: why resurrect a concept that for years was considered woefully out of date and out of step with current trends in organ building? The heyday of the symphonic or romantic organ was in the 1920s when it was difficult, if not impossible, for most people to hear live orchestral performances. The symphonic organ installed in numerous civic auditoriums across the country as well as in the homes of some very wealthy individuals presented the opportunity to experience live performances of the great orchestral repertoire via transcriptions. And experience and enjoy they did! It was not unusual for crowds of 5,000 or more to turn out for these concerts.

Jack Bethards stated that there are some very good reasons for the symphonic organ to co-exist today with historic organ-building practices. First, since the main role of the organ in church is to accompany both the choir and congregational singing, the symphonic organ provides the required variety of tone colors at all dynamic levels, including the important effect of full organ, under complete dynamic control. Powerful, clear bass is equally important for promoting congregational singing. And fast key-action is imperative for making the accompanist's job as stressless as possible. Second, the wide array of tone colors also can help to relieve boredom among musicians and their congregations. Third, much of the currently-used organ repertoire continues to be from the romantic period; the symphonic organ can interpret that literature, Bethards asserts, as well as interpreting earlier literature in a musically satisfying (if not "authentic") way. Finally, the symphonic organ presents, as no other form of organ building can, a venue for the resurgence of the transcription, which is once again captivating enthusiastic audiences on the concert circuit.

Following Jack Bethards's and Thomas Murray's introduction to and demonstration of the Schoenstein symphonic organ, British concert organist David Briggs concluded the Thursday afternoon session with "The Art of Symphonic Organ Registration with particular Reference to the Performance of Transcriptions." There are few concert organists as well versed in this subject as Briggs. He became a Fellow of the Royal College of Organists at age 17, and was the youngest cathedral organist in England when he was appointed master of the choristers and organist at Truro Cathedral in 1989. A brilliant improvisateur (as we were to hear for outselves in his sold-out recital Friday evening), he is just as well known today as a master of the organ transcription.

Briggs noted that the use of transcriptions in concert programming is once again in vogue, the pendulum having swung back. The movement back to transcriptions was led by Thomas Trotter, and heralded by such artists as Thomas Murray and David Briggs. The renewed interest in the use of transcriptions is an attempt to rekindle audience appreciation and interest in the organ. When registering a transcription, a goal is to use "acoustic coupling" to achieve a bigger spread of sound. By adding 8' stops in succession and by beginning to use the swell box in one division and then adding the unenclosed division while closing the swell, it is possible to achieve seamless registration, very similar to what the conductor obtains from a symphonic ensemble. Briggs concluded this session by playing the second movement from his compact disc recording of Mahler's Fifth Symphony, a transcription that took him 300 hours to produce and another 300 hours to learn.

The Thursday evening event was a concert by the Abendmusik Chorus with organist Fred Swann. The chorus performs weekly as part of the worship services at First-Plymouth Church, and has been conducted by Aaron Copland, Randall Thompson, Daniel Pinkham, John Rutter, and Sir David Willcocks. The chorus has presented both well-known choral masterpieces and            some seldom-heard choral works such as Horatio Parker's Hora novissima (now available as a CD on the Albany label). The Thursday evening concert was the first in the Abendmusik-Lincoln 2000-2001 series and was co-sponsored by Abendmusik, The University of Nebraska-Lincoln School of Music, and the Lincoln Organ Showcase. The Abendmusik-Lincoln concert series was begun by Jack Levick in 1972 and has become one of Lincoln's premier subscription concert series, having won the Governor's Arts Award.

The music ranged from Andrew Carter's "Hodie Christus natus est" to "I Was Glad when They Said unto Me" by Parry. The program included a lovely piece entitled "Alleluia" by First-Plymouth organist emeritus Myron Roberts. For this writer, the highlights of the evening were "In the Year that King Uzziah Died" by David McK. Williams and the "Kyrie Eleison" from Vierne's Messe Solennelle. The latter piece utilized the gallery and chancel organ to splendid effect. Fred Swann, whose name is synonymous with sensitive and fluid organ technique, accompanied the chorus with playing that was stunning. For the concert's organ solo work, Swann chose Introduction, Passacaglia, and Fugue by Healey Willan. The Schoenstein organ proved itself to be every bit the ideal instrument for accompanying an ensemble of the size and quality of the Abendmusik Chorus.

After experiencing Fred Swann's talents as accompanist on Thursday evening, the conference participants eagerly awaited the Friday morning session with Fred Swann on the topic "Meeting the Challenges of Accompanying at the Organ." Swann began by elaborating on a number of points that are integral to being a successful accompanist. One must be a true partner with the choir, must know when to be subservient and when to be assertive, must be sensitive not only to the particular piece of music but also to abilities and limitations, if any, of the group, must be supportive and have an intuitive sense of what a particular piece of music is calling for, must become "one" with the individual or choir, and must accompany in as colorful a manner as possible. Swann then gave a few hints for adapting piano scores to the organ:

1. Play in the center of the keyboard, avoiding extremes of range.

2. Leave out unnecessary doubling of octaves, but be alert to places where coupling will enhance the sound or is actually called for in the orchestral score.

3. For arpeggios, hold a chord with one hand and play the running figure on another manual within as small a range as possible.

4. For triplet figures, do not repeat every note unless the tempo, text, and organ action make it viable. Again, one might sustain a choir on a second manual with one hand or hold certain notes in the choir while repeating others.

5. At all times preserve the rhythm, especially important rhythmic figures. Also, observe phrasing and accents which can be achieved by touch.

6. Play all fast bass passages, except for notes on strong beats, with the left hand on the manual. Be careful to avoid a "peg-leg-Pete" effect in the pedal.

7. Play tremolos as you would on the piano, depending upon the responsiveness of the action.

8. Preserve the integrity of the bass line at all times, playing in the proper octave of the pedal.

9. Match your touch and registration to the style and period of music, just as you would in performing an organ solo.

10. When possible, consult an orchestral score for clues to registration and for lines that may have been omitted in the piano reduction but which are possible on the organ. Recordings are helpful if orchestral scores are not available.

An additional suggestion is to utilize four hands, if possible, in oratorio accompaniment. This will help in adding orchestral voices to the keyboard reduction. Swann noted that Brahms first scored the Requiem for piano four-hands, and this score could be played to advantage with organ four-hands. He also recommended turning parts of Handel's Messiah into a "trio." Above all, the accompanist must practice as assiduously as one would practice a solo piece. Fred concluded this session by demonstrating the various accompanying techniques that he recommends for successful and stressless performances. The participants were shown annotated scores and recommended registrations for Joseph Clokey's A Canticle of Peace and Randall Thompson's The Last Words of David.

After a lengthy lunch break in which the conference participants were encouraged to visit some significant organs in the area by builders such as Bedient, Casavant, Aeolian Skinner, and a recently restored 1875 Kilgen in the First Church of Christ Scientist, Fred Swann continued with the afternoon session entitled "Creative Hymn Playing."

He began by reminding everyone that hymns are truly the music of the people. As such, good hymn playing demands a strong sense of creativity and vitality. A cardinal rule is to use plenty of organ. It nearly always follows that good, solid organ playing results in optimum congregational response. To answer the question of what is the preferred phrasing to use, Swann usually follows the textural phrase. When there is no punctuation, he recommended then using the musical phrase.

The tempo will vary with different occasions. Here an intuitive sense is important. In terms of touch, legato may not always be best in successful, creative hymn playing. Clear articulation is really key to providing the most support to the congregation, as is maintainence of proper rhythm. Eighth notes should be given their due, and Swann recommends, if anything, lengthening them. When registering the hymns, he suggests using a principal chorus of one kind or another. It is often advantageous to solo out the melody with interesting, colorful stops, perhaps even using chimes on occasion. As Swann said, "More souls have been saved by chime notes than all of the mixtures in captivity."

It is important to be sensitive to the situation when determining the length of an introduction. In accompanying the congregation, it is helpful to hold the final chord of each stanza for an extra measure. Interludes should utilize the same basic rhythm as the hymn and should begin on the last sung measure of a stanza. There should be a clear indication to the congregation of the beginning and ending of an interlude. Free accompaniment of hymns can be very effective but can often be equally as annoying, particularly if used too often. The only ritard should come at the end of the last stanza of the hymn.

The conference continued Friday evening with an organ recital by David Briggs. This recital was also a part of the Abendmusik-Lincoln Concert Series. As was the case on Thursday evening, there was a sold-out crowd for this event. The first half of the program was devoted to transcriptions, beginning with three by Bach--"Sinfonia" from Cantata 29 (arr. Arthur Wills),  "Badinerie" from the Second Orchestral Suite (arr. David Briggs), and "Komm, süsser Tod" (arr. Virgil Fox). Outside of the Wanamaker organ, one can't think of a better instrument on which to hear this last piece than the First-Plymouth organ.

Briggs continued with his transcription of the "Hungarian March" from the Damnation of Faust by Berlioz, followed by pieces by Debussy and Rimsky-Korsakoff. The first half ended with another of Brigg's wonderful transcriptions, Richard Strauss' Death and Transfiguration. The first half of this recital was eclipsed by the second half, which was entirely devoted to a series of improvisations entitled Suite improvisée. There were nine movements, each in homage to a great composer and/or artist: "Blockwerk" (in homage to our Medieval predecessors); "Tierce en taille" (François Couperin); "Ricercare" (Bach); "Andante" (Mozart); "Passacaglia" (Brahms); "Elegie" (Vierne); "Danse infernale" (Stravinsky); "Scherzo symphonique" (Pierre Cochereau)  ; and "Sortie" (Phillipe Lefebvre, Notre-Dame de Paris). This was a brilliant performance and utilized all of the vast resources of the Schoenstein organ to full advantage, including the double expression system, the split pedalboard and the Sforzando couupler.

