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About the
Organ
"Pipe Organ --
Q & A"
Part 7 in the series about ELPC’s
Aeolian-Skinner Pipe Organ.
by the Rev. Dr. J. Richard Szeremany,
Worship Music & The Arts Director
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| Following is the
concluding article in the series relating to the East Liberty
Presbyterian Church Aeolian-Skinner pipe organ restoration.
In the preceding six articles,
which have appeared in the past six Reaching Out
editions, we addressed the many characteristics and particular
needs of the 1935 four-manual Aeolian-Skinner pipe organ in the
Sanctuary of ELPC. |
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The "command post" -- East
Liberty Presbyterian Church sanctuary organ console.
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In addition, we conducted four
90-minute tours of the console (where the organist sits to play), the
blower room (3 floors beneath the Sanctuary) and the east transept organ
chamber high above the pulpit. The east transept organ chamber houses a
major part of the total instrument (Choir, String, Solo and most of the
Pedal division.)
Prior to each tour, we presented a
brief “Information” session to show how an organ is constructed— from
idea to blueprints to on-site preparation of organ chambers, and back to
the factory for actual construction.
During these tours and sessions,
questions about organs in general and the ELPC organ specifically were
asked. Therefore, I thought it would be a good idea to share with you
answers to the most frequently asked questions.
Q. There are pipe organs in
Europe that are many, many years older than the ELPC organ and they are
still playing. Why is that?
A. Quite simply they have been
rebuilt and rebuilt and rebuilt again through the centuries. That’s a
good question because it allows me to add a little bit more here about
keeping old, but good pipe organs. Not every organ is necessarily a good
organ just as every piano is not necessarily a good or a fine piano.
There is quality work in the mechanisms and in the making of the pipes,
which in part determines whether it is worth the labor and the money to
rebuild or to start over. Instruments of quality—that is the wood
throughout the wind chests and their mechanisms, the quality of the
various metals (zinc, lead, copper, tin and spotted metal), the skill of
the pipe designer and the tonal voicer—are instruments which rise higher
on the scale of possibility for preservation than some other instruments
which do not possess quality of workmanship nor quality materials. So,
the ELPC organ might well be counted among those famous European organs,
which, because of initial quality, have enjoyed rebuilding and
refurbishing through the many years of their life
Q. What about the ANTIPHONAL
Organ which I understand we are not rebuilding. Will it ever be rebuilt?
A. Hopefully the Antiphonal
Organ will be rebuilt as soon as possible after the front organ is
completed. That was the original proposal of the organ builders who bid
on this job: finish the front organ, listen to it in the room, and then
determine the scope of the tonal resources needed in the back of the
Sanctuary. The original proposal called for this work to be completed
within six months of the front organ. Discussions in the Capital Fund
Committee did not address the work on the Antiphonal Organ.
Q. Is the ANTIPHONAL Organ
necessary?
A. Yes. In a room the size and
proportions (length-wise) of the ELPC Sanctuary, fully 50% of the
congregational seats are more than half way beyond the front source of
the organ sound. The back 50% of the Sanctuary—even if no one is seated
in that area—has a greatly diminished tonal presence for singing. That
means that there is a lag in the sound reaching those who sit anywhere
from the wide cross-aisle to the back and the balcony. It is the
Antiphonal Organ which fills the gap of sound and imperceptibly supports
the congregational singing. The present Antiphonal Organ is of such
design and size that it is evident it was meant to do exactly what I
have described: to support congregational singing and to fill the cubic
space with the presence of sound.
Q. I had no idea of the human
input into the making of an organ. It is labor intensive. Isn’t there a
more modern way to build an organ so we could have it faster than the
present timetable?
A. No, to the more
modern/quicker way; and, you’re right—organ building is labor intensive.
Those of you who have seen the pipes we have on display and the pipes in
the chambers now realize that it is an artistic creation dependent upon
the talents and skills and gifts of the artisans who dedicate themselves
to a craft from which they will never get rich.
Thank you for asking these questions. I
trust that somewhere in these answers and throughout our tours you have
glimpsed a bit more light and understanding about the gem that resides
in our Sanctuary.
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