Also typical of such organs, it was rebuilt in the 1950s with new pitman windchests and a new electric console. Although the mechanical work was well-done, the sound of the organ remained as it had been - warm, but dark. Subsequently, the organ again had major repairs, including a solid-state relay. The only tonal change that was made at that time (1990s) was to remove the Swell Celeste, replacing it with a 1 1/3' Larigot. When we were contacted by Jason Hart, the parish's Director of Music and principal organist, we were asked to assume responsibility for the care of the organ, and to devise a scheme that would improve the organ mechanically and tonally at a cost the parish could manage. It was clear that most of the Kimball pipework, which was in excellent condition, could be retained in a new tonal scheme, as could the existing pitman windchests that had been releathered only a few years previously. The new St. Lawrence organ, completed during the summer of 2008, consists of twenty-six ranks of pipes. The existing Swell and Great divisions, all of which were enclosed in a single expression box, were combined to create a Swell division of twelve ranks. The 11-rank Great division is installed on new chests on top of the case. Although these pipes are invisible from the nave, their acoustical projection makes the instrument a commanding presence in the cavernous Gothic room. As with any organ that combines old and new tonal material, the angels are in the details. The Kimball pipes at St. Lawrence were carefully revoiced. Here, the trick was to preserve (and in some cases, restore) the warmth and color of these older pipes, while adapting them to a new tonal architecture. The new pipes were carefully scaled and voiced on-site to provide a warm yet articulate ensemble architecture that compliments the older sonorities. There is no feeling of "oil and water" here; the sound of the entire organ is seamless and balanced. To save cost, we rebuilt the oak two-manual console. The console received new keyboards and stop controls. The new control system is the Peterson ICS4000, which provides multiple combination action levels which are assignable by organist, as well as transposer and MIDI interface. The console also has a record/playback feature that allows music to be recorded and played back at a later time. St. Lawrence Church is a wonderful old Gothic masterpiece, with a huge reverberant room. This very active congregation uses the pipe organ for worship an estimated 400 times per year! Their choral program is very active, and the church has several organists who play for all the masses, weddings, funerals, and other parish events. We are delighted to have had the opportunity to contribute to the vibrant program of worship and music at St. Lawrence Church. Hear this organ. View the specification of this organ.
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In 1895, the Kimball Organ Company built an organ for St.
Lawrence Catholic Church in Muncie, IN. The organ was a
small two-manual instrument of thirteen ranks of pipes. Typical of its time, it had
tubular pneumatic action. Its tonal scheme provided lots
of color, but not very much power or ensemble. The gilded
pipes were housed in a beautiful case of quarter-sawn oak.