The conference concluded on Saturday morning with David Briggs' second session, entitled "Balancing a Recital Program . . . How to Educate and Excite Your Audience." The goals of an exciting concert program are "to move people" (Louis Vierne); to give the audience the same feeling that they get when attending a symphony concert; and to never, ever be boring.

In terms of program planning, Briggs feels that there are five types of concerts to consider:

1. A lunchtime recital, usually of 45 minutes duration.

2. An evening concert, which is more formal and usually with an intermission.

3. A specialty presentation; i.e., for a conference such as this.

4. A dedicatory recital intended to show off the instrument.

5. A recording session.

Whatever type of program is being considered, the most important goal is to have great variety in the program. Include one or two well-known pieces along with some which will be new to the audience. There should be a nice balance between giving the listeners a good time and giving them a certain degree of education. Of course, the specifications of the particular instrument are key to developing an appropriate program. Variety in the program is achieved by not programming two pieces back to back that are of the same mood, using a great deal of color in the registration, and varying the dynamic range and the tonalities.

In developing the program format, the opening number should be a piece that is probably familiar to the audience and is rather easygoing, a piece that lets the listener "settle back and enjoy the flight." Then it should be on to something that is much more brilliant. The program should speak to the audience and not be too long. If one addresses the audience regarding the program content, one should do so before the program begins, preferably using some humor. It is a good idea to have the second half of the recital shorter than the first. Briggs maintains that the use of transcriptions is a wonderful way to reach a wide audience, as is the use of other instruments such as the trumpet or even the flute (the Poulenc Flute Concerto, for example). The recital should obviously end by sending the audience away on a very high note. If there are to be encores, they should be short and contrast with the end of the formal program. David Briggs' encore on Friday evening was an improvisation on a Ragtime theme, which contrasted perfectly with the brilliant "Sortie" that concluded the formal part of his recital.

In developing a program for a compact disc, it is important to consider the instrument's versatility, your versatility, the commercial viability of the music performed, and a program that will hold the listener's attention.

No concert can exist in a vacuum--a thorough and wide-reaching public relations program must be developed and implemented. Paid advertising is the sure way to get the message out and  best promote a recital. But, paid advertising can be cost prohibitive; therefore, we must rely upon public service announcements and listings in both the broadcast and print media.

Briggs touched briefly on the art and use of improvisations in a recital. Cochereau called improvising "an illusionist art." Though it doesn't always happen, when the spark is ignited, a good improvisation can produce an element of excitement that no written piece can attain, according to Briggs. This final conference session ended with Briggs playing his recording of his transcription of The Sorcerer's Apprentice by Paul Dukas.

Following a panel discussion with all of the artists and clinicians, another memorable University of Nebraska-Lincoln Organ Conference came to an end. Many thanks to the clinicians and artists: Jack Bethards, Thomas Murray, Jack Levick, Fred Swann, and David Briggs. And, once again, thanks to George Ritchie and Quentin Faulkner for presenting a dynamic theme for the conference and for being gracious hosts for the event. Special thanks to Dr. Otis Young, Senior Minister at First Plymouth, the Abendmusik Chorus and the entire staff at First-Plymouth Congregational Church for their wonderful hospitality.

No report on the 2000 UN-L Organ Conference would be complete without a word or two about the venue in which it was held. First-Plymouth Congregational Church is perhaps one of the most unusual churches in the country from an architectural standpoint. It was designed by a noted New York architect, Harold Van Buren Magonigle. Dedicated in 1931, First-Plymouth was his first and only church commission in a long and distinguished career that included designs for the Main Memorial in New York's Central Park, the famous Liberty Memorial Tower in Kansas city (currently undergoing a major renovation after years of neglect) and the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo. When the congregation (a merger of First Congregational and Plymouth Congregational) began planning for a new larger church in the middle 20s, the thought was to have a building of Gothic or New England Colonial design. But, as time wore on, this thinking changed and the pastor at the time (Dr. Ben Wyland) wrote, "I wish that some master architect in classic architecture would give us a church that would fit America and be called an American type of church architecture." For this building, the architect went back to the early Basilican church and the Greek Forum for basic styles and then proceeded to design a church that is unique--not only to Lincoln but to the rest of the country as well. The dominant feature of the building's exterior is the Carillon Tower, which contains the largest and only true carillon in Nebraska. The glory of First-Plymouth is the sanctuary, a stunning space with the acoustical properties of a great concert hall. The acoustics in this space enhance not only the organ but choral and congregational singing as well. Even with a full house on both concert nights, the sanctuary provided a rich resonance and clarity of sound.

Schoenstein & Co.,
Benicia, California
Schermerhorn Symphony Center,

Nashville, Tennessee

Music City’s New Symphony Hall Organ
In its February 1982 issue, The Diapason published an article that challenged conventional wisdom. (See reprint of the article on pages 27–28 of this issue.) In it, Calvin Hampton made a convincing argument that an organ designed to be an instrument of the symphony orchestra must be radically different in many respects from a church organ or even a concert organ intended for solo use. A “normal” organ, even a fine one, could not pass his audition for symphony hall use. This really caught my attention. Since my background had included playing in and managing symphony orchestras, I was keenly aware of the uneasy relationship between orchestras and pipe organs. To managements, the organ was a headache. It used up too much space and too much money. Stagehands didn’t like the extra hassle of set-ups and working out quiet time for maintenance. Musicians didn’t like tuning to the organ or listening to its quinty mixtures and other thin, shrill sounds. Conductors never seemed satisfied with either the tone color or volume produced. Comments heard over and over again were: “I like that tone, can it be louder?” “Good balance, but I’d like a fuller, darker tone.” “Please(!)—keep with my beat!” The organist’s answers usually provoked frustrated and sometimes colorful comments about the inflexibility of the organ. The poor organist had even more problems than these: scarce rehearsal time, balance problems if the console was attached to the organ, poor sightlines if the console was on stage but too large or placed off in a corner.
The biggest problem of all was disappointment for the audience. The power of a modern symphony orchestra is so immense that most concert hall organs could not add to the drama of a fortissimo tutti. Against the gravity of the full orchestra, an ordinary organ can sound pathetically thin and upside down in balance, with trebles screaming out over the top of the ensemble. I had wondered for a long time why no one had attempted to solve all of these problems with an innovative approach. Calvin Hampton’s article gave me hope that someone would. About ten years later the tide began to turn. The musical issues were being addressed and many of them quite successfully. However, as a former instrumentalist and symphony manager, I thought that a more radical approach was needed.

Solving problems
Most of the behind-the-footlights practical problems can be solved by adopting an obvious, but, in some quarters, unpopular guideline: employ the fewest stops necessary to get the musical job done. This means an instrument that takes up less space, is less costly to purchase and more efficient to maintain. The case or chamber can be shallow for best tonal egress. Layout can be arranged for temperature—and thus tuning—stability; for example, all chorus work on one level, all reeds on one level. The console can be more compact, promoting sightlines and ease in setting and striking. The concept is easy enough to adopt, but what is that magic number of stops? What is the musical job to be done? How can we produce adequate power that will satisfy the audience?
First, it should be established that we are considering an instrument primarily for the Romantic and Modern repertoire. A properly equipped symphony hall should have one or two mechanical action stage organs to take care of the earlier repertoire. Previous experiments to include a “baroque” division with a small console as part of a large instrument have not been successful.
The primary use of the organ will be with orchestra. As a solo instrument, it might be used on occasion for choral accompaniment, silent movies as part of a pops series, and some special events. The solo organ recital has turned out to be a rarity in symphony halls. This is also true of other instrumental or vocal recitals. The reasons are simple: economics and scheduling.
If this musical job description is accurate, then an instrument in the size range proposed by Calvin Hampton (46 voices) would be ideal. Certainly any well-designed instrument of that size should also be able to render a very convincing recital program when needed. The key to a great performance is great tone, not great size.
If client and builder have the discipline to follow this Multum in Parvo plan rigorously, the question of tonal design becomes a matter of selecting stops that are absolutely essential and living without those that would be nice to have. Several classes of stops can be excluded with ease because they are duplicated in the symphony orchestra. Certainly there is no need for multiple strings and celestes or for orchestral reeds such as French Horn, English Horn, and Orchestral Oboe. The organ does not need items that would be considered necessities in a comprehensive church organ or in one specialized for some branch of the organ solo repertoire or for transcriptions.
What, then, are the elements that a symphony hall organ must have? Understanding what musical value the organ can add to the orchestra leads us to the answer. There are three characteristics of the organ that differentiate it very clearly from the orchestra. First, its frequency range is far greater. It can extend octaves below and above the orchestra. Extending the bass range has been the feature most appreciated by composers and orchestrators; however, increasing the treble range can be attractive, provided that it doesn’t get too loud! The second special characteristic of the organ is its unique tone—the diapason. This is a tone that cannot be produced by the orchestra and should, therefore, be the backbone of the organ when heard with the orchestra. The third element that should be most intriguing to composers is the organ’s ability to sustain indefinitely. This feature is most artistically displayed in connection with good expression boxes. A long, continuous diminuendo or crescendo can be most effective.

