Horseshoe consoles on classical/church organs.

[andyg]

I get the quarterly newsletter from UK music publishers Stainer and Bell - I've had the pleasure of reviewing some of their organ material in the past and they keep me on the list. It's always a good read.

In this edition there's and article 'Heard but not seen', explaining how organists are very often out of sight from the congregation. A few examples are given of London churches, but to show that it isn't always the case, there is a lovely - but very small - photo of the organ console of Wesley's Chapel, in City Road, London. What jumps out are two things. Firstly, the console is in the main body of the church and surrounded by pews - nowhere for the organist to hide here! Secondly, the console looks like it belongs in the cinema along the road. It's a proper, theatre organ style horseshoe console and was built by London organ builders R Spurden Rutt, who also made cinema organs. I don't have permission to add the photo here. I've asked for this and, if granted, will add it. I can't find a photo of the console on line anywhere, but there are a couple of images of Spurden Rutt cinema consoles.

So here's my question. Is this a rarity, or are there many horseshoe consoles out there in churches? Over here in the UK there are what we'd term 'concert organs' from the likes of Compton and Hill Norman and Beard. Bournemouth Pavilion and the Dome, Brighton are two that spring to mind and these dual purpose instruments have theatre style consoles. But pure classical instruments? We have the beautiful curved terrace instruments, of course but that's not the same.

And, while I'm at it, wouldn't a horseshoe console would bring stop tabs closer to the organist than a straight console or one with drawknobs? Would it be easier to play and, if so, why did it not catch on? I'm not the classical expert on here by a million miles, I succumbed to the power of the 'dark side' early in my career! So I'd love to hear a debate about this from those who do know!

As they say in those essay questions - discuss!

Updated: Permission obtained. Photo included courtesy of Stainer & Bell. Lowe resolution, but it shows what I mean.

[Suhndog]

I'm no expert either, but in my experience:

I've seen many different 'set-ups' in churches here in the USA.

I've seen Hammond/piano setups..
I've seen theater organ setups..
I've seen the 'Classical' pipe organ setups.. without a horseshoe console.

Robert Hope-Jones was the 'father' of the Theater Organ.. He designed the horseshoe console. [He also birthed the Tibia and Kinura ranks..]

IMHO, I favor a horseshoe console because it does indeed place many stops within easier reach.
However.. if the console has hundreds of stops, then it would require the 'capture-combination' setup for assigning pistons for registrations, etc.

My Baldwin Cinema 2 came out of a church.

There are churches that favor the 'Classical' style consoles, and churches that aren't as 'strict'.. whatever works - as it were.

I played in one church and used my WurliTzer 950TA there.. [beautiful white & gold console - which I no longer own - for many years]..

That's about all I am familiar with..


marc

[Admin]

Hope-Jones originated the horseshoe console shape I believe. The purpose, as has been suggested, is to cram as many stops as possible into a small space and have them easily reachable. This is particularly important for the highly unified design of theatre organs where a single rank is available at multiple pitches across multiple divisions. The number of stops adds up quickly. For example, the Wurlitzer in the Phoenix Orpheum Theatre that my ATOS chapter owns and maintains is 30 ranks but has over 350 stop tabs. If this was a straight organ, it would probably have no more than 40 tabs.

This also explains why horseshoe consoles never caught on in the classical/church organ world. A high degree of unification is frowned upon and so there was no need to go against tradition to accomodate the additional stops for all those unified pitches. There may also have been a stigma attached to theatre organ designs as they were designed to be big, gaudy, and eye-catching on stage and in the pit. Not something necessarily compatible with the organ's role in a house of worship.

Many theatre organs in the US, at least, were repurposed as church organs after the talkies came in. When you find a horseshoe console in a church, it might not have been its first home. I believe Wurlitzer did make church organs with horseshoe consoles, though, but again, they were highly unified.

[Suhndog]

And, while I'm at it, wouldn't a horseshoe console would bring stop tabs closer to the organist than a straight console or one with drawknobs? Would it be easier to play and, if so, why did it not catch on? I'm not the classical expert on here by a million miles, I succumbed to the power of the 'dark side' early in my career! So I'd love to hear a debate about this from those who do know!

