Featured Performer

Martin Ellis

 

Although Martin Ellis does not work for Reynolds Associates, he has become a good friend.  Martin is Assistant Director of Music and Organist at North United Methodist Church in

Martin Ellis

Indianapolis, and also maintains a very active recital schedule. 

Martin Ellis began musical study at an early age, and has been an active organist, composer, arranger, and accompanist for many organizations throughout the Indianapolis area.  Mr. Ellis is one of the senior staff accompanists for the Indianapolis Children’s Choir and Youth Chorale, serving their advanced and high school ensembles.  Additionally, Ellis has recently been named the third member of Trio Con Brio with friends Donna Parker and Jonas Nordwall, performing concerts on three separate organs simultaneously.  With Trio Con Brio, Mr. Ellis has appeared at major theatre and classical organ venues and has just released their most recent compact disc "In the Key of Three."  Ellis is an active organ soloist in both classical and theatre organ venues, and has appeared with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and the Carmel Symphony Orchestra in recent years.  In addition to concert work, Martin is a composer and arranger for two leading choral music publishers.

Martin Ellis will play the rededicatory recital at First United Methodist Church in Somerset, KY at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, May 4.  This is an excellent opportunity to hear Martin play, and also to hear the results of our recent renovation and tonal redesign of FUMC's 1960s-era Wicks organ, showing what can be done to improve these ubiquitous organs.  For details about the organ and the concert, see below.

Click HERE to see a video of Martin performing the Reger Toccata in d minor in concert at North United Methodist Church. 

(This is a large .mpg file, and should be viewed over a high-speed Internet connection.)

 

 

The Old Centrum

Update on an Historic Instrument

As of March 31, the Old Centrum building in Indianapolis will be closed. 

Until a use can be found from the historic former home of Central Avenue Methodist Church, the facility will be "mothballed."

In a telephone conversation with Marie Beeson, who has been the Executive Secretary of the Old Centrum Foundation, the building will be overseen by a professional organization that manages historic sites.  The building, which is listed on the National Register, is the home of one of the last two remaining organs by Indianapolis organ builder Thomas Prentiss Sanborn.  The II/33 instrument is the only Sanborn organ that can still be heard in its original acoustal surrounding.

After a silence of several years, the Sanborn organ was heard last summer (2007) during the national convention of the Organ Historical Society.  The demonstration recital, played by Indianapolis organist Dr. Charles Manning, followed several months of rehabilitation by our firm.  The work was done as part of our contribution to the convention, and in the interest of preserving a noteworthy piece of Indiana musical history.  A report about the program and the Sanborn organ appeared in The Indianpolis Star.

For the time being, at least, the organ will remain where it is.  It is presently not for sale, and there continues to be the hope that one day it will be completely restored along with the magnificent room that has been its home for over 110 years.  The firm that will manage the Old Centrum facility will seek a church or organization that can finish the renovation of the structure, and make it once again a thriving religious or cultural center in the heart of the city.

If there is any change to the status of the building or the Sanborn organ, we will report it on this site.  You may hear a recording of the Sanborn organ here.

 

 

 

Shepherd by the Lakes Lutheran Church

New Organ Heard for the First Time on

Easter Sunday

 

 

For one northern Indiana congregation, Easter of 2008 will be long-remembered, signifying the realization of a dream that will enrich worship for generations.

 

For years, the congregation of Shepherd by the Lakes Lutheran Church dreamed of having a REAL pipe organ.  Instead, music for services has been provided by a very elderly Wurlitzer electronic organ.

 

The new Reynolds Associates pipe organ for Shepherd by the Lakes has been completed, and was heard by the congregation for the first time during the morning worship service on Easter Sunday.

 

A few years ago, the congregation got wind of an old pipe organ that was for sale.  They bought it, moved it, and stored it in the church and in the basement of the organist's home.  Last year, the church contacted us to see if we could fashion an organ for the church out of this salvage.

 

When we examined this old organ, we found that, although it contained some material worthy of conservation, a new organ was really the right thing for the church.  The budget would be tight, since the church is working toward a major expansion project in a few years, but a good organ was desperately needed, and the congregation did not want to settle for an electronic.

 

After several months of thought and planning, we were able to design a new organ for Shepherd that includes pipework that, although not new, was mostly "newer," and entirely appropriate to an organ of this sort.  The only really old pipework in the new organ is a 16' Bourdon built by Austin in the 1920s, and an elegant Kimball Gemshorn that is about 100 years old.  All the pipes in the organ have been reconditioned and revoiced in our shop.

This organ is also unusual in that it was built using our "chassis" design, developed in our shop by David Reynolds.  This design is compact, lightweight, and incredibly strong.  One advantage to the design is that the organ - including the windchests and pipes - can be moved easily.  This is important since, in a few years, the organ will be relocated to the church's new sanctuary.  Looking toward that day, our design includes a planned expansion that will double the instrument's size and tonal palette.

 

Meanwhile, the instrument consists of eight unenclosed ranks of pipes.  Shepherd by the Lakes is looking forward to having their new organ in service by the end of February.  The project has been spearheaded by Pam Reed and organist Beth Haller.  They have received great support from the congregation, which is pastored by Pastor Jerry Winegarden.

 

Plans are being made for a dedicatory recital.

 

For more information about this unique design concept, please contact us.

 

 

 

Revoicing Project Completed

Big Benefits from a Small Project

 

In 1960, the Casavant Organ Company completed opus 2575, a III-manual, 56 rank organ for First Baptist Church in Indianapolis.  At the time, the Casavant firm was in a period of artistic change under the leadership of their newly-appointed tonal director, Lawrence Phelps.  Just at the time that 2575 was under construction, Phelps was beginning his historic tenure at Casavant.