Four vital design points
Since there is a general understanding of basic organ tonal elements common to composers who write for orchestra as well as for the organ, a good symphony hall organ must include the minimum architecture of a normal three-manual traditional Romantic organ: diapason choruses and chorus reeds on each manual, representatives of stopped, open and harmonic flutes, a string with celeste, flute mutations, and the most common color reeds (Oboe, Clarinet, and Vox Humana). To make the organ capable of working in partnership with a modern symphony orchestra, the following tonal elements must be incorporated into this traditional scheme:
1. Profound Pedal. This is the most important element an organ can add to a symphony orchestra—bass one or two octaves below the double basses, bass tuba and contra bassoon. There must be at least one stop of such immense power that it will literally shake the floor. Stops of varying colors and dynamics with some under expressive control complete the Pedal.
2. Solo stops unique to the organ. These may be tones not found in the orchestra such as a diapason, stopped flute, and cornet or imitative stops that can be voiced at a power level not possible from their orchestral counterparts, such as solo harmonic flutes, strings, clarinets, and high pressure trumpets and trombas.
3. One soft stop capable of fading away to a whisper. Perhaps best in this role is a strongly tapered hybrid (or muted) stop.
4. An ensemble of exceptionally high power under expression. This cannot be raw power. It must be power with beauty, centered in the 8′ and 4′ range to give a sense of solidity and grandeur. Since symphony halls are generally drier acoustically than the typical organ and choral environment, it is even more important that this power be concentrated in the mid-frequency range and be of warm tonal character. The false sense of power created by excessive emphasis in high-pitched tones should be avoided. Orchestras don’t rely on a battery of piccolos for power, why should the organ? Piccolos can dominate an orchestra and so can mixtures, but that doesn’t make either effect beautiful. The kind of power needed comes from moderate to high wind pressures and stops voiced with rich harmonic content for good projection. Upperwork should be for tonal color rather than power. At least one diapason chorus should include a very high pitched mixture, a tone color unique to the organ, but it must not be loud. Eight-foot diapasons, chorus reeds, open flutes and strings should work together to create an ensemble capable of standing up to a full symphony orchestra. As someone who has sat in the midst of a symphonic brass section, I have a clear idea of the kind of power that is generated by trumpets, trombones and horns at fff. To compete without sounding shrill and forced requires high pressure diapasons and reeds, including a 32′ stop—all under expression to fit any situation.

Good tonal design must be supported by a mechanism that helps the organist solve all the performance problems mentioned above—an instrument that is as easy as possible to manage. The organ builder should employ every device at his command to give the organ musical flexibility so that it can take its place as an equal among the other instruments of the orchestra.

The Nashville project
We were given an opportunity to demonstrate the effectiveness of these ideas in our project for the Schermerhorn Symphony Center in Nashville. This was one of those projects that went smoothly from beginning to end, with everything falling into place and no road blocks in the way. Of the greatest importance to the success of this job was the client’s clear musical goal and realization that a really great organ can’t be all things to all people. We had a well-defined mission: to build an instrument that is a member of the orchestra. To this end we worked from the beginning with Andrew Risinger, organ curator and symphony organist and also organist/associate director of music at West End United Methodist Church in Nashville.
We were appointed, at the very beginning of the project, to the design team that included acoustician Paul Scarbrough of Akustiks in Norwalk, Connecticut and design architects David M. Schwarz, Architectural Services of Washington, D.C. I had worked with both as organ consultant for the Cleveland Orchestra in the renovation of Severance Hall and its E. M. Skinner organ. The design team, under the skillful management of Mercedes Jones, produced a hall that could not be more perfect from our point of view. Seating 1,872, it is beautiful in its traditional design, excellent proportions, and fine materials. It is of the traditional “shoebox” shape that everyone knows is perfect but that few architects are willing to employ. Since, under the direction of Paul Scarbrough, all of the traditional acoustical rules were followed, the result is, indeed, perfect.
Reverberation time is controlled by dampening material that may be added or subtracted at will. There is excellent balance, clarity, and pleasing resonance even in the lowest reverberation setting. With all dampening material lifted out of the way at the press of a button, the hall is ideal for most organ and choral repertoire. In addition, there is one very unusual and practical feature that has an added impact for the organ. The orchestra seating section can be converted to a flat open floor for pops concerts and special events. Most of the transformation is accomplished automatically through a labyrinth of gigantic machinery in the basement. The huge expanse of polished wood flooring adds significant reverberation. This feature also, interestingly enough, increases the usage of the organ. The hall is often rented for weddings. This is perhaps the only symphony hall organ in the world that has a reason to play the Mendelssohn and Wagner marches!
The organ is in an ideal position just above the choral risers at the rear of the stage. The casework was designed in close cooperation with the architectural team and Paul Fetzer whose company, Fetzer Architectural Woodwork of Salt Lake City, built the façade along with the other woodwork of the hall. It affords full tonal egress from the open front chamber behind it, which is shallow for accurate unforced projection. The organ is arrayed on three levels. Most flues are on the first level. Reeds, celestes, some flutes and offsets are on the second, and Pedal on the third, with the exception of the Trombone and Diaphone, which occupy a space extending all three levels. The bass octave of the 32′ Sub Bass is in a most unusual spot—located horizontally underneath the patron’s boxes to the left and right of the stage apron! These large scale pipes produce a soft 32′ tone that is felt as well as heard throughout the entire auditorium. The 32′ Trombone is in its own expression box, and the Swell includes our double-expression system, wherein the softest and most powerful voices are in a separate enclosure at the rear of the Swell with shades speaking into the Swell. The Vox Humana is in its own expression box inside the double expressive division of the Swell and so is, in effect, under triple expression. Accurate climate control has been provided, keeping the organ at constant humidity and temperature. The blower room in the basement has its own cooling system to neutralize the effects of blower heat build-up. Intake air is filtered.
The instrument employs our expansion cell windchests and electric-pneumatic action. This allows uniform, fast and silent action for all pipes no matter their pressure as well as easy console mobility and the borrowing of stops for maximum flexibility. Obviously borrowing is employed heavily in the Pedal, but it is also used on the Great, where the high pressure diapasons 8′ and 4′, string, stopped flute, Cornet and Solo reeds are all available independently. It also makes practical the extension of Pedal stops into the Solo and facilitates an interesting effect, the Tuben stop, which borrows the Swell reeds onto the Solo at unison pitch (Posaune up an octave at 8′ and Clarion down an octave at 8′ along with the 8′ Trumpet).
The console has the usual playing aids, but has been kept as simple and straightforward as possible to facilitate efficient rehearsals. There is a record-playback system—helpful for rehearsals and also for house tours; the playback mechanism can be remotely controlled by tour guides. With the press of a button they can start the blower and select a demonstration piece to be played for public tours, which are a popular attraction in Music City.

Tonal design
The two pillars of tone are diapasons and trumpets. The manual diapason choruses contrast in tonal color and power. The Swell chorus (Manual III) is based on a slotted 8′ Diapason of moderate power with a slightly tapered 4′ Principal and a 2′ Mixture, which is under double expression. The Great (Manual II) has a large scale 8′ Diapason with upperwork through 1⁄3′ Mixture and a slotted, smaller scale double. The Solo (Manual I) has the largest scale and most powerful chorus, all under expression and at 10″ pressure. Its mixture can be drawn with and without a tierce. The trumpets range from closed, tapered shallots on 10″ wind in the Swell to open parallel shallots on 5″ wind in the Great to open parallel shallots on 15″ wind in the Solo, where tromba-type tone is added by the Tubas and Trombone. Built around these pillars is an ensemble of stops with color, definition and sinew that project well to produce power in a manner similar to the orchestral instruments and centered at the orchestra’s pitch. Note that 64% of the stops are at 8′ and 4′ pitch. A most rewarding comment on this subject came after the opening concert in Nashville from the visiting executive director of one of the world’s leading orchestras, who remarked that he didn’t know that it was possible for an organ to be so powerful and at the same time so beautiful.
There are several special tonal features including a newly developed stop—the Diplophone. We wanted to include solo stops of heroic power from each family of tone. Our usual solo Gambas, Symphonic Flute (which employs five different types of pipe construction throughout its compass including double mouth and double harmonic pipes), Tibia Clausa, Corno di Bassetto and Tuba Magna represented the string, open flute, stopped flute, color reed, and chorus reed families, but we needed a solo diapason of equal power. We tested normal stentorphone pipes and then double-languid pipes without achieving the character of tone and power we were after. We then tried a double-mouth diapason. Mouths on either side of the pipe allow a greater mouth width than is possible with a single opening. This, combined with high pressure, produces tremendous power with smoothness and beauty. Finally, we included a powerful mounted Cornet (unusual for us) because it is a tone color completely outside the range of the orchestra and should offer interesting possibilities to contemporary composers.
For a stop that can fade away to nothing, we added our Cor Seraphique and Vox Angelique. These are very strongly tapered stops of the muted (or hybrid) variety. They are neither strings nor flutes and have a mysterious quality that is very attractive, with a harmonic structure that promotes projection when the Swell boxes are open, but is soft enough to disappear with both boxes closed. This stop is extended to 16′ to provide the same effect in the Pedal.
The Pedal includes all classes of tone at 16′ pitch: open wood, open metal, string, hybrid, stopped wood, and two different weights of chorus reed tone, both under expression. One of the most important 16′ voices is the Violone, which gives a prompt clear 16′ line to double and amplify the basses of the orchestra. The most unusual, and in some ways most important, stop of the organ is the 32′ Diaphone. Diaphones have a tone quality that ranges from a very dark, almost pure fundamental to a slightly reedy quality. Since this organ is equipped with a 32′ Trombone under expression, the Diaphone is voiced for pure fundamental tone of magnificent power. It produces more solid fundamental bass than a large open wood diapason and it speaks and releases promptly.
Our Pizzicato Bass stop, which gives a clean pointed bass line when added to other stops playing legato, is included because of its value in choral accompaniment. There is a special Sforzando coupler that is engaged only when the Sforzando lever, located above the swell shoes, is touched. It allows Solo stops to be momentarily added to the Great for accent. The Solo has a variable speed tremulant.