IMHO, I concur.. I find it a lot easier/faster to use a horseshoe arrangement than a draw-knob, etc.. when playing 'on-the-fly' - however if using pistons primarily, 'any' console shape would suffice.. depending on what your playing, and how, etc..

marc

[jbird604]

Andy, I'm wondering if that console was in fact built for that church, or if might have been somewhere else originally, and later re-purposed as a church organ. That would be in line with what often happens here in the US. As someone above suggested, some churches are less particular about such things, and so we see quite frequently a big old Wurlitzer or Baldwin analog theater organ that was either bought by a church as a service instrument or else donated by a well-meaning member.

I don't usually mind if I'm confronted with having to play a theater-styled organ for a church service, as long as it's a decent one. I can usually find enough stops that will support singing and do what I want to do, so I don't let the horse-shoe console or the theater names on the tabs deter me. What DOES bug me about theater consoles is the way the divisions are usually arranged on the stop rail. The lower manual stops will be on the left, where we are accustomed to seeing the swell division stops, and the solo stops will be on the right, where we expect to find the great stops. (Of course this arrangement is not found in all parts of the world, so it might not bother everybody the way it does me.)

Every time I hear about a horseshoe console I think of a funny story told to me at the Allen factory one time. I was being given a tour by a regional rep (whom I won't name here, as he may well be one of our members). He was talking about having given a similar guided tour to a Pentecostal preacher who was about to become an Allen dealer somewhere, and as he showed him some of the theater models being put together in the assembly line, he referred to the configuration as a "horse-****" console. He realized his mistake as soon as it came out of his mouth, but he never said a word, and the preacher never batted an eye.

[andyg]

Horse**** console! I love that one. On a par with the evening when I told the audience I was going to insert my floppy disk, but that wasn't exactly what I said! :embarrassed:

The console was apparently custom built for the chapel, but the pipework is much older. However, I'm guessing that Rutt simply used one of their two manual theatre consoles, but with all white tabs.

As for non-standard layouts, I've come across loads, including consoles where the builders seemingly weren't interested in telling the organist what stops operated where. The only option has been to draw one stop at a time and see where it played!

[jbird604]

Isn't it fun being an organist!

[Mirabilis]

Horseshoe consoles (those with stop tabs) are never in favor. Too difficult to manipulate stop tabs (the chance of error
is quite large) and an organ console must be as easy to handle as possible. And, what is this stuff about, "It's not
what you play . . .etc.? Standards are foremost in the player's mind; or they should be. "just playing" is not enough.
No wonder standards in organ music are still not at as high a level as they should be.

[Terpodion]

I have serviced several organs with semi-horseshoe consoles. The sides are curved, just like Hope-Hones' "unit orchestra" style consoles, but the front portion, above the manuals, is straight. Hilgreen-Lane and Moller made them. Other builders may have as well. They were popular in the 1920 - early 30's. I believe that is was a compromise between the more traditional style of consoles and a theater organ style console. Unfortunately, most organs like this have gone to organ heaven.

There is a photo of R. Hope-Jones playing an extremely compact, three manual organ with a double row of tilting tablets (rocker tablets) on the flat name board. IMHO, tilting tablets are the best form of stop control They won't bounce off when you turn them on quickly (E.M. Skinner called them "flop keys" for this reason) and they only take up a little more room than a stop key. To my eye they look "classier" too. The Wanamaker organ and Longwood Gardens (either the original console, now in Ocean Grove, or the new replica) are good examples of this design. Imagine a console with that many drawknobs.

[andyg]

And, what is this stuff about, "It's not what you play . . .etc.? Standards are foremost in the player's mind; or they should be. "just playing" is not enough.
No wonder standards in organ music are still not at as high a level as they should be.

I've used that signature/tag line for around 45 years now, and you are the first person ever to comment negatively, Mirabilis and, though I'm sure it's not your intention, it comes across as a bit arrogant to me.

