National Cathedral Organ Project

[Guest]

So are they removing the entire Skinner Organ and replacing it with the new Dobsonor just adding some new instruments?</P>


http://www.nationalcathedral.org/art...nProject.shtml</P>

[arie v]

Re: National Cathedral Organ Project



Hi,</p>

This is old news, as in several years old. </p>

My understanding is that because of financial problems the Cathedral had to layoff lots of staff and either cancel or postpone the pipe organ project.</p>

The plan was to get 2 new organs by 2 different builders, and re-use some select ranks from the present organ. There was great lamentation and gnashing of teeth on another forum about the impending destruction of the present instrument.</p>

AV
</p>

[Guest]

Re: National Cathedral Organ Project



Oh...well sorry for bringing something up that is this old. I have not heard of them doing anything just yet. I wondering why they want to replace the organ they have there now. They should just keep it and have it renovated. It is my understanding that Dobson only makes tracker organs so if they do replace the Skinner then that is going to be some big tracker.</P>

[mpsnknox]

Re: National Cathedral Organ Project



You can hardly call the current organ in the Cathedral a Skinner. It has been hacked on and added to many times over the years. The multiple types of actions, bad placement, underwhelming effect past the Choir, and lack of cohesion lead the Cathedral authorities to pursue two new organs in the Cathedral. </P>


The new Dobson Organ in the Choir will retain the very best of the current organ.. ex... the string organ and the orchestral reeds.. and expand aupon it. It will be either EP or Electric Action.</P>


The Organ around the Rose Window will be a Casavant. </P>

[NYCFarmboy]

Re: National Cathedral Organ Project

yes this project has been revisited several times. ..... just do a search and you'll see all the different points of view. I myself have no problem regurgitating my own thoughts....if a contract has been signed and a donor has made the funding I"d be surprised if they do not procede...unless of course those funds were invested in the Madoff ponzi scheme which very well could be..who knows.......

So..I sorta expect that organ to procede...or be canceled entirely.... I'm happy some of the Skinner is being saved, but as noted, what form it will be in when re-installed..who knows....


To be honest I'm surprised at least the direction they went for one of the organs.....they seem to be putting on "bell bottom jeans" right as that fad I think was fading away. (i.e. tracker action on the nave organ).


But whatever they do can be undone. In 50 to 100 years everything can be junked and something else put in depending on whatever taste is in fashionable at that time!

[Guest]

Re: National Cathedral Organ Project



[quote user="NYCFarmboy"]To be honest I'm surprised at least the direction they went for one of the organs.....they seem to be putting on "bell bottom jeans" right as that fad I think was fading away. (i.e. tracker action on the nave organ).[/quote]</P>
<P mce_keep="true"></P>


So you believe that the tracker organ is going out of style? </P>

[soubasse32]

Re: National Cathedral Organ Project



If I had to play church services in a vast edifice with an immense pipe organ I would not want tracker action!</P>


No way, no how. [^o)]</P>


Alistener seated far away in a reverberant acoustic would be hard pressed to say what sort of action they are listening to (if they even cared). So, the benefits of tracker action are most apparent to the player;however if you have to fill a huge roomthat means the organ will be large and/or the pressures high.After a certain pointthe instrument ceases to be responsive to the touch.</P>


Trackers are fine, but so are immense sprawlingpipe organs in large spaces. Each has their purpose, so the questionshould be:what is truly appropriate?</P>

[mpsnknox]

Re: National Cathedral Organ Project

People... the Organ is not going to be a tracker....

[Guest]

Re: National Cathedral Organ Project



[quote user="mpsnknox"]People... the Organ is not going to be a tracker....[/quote]</P>
<P mce_keep="true"></P>


The main (Dobson)one may not be, but the Casavant is going to be a tracker. That's what is said on the site.</P>

[NYCFarmboy]

Re: National Cathedral Organ Project

strad: I think trackers are a interesting curiosity, but I think it innapropriate to place one in this cathedral.