Installation and debut
The organ was installed in several phases, which went very smoothly due to the outstanding cooperation and support of the symphony staff, led by president and CEO Alan D. Valentine and general manager Mark F. Blakeman, as well as the excellent building contractors, American Constructors, Inc. The atmosphere was collegial and, yes, there is such a thing as southern hospitality. The casework, display pipes, blowers and large pedal pipes were installed in February–May 2006. We completed the mechanical installation of the organ during the summer of 2006. Tonal finishing was carried out during the summer of 2007. The leisurely and well-spaced schedule avoided the conflicts and last minute scrambles that usually cut tonal finishing time.
The organ was presented to the public at the opening night gala of the 2007–08 season with Leonard Slatkin, conductor, and Andrew Risinger, organist. The program included the Bach Toccata and Fugue in D minor, Duruflé Prelude and Fugue on the Name Alain, Barber Toccata Festiva, and the Saint-Saëns Symphony No. 3. It was recorded for broadcast on SymphonyCast. The exceptionally active Nashville chapter of the AGO has co-sponsored events starting with a lecture-demonstration evening and including the “International Year of the Organ Spectacular” recital featuring Vincent Dubois. The orchestra has presented several programs including a “Meet the Organ” demonstration for students, a “Day of Music” free to the community, a series of noontime recitals, and Thomas Trenney playing accompaniments to the silent films Phantom of the Opera at a Halloween program in 2007 and The Mark of Zorro in 2008. The organ has been used to accompany the symphony chorus in concert and also in several additional orchestra subscription concerts including works by Elgar and Respighi. The 2008–09 season has already presented Andrew Risinger in the Copland Symphony for Organ and Orchestra with new music director Giancarlo Guerrero conducting, the noon recital series continues, and more programs are on the way.
The instrument has been greeted with enthusiasm from the artistic staff of the orchestra and the musicians. The public has embraced it warmly and we look forward to the 2012 AGO convention, where it will be one of the featured instruments.
—Jack M. Bethards
President and Tonal Director
Schoenstein & Co.

On behalf of Louis Patterson, V.P. and Plant Superintendent; Robert Rhoads, V.P. and Technical Director (retired); Chuck Primich, Design Director; Mark Hotsenpiller, Head Voicer;
department heads Chet Spencer, Chris Hansford and Mark Harter;
and technicians David Beck, Filiberto Borbon, Peter Botto, Dan Fishbein, Oliver Jaggi, George Morten, Humberto Palma, Tom Roberts, Dan Schneringer, Patricia Schneringer, Donald Toney, William Vaughan and William Visscher.

Cover photo by Louis Patterson

Schoenstein & Co.

The Martin Foundation Organ
The Nashville Symphony Orchestra
Schermerhorn Symphony Center
Nashville, Tennessee
47 voices, 64 ranks
Electric-pneumatic action

GREAT – II (5″ wind)
16′ Double Open Diapason 61 pipes
8′ Diplophone (Solo)
8′ Grand Open Diapason (Solo)
8′ First Open Diapason 61 pipes
8′ Second Open Diapason 12 pipes
8′ Gamba (Solo)
8′ Tibia Clausa (Solo)
8′ Harmonic Flute 61 pipes
8′ Salicional (Swell)
8′ Bourdon (metal) 61 pipes
8′ Lieblich Gedeckt
(borrow with Bourdon bass)
8′ Cor Celeste II (Swell)
4′ Octave (Solo)
4′ Principal 61 pipes
4′ Lieblich Gedeckt 61 pipes
2′ Fifteenth 61 pipes
11⁄3′ Mixture IV 200 pipes
1⁄3′ Mixture III 146 pipes
8′ Trumpet 61 pipes
4′ Clarion 61 pipes
8′ Cornet V (Solo)
8′ Tuba Magna (Solo)
8′ Tuba (Solo)
8′ Corno di Bassetto (Solo)

SWELL – III (enclosed, 5″ wind)
16′ Lieblich Bourdon (wood) 12 pipes
8′ Open Diapason 61 pipes
8′ Stopped Diapason (wood) 61 pipes
8′ Echo Gamba 61 pipes
8′ Vox Celeste 61 pipes
8′ Salicional 49 pipes
(Stopped Diapason bass)
4′ Principal 61 pipes
4′ Harmonic Flute 61 pipes
22⁄3′ Nazard 61 pipes
2′ Harmonic Piccolo 61 pipes
13⁄5′ Tierce 54 pipes
8′ Oboe 61 pipes
Tremulant
Stops under Double Expression†
16′ Cor Seraphique 12 pipes
8′ Cor Seraphique 61 pipes
8′ Voix Angelique (TC) 49 pipes
2′ Mixture III–V 244 pipes
16′ Posaune 61 pipes
8′ Trumpet 61 pipes
4′ Clarion 61 pipes
8′ Vox Humana†† 61 pipes
†Flues and Vox 6″ wind; Reeds 11½″
††Separate Tremulant; separate expression box

SOLO – I (enclosed, 10″ wind)
8′ Grand Open Diapason 61 pipes
8′ Symphonic Flute† 61 pipes
8′ Gamba 61 pipes
8′ Gamba Celeste 61 pipes
4′ Octave 61 pipes
2′ Quint Mixture IV
2′ Tierce Mixture V 270 pipes
8′ Tuba† 61 pipes
8′ Harmonic Trumpet† 61 pipes
8′ Tuben III††
8′ Corno di Bassetto† 61 pipes
Tremulant
Tremulant (variable)
Unenclosed Stops
8′ Diplophone 29 pipes
(ext Pedal Open Wood)
8′ Tibia Clausa 29 pipes
(ext Pedal Sub Bass)
8′ Cornet V (TG, 5″ wind) 185 pipes
16′ Trombone 5 pipes
(ext Pedal Trombone)
8′ Tuba Magna† 61 pipes
†15″ wind
††Swell Posaune, Trumpet and Clarion at 8′ pitch

PEDAL (4½″, 5″, 7½″, 10″, 15″ wind)
32′ Diaphone 12 pipes
32′ Sub Bass 12 pipes
16′ Diaphone 32 pipes
16′ Open Wood 32 pipes
16′ Violone 32 pipes
16′ Diapason (Great)
16′ Cor Seraphique (Swell)
16′ Sub Bass 32 pipes
16′ Bourdon (Swell)
8′ Open Wood 12 pipes
8′ Open Diapason (Swell)
8′ Principal 32 pipes
8′ Violone 12 pipes
8′ Gamba (Solo)
8′ Flute (Great)
8′ Sub Bass 12 pipes
8′ Bourdon (Swell)
4′ Fifteenth 32 pipes
4′ Flute (Great)
8′ Pizzicato Bass†
32′ Trombone†† 12 pipes
16′ Trombone†† 32 pipes
16′ Posaune (Swell)
8′ Tuba Magna (Solo)
8′ Trombone†† 12 pipes
8′ Posaune (Swell)
4′ Trombone†† 12 pipes
4′ Corno di Bassetto (Solo)
†8′ Sub Bass with Pizzicato Relay
††Enclosed in its own expression box

Couplers
Intramanual
Swell 16, Unison Off, 4
Solo 16, Unison Off, 4

Intermanual
Great to Pedal 8
Swell to Pedal 8, 4
Solo to Pedal 8, 4
Swell to Great 16, 8, 4
Solo to Great 16, 8, 4
Swell to Solo 16, 8, 4
Solo to Swell 8

Special
Pedal Tutti to Solo
Solo to Great Sforzando
All Swells to Swell
Manual I/II transfer piston with indicator

Mechanicals
Peterson ICS-4000 system with:
256 memory levels
62 pistons and toe studs
programmable piston range for each memory level
Piston Sequencer
10 reversible controls including Full Organ
Four balanced pedals with selector for expression and Crescendo
Record/Playback system with remote control
Adjustable bench

Mixture Compositions
Great IV
C1 A10 D15 A#35 G#45
19 15 12
22 19 15 12
26 22 19 15 12
29 26 22 19 15

Great III
C1 A10 D15 C25 A#35 G#45 B48 F#55
33 29 26
36 33 29 26 22 19 15 12
40 36 33 29 26 22 19 15

Swell III–V
C1 C#14 B24 A#47 D#52
15 8 8
19 15 12 8
22 19 15 12 8
22 19 15 12
22 19 15

Solo V
C1 A46 C#50 F#55
12
15 12
17 15 12
19 17 15 12
22 19 17 15

Solo IV derived from Solo V, without tierce

Tonal Families
Diapason† 17 36%
Open Flutes 7 15%
Stopped Flutes 4 9%
Strings 5 11%
Hybrids 2 4%
Chorus Reeds 9 19%
Color Reeds 3 6%
47 100%

