Stephen G. Schaeffer appointed Reuter rep

The Reuter Organ Company has built a new manufacturing facility and corporate headquarters at 1220 Timberedge Road in Lawrence, Kansas. Reuter, a fixture in downtown Lawrence since 1919, decided to leave its historic location to build a new structure more suited to production efficiency. The World Company purchased the previous location at 612 New Hampshire, including three buildings, one of which was the site of the former Wilder Bros. shirt factory, dating from the 1880s, one of the oldest manufacturing facilities in the city.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony took place on June 4, marking the official opening of the new facility. The day's festivities included tours of the building from 2:30–4:30, presentations and ribbon cutting at 4:30 p.m., and a reception following. Albert Neutel is president of the company; Albert Neutel, Jr., is executive vice president. The ribbon cutting ceremony was organized by the Law-rence Chamber of Commerce and included presentations by the following: Sandy Praeger, state senator; Scot Buxton, Lawrence Chamber of Commerce; Steve Kelly, Kansas Department of Commerce and Housing; and Albert Neutel. Allison Vance Moore of Law-rence was the emcee.

The new factory

The $4 million project features a 75,000 square-foot building on 7.15 acres. The new facility is more than twice the size of the old one, and all operations now reside on a single level instead of five separate stories in two buildings. Instead of waiting turns for a  slow elevator ride, workers can simply walk around the single-level shop to access each department. One of the best improvements to the operation is air conditioning throughout the entire shop.

The move represents a significant milestone in the history of pipe organ building in this country. The last new facility by a large major U.S. organ builder was over 30 years ago.

The planning of the new shop was in the works for over a year, long before an architect and contractor were engaged. Company personnel spent time studying production flow, materials handling, and work stations. The building was de-signed to receive new and raw materials on the north end and send completed organs outbound on the south end. Each instrument works its way from north to south, where it is assembled, tested, dismantled, packed, and loaded through the assembly room and shipping dock.

Visits were made to other organ and pipe shops in the United States and Europe, in order to gain an understanding of what worked best and worst in these manufacturing situations. An "open shop" concept was finally decided upon. Several architects were asked to comment and prepare a conceptual rendering of a shell to house this open shop. After studying these proposals, Architect One of Topeka, Kansas was chosen to develop the plans for the project. A. G. Tollefson of Lecompton, Kansas was chosen as the general contractor.

The new facility boasts many distinctive features. The assembly room measures 72' x 76' with a 48' ceiling. Riding across the ceiling is a five-ton hoist. Materials arrive in a 130' x 45' receiving room. The adjoining lumber storage and mill shop measures 114' x 30'. The zinc and copper pipe metal leave the receiving area to join the 135' x 55' pipe shop. The spotted metal is cast in a special room complete with planer and storage bins. All of these areas are equipped with large overhead doors to allow for movement of materials via forklift.

Reuter's nearly 50 employees now enjoy breaks in the new "cafeteria" area equipped with kitchenette and vending machines. Data drops are installed throughout the building. This facilitates the use of high technology anywhere in the shop as needed. The CNC router is enclosed in its own room, complete with vacuum table, storage, computer platform, telephone and data connection.

History of the firm

Reuter was founded in 1917 in Trenton, Illinois, as the Reuter-Schwartz Organ Company, formed by Earl Schwartz, Henry Jost, and A.C. Reuter. Mr. Reuter had previously worked for Wicks, Pilcher and Casavant since about 1904. A. G. Sabol, Sr., who was with Casavant at the time, joined his uncle, A.C. Reuter, in the new firm. The company started with six employees, besides Reuter and Sabol, including Jake Schaeffer, a noted voicer who had worked with Reuter at Casavant; E. J. "Pat" Netzer, woodworker; William Zweifel, pipe maker; and Frank Jost, console maker. Only one organ was built in 1917, an instrument of eight stops over two manuals and pedal, sold to Trinity Episcopal Church in Mattoon, Illinois. After this instrument was completed and set up in the erecting room, a tornado struck Trenton and blew out one factory wall. The assembled organ was severely damaged. The company carried insurance, and a new organ was built and installed in Trinity Church as opus 2. During the following year, a total of ten instruments were built and installed. In 1919, 14 instruments were built and installed, including opus 14 for the Masonic Temple in Lawrence, Kansas.

