Behind the Scenes - Pipe Organ

Today, Maria takes you up to the choir loft! Have you ever seen the inside of a pipe organ? Check it out today! *Bonus points to anyone who can name the organ piece playing in the background*

[@petermacander2061]

What sort of 32' digital voice was added to the St. Benedict organ? Why would anyone add a 32' stop to a moderately small organ without sufficient tonal foundation to support it musically? Is it a 32' contrebombarde or 32' contrabourdon? As I recall from having played and practiced at the St. Benedict's organ years ago, the Pedal division only had an 8' Principal as its foundation stop, one 16' Posaune, and an 8' Pedal trumpet (extension of 12 pipes up from the Posaune). A second 61 pipe 8' Swell Trumpet could be coupled to the pedal, and a 16' "prepared for" Swell Dulzian (never completed). If a 32' contra bombarde voice (electronic or pipe) were to be added, there should at least be a 16' Principal, and additional 16' 8' 4' reeds added to support it, otherwise it is not likely to sound as it should for lack of sufficient foundation on which to build the ensemble. Most 32' Contre bombardes are found in pipe organs of 45+ ranks in size. Most of those have a pedal ensemble consisting of at least 16' 8' Principal, 16' Bourdon, two 16', two 8' and two 4' reeds and mixture of 3-5 ranks. That would be way too much pedal for the size of the Schlicker organ at St. Benedict's Church. It seems that Herman Schlicker's design, which includes 16' Posaune, 8' Trumpet v. 8' Principal, 16' Bourdon and III mixture with couplerable 8' Swell Trumpet is just enough to achieve tonal balance with the remaining three divisions of that organ.

[@petermacander2061]

The 1953 Schlicker organ at St. Benedict R.C. Church in Eggertsville, NY is an electropneumatic three manual and pedal pipe organ of 32 stops and 35 ranks containing 2,146 pipes in four divisions: Great (8 ranks, 537 pipes), Swell (11 ranks, 1 pf, 708 pipes), Positiv (8 ranks, 537 pipes) and Pedal (8 independent ranks, 3 borrowed from the Great, 1 extended, 364 pipes). Mechanicals include 9 interdivisional couplers; 6 general and 16 divisional pistons, and one swell and one crescendo pedal. The organ console and casework is crafted of red oak. Unlike many of Herman Schlicker's organs, built in the baroque Bavarian style with low w.p., open-toe voicing, absent languid nicking, and small treble scales, and cone tuning, the organ at St. Benedict's is moderately scaled and voiced, with nicked languids, slide tuning with a tonal flavor not far off from organs of American classic design of the 1950s. It has been an excellent instrument for leading choir and congregational singing as well as performance of works of the solo organ literature.

[@geneestep4664]

The background organ piece is the Toccata from Leon Boelman's "Suite Gothique"! Love this piece!

[@stbenedictsamherst]

Yup, that's the one! It's a classic!

[@petermacander2061]

Actually the pipes in the foreground within the side wall behind the shelving and chicken wire screen form the Great division. The cantilevered wind chests on either side of the great stained glass window contain the pipes of the Great and Positiv divisions. Behind the Great division and the shades behind it is the enclosed Swell organ, under expression, which speaks into the choir loft and through a screen into the left side of the nave. This 1953 three manual and pedal Schlicker organ of 35 ranks, is composed of four divisions, Great, Swell, Positiv, and Pedal. It was commisioned by Msgr. WIlliam F. Tobin in late 1952, replacing a previous 11 rank Wicks pipe organ from the old church. The organ was built by the late Herman L. Schlicker in his shop at 1530 Military Road in Kenmore in less than one year, and installed in time for Easter, 1953. The organ was paid for by parishoner George Fraunheim at a cost of only $24,600. During the tenure (1947-1982) of the late first organist/choirmaster, Howard F. Vogel (1913-1998), the organ was visited and played by renown concert organists E. Power Biggs and Andre Marchal. An LP recording of the instrument was planned but the background noise of the traffic outside at the corner of Main St. and Eggert Rd. made high fidelity recording impossible and the project was abandoned. The organ has maintained its integrity well for the past 69 years (flue pipes could use new tuning slides!). If memory serves (I last played this organ 49 years ago!), there is only one "prepared for" incomplete stop remaining: a 16' Dulzian in the Swell division. **The organ composition playing in the background** is the "Toccata from the Suite Gothique" by French composer and organist Leon Boellmann (1862-1897). It is not being played on this organ, however.

[@stbenedictsamherst]

Interesting history, thank you for sharing your knowledge! The one major change that has happened is the addition of a 32'' stop in the pedal division (this is a digital stop however as we do not have the space to accommodate a full 32' stop). Correct, the recording was actually from our organist's recital down the street at St. Joseph's University Parish.