I teach students of all ages and abilities. Some play to the very highest standards, and get Distinction after Distinction as they work their up through their Grade exams. Some don't play so well, some physically can't. Any good teacher will recognise that not everyone has the ability to be up there with the best, but will nevertheless encourage them all to do their best.

Just for a moment, put yourself in the position, as I do on a weekly basis, of a teacher who is teaching someone who has quite severe learning difficulties. You know that they will never be a great player and you accept that. But every lesson with them is a delight, to see the progress they've made. Infinitesimal by your seemingly lofty standards, perhaps. Small by mine as a player, maybe, but for them it's a milestone and oh, the joy on their faces when they finish the piece. It's humbling, to be honest, it's worth more than gold - and I leave every lesson with a smile.

You see, sometimes, 'just playing' most certainly, definitely, absolutely IS enough.

Now, back on topic, what is this stuff about the 'chance of error' being 'quite large' on an organ with stop tabs? I find something like a 4 manual 32 rank cinema organ a breeze to hand register. Oh dear, does that sound arrogant? ;-)

[Ryan the organist]

Off topic: the concept of standards in church music is challenging. The field is dominated by whole slews of amateurs, some of whom are quite competent, some of whom are less competent. Then there are professionals, the degree-holders, the teachers, who get highly worked up about standards. Fact is, past a certain baseline level of competence, a church service is not substantially improved by more, faster notes, nor by more "learned" musical choices. Recitals are a different business, of course; in a recital, virtuosity is a concern, and certain players will have the edge. I give a lot of recitals, and I talk about standards constantly. But in church, the law of diminishing returns shows itself with great force. Controversially enough, I'd rather hear an amateur organist, highly passionate about the music, play sensitively and musically in church, than a professional who treats the service as a concert, perhaps a concert with lots of interruptions (as a friend of mine jokes: "why does that guy in the robes keep talking about Jesus at my concert?"), and therefore disdains playing in church. This implicates a lot of professionals (including myself, unfortunately). Not saying that standards are irrelevant; to ignore the quality of your playing is not so nice, especially when people are listening. But in church music, standards come second. If it were my signature, it would say "it's the fact that you're playing passionately and generously that counts." And most importantly, I'll quote E. M. Skinner, who said "I am more desirous of speaking to the pew holder as a minister of music than to the classicist who is 'up stage' to the public who support him." "Up stage", to me, means disdaining the amateur musician because they don't fit a preconceived standard, disdaining the music that they play which the congregation nevertheless manages to love, and disdaining the field of church music because it's not all about me me me.
On topic: though a draw knob console looks nice, stop tabs are so much easier when hand-registring. In fact, when I have to add stops in fast-paced music, and have limited divisionals, tabs start to look like a real blessing, because they can be engaged so naturally and rapidly, and a fraction of a second later, the hand is back on the keyboard; compare this with draw knobs, where the motion is a little more involved, and more times than not, you need to waste a divisional on a small change of stops. "Chance of error"? I have more oopsies with draw knobs, honestly. A quick, impulsive stab at the stop control in question is never the best, safest method, yet it seems necessary more than you'd think; to pull a draw knob, you have to put your hand between the knobs, and risk pushing important ones in, whereas to push a stop tab, only one finger is necessary, which can be more easily aimed, since there are fewer variables. Most of my wild flails at stop controls happen during crescendos anyway, and I'd much rather turn something extra on than turn something important off. Also, on big organs (Wanamaker, Longwood, West Point, possibly Atlantic City, and probably many others), the wonderful effect of sweeping the hand over the strings to create an easy crescendo is only possible because of the tabs.
You mention hand registering on a theater organ; can you say more about the sorts of changes you like to make by hand? Assuming that, since there are stop tabs directly above the keyboards, rather than all being at the sides, the easy stop changes become even easier.

[myorgan]

This also explains why horseshoe consoles never caught on in the classical/church organ world. A high degree of unification is frowned upon and so there was no need to go against tradition to accomodate the additional stops for all those unified pitches. There may also have been a stigma attached to theatre organ designs as they were designed to be big, gaudy, and eye-catching on stage and in the pit. Not something necessarily compatible with the organ's role in a house of worship.