In 1919, the company decided to move to Lawrence, Kansas, purchasing the Wilder Bros. shirt factory as its new headquarters, where Reuter remained until this year. The board of directors was listed as E. G. Schwartz, A. C. Reuter, H. T. Jost, G. O. Foster, and W. B. Downing. Foster and Downing were both with the University of Kansas. The Lawrence Chamber of Commerce had pledged funds to help defray the cost of moving. On January 1, 1920, the new office was open for business, and on March 1 the remodeled factory opened for production. The first organ built in the Lawrence plant was opus 27, a 23-rank instrument for Central Congregational Church in Topeka, Kansas. Earl Schwartz left the company in July of 1920, and the name was changed to "The Reuter Organ Company." During the "roaring twenties" business increased rapidly to 51 instruments in 1928. Reuter first began exporting organs in 1954. Opus 1101 was installed in St. Peter's Lutheran Church in Edmonton, Canada. Subsequent organs have been installed as far afield as Taiwan, and, scheduled for 2003, an instrument for Seoul, Korea.

Franklin Mitchell joined the company in 1951 as special representative and consultant, and in 1957 was appointed tonal director. He was elected vice-president in 1964. In 1980 he became president and partner, a position he held until 1983, when he became chairman of the board. He continued in that role until his retirement in 1995. Mitchell died on March 31, 1998.

Albert Neutel joined the company in 1980 as plant manager. He partnered with Mitchell that year to purchase the company. In 1983, when Mitchell became chairman of the board, Neutel become the seventh president of the firm. His son, Albert Neutel, Jr., has been associated with Reuter for twenty years. In 1986, he moved to Memphis, Tennessee to represent the company in the Midwest and Southeast. He returned to Lawrence in 1997 as executive vice president.

Recent installations

Among Reuter's notable installations are Glens Falls Presbyterian Church, Glens Falls, New York (IV/61); First United Methodist Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado (IV/80); West Texas State University, Canyon, Texas (III/63); Augustana Lutheran Church, Denver, Colorado (IV/60); Shadyside Presbyterian Church, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (IV/105); St. John's Lutheran Church, Allentown, Pennsylvania (IV/82); First Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia (IV/80); and University Presbyterian Church, Seattle, Washington (IV/93).

The company has announced plans to increase sales by 15–20%, and reports  at least $7 million worth of orders for the next 18 months. Current and upcoming projects include: Trinity United Methodist Church, Wilmette, Illinois (III/63); First United Methodist Church, Williamstown, West Virginia (II/18); Church of the Ascension, Rockville Centre, New York (II/19); St. John's Episcopal Church, Albuquerque, New Mexico (III/57); First United Methodist Church, Winfield, Kansas (II/29); First Presbyterian Church, Lincoln, Nebraska (III/65); So-Mang Presbyterian Church, Seoul, Korea (II/34); and Salem Missionary Baptist Church, Brooklyn, New York (III/31).

Board of directors

As part of the festivities to introduce the new facility, Reuter's board of directors was on hand: Robert Billings, developer, president, Alvamar, Lawrence, Kansas; Robert Coleberd, economist, president (retired) Pac-West Oil Data, Mission Hills, California; Stephen Hamilton, minister of music, Church of the Holy Trinity (Episcopal), New York City; Joe Kelly, president (retired), board vice-chairman, Douglas County Bank, Lawrence; Charles Merritt, director, Pueblo Choral Society; Thomas Murray, attorney at law, partner, Barber Emerson Springer Zinn and Murray, LC, Lawrence; and Albert Neutel, president, Reuter Organ Company.

For more information about Reuter and the new facility, visit their web site at www.reuterorgan.com.

