hollister22nh

haha, well I'll TRY to mark that up to an 18 year old playing a piece totally innapropriate to the organ, all while recording it on a reel-to-reel recorder 30+ years ago... all on an organ that likely hadn't had any maintenance for the previous 20 years. I'm not an organist... but as a pedestrian, it sounded pleasant enough. The statement about the plenum etc was all in quotes because it came from someone else. I'm trying to validate the statement. You all are telling me, aside from the last line, it is basically ok? Thanks John

Thank you all for input so far, even the enlightening diatribes. Since some say it might help to hear it... The organ doesn't currently function, but here is a recording from 1977 of an 18 year old playing "Toccata and Fugue in D Minor" on the organ in question. http://www.chsorgan.org/1977.html I've got to wonder, what would a high school even intend to do with this organ? I've got some old letters from before it was purchased saying that when Skinner Co demonstrated a simliar organ "not only standard organ compositions but transcriptions of Wagner's operatice selections, which were extremely effective and beautiful" I've got to wonder what is a standard organ composition from 1927 (although you all have made some great suggestions no doubt) Another thing to note is that the organ was perhaps not intended to be used alone. I have letters where they decided the organ console should face a certain way so that the organist can see the conductor. The person who mentioned a similiarity to Schoenstein has a good eye... I sent this stop list to Jack Bethards and he declared it "ideal in every way" and that it should never be changed! -John

Need your help with a grant proposal. First, here are the specs and stop list to a 3 manual EM Skinner.... you tell me what you would play on it today... and what you imagine it was used for in the past. This is a "municipal" organ located at a public high school since new. Second, please expand on, concur with, or disagree with this statement: "The organ was intended to gain brightness through the use of couplers. The stops are voiced that way, and the specification supports that intention. It was a commonplace practice of the time, and a direct result of the repertoire being performed on them. While the Swell does have a Mixture III, it indeed does not have a Principal 4. That is common also on small Skinners of the period, which were built with the thought that if needing a full chorus sound, one would play on the Great coupling the Swell down, which is probably true on 90% of instruments anyway. For economy and other reasons, these were designed with the thought of the "chorus" as it were split over two divisions, the Swell finishing and crowning the Great. Indeed it does. GT Diap 8, Oct 4, SW Diap 8, Mix III Add as you like GT Tromba 8, CH Piccolo 2 SW Cornopean. I doubt you would find a fuller plenum or plenum + reeds sound from an organ of this size built in the 1940s, 50s, 602, 70s, or 80s." Great Organ 8' Diapason 61 Pipes 8' Clarabella 61 Pipes 4' Octave 61 Pipes 8' Tromba 61 Pipes Swell Organ 16' Bourdon 73 Pipes 8' Diapason 73 Pipes 8' Gedeckt 73 Pipes 8' Salicional 73 Pipes 8' Voix Celeste 73 Pipes 8' Aeoline 73 Pipes Mixture 183 Pipes 4' Flute 73 Pipes 8' Oboe d'Amore 73 Pipes 8' Cornopean 73 Pipes 8' Vox Humana 73 Pipes Tremolo Choir Organ 8' Chimney Flute 73 Pipes 8' Dulciana 73 Pipes 4' Flute 73 Pipes 2' Piccolo 73 Pipes 8' Clarinet 73 Pipes Tremolo Pedal Organ 16' Major Bass 32 Pipes 16' Bourdon 32 Pipes 16' Echo Bourdon (Swell) 32 Notes 8' Octave 12 Pipes 8' Gedeckt 12 Pipes 8' Still Gedeckt 32 Notes 16' Trombone (Ext. from Gt Tromba) 12 Pipes Couplers Swell to Great Unison Choir to Great Swell to Choir Swell to Swell 4' Octave Swell to Swell 16' Swell to Great 4' Swell to Great 16' Choir to Choir 4' Choir to Choir 16' Choir to Great 16' Great to Great 4' Swell to Pedal Pedal Great to Pedal Choir to Pedal Swell to Pedal 4' Combinations: Adjustable at the console and visibly operating the draw stop knobs Great - 1, 2, 3, 4 Swell - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 Choir - 1, 2, 3 Pedal - 1, 2, 3 Mechanicals: Great to Pedal Reversible Sforzando Crescendo Pedal Swell Expression Pedal Choir Expression Pedal