†Includes Diaphone and Salicional

Pitch Summary
Sub
32′ 3 6%
16′ 6 13% 19%

Unison
8′ 22 47%
4′ 8 17% 64%

Super
22⁄3′ 1 2%
2′ 4 9%
Above 3 6% 17%
47 100% 100%

R. E. Coleberd is a contributing editor to The Diapason.

Introduction

Pipe organ building in America today, as portrayed in the music media, is described exclusively as the crafting of new instruments, some with mechanical action and nearly all with carved or gilded cases. This is understandable given the news value of new instruments, but it is nonetheless unfortunate because it ignores a vital segment of organbuilding today: the restoration, rebuilding, refurbishing, updating, and modernizing of existing instruments as well as the building of new instruments from recycled and new material. This activity is primarily the work of individuals and small firms, unsung heroes in the spectrum of organbuilding today. Their work is especially important for two reasons: it speaks to the ongoing primacy of the King of Instruments as the time-honored musical medium in a house of worship, and the determination of congregations, recognizing this fact, to preserve and promote the pipe organ for present and future generations.
In 1966 the author published, in these pages, “The Place of the Small Builder in the American Organ Industry.” His comment that the independent builder “may well assume increasing importance in the future of the pipe organ and the organ industry”1 was perhaps prophetic of the situation today. In many ways this narrative is a continuation and update of that article. Forty years ago the pipe organ industry was dominated by the major builders, whose work accounted for 80% of the new instruments in a market where the discarding and replacement of older instruments was a major portion of the work. Today the situation is vastly different. The market is now only a shadow of its former self. Several major builders have folded, unable to continue under greatly diminished factory production; buyers have welcomed the electronic instrument amid drastically diminished mainline church membership and budgets; and the academic market, with certain notable exceptions, is gone because colleges and universities are market-driven and direct capital resources to enrollment demand.
Yet, organbuilding continues, and pipe organs will always be built in this country and the world over. An important segment of this effort, now demanding recognition, is the work of talented individuals, working alone and in collaboration with other artisans, to craft instruments of singular artistic merit in accordance with public recognition today that a pipe organ is a work of art and the work of an artist. In a statement in 1966 prophetic of the situation today, Robert J. Reich, founder and now retired president of the Andover Organ Company, an early participant in the tracker organ revival in America, stated his philosophy of organbuilding as “the craftsman’s approach to construction and the musician’s approach to tone.”2 Musical interest and skill begin early and often with other instruments, while craftsmanship is acquired through formal and informal training.
This article describes the career of D. Steuart Goodwin: the experiences and individuals who shaped his philosophy of organbuilding, details of several instruments in his opus list, and his contemporary voicing and tonal finishing assignments. Steuart has won the admiration and respect of organ committees, organists, and builders as evidenced by his assignments across the country. Jack Bethards, president of Schoenstein Organbuilders, calls Goodwin a genius:

There is no other way to explain his brilliance in so many fields. Steuart combines the well-honed skill of a master craftsman with the cultivated taste and sensitivity of a fine artist. He has a real gift for design both visual and tonal. He is a musician through and through. His touch with pipes is magical. With ease and efficiency, he can bring the best musical quality out of just about any set of pipes.3

Said Manuel Rosales of Rosales Organbuilders:

My friend and colleague Steuart Goodwin is a rare individual, whose organ building talents combine great skill, good taste, and economy of resources. He is equally at home with visual design, tonal finishing, and hands-on organbuilding. His love of the craft is exemplified by the warm and inviting sounds of his new instruments and many revoicing projects. He and his work continue to be a source of personal and professional inspiration for me, his coworkers, and his clients.4

Early life and education

Donald Steuart Goodwin, Jr. was born on April 9, 1942 in Riverside, California, the son of a building contractor who sang in college musical productions, and a sometime public school teacher and housewife who taught piano privately.5 His grandfather, Phillip Goodwin, taught violin in Redlands, California, and played in a string quartet. Steuart’s folks met at the University of Redlands, a Baptist liberal arts college long known for its fine musical program. Arthur Poister taught organ there in the 1920s when a celebrated four-manual, 54-rank Casavant organ, recently restored and updated, was installed in Memorial Chapel. The organ program at Redlands is primarily associated with Leslie Spelman (1903–2000), a nationally known teacher and pedagogue who joined the faculty in 1937.6
Steuart’s musical interests began early; his 96-year-old mother recalls that he could carry a tune at the age of two. He began cornet lessons in the fourth grade and enrolled in the band at Lincoln School in Riverside. He recalls as a youngster asking his mother about the Estey pipe organ in the family’s Methodist church, but what really turned him on was when, at the age of fourteen, he and his father saw Disney’s 20,000 Leagues under the Sea and heard Captain Nemo play Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D minor. “I went home and played my older sister Jane’s recording over and over, checked out books at the library on organbuilding, and from that time on I was permanently ‘hooked’,” he says.7
Eager to study organ, Steuart approached Roberta Bitgood, organist at Calvary Presbyterian Church in Riverside, who had studied organ with Clarence Dickinson and who was later national president of the AGO. She suggested he begin with a year of piano instruction, which he did, before studying with her for two years, in the 11th and 12th grades.8 While in high school, his future organbuilding career began when he installed a three-rank Robert Morton theatre organ in his family’s garage. His theatre organ interest continued and became part of his work.
In 1959 he matriculated in the music program at the University of Redlands, majoring in composition under Wayne Bohrnstedt, having already written two chorale preludes for organ and a sonata for woodwind quintet. He sang in the University Choir his freshman year and played in the concert band all four years. In 1961, his sophomore year, he won the $800 first prize in the Forest Lawn Foundation Writing Awards Contest with an essay entitled, “The Organ Builder Finds His Place.”9 During Goodwin’s junior year, the band director persuaded three trumpeters to switch to French horn, which was a wise move for Steuart as he went on to play horn for 13 seasons in the University-Community Symphony—until it was converted to all union professionals.10 In recent years he has played French horn in a woodwind quintet and in the Redlands Fourth of July Band.
Goodwin studied organ at Redlands with Raymond Boese (1924–1988), who came to Redlands in 1961 to join his former teacher and now colleague Leslie Spelman in the music department.11 By his junior year, Steuart had become dissatisfied with the Wicks, Harry Hall (New Haven), and Robert Morton practice organs on campus, all dated and woefully inadequate for modern pedagogy and performance. He convinced the school that they needed a tracker instrument, having been listening avidly to recordings by E. Power Biggs playing and narrating tracker organs in Europe. Scouring classified ads in The Diapason, he found an 1870s George Stevens (Cambridge) instrument for sale by Nelson Barden.12 After months of negotiating with school officials, the parties reached an agreement, whereby the school would pay for the instrument and shipping, and Goodwin would install it in Watchorn Hall. In gratitude for this effort, the school awarded him three credits toward graduation.13 Steuart’s senior recital at Redlands, featuring his own compositions, included a Trio for horn, violin and piano, a Quintet for woodwinds, a Sonata for organ, and a Suite for brass.14 He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in music in 1964.
During this period he built a small organ with paper pipes on which he could play a Haydn clock piece (see photos). Then, in a remarkable coincidence, E. Power Biggs played a recital on the Casavant in the Redlands chapel. Goodwin showed him the paper-pipes organ, and Biggs, unprompted, played that particular Haydn piece on it. Recognizing Steuart’s interest and promise, Biggs suggested that he apply for a Fulbright scholarship to study organbuilding in Europe. In his letter of recommendation to the Institute of International Education, Biggs wrote:

Steuart Goodwin has the possibly-unusual wish to study organ building in Europe, preferably in the center of fine organs, old and new, which is Holland. . . . I cannot think of anyone who would be more qualified for a Fulbright grant than Steuart Goodwin, nor anyone who could make better use of the opportunity. Already at Redlands he has proved his theoretical grasp of the subject, and his ability to transform ideas into action, and practical results.”15

The choice for the Fulbright year abroad for Goodwin, 1964–65, was between Flentrop and von Beckerath. He chose Flentrop because most Hollanders speak English, and his German was very limited. His experience was mixed, probably unlike that of most Fulbright scholars, he comments. He was assigned to the pipe shop where he acquired pipemaking skills, but he had a brief run-in with Mr. Flentrop. Inadvertently interrupting a conference while trying to introduce himself, he was subsequently ushered into the maestro’s office and severely scolded. “If we had been Germans you would have been thrown out immediately,” Flentrop said, adding, “you can stay here if you will simply work in the pipe shop and keep quiet. Try to observe the Dutch boys and behave as they do.”16 This meant never asking questions—asking questions was unheard of for an apprentice. He was never allowed to see the company woodworking shop in Koog an de Zaan. He did, however, make several sets of pipes for the Rugwerk division of the large four-manual Flentrop instrument in St. Mark’s Episcopal Cathedral in Seattle.
At the end of his Flentrop sojourn, Goodwin met with Dr. Martin Vente, internationally renowned organ historian and scholar, who provided him with a map locating important Dutch organs nearby. He spent several days traveling by train and bicycle to see many of them. The one that deeply impressed him and would greatly influence his emerging tonal philosophy and mark his work today was at the Oude Kerk in Amsterdam, ironically dismissed by Flentrop as too romantic.17 “I suffered something of a cognitive dissonance over this, since Flentrop represented the Neo-Baroque ideal espoused by Biggs,” Steuart comments. “I was supposed to like the Baroque, but found myself more deeply moved by the 19th-century voluptuousness of this instrument.”18
Returning from Holland, he opened a small shop in San Bernardino, soon welcoming an opportunity to move to a larger, well-equipped facility nearby, the former Fletcher Planing Mill, whose owner was retiring. There he built three small tracker organs and rebuilt two. Opus 1, a six-rank, two-manual tracker for the Fine Arts building at the University of Redlands, was originally purchased by the organ professor, Raymond Boese. He sold his interest to the university, which paid Steuart a nominal sum and traded him the Hall and Morton instruments. The stoplist comprised a Gemshorn 8' and Principal 2' on Manual I, a Gedeckt 8' and Rohrflute 4' on Manual II, and a 16' Bourdon and 4' Choral Bass on the Pedal, plus the usual couplers. His Opus 2, 1972, was an 11-rank, two-manual tracker for the Fourth Ward Mormon Church in Riverside. In 1973 he built Opus 3, a one-manual, four-rank rental organ. This instrument was used at the Memorial Chapel, University of Redlands, for the Feast of Lights one year, and has been rented by the Ambassador Auditorium and by the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Chamber Orchestras for use in the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion and Hollywood Bowl. It is now in a home in Altadena.19 Reflecting on Opus 1 and 2, he describes this period as his Biggs, Flentrop, Schlicker days and says:

In each of these first two small organs there was to be only one independent eight-foot rank on the Great. It needed to work as an accompanimental sound as well as the foundation for a small principal chorus. At St. Bavo in Holland, I had heard an unforgettably warm tapered hybrid stop called ‘Barpijp,’ which inspired me to use a Gemshorn instead of a less flexible Principal or Stopped Flute. I experimented with using Gemshorns in a Swell division, but soon grew out of that and came to greatly prefer real string tone.20