Clyde Holloway died December 18, 2013, in Houston, Texas. He was 77 years old. The Herbert S. Autrey Professor Emeritus of Organ at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music in Houston, Holloway earned B.Mus. (1957) and M.Mus. (1959) degrees from the University of Oklahoma, studying with Mildred Andrews, and the S.M.D. degree in 1974 from Union Theological Seminary, studying with Robert Baker.

Holloway’s concert career began in 1964 when he won the National Young Artists Competition of the American Guild of Organists (AGO) in Philadelphia. He performed under the auspices of Karen McFarlane Artists, and was a featured artist at numerous AGO conventions, also appearing in recital in Mexico City, the West Indies, and Europe.

His doctoral dissertation, The Organ Works of Olivier Messiaen and Their Importance in His Total Oeuvre, remains an important monograph concerning this music. Holloway worked with the composer on several occasions, examined his works at the organ of the Church of the Holy Trinity in Paris, and performed under his supervision. As a Fulbright Scholar at the Amsterdam Conservatory, he worked with Gustav Leonhardt in the study of organ, harpsichord, and chamber music.

Clyde Holloway began his teaching career in 1965 as the youngest member of the Indiana University School of Music faculty. In 1977, he joined the faculty of Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, where he established the organ program and served as Chairman of the Keyboard Department and Director of Graduate Studies. The school’s widely acclaimed Fisk-Rosales organ embodies his unique understanding of how numerous organ-building traditions and tonal designs are manifested in organ literature and will be considered his most profound contribution to Rice University, Houston, and the larger musical world. He also served as organist and choirmaster of Christ Church Cathedral in Houston for many years; in 1993, he was named Honorary Lay Canon and Organist and Choirmaster Emeritus.

Renowned as a gifted pedagogue, Dr. Holloway served on the AGO’s Committee for Professional Education, addressed two conferences of the National Conference on Organ Pedagogy, led workshops and masterclasses, and served as a member of the jury for numerous competitions, including the Concours de Europe, the Fort Wayne Competition, the Music Teachers National Association Competition, the National Young Artists Competition of the American Guild of Organists, and the Grand Prix de Chartres. In 1994 he was invited to perform for the Bicentennial Festival of the celebrated Clicquot organ in the Cathedral of Poitiers, France, and served as a member of the jury for the international competition held at the end of the ten-day festival. 

Sylvie Poirier, 65 years old, passed away December 21, 2013 in Montréal of cancer. Born in Montréal on February 15, 1948 into a family of artists, her father was a goldsmith jeweller, and her mother, a painter and sculptor, was a pupil of the renowned painter Paul-Emile Borduas. Influenced by her parents, she began drawing and painting, and studied piano from an early age and later studied organ at l’Ecole de Musique Vincent d’Indy, Montréal. In 1970 she gained her baccalaureat in the class of Françoise Aubut and went on to study at the Conservatoire de Musique de Montréal with Bernard Lagacé, with whom she obtained her Premier Prix in 1975. In 1976 Poirier studied at l’Université de Montréal with the blind French organist Antoine Reboulot. From 1977–1983 she was professeur affilié at l’Ecole de Musique Vincent d’Indy, presenting private music and drawing courses around Montréal.

In 1983 she became the Founding President of “Unimusica Inc.” whose objective was to bring together the art forms of music, painting, enamels, as well as poetry and photography. At the invitation of the oncologist founder of “Vie nouvelle” at Hôtel-Dieu Hospital, Montréal, Poirier taught a course specifically designed for cancer patients entitled “Psychology of Life through Drawing” in the 1980s. 

She gave recitals in North America and Europe and broadcast many times for Radio Canada. Her organ duet career with her husband Philip Crozier spanned eighteen years, with eight commissioned and premièred works, numerous concerts in many countries, several broadcasts at home and abroad, and three CDs of original organ duets.

Sylvie Poirier also recorded Jean Langlais’ Première Symphonie, and Petr Eben’s Job and The Labyrinth of the World and the Paradise of the Heart; she gave the latter work’s North American première of the published version in Montréal in 2005. Poirier was also an accomplished painter and portraitist; examples of her work can be found at sylviepoirier.com.

She was predeceased by her only son Frédéric (30) in 2007. Sylvie Poirier is survived by her husband, Philip Crozier.

