How Many Historic Organs are Now Redundant?

[myorgan]

I was just perusing the Bay for organs and related information, which lead to searching the Archives website for royalty-free books on the topic. I found a few on the Grand Orgue available for download (in French), and one book listed several organs in the end of the book as exemplars.

The book listed the Notre Dame organ (of course, not aware it would be subjected to fire over 100 years later) as one of the exemplars. It also listed the Kotschmar organ in Portland City Hall (https://foko.org/) as an exemplar. The thought occurred to me, How many of the organs used as exemplars in these historic books still exist as listed in the book? For me, it would be quite informative to document the changes, and reasons for those changes over the last 100+ years.

I would think in the age of the Internet (& electricity), it would certainly be easier to document these organs and how they've changed now.

What do you think?

Michael

P.S. The name of one of the books is: Révolution récente dans la facture d'orgue (Deuxieme Edition) by George Laing Miller

[AllenAnalog]

One compendium of lost but formerly famous concert instruments is on the American Municipal Pipe Organ website and their associated Facebook page, which has contemporary news of extant and restored instruments.

http://www.municipalorgans.net

https://www.facebook.com/American-Mu...9580488055824/

I was privileged to be in the audience in Portland, Maine, for the final week of concerts before the Kotzschmar Memorial Austin organ was disassembled for a total restoration back in 2012. It's a real tribute to the Citizens of Portland and their city government that they treasure this organ and have spent the money to keep it playing for the next generations to come. So many cities have gone the other way, including San Francisco, Philadelphia, etc.

And speaking of Philadelphia, with the demise of the American Organ Institute, it is not clear what will happen to the majority of the Philadelphia Convention Hall organ that has been restored but is in storage. There are 14 ranks of this instrument currently playing in Sharp Hall but the remainder of it was awaiting installation in an expansion of this concert hall or the construction of a new one on the University of Oklahoma campus.

[myorgan]

One compendium of lost but formerly famous concert instruments is on the American Municipal Pipe Organ website and their associated Facebook page, which has contemporary news of extant and restored instruments.

Thank you for sharing that resource. If I ever get back on FB, I'll have to check it out.

I was privileged to be in the audience in Portland, Maine, for the final week of concerts before the Kotzschmar Memorial Austin organ was disassembled for a total restoration back in 2012. It's a real tribute to the Citizens of Portland and their city government that they treasure this organ and have spent the money to keep it playing for the next generations to come.

Hmmm. We might have met in the same concert. Tuesday night with the PSO, Jongen & Saint-Saëns. I wanted to stay for the Q&A session afterward, but when I saw a couple of (rather uncouth) people I knew who would monopolize the conversation, my wife and I left.

Portland people are unusual. They support many things the rest of the world doesn't.;-) In college, I actually had an opportunity to play one of the re-dedication concerts from the 1980s re-build, but my college wouldn't let me go, even though Organ Performance was my major. I was going to play Prelude and Fugue by John Knowles Paine (former Portland Municipal Organist), but never had the chance. For some reason, for me that organ is a collection of lost opportunities. That concert was the first time I saw/heard the organ in person.

Michael

[voet]

In college, I actually had an opportunity to play one of the re-dedication concerts from the 1980s re-build, but my college wouldn't let me go, even though Organ Performance was my major.

Michael

So Michael, how could your college prevent you from going?

[myorgan]

Professor at BJU? Dunbar or a prior professor?

[Victor Jules]

Oh -- Ed Dunbar, yes.

[myorgan]

Great professor. His Xmas letter states he is now retired, and working as an adjunct professor. What year?

Michael

[Leisesturm]

I don't know. I think by the time period we are talking about people mostly had come to their senses and weren't vandalizing important Municipal instruments anymore. Many were allowed to fall into disrepair and ruin, of course, but if rescued and/or maintained by a preservation society, the instruments usually survived as they were conceived or else the modifications were done so as to improve the instruments versatility. Such modifications clearly annotated in the specifications.

[AllenAnalog]

Tearing out municipal organs is not unique to the USA. Even in England, where I used to think they were more sensible about historic instrument preservation, I have read about the very controversial and recent destruction of a 4/57 Compton organ in the Wolverhampton Civic Hall. If I read between the lines in the reports, the City Council decided that the estimated repair costs were too high to be included in the hall renovations.

So despite historic group condition reports and protests, somehow, and not surprisingly, the organ chambers were contaminated with asbestos while the building was under renovation and the whole thing was carted off to a toxic waste dump except for the console. In these Orwellian days of truth, a Council member proudly claimed that they saved the organ because the console was kept and is now in storage.

[jbird604]

Wow. So many times I've been told that a church's wonderful "organ" had to be removed but has been in storage or in a back room for years and I can have it for the taking, only to discover it's just an empty console. The other parts were scrapped for metal or wood or just burned in a bonfire, but the "organ" was preserved because someone thought they might want to play it again some day! Okaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyy........

[Victor Jules]

Civilization's going to hell and it's not by accident. A news article on the OHS once said some churches throw their pipe organ in the yard and flatten all parts with a bulldozer.
If Notre Dame in Paris actually gets reconstructed I'll eat fried chicken standing atop the Statue of Liberty.

[AllenAnalog]

Now that will be a sight to behold. Perhaps I should mail a big check to Paris so I don't miss this epic moment of yours. ;)

[Victor Jules]

1876 ad :-) and yes he's a great professor.

[myorgan]

You're older than I thought! (1876?) What was it like when Edison invented the light bulb?

Michael

[Victor Jules]

Even better than the Centennial Exposition ;)