During this long period of apprenticeship including travel, reading, talking with organists and organbuilders, and perhaps most importantly listening—to records and instruments—his philosophy of organbuilding and tonal ideals were taking shape, and he made certain fundamental decisions about the direction of his emerging career. He determined that he wanted to work individually, expressing his own artistic concepts, free from the constraints of established large builders where opinions differ, compromises are often the rule, and mimicking some academic paradigm or current fashion is required. His primary goal became to achieve “a certain populist sensibility when it comes to providing what will please congregations and audiences.”21 “Many times I have wondered whether to stay [in Redlands], but if I were to work for a nationally known organ builder, I would lose the independence I have here,” he told the San Bernardino Sun-Telegram in 1978.22 And as he told columnist Nelda Stuck of the Redlands Daily Facts in 1987, “There is no area of music I can think of where there are so many factions and arguments about style,” referring to Baroque vs. Romantic pipe organs and tracker vs. electro-pneumatic action.23

Trinity Episcopal Church

Opus 4, an instrument in which he takes particular pride, illustrates the scope of Goodwin’s early work and evidences his talents in voicing and case designs: the 35-rank, 31 speaking stops, three-manual tracker in Trinity Episcopal Church, Redlands, California. Originally built in 1853 by the prominent New York City builder George Jardine for the First Presbyterian Church in Rome, New York, it was acquired by St. Michael’s Ukrainian Catholic Church in Rome in 1908, where it was rebuilt by C. E. Morey of Utica, New York. Meanwhile, Trinity Church in Redlands installed a three-manual Austin, Opus 111, in 1904.24
The Jardine-Morey organ was acquired through the Organ Clearing House, and over a period of 19 months was rebuilt, together with parts of the Austin, as an eclectic instrument combining 802 original and 838 new pipes for a total of 1640 (see 1975 stoplist). This project illustrates the amalgamation of older and new material into an instrument of singular artistic merit. Through a vision of what these two instruments together could and should be, Goodwin was able to “see” how the skilful blending of solo and foundation stops would produce vibrant and colorful choruses and ensembles. This organ fulfills Goodwin’s conviction that there has to be a visual-sonic relationship, i.e., a relationship between what you see and what you hear (see photos). “A pipe organ should be capable of choruses, amalgams of many tones from many pipes, producing a rich, subtly infused musical statement,” he told Dennis Tristram, a reporter for the Riverside Daily Press newspaper.25
In an arched nave opening three lancet arches were formed of oak and filled with 15 newly painted and stenciled dummy pipes retained from the Austin façade. Trinity Church has been described as an example of 19th-century Anglo-American architecture, which led to the chancel case design that Steuart based on the case at Peterborough Cathedral in England designed by Arthur George Hill (1857–1923), described as one of the great Victorian organ builders.26
During the construction of this organ Steuart joined the choir, and ultimately became confirmed as a member of the church. This has provided an unusual opportunity for the builder to repeatedly update and modify the instrument over many years, both tonally and mechanically. The large single bellows was replaced a number of years ago with individual regulators for each division, resulting in steadier wind and the possibility of divisional tremulants. More recently electric stop and combination actions were installed, several ranks were added and others moved around, giving the organ more scope and a more English flavor (see 2004 stoplist).

Tonal evolution

Goodwin’s work is especially noteworthy because it represents the crafting of instruments embracing the required resources in tonal families and pitches capable of performing the great music of antiquity as well as today’s requirements, but one that is free from the strident and narrow definitions of Baroque, Neo-Baroque, North German, South German, or American Classic stoplists, scales, wind pressures, and voicing. These eclectic instruments, beginning with the work of individual artisans and small shops, have influenced a new style of organs, free from the prejudices against stops that in the 1950s were considered “old hat” and indicative of an obsolete organ that should be replaced. Formerly verboten stops—the Melodia, Cornopean, Harmonic Flute, and Vox Humana, for example—are now recognized for their intrinsic musical content and are often embraced without hesitation by many builders who incorporate them in their instruments, confident of their ongoing musical value. This approach extends to the use of wooden flue work and open flutes, a defining characteristic of American organbuilding from the very beginning, but largely eschewed in the 1950s in favor of metal ranks and tapered, half-tapered, stopped, and chimneyed stops.
Steuart’s Opus 5 was a restoration for St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Upland, California, of E. & G. G. Hook & Hastings’ Opus 734, 1873, formerly located in the First Baptist Church in Bloomington, Illinois. Opus 6 is a four-rank, two-manual house organ, featuring an ornate case and suspended action (see photo).27 This is an early example of an elaborate 18th-century case as built by the Dutch and Germans and pioneered by John Brombaugh in America at a time when the European builders were building modern cases in this country. In 1978, in a brief detour from mechanical action, Steuart built a two-manual, six-rank unit organ with electric action for the United Methodist Church in Yucaipa, California. “I never built another unit organ for a church,” he comments. “I am enthusiastic about the unit principle for a theatre organ, but you can easily overdo it in church work if you are concerned about good tone.”28
In 1978, David Dixon, who met Manuel Rosales at Schlicker in Buffalo and who became his partner in Los Angeles (and who later returned to Schlicker before his untimely death at an early age), approached Steuart about working for them, which he elected to do. He assisted in their introduction to tracker work, in designing cases, traded organ philosophy with Manuel, and acquired some refinements in voicing technique from Dixon.
Opus 8, a 13-rank, two-manual electropneumatic action organ for the First Baptist Church in Colton, California in 1979, marked a major milestone in Goodwin’s tonal philosophy, and contains elements that characterize his later work. In earlier years he was interested in tracker action, but over time came to believe that even 11 ranks (Opus 2, Fourth Ward Chapel, L.D.S. Church, Riverside) in a tracker aren’t very flexible. He became convinced of the value of a unit Gedeckt stop, which he first used in Colton and subsequently on several 12- or 13-rank instruments (see stoplists for Colton and St. George’s Episcopal Church). He began searching for a small, flexible church organ design, and the unit Gedeckt was part of the answer. “I hit upon it almost by accident while contemplating for Colton how to best use a couple of pitman chests incorporating one unit chest,”29 he comments, adding:
“The concept begins, as usual, with a complete principal chorus, 8' through mixture, on the Great. Next, on the Swell, I use a pair of strings (real string tone, not hybrids), a medium-bright Trumpet, and (where space and finances permit) a 4' Principal or Fugara. Budgetary concerns generally limit independent pedal ranks to the ubiquitous 16' Bourdon. The Great also contains an open metal flute, which, in the Colton prototype, was originally part of an Aeolian house organ. The pipes looked ridiculous to one brought up on Neo-Baroque ideals. The heavily nicked mouths were cut-up two-thirds in a half circle, and, yet, when you blew on them they were magically beautiful. I began to realize that you couldn’t depend on what other people said was good, you had to trust your own ears.
“The 85 to 97 pipes of a Lieblich Gedeckt are located on a unit chest in the Swell box. This rank is made available at three pitches on the Great, six on the Swell, and four to six pitches on the Pedal. Importantly, the Gedeckt stop tabs on each division are grouped together to the right of the straight stops and couplers, and they are not affected by the couplers.
“This arrangement makes the structure of the tonal design quickly apparent to an organist, while simultaneously making registration practically goof-proof. For instance, it is impossible to mix the derived mutations on the Swell with the principal chorus on the Great. I settled on the Lieblich Gedeckt for the one unified rank because it blends well at all pitches and because the pitch-beats caused by an equal-tempered rank used at mutation pitches are only barely discernible.
“In an organ of only 12 or 13 ranks, one can make dozens of useful combinations and build ensembles suggesting a much larger instrument. For instance, on the Pedal the 51⁄3' through 2' pitches—when used with the Great chorus coupled—reinforce the 16' line and create the impression that there is a Pedal mixture. A solo Cornet effect can be registered as follows: couple the string and celeste to the Great and silence them on the Swell using the Unison Off. Then set a solo combination of Gedeckt pitches such as 8', 4', 22⁄3' and 13⁄5' on the Swell (tremulant optional).
“The point of all this is to provide excellent sound and unusual flexibility in a small church organ design. To keep these organs even more affordable, we incorporate many used parts and pipes. A brand new console shell is hardly a necessity when so many are available used. I like to put the money where it counts the most—in careful voicing and tonal finishing, new electronic relays, and high quality visual designs.”30
The discovery of the Aeolian open metal flute, quixotically called Flute Piano (apparently for people barely musical and certainly not organists) was to mark a milestone in Goodwin’s career. Placed in the Great of his instrument in Colton, it proved to be of such great value as both a solo and ensemble stop that it led him to incorporate 8¢ open flutes on that division routinely. Most instruments, having a Chimney Flute on the Great and Gedeckt on the Swell, don’t have the flexibility of an open 8' flute, an important color in his judgment, adding, “I voice it quietly in the bass and midrange and somewhat ascendant from middle C up so one rank can be used three ways: as an accompaniment stop in the left hand, a solo stop in the treble and a lighter foundation than a Diapason in a Principal chorus.”31
Perhaps the most impressive example is found at Holy Cross Church in Santa Cruz, California. Built in 1889 on the site of one of the famous Spanish Missions, Holy Cross is an imposing neo-Gothic brick building with splendid acoustics. Starting with a 13-rank A. B. Felgemaker tracker obtained through Alan Laufman and the Organ Clearing House, Goodwin added 10 ranks including an open metal flute, two mixtures, two chorus reeds and a string celeste (see before and after stoplists above right, and photo on page 28).
In 1995, Steuart installed his Opus 15, a remarkably cohesive two-manual and pedal organ of 12 ranks, featuring the unit Gedeckt and the 8' open flute discussed above in St. George’s Episcopal Church, Riverside (see stoplist on page 26, and photo left). The striking white oak case is accented with bronze moldings and padouk wood stripes.32