A foreign made tracker in the National Cathedral won't last too long.

My prediction: Someday a very nice large E.M. Skinner will again make its way there, but it may take a few decades.

I look forward to the opening concert on a large E.M. Skinner in the U.S. Capital's National Cathedral someday.

[Guest]

Re: National Cathedral Organ Project

[quote user="Strad "07""]


[quote user="mpsnknox"]People... the Organ is not going to be a tracker....[/quote]</P>
<P mce_keep="true"></P>


The main (Dobson)one may not be, but the Casavant is going to be a tracker. That's what is said on the site.</P>


[/quote]</P>


In 1976 Doug Major and Paul Callaway came to Wall St from DC. Paul Callaway performed an excellent program on the Wall St organs. I soke with him afterwards about the completion of the work at WNC which was officially finished in 1976. Doug Major described the tonal quality of the 1960s Whiteford/Aeolian-Skinner additions as quite airy sounding and the new pipes just put in as Lieblich Diapasons. He then said come on down to DC. I tried in 1977 and it was a bad day. In 1978I went and Doug Major demoed the organ and allowed me to play it.</P>


He mentioned that the Austrian Government had offered the WNC a 4m Rieger tracker for the West End gallery in 1976 for the USA bicentennialand that Paul Callaway declined because English Cathedrals don't have West End trackers. End of story.</P>

[Guest]

Re: National Cathedral Organ Project



My prediction: Someday a very nice large E.M. Skinner will again make its way there, but it may take a few decades.

I look forward to the opening concert on a large E.M. Skinner in the U.S. Capital's National Cathedral someday. <FONT size=2></P></FONT><FONT face="Times New Roman">


The Memorial Church at Harvard had a 1932 Aeolian-Skinner divided on both sides of the chancel. It had prep stops including a gt 32 and an en chamade. In the 60s E Power Biggs was instrumental in getting the Skinner out and a Fisk in. Now a new Fisk is being slated for the gallery and a 1929 Skinner for the original chambers that housed the 1932 Aeolian-Skinner.</FONT><FONT size=2></P>


<FONT size=1>Cambridge, MA</FONT></P>


<FONT size=1>Memorial Church, Harvard University</FONT></P>


<FONT size=1>Builder: Aeolian-Skinner Organ Co., Inc. &lt;http://aeolian-skinner.110mb.com/ima...281%29.jpg&gt; </FONT></P>


<FONT size=1>Year: 1932</FONT></P>


<FONT size=1>Opus: 886</FONT></P>


<FONT size=1>No. manuals: 4</FONT></P>


<FONT size=1>No. stops: 101</FONT></P>


<FONT size=1>No. ranks: 122</FONT></P>


<FONT size=1>No. pipes: 7,566</FONT></P></FONT>

[Guest]

Re: National Cathedral Organ Project



I sent an email to Dobson about the organ project and now they got back with me. Here is what he said...</P>


"Thanks for your e-mail. The National Cathedral project is on hold because of the economy. They still plan to go ahead with the project, but they are waiting for things to settle down before they do. The organ will have electric action."


</P>

[circa1949]

Re: National Cathedral Organ Project



Considering this was one of the major pending organ project in this country, this is very newsworthy.</p>

I was always under the impression they had had one or two super-rich donors lined up, for whom the 10 million or so each organ will cost was something to sneeze it. Perhaps it no longer is.</p>

Given the continued and potentially costly internal strife in the ECUSA (let's not even branch into that except to acknowledge it is there) and the likelihood of this recession lasting at least a couple more years one begins to wonder if the project will ever get off the ground.</p>

</p>

</p>

[Guest]

Re: National Cathedral Organ Project

Purely speculative: since well-off patrons of the arts do not have their wealth amassed in a heap in some cellar with a security guard but rather likely have it invested in a broad portfolio of stocks, bonds, gold, T-bills, real estate holdings etc; the negative economic climate may have taken its toll. Better to wait and see what transpires rather than move on a plan with this much uncertainty in the economic markets.