Phares L. Steiner died in Louisville, Kentucky, on September 14, 2013 at age 85. Born in Lima, Ohio, Steiner earned a bachelor’s degree in organ at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, and a master’s degree in organ performance at the University of Michigan in 1952, where he studied with Robert Noehren and where he began his career as an organ builder, at first working with Noehren. In 1953 with Noehren as consultant, Steiner designed the prototype of an electric-action slider chest. After service in the Army he worked with Fouser Associates in Birmingham, Michigan from 1955 to 1957. He established Steiner Organs Inc. in 1959 in Cincinnati, Ohio, and in 1962 relocated to Louisville, where he was joined in 1966 by Gottfried Reck from Kleuker in Germany. They incorporated in 1968 as Steiner Reck Inc.; Steiner was responsible for tonal matters of more than 90 organs, many of which were mechanical action. 

After retiring from Steiner Reck in 1988, he continued pipe organ work on a freelance basis, including working at Webber & Borne Organ Builders, and R.A. Daffer in the Washington, D.C. area while living in Columbia, Maryland. Phares Steiner returned to Louisville in 2003 with his family, where they became members of the Cathedral of the Assumption, home to one of his largest instruments.  

A charter member of the American Institute of Organbuilders, Steiner was also an active member of APOBA at Steiner Reck and a member of Phi Mu Alpha music fraternity. He also served as organist at several churches, including St. Louis Catholic Church in Clarkesville, Maryland, and Trinity Catholic Church, Louisville. 

Phares L. Steiner is survived by his wife Ellen Heineman Steiner, daughter Adrienne, son Paul, and brother, Donald F. Steiner M.D.

Marianne Webb, 77, of Carbondale, Illinois, died December 7, 2013, at Parkway Manor in Marion, Illinois, from metastatic breast cancer, which she had for the past 20 years. She enjoyed a lengthy and distinguished career as a recitalist and professor of music at Southern Illinois University Carbondale (SIUC).

Miss Webb was born on October 4, 1936, in Topeka, Kansas where she exhibited an early passion for organ music. While in Topeka, she began her studies with Richard M. Gayhart and continued with Jerald Hamilton at Washburn University, where she earned her Bachelor of Music degree, summa cum laude, in 1958. She obtained the Master of Music degree, with highest distinction, from the University of Michigan (1959), as a scholarship student of Marilyn Mason. Further study was with Max Miller of Boston University and Robert Noehren at the University of Michigan.

After teaching organ and piano at Iowa State University for two years, she continued her studies in Paris as a Fulbright scholar with André Marchal. Further graduate study was with Arthur Poister at Syracuse University and Russell Saunders at the Eastman School of Music.

Marianne Webb taught organ and music theory and served as university organist at Southern Illinois University Carbondale from 1965 until her retirement in 2001 as professor emerita of music. She continued to serve as visiting professor and distinguished university organist for an additional 11 years. During her tenure, she built a thriving organ department and established, organized, and directed the nationally acclaimed SIUC Organ Festivals (1966–1980), the first of their kind in the country. The school’s 58-rank Reuter pipe organ she sought funding for and designed was named in her honor.

Miss Webb married David N. Bateman on October 3, 1970, in Carbondale. Together they gave the endowment that established in perpetuity the Marianne Webb and David N. Bateman Distinguished Organ Recital Series that presents each year outstanding, well-established concert organists in recital for the residents of southern Illinois.

As a concert artist, Marianne Webb toured extensively throughout the United States, performing for American Guild of Organists (AGO) chapters, churches, colleges and universities. In addition, she maintained an active schedule of workshops, master classes, and seminars for church music conferences. A member of the AGO, she served the guild as a member of the national committees on Educational Resources, Chapter Development, and Membership Development and Chapter Support. Locally, she re-established the Southern Illinois Chapter of the AGO in 1983 and served as its dean for six years. She performed recitals and presented workshops at numerous AGO national and regional conventions. For many years she concertized under the auspices of the Phillip Truckenbrod Concert Artists. She recorded on the ProOrgano and Pleiades labels and was featured on the nationally syndicated American Public Media program “Pipedreams.” 