 

The organ at First Baptist was apparently considered to be a bit harsh-sounding for the FBC congregation, since several minor attempts at tonal change were made over the decades.  One of these projects (by organ builders unknown) was to lower the wind pressures throughout the manual divisions.  The result of this was that the organ was perpetually and forever flat, and could not be brought up to standard pitch.

 

Typical of organs of its time, this First Baptist organ has a large number of mixture ranks (nearly 1/3 of the total rank count), with strong emphasis on the upper harmonics.  By contrast, the foundation work (8' and 4' stops), as well as the 16' Pedal stop, were weak.  The instrument had very little tone color.

 

Our project at First Baptist, which lasted about a month, involved revoicing the foundation work in the organ, strengthening the 8' flutes and principals, "taming" the mixtures, and regulating the reed stops.  As part of this project, we also readjusted the wind pressures in the manual divisions, repaired a number of broken pipes in the Trompette en Chamade, and made minor repairs to the console and bench.

 

When a pipe organ is functioning properly, it is often possible to improve its sound by carefully evaluating the existing pipework and revoicing.  Sometimes, one or two important ranks of pipes can be replaced, giving the organ a new and much more listenable sound.

 

Renovation of an Antique Pipe Facade

Flora Organ Sounds Swell...

Now Looks GREAT, Too!

 

The 1914 Pilcher Case, following our restoration.

 

After months of work, the restoration of the 29 organ pipes that make up the facade (pipe fence) of the organ at First Christian Church in Flora, IN, has been completed.  Along with the pipe facade restoration, we also restored and refinished the lower case of quarter-sawn oak.  The case had looked so bad that it had been covered by a curtain for fifty years!

The facade was part of an organ built in 1914 by the Pilcher Organ Company of Louisville.  In about 1960, E.H. Holloway Corp. built a new organ for the church, retaining the display pipes of the old facade, and covering the lower part of the case with a velour curtain. The zinc pipes had been repainted repeatedly, and had numerous dents.

 

In 1998, Reynolds Associates rebuilt the Holloway organ, and have subsequently made several tonal improvements to the instrument.  The visual restoration is the latest improvement to the instrument, and one that gives a new elegance and character to the craftsman-style sanctuary.

 

In our shop, we carefully stripped and repaired the pipes, primed and basecoated them, and applied decorative elements designed for the organ by Michael Lenhart, who worked for the firm at that time.  Missing elements of the oak case, including a new center panel to fill in the space where the original Pilcher keydesk had been, were created in our shop by David Reynolds.

 

Along with the restoration work, we also built and installed new expression shades, replacing the old hollow shades that were loose and noisy.

 

To see a photo gallery of this project, click HERE. 

 

Pope Benedict XVI on the Organ

"Music and Song are More than an Embellishment of Worship"

 

Traditional music and traditional liturgy have gained a new appreciation recently in almost all Christian denominations.  Even the Roman Catholic Church, which since the Second Vatican Council has seemed inclined to throw the baby out with the liturgical bathwater (to borrow an aphorism), has shown new interest and a new appreciation for older established worship formats.

 

Pope Benedict XVI visited his home country of Bavaria in September, 2006, and dedicated a new pipe organ in the Atle Kapelle in Regensburg. 

 

According to an online article of the Catholic News Agency, the Pope recognized the unique place the pipe organ holds in Christian worship.  His words are worthy of Balzac, and are reminiscent of the French writers lofty comments about the King of Instruments:

 

"Benedict, a piano player himself, has been vocal about his deep appreciation for music, particularly sacred liturgical music.  After a brief description of the process of restoration, which took eight years and almost one million dollars to complete, the Holy Father arose and spoke to the importance of music in the liturgies of the Church emphasizing the “king of musical instruments,” the organ.

"Music and song are more than an embellishment of worship," said the Pope, "they are themselves part of the liturgical action."
 
The organ, "transcending the merely human sphere, as all music of quality does, evokes the divine. ... It is capable of echoing and expressing all the experiences of human life. The manifold possibilities of the organ in some way remind us of the immensity and the magnificence of God."

 

Read the Catholic News Agency article in full here.  Read the entire text of the Pope's remarks here.
 

We couldn't have said it better!

 

Redesign and Renovation of 1960 Wicks Organ

Somerset United Methodist Church Project

Completed

 

Somerset is a beautiful small town in rural south central Kentucky.  Located between Lake Cumberland, the largest manmade lake in the United States, and the Daniel Boone National Forest, the community draws nearly 1.5 million visitors each year.

 

Following our completion in 2006 of a new organ for First Presbyterian Church in Somerset, Reynolds Associates was asked to prepare a proposal for the renovation of the organ at First United Methodist Church as part of a larger capital improvement project in the church 

 

First United Methodist Church meets in a striking mid-century modern building in the center of the downtown.  The congregation has an active music program under the direction of Ben Stapleton.  Since 1960, this music-making has been supported by a three-manual Wicks pipe organ of 20 ranks.  (Click here to see the original specification)

 

The First Church congregation actively embraces both blended traditional and “contemporary” worship formats.  We considered this important fact in planning this project, wishing to provide elements in the pipe organ that would have application in both worship contexts, making its tonal scheme more eclectic than the original organ.

 

The instrument presented several challenges.  The console and electromechanical switching system were both worn out.  Typically for organs of this builder and period, the sound of the instrument tended, in our view, to be somewhat thin and harsh, yet without enough fundamental power to ring the building acoustically.  Some aspects of the stoplist were clumsy for service playing and for playing organ literature, and the voicing and regulation of many of the stops was uneven.  

 

The instrument’s tonal palette lacked color.  This is a common failing in very small three-manual organs, since the number of ranks is often barely sufficient to cover the most basic ensemble requirements in each division.   

