Famous Organs in the USA

What makes an organ "famous"? Is it its size, its location or builder, the tonal characteristics or the players? As far as American organs are concerned, the answer is simple: there are quite a few instruments that meet all of the above criteria. Organs that are well-known, famous, even notorious far beyond the borders of the country, surrounded by myths and legends. Imagine entering a large department store somewhere in a major German city and being surrounded by huge cascades of live organ music. Unthinkable? It has been everyday life in Philadelphia for more than 100 years: the organ in the traditional department store, Wanamaker (now: Macy’s) still sounds today to the delight of the city's shoppers and tourists.

Of course, instruments such as the "largest organ in the world" (Atlantic City) and the first large concert hall organ imported from Europe (Boston, now in Methuen) or the Riverside organ made famous by the legendary virtuoso Virgil Fox should not be missing in this book (New York), the numerous historical instruments in the organ city of Boston, the almost unchanged orchestral organs of the Skinner and Aeolian-Skinner workshops, which were so successful in their time, the large organ in the former Crystal Cathedral in California, or the organs in the Washington DC, New York or San Francisco cathedrals.

The selection made in this book is certainly subjective, but at least takes into account those instruments that are known even in Europe, even if only by hearsay. In addition, organs from different eras and builders are described, which are either considered to be groundbreaking milestones in the development of American organ building or are representative of a certain era. Judging by the size of the country and its variety of organs, it will seem understandable that, within the limited scope of this book, other instruments were not considered that would be entitled to the predicate "famous".

The characteristics of all these organs can only be understood from the context of the development history of American organ building. Therefore, the individual descriptions of the instruments are first presented with an overview of three centuries of the art of organ building in North America, followed by some brief information about the most important organ builders of the 19th and 20th centuries and their activities. After the main part of the book, the individual descriptions of the instruments, there are some notes on the special features of American organ consoles. For more in-depth studies, please refer to the bibliography in the appendix. Unfortunately, there is still no coherent and comprehensive account of the history of American organ building in German language.

 

Contents

Part 1: The History of American organ building

Part 2: The Theatre Organ

Part 3: The organ builders of the 18th to 20th centuries

Part 4: Detailed organ descriptions with complete specifications: Washington DC (National Cathedral, National Shrine, National City Christian Church), New York City (St. Bartholomew, Riverside Church, St. Thomas, St. Patrick's Cathedral, Cathedral of St. John the Divine, St. Ignatius Loyola, Radio City Music Hall), Boston MA (Christian Science Mother Church, Church of the Advent, Church of the Immaculate Conception, Trinity Church, Holy Cross Cathedral, King's Chapel, Church of the Covenant), Methuen MA (Music Hall), Worcester MA (Mechanics Hall), West Point NY (Military Academy Chapel), Portland ME (Municipal Hall), New Haven CT (Yale University, Trinity Church, St. Mary's RC Church), Philadelphia PA (Wanamaker Store, Girard College), Kennett Square PA (Longwood Gardens Auditorium), Atlantic City NJ (Board Walk Convention Hall, world's largest pipe organ), Ocean Grove NJ (Auditorium), Detroit MI (Presbyterian Church), Pittsburgh PA (Shadyside Presbyterian Church), Salt Lake City UT (Mormon Tabernacle, Cathedral of the Madeleine), Denver CO (Trinity Methodist Church), Seattle WA (University Presbyterian Church), San Francisco CA (Grace Cathedral, St. Mary's Cathedral, Trinity Church, Temple Sherit Israel), Garden Grove CA (Crystal Cathedral), Long Beach CA (Los Altos Methodist Church), Los Angeles CA (First Congregational Church, Immanuel Presbyterian Church) etc.

Appendix:
--Special features of Anglo-American organ consoles
--Explanation of technical terms
--Directory of current American organ building companies,
organist associations, organ journals, organ institutions
with contact addresses, websites etc.
--Original essays by Ernest M. Skinner, Henry Willis and others in German translations

(In German only)

Year Edition Pages Photos Price Publisher ISBN

(1) 2002

Hardcover

364

180

€ 28,00

Christoph Dohr, Köln

3-925366-91-1