Miss Webb maintained a balanced career as both performer and teacher. Her students have distinguished themselves by winning local, area, and national competitions. A sought-after adjudicator, Miss Webb was a member of the jury for many of the country’s most prestigious competitions. She also served as an organ consultant to numerous churches in the Midwest.

A special collection, which bears her name, is housed in the University Archives of Morris Library on the SIUC campus. Upon completion, this collection will include all of her professional books, music, recordings, and papers. Her “Collection of Sacred Music” has been appraised as “one of the largest private gatherings of sacred music in the world with a particular emphasis on the pipe organ.”

Among numerous honors during her long and distinguished career, Miss Webb has received the Distinguished Service Award from Southern Illinois University Carbondale, life membership in the Fulbright Association, the AGO’s Edward A. Hansen Leadership Award recognizing her outstanding leadership in the Guild, and the St. Louis AGO Chapter’s Avis Blewett Award, given for outstanding contributions to the field of organ and/or sacred music. From the Theta Chapter of Sigma Alpha Iota at Washburn University she received the Sword of Honor and the Honor Certificate.

Miss Webb is survived by her twin sister, Peggy Westlund; a niece, Allison Langford; a nephew, Todd Westlund; a godson, R. Kurt Barnhardt, PhD; and her former husband, Dr. David N. Bateman.

Throughout her lifetime Miss Webb was confronted with great adversities, which she overcame to become a nationally recognized organ teacher and recitalist. She leaves an impressive legacy of students holding positions of prominence in colleges and churches throughout the United States. She will be remembered not only for her musical artistry and excellence in teaching, but as a woman of quiet strength, courage, and abiding faith. In gratitude to God for her lifelong career, she established the St. Cecilia Recital Endowment in 2007 to present world-renowned concert organists in recital during the biennial national conventions of the American Guild of Organists.

At a later date, a memorial organ recital played by Paul Jacobs will take place in Shryock Auditorium, Southern Illinois University Carbondale. Memorials may be sent to SIU Foundation to benefit the Distinguished Organ Recital Series Endowment. 

—Dennis C. Wendell

Philip Hahn, the immediate past president of the American Guild of Organists, died peacefully at his home in San Francisco, California on April 13, 2003, from complications of myelofibrosis, a disease of the bone marrow. From 1992 to 2002, he was a member of the AGO National Council and served as president from 1998 to 2002.

Hahn received bachelor and master of music degrees from the University of Michigan where he studied with Marilyn Mason and Robert Noehren, and earned a DMA in composition and organ performance from the American Conservatory of Music, Chicago, studying with Stella Roberts and Robert Lodine. He received certificates in organ, composition, and solfeggio from the Conservatoire Americain, Fontainebleau, France, where he studied with Nadia Boulanger and André Marchal, and held the AAGO certificate.

During his career, he was an associate professor of music at the University of Northern Iowa, where he oversaw the installation of a large four-manual organ built by Robert Noehren, and was director of music at Waterloo's First United Methodist Church. After moving to California, Hahn served as director of music at the First Presbyterian Church in Palo Alto for several years before being appointed artistic director of the San Francisco Boys Chorus. He played many recitals on notable instruments and was a featured recitalist, workshop leader, and adjudicator at many AGO conventions.

Philip Hahn was also a professional chef, holding the position of sous chef at the Clift Hotel in San Francisco, later running his own restaurant, Fanny's, in San Francisco. For several years Hahn ran the restaurant and served as organist at the First Presbyterian Church of San Anselmo, returning exclusively to church music in 1980. From 1990 until his death, Hahn served as organist-choirmaster at St. John's Episcopal Church in Ross, California.