Voicing and tonal finishing

In 1980 Steuart became associated with the Schoenstein firm in San Francisco, which marked still another chapter in his career, one that would grow and distinguish his work today. He worked closely with Jack Bethards, Schoenstein president, in the major renovation of the epic Aeolian-Skinner organ in the Mormon Tabernacle in Salt Lake City, where he did most of the flue voicing. Bethards does extensive consulting coast-to-coast, and when he concludes that the major problem with an organ is inferior tonal work, he often recommends Steuart, who, working with his assistant Wendell Ballantyne, has had nationwide assignments: New York, Georgia, Texas, and North Carolina. Reworking an older instrument almost always begins with a sensitive new organist, and one job leads to another. This work typically involves removing sizzle and chiff, increasing foundation tone, repitching a mixture with new breaks, and replacing unsuitable pipes. With his fine reputation as a voicer and finisher, when prospects hear his work, they want the same thing. For example, Steuart’s current work at the Covenant Presbyterian Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, is the direct result of his work at Myers Park Baptist Church there. Goodwin’s recent theatre work includes voicing, in collaboration with Lynn Larsen, a large theatre and romantic instrument in the home of Adrian Phillips in Phoenix, Arizona, and completing a mostly seven-rank Wurlitzer organ in his own home in Highland. His much admired tonal work on the epic four-manual, 26-rank Wurlitzer in Plummer Auditorium, Fullerton, led to his election to the governing board of the Orange County Theatre Organ Society.33

Summary

In a varied career marked by many accomplishments, Steuart Goodwin represents the individual organbuilder, working alone or in collaboration with others, a vital segment in the spectrum of organbuilding in America today. Long neglected but deserving of greater recognition, the work of these persons may well assume greater significance in the future of the trade and the instrument. Beginning with a rich musical background, often both instrumental and vocal, which continues, they acquire the knowledge and skills of building the pipe organ through travel, reading, observation and apprenticeship. In their deep commitment to the King of Instruments, they gladly sacrifice more lucrative occupations. Today and tomorrow, amid the manifold and far-reaching changes in our culture, the majestic pipe organ is recognized as a work of art and the work of an artist. There can be no better example of this truth than the life and work of Steuart Goodwin.
 

Steuart Goodwin & Co. Opus List

1. 1970. Two-manual, six-rank tracker practice organ. Now in home of Dr. Harold Knight in Dallas, Texas.
2. 1972. Two-manual, 11-rank tracker, 4th Ward, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Riverside, California.
3. 1974. One-manual, four-rank portable rental organ. Now in home of Bruce and Mary Elgin, Altadena, California.
4. 1976. Three-manual, 35-rank tracker, Trinity Episcopal Church, Redlands, California. With components of an 1852 Jardine from Rome, New York, obtained through the Organ Clearing House.
5. 1977. Two-manual, 17-rank tracker, St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, Upland, California. Rebuild of E. & G. G. Hook & Hastings #734, 1873, obtained through the Organ Clearing House.
6. 1978. Two-manual, four-rank practice organ in the home of Frances Olson, Mount Baldy Village, California.
7. 1978. Two-manual, six-rank unit organ, now in St. John’s Episcopal Church, Corona, California.
8. 1979. Two-manual, 13-rank electro-pneumatic, First Baptist Church, Colton, California.
9. 1984. Two-manual, 13-rank tracker, Our Lady of the Rosary Cathedral, San Bernardino, California. Rebuild of Moller #1701, 1913, obtained through the Organ Clearing House.
10. 1988. Two-manual, 23-rank tracker, Holy Cross Church, Santa Cruz, California. Based on A. B. Felgemaker #506, 1889, enlarged and considerably modified visually and tonally.
11. 1991. Two-manual, 11-rank, electric action, Stake Center, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Simi Valley, California. Incorporates many pipes and parts of Moller #5482, 1928, obtained through the Organ Clearing House.
12. 1992. Two-manual, 13-rank electro-pneumatic, Fontana Community Church, Fontana, California. Incorporates console and many pipes from the church’s 1920s Spencer organ.
13. 1993. Three-manual, 38-rank, electric slider chests, First Christian Church, Pomona, California. Extensive tonal revisions. Based on Hook & Hastings #2240 with prior modifications and additions by Ken Simpson and Abbott & Sieker.
14. 1995. Two-manual, 19-rank, electric and electro-pneumatic, St. Timothy Lutheran Church, Lakewood, California.
15. 1995. Two-manual, 12-rank, electro-pneumatic, St. George’s Episcopal Church, Riverside, California.

Other work

The tonal finishing team of Steuart Goodwin and Wendell Ballantyne has done extensive work on organs in California, Georgia, North Carolina, New York, Texas and Utah.
Steuart has worked on many case design and voicing projects with Rosales Organbuilders and Schoenstein & Co. For photographs and details visit .
For research input and critical comments on earlier drafts of this paper, the author gratefully acknowledges: Edward Ballantyne, Jack Bethards, Ken W. List, Albert Neutel, Donald Olson, Michael Quimby, Robert Reich, Manuel Rosales, Jack Sievert, and R. E. Wagner.

Dutch composer Ad Wammes (b. 1953) achieved international notoriety in the organist community through the publication of Miroir in 1989. Miroir has been performed and recorded by many American and European concert organists, including Thomas Trotter and the late John Scott. The piece has justifiably yet erroneously been labeled minimalist: many of the techniques used in Miroir are similar to the techniques in post-minimalist music, but we cannot trace any direct influence from minimalism. Just as American composers Terry Riley, Steve Reich, and Philip Glass were attracted to the rhythmic and harmonic elements in popular music and integrated them into their style, Wammes’ primary influence was the 1970s symphonic rock group Gentle Giant. This influence can be heard by comparing a recording of Miroir to a recording of Gentle Giant’s song Proclamation.

It is entirely possible that Wammes’ more recent organ work, Ride in a High-Speed Train (2011), could be similarly mislabeled, since it too has many repetitive figures. The title suggests that it could be conceptually modeled after John Adams’ Short Ride in a Fast Machine, a post-minimalist piece for orchestra. Originally given the title TGV and composed for a mechanical dance organ in 1993, Ride in a High-Speed Train has an intriguing and multi-faceted history, but it was never intended to be a minimalist piece. 

For those who might attach the label of minimalist onto Ride in a High-Speed Train, I would emphasize that the presence of repetition alone is not sufficient. According to Keith Potter, minimalism is “a style of composition characterized by an intentionally simplified rhythmic, melodic and harmonic vocabulary.”¹ In other words, reduction is the primary characteristic, not repetition. But, unlike visual art, music unfolds over time, so in order for a composition to be produced with a minimum of materials, it needs to have either long sustained tones or repetition of brief melodic patterns. Reduction typically manifests itself through the absence of melody (only short melodic fragments exist in the repetitive figures); a strong, steady pulse (except in the case of long tones); a strong tonal center (e.g., In C by Terry Riley, one of the very first minimalist compositions); slow harmonic change; and sometimes a limited number of pitches. The second most important characteristic of minimalism is gradual process: the idea that the listener should be able to hear and understand the compositional process as it unfolds. This creates a feeling that the music is going 

nowhere and is endless, unlike most Western music, which is goal-oriented and directional.  

Of course, the appeal of minimalism could not last forever, so it evolved. As a result, the repetitive figures became accompanimental to simple melodies, the audible process became less important, change began to happen at a quicker pace, and various means of expression and directionality were added. Both Miroir and Ride in a High-Speed Train seem to match this description of post-minimalism. For instance, the one-measure repetitive cell in Miroir remains the same throughout the piece but with simple melodies weaving in and out (see Example 1).

Despite the appearance of post-minimalism, we need to take the composer at his word when he himself denies having been influenced by minimalism. In Ride in a High-Speed Train, Wammes instead acknowledges a debt to symphonic rock music, Balkan music, and the process of composing for The Busy Drone (the name of the mechanical organ). The repetitive devices alone do not convincingly indicate minimalism, but they do give the piece a compelling energy that makes it a refreshing contrast in any concert program.  

While I was preparing to present this and several other pieces in a lecture-recital, the composer revealed to me many details about the unique genesis of Ride in a High-Speed Train through e-mail conversations in December 2014 and January 2015.

Brenda Portman: What was your inspiration for choosing the title? Is the piece meant to be programmatic?

Ad Wammes: In 1981 my wife and I cycled for seven weeks through Europe. When we were in former Yugoslavia I had a breakdown with my bike (broken spokes caused by the terrible condition of the roads). I rang the doorbell of the nearest house and we were warmly welcomed by the man and woman living there. It was difficult to communicate as they spoke only Serbian. Anyway, in the evening the man placed a map of Yugoslavia on the kitchen table, took his accordion, pointed at a certain district, and then played music from that district. This way he went through the whole map. And this story came to my mind while composing, as it had Balkan influences in it and, in my mind, I kept seeing a train (probably caused by the ongoing 5/4 beat) going through an ever-changing landscape. 

In 1993, the year in which I composed this piece, a train named TGV (“train à grande vitesse,” French for “high-speed train”) was introduced in Europe. In 2011, I made a transcription for (normal) organ and renamed it Ride in a High-Speed Train (as English-speaking people probably don’t know what TGV stands for).

[The TGV, with its hub in Paris, is a network of high-speed trains that can reach a speed of over 300 miles per hour. It was introduced in Europe beginning in 1981, with its first line between Paris and Lyon. In 1993, the year Wammes composed the piece, the northern Europe line opened from Paris to Lille, which was a connection for destinations in Belgium, the Netherlands, and northern Germany.²]

Can you point out specific places in Ride in a High-Speed Train that show Balkan influences? 