I agree wholeheartedly. Even as recently as the 1960s, I regularly heard movies referred to as sinful (of course, many were and still are!). My wife and I played for an old Swedish church in the 1990s, and one lady cried. She said her father would never let the violin be played in church because it was associated with beer halls. Her question was, how could anyone describe what we just heard as sinful?

Beyond the prior discussion, I always hesitate when I see a horseshoe console, because I immediately equate it with being highly unified and duplexed. Therefore, I would never know if a particular stop was already being used, at what pitch, and/or what division it would speak from (under expression or not). Theatre organists (at least the ones who often played for silent films) often were pianists-turned-organists and didn't know much about registering the organ--so they pushed everything down. Church music (and more-so Classical music) will at least require a nodding acquaintance with basic registration techniques.

Because the layout of the stops are generally different on both styles of consoles, if you are not familiar with where to look on one style of console vs. another, it can take some time to find the stop you need. I ran into that when I saw the Alabama Theatre organ for the first time.

Then there's the voicing. On a Classical organ, the 2' stop from a family is voiced slightly softer than the 4', which is slightly softer than the 8', etc. A theatre organ's 4' and 2' stops will be much stronger because they are pulled from the same rank which is voiced as a single rank, but serving the needs of many.

Back to the original question--horseshoe vs. classical console in church organs. I've yet to find a church that was serious about their music who had a non-classical console. I've toyed with getting a multi-manual Allen theatre organ to use with the Symphony, but I'm afraid I'd be run out of town if I did!;-)

Michael

[Lucien Nunes]

Compton would supply either form of console for both pipe and electronic classical-style instruments. Their console actions were all direct-electric and in principle equally suitable for either, although initially he favoured his hallmark luminous (push-push) stops over conventional drawstops. Latterly, ordinary solenoid drawstops took their place and examples exist of identical instruments with drawstops and with stopkeys, as chosen by the purchaser, regardless of the degree of unification and extension. Where the number of stopkeys is small, they tend to form a straight stoprail only, but with larger numbers a horseshoe was offered. I'm not certain of the relative numbers of each form sold, however my impression of the electronics is that for a church instrument of 50 speaking stops they were equally popular.

Compton's opus 261 of 1937 at Southampton Guildhall, a true dual-purpose instrument if ever there was one (officially a concert / civic instrument as the venue is neither a place of worship nor a cinema), has one of each, both 4-manual, tailored to the requirements of the different performance styles. The horseshoe 'Variety' (i.e. entertainment) console has around 250 stopkeys accessing IIRC only 25 of the ranks but in highly extended and unified form (some ranks being extended up to nine octaves) as well as the traps and effects. All customary cinema organ facilities including double-touch to manuals, pedals, stops and pistons are provided. The Grand (i.e. classical) console has use of all ranks except the Tibia but none of the percussions except the chimes. About 125 speaking stops are provided for 40 units, using luminous stops on angled jambs, indicating how much less extension is offered to the performer at this console. Some ranks appear at one pitch only, that exist at multiple on the variety console. Facillities are different - e.g. no double touch keys, pedal-to-manual piston assignment is not settable etc, but it adds a set of general pistons and a swell pedal-to-chamber selection matrix. In theory all the options could have been included on one horseshoe console, but where cost did not seem to be a prime consideration they not only provided the classical one, but required the organist to use it if he wanted the full instrument at his command.

[jbird604]

There are a lot of movies that are "sinful," Michael, but possibly not in the sense in which we were told 40 or 50 years ago. I'm speaking of certain movies of which the producer ought to be deeply ashamed for making them. Taking people's money without giving anything of value in return pretty much meets the definition of "sinful!"

[SubBase]

Supposedly "The Sound of Music" was the breaking point for many churches that forbade movies for their members because no fault could be found with it.
Wurlitzer built a few PO's for churches. And acquaintance has one in his home, it has a horseshoe console, but without any neon or gold leaf or gingerbread.
Casey