Dr. Hahn's compositions include sacred anthems, pieces for trumpet and organ including The Trumpet Sings Thanksgiving; Spiritual; Fanfare for Five Trumpets and Organ; and two large concerted works: Fantasy for Orchestra and Acclamations! A Fanfare for Concert Band. For the organ, he wrote several short hymn-based compositions plus larger works including Sonata for Organ; Songs from the Forest: A Suite for Organ and Synthesizer; and Suite for Organ Celesta, Vibraharp, and Timpani. His Sonata for Violin and Piano was the recipient of a Sigma Alpha Iota Prize. His short ballet The Dance in the Desert was fully staged at both the First Presbyterian Church, Palo Alto, and at St. John's Episcopal Church in Ross.

He is survived by his partner of 29 years Norman Nagao, two sisters, and a number of nephews and nieces. A memorial service was held at St. John's Episcopal Church in Ross, California, on May 4.

Richard L. Johnson, 61, of Buffalo, New York, and East Longmeadow, Massachusetts, died on December 6, 2002, in Buffalo. Dr. Johnson was professor of humanities at Medaille College, Buffalo, joining the faculty in 1984. An accomplished musician and dedicated educator, he was known for his innovative theatre and music classes. He also directed numerous stage productions and was named the college's Professor of the Year for 2000-2001.

Dr. Johnson was born on May 17, 1941, in San Antonio, Texas. Upon receiving his Bachelor of Arts degree in music from Trinity University of San Antonio in 1963, he went on to earn his Master of Music degree from Yale University in 1965. He spent 1966-67 in Copenhagen, Denmark, on a Fulbright Scholarship, studying organ with Finn Viderø. Returning to the United States, he held faculty positions at Wake Forest University, Amherst College, Smith College, and the University of Maine. In 1973, he graduated from the University of Michigan with a Doctor of Musical Arts degree. In 1992, he received a National Endowment for the Humanities award to study theatre at Columbia University, and at the time of his death he was pursuing a post-doctoral Master's degree in Theatre at SUNY-Buffalo.

In addition to teaching, Dr. Johnson performed organ recitals at venues across the country, including the National Cathedral in Washington, DC, and St. Thomas Church in New York City. Several of his recordings aired on National Public Radio stations throughout the country. He is survived by his parents, a sister, brother, nieces and nephews, and his long-time partner, Richard LaBorde of East Longmeadow.

Richard Eugene Livesay died on February 24 at the age of 87. A resident of Alexandria, Virginia, he was organist at Cherrydale United Methodist Church in Arlington from 1947 to 1988, when he was named organist emeritus. At that church he had played for more than 2,000 Sunday services, 600 weddings, and countless funerals, and helped design the church's Wicks pipe organ of 37 ranks. He was a former Dean of the Alexandria AGO chapter and was a guest organist at Washington National Cathedral. Born in Tulsa, he began piano study at age 12 and organ at age 16, and he attended Blackburn College in Illinois, Park College in Missouri, and American University. In the late 1930s, he worked for Jenkins Music Co. and demonstrated Hammond organs at churches around Tulsa. Mr. Livesay was also a Defense Department official from 1940 until retiring in 1973 as staff secretary to the secretary of defense. He is survived by his wife of 64 years Veradell Elliott Livesay, two children, and five grandchildren.

Dale Wood died on April 13 after a valiant battle against esophageal and lung cancer, at his Sea Ranch, California home. A renowned composer, organist and choral director, he was known for his numerous published choral works and hymn tunes, and his compositions for handbells, harp, and organ. He was for many years organist and choirmaster in San Francisco at the Episcopal Church of St. Mary the Virgin and served in a similar capacity in Lutheran churches in Hollywood and Riverside, California. He had published numerous articles on worship, liturgy, and church music, and was a contributing editor to the Journal of Church Music for over a decade. His monthly column appeared in the Methodist journal Music Ministry for three years. Wood headed the publications committee of Choristers Guild from 1970-74. After serving as music director of the Grace Cathedral School for Boys in San Francisco (1973-74), he was appointed executive director for The Sacred Music Press, a position he held from 1975-96, and was editor emeritus 1996-2001. The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) honored Dale Wood annually since 1967 for his "very important contribution towards the creation and development of contemporary American Music." The Board of Regents of California Lutheran University awarded Dale Wood the title of "Exemplar of the University," citing him as "an example of excellence in service and a worthy model of a good and useful life."