Ornamentation, scales (especially the Lydian mode), unequal deviation over 5/4. [At this point Mr. Wammes referred me to an e-mail attachment that contained the first four pages of the original score to the piece.] I withdrew this version after one day because Boosey & Hawkes immediately took interest in publishing it. The original version differs from the score published by Boosey & Hawkes concerning the notation of the rhythms. In the Boosey & Hawkes version all the rhythms are notated in the deviation of 2-2-2-2-2 eighth notes. (See Example 2.) But in fact the deviation constantly changes and is often diverse for both hands and feet at the same time [See the table on page 23 showing the piece’s structure.] When changing the scale, root key and rhythmic deviation, it feels like slipping into another landscape.

Was Gentle Giant also an influence on Ride in a High-Speed Train, as it was for Miroir?

I don’t know, but I am not the kind of composer that tries to escape from his influences, so probably yes.

Could you tell me more about the mechanical dance organ for which Ride in a High-Speed Train was written? 

[From the author: Ad Wammes sent me the manual for The Busy Drone, which he wrote himself, explaining the instrument and how to appropriately write music for it. The following information is derived from that manual.]

The Busy Drone has three manuals (Zang, Tegenzang, and Accompagnement), pedal (Bassen), and limited percussion capabilities (big drum, woodblock, cymbal, and snare drum). It is a transposing instrument and sounds a minor third higher than notated. Each manual/pedal division has a compass of only one to two octaves, but, with stops ranging from 32′ to 4′, it actually spans six octaves. The disposition can be found on the website for Het Orgelpark Amsterdam [www.orgelpark.nl/nl].

The speed of the engine is 360 centimeters per minute, so the lengths of notes have to be calculated in millimeters for the organ book, based on the desired tempo.³ The speed of the engine is the key to understanding optimal tempos and note values that could be written for the organ. If the note is too short, it does not have enough time to sound, and if it is too long (longer than approximately six beats at a tempo of quarter note = 120), then the organ book will weaken. [An “organ book” is comparable in function to a player piano roll.] The most effective compositions have a perpetual-motion type of energy and are dance-like, in order to capitalize on the instrument’s history as a dance organ. If performed at the indicated tempo, Ride in a High-Speed Train has a continuous energy that propels the piece forward, making it sound like the motion of a train. The piece consists primarily of eighth notes, although the organ is able to accommodate durations as short as thirty-second notes. The longest note value in the piece, which occurs only a few times, is nine beats long at a tempo of 152.

Did you intend for Ride in a High-Speed Train to be played on this organ only, or did you write it with performing organists in mind as well?

Intentionally it was only written for the mechanical organ; I had no real organists in mind. It was only in 2011 that I made a transcription for “normal” organ at the request of the Dutch organist Age-Freerk Bokma. He heard TGV on The Busy Drone and asked me if it was possible to make a transcription for organ. I answered him: “Well, I’ll have a look at it.” After a week the transcription was ready, and although difficult, it is playable!

What else can you tell me about the process of composing TGV for The Busy Drone? 

In 1993 I was asked to make a composition for The Busy Drone. While I was in the possession of the computer sequencer program PRO 24 (ancestor of Cubase), a sound sampler (ASR10 by Sequential Circuits), and a portable DAT recorder, I decided to do it differently. First I recorded all the different stops (there is an organ book called GAMMA, which runs through the different stops note by note) and put the sound samples in my sound sampler. Then I made my composition and put the information in the sequencer program on my Atari computer by playing it live. Finally I notated the score on large files of paper by indicating with pencil what had to be chopped out. This gave me the benefit of getting a musical interpretation of my piece instead of a stiff interpretation of a normal score.

How did other composers create their scores?

They made normal scores and from that the book-choppers (I don’t know if this is the correct word for their profession) made the organ books.

The first person that delivered his piece as a MIDI file was Eric de Clercq. He made his piece Een meter sneeuw in 2001. The book was chopped by Johan Weima, who has a chopping machine connected to a computer. However, Een meter sneeuw was only premiered on October 7, 2009, in Het Orgelpark Amsterdam, because the concerts at the City Museum stopped and shortly after that the renovation of the Museum started (2004–12). The second person that delivered his piece as a MIDI file was me! In 2010 I went to Het Orgelpark to listen to TGV. (The organ was restored, so now it would sound much better!) The organ book, however, was nowhere to be found. Then Johan Luijmes (the director) told me about this MIDI file chopping machine. I still had the old MIDI files and from that a new version of TGV was chopped, now with the correct tempo at 152 per quarter note. (The first version was chopped at 150 while the translation of the MIDI data was too difficult at 152.)

From that time, 2010 till mid-2014, I was the intermediary between composer and chopping machine (handled by Johan Weima) by translating normal scores to MIDI files. Many times the composers (especially the young ones) came with MIDI files. I checked those and corrected them (notes being out of range, notes being too short, adding bridges (short interruptions) to the notes that were too long).

Can The Busy Drone read MIDI files directly?

Since mid-2014 a MIDI device has been installed in The Busy Drone by the Belgian manufacturer DECAP (Herentals). Now it is no longer necessary to make organ books. The Busy Drone directly reads the MIDI information.

When you composed TGV in 1993, was The Busy Drone still in the museum in Amsterdam or had it been moved to the museum in Utrecht?

Yes, it was still in Het Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam (The City Museum). It stayed for one year (2008) in the museum “Van Speeldoos tot Pierement” (“From Music Box to Street Organ”) in Utrecht. It was taken over by Het Orgelpark Amsterdam in 2009.

[We have little knowledge of mechanical organs in the United States, but they were used frequently in various settings in Belgium and the Netherlands for many decades. A mechanical organ is like a player piano, which plays itself, but someone has to work the controls. This particular organ was built in 1924 by the Belgian firm Mortier. It has 92 keys and 17 registers. Originally a dance organ in a café, it had fallen into disuse and been abandoned. In 1965 it was purchased by the Amsterdam publisher De Bezige Bij (The Busy Bee), with the intent to provide background music for an annual book fair. The organ was given a new look and a new name, “The Busy Drone.” In 1973 the organ was moved to the auditorium of the City Museum and remained there for nearly 35 years, playing a role in a concert series entitled “Music Now.” Contemporary composers were encouraged to write music specifically for the instrument during its long stay at the City Museum. These included Louis Andriessen (a key figure in the European minimalist movement), Misha Mengelberg, Willem Breuker, Bo van der Graaf, and others.⁴ When the City Museum underwent renovations, it was moved to the museum “Van Speeldoos tot Pierement” (“From Music Box to Street Organ”) in Utrecht in 2008, restored by the Perlee firm, and then moved in 2009 to Het Orgelpark Amsterdam, where it stands today.⁵]

What exactly does it mean for a person to “work the controls” of the  organ? 

They change the organ books and see to it that the transport of the organ book runs smoothly. By the way, the organ books can also be run by hand. Yes, the registrations can be handled on the spot, but usually the stop changes are already programmed (chopped out) in the book.

Do they still have to do this now, even with the organ reading MIDI files?

No, because there are no organ books to be transported anymore. The stop changes still can be done by hand, but usually they are programmed in the MIDI file.

Thank you for taking the time to tell me more about Ride in a High-Speed Train. It is much easier to understand the musical language and performance challenges after learning about all of the factors involved in its composition.

Postscript: Performing Ride in a High-Speed Train

As alluded to by the composer, there are some performance challenges in Ride in a High-Speed Train, due to its original function as a mechanical-organ piece. For a live organist, the execution of multiple complex rhythmic patterns at a tempo of 152 is daunting at the very least, if not close to impossible. Performers may need to dial the metronome down a few notches to communicate the piece effectively. It is also impossible for an organist to carry out the intended registration changes and still maintain the tempo without either omitting notes to hit a piston or enlisting the help of an assistant. For a mechanical organ, though, these details are programmed into the organ book (or now the MIDI file) and present no problems at all. Additionally, the size of an organist’s hand or the distance from one note to the next were not an issue for The Busy Drone; therefore, there are several instances of quick leaps greater than an octave, sometimes at the same time as a manual change (see Example 3). It is also worth mentioning that the rhythmic precision in this piece renders a mechanical-action organ more suitable than electro-pneumatic, and a three-manual instrument is necessary in order to implement all of the desired colors.

YouTube features recordings of young American organists playing Ride in a High-Speed Train: Karen Christianson (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmygJ5lobhs), Chinar Merjanian (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XOXjt3_sGmE), and Brenda Portman (https://youtu.be/tujdOGm-9JE), and the Hauptwerk version by the composer himself (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ct7oNhSX-1w). The first professional recording of the piece was recently released on the Acis label, by Jonathan Ryan (acisproductions.com). Information on Ad Wammes’ organ compositions is at http://adwammes.nl/. ν

Acknowledgements

Miroir by Ad Wammes, © 1992, 2006 by Boosey & Hawkes Music Publishers, Ltd. Reprinted by permission.

Ride in a High-Speed Train by Ad Wammes, © 2011 by Boosey & Hawkes Music Publishers, Ltd. Reprinted
by permission.

Notes

1. Keith Potter, “Minimalism,” Grove Music Online, Oxford Music Online (Oxford University Press, 2007–13), accessed July 3, 2014.

2. Russ Collins, “TGV History and Speed Records,” TGV—High-Speed Train, last modified 2014, accessed January 16, 2015, http://www.beyond.fr/travel/tgvhistory.html.

3. The Busy Drone manual, sent in an e-mail attachment from Ad Wammes on December 15, 2014.

4. Thom Jurek, “The Busy Drone,” AllMusic, accessed December 27, 2014, http://www.allmusic.com/album/the-busy-drone-mw0000566283.

5. Orgelpark, “The Busy Drone,” accessed January 16, 2015, http://orgelpark.nl/over-het-orgelpark/de-instrumenten/the-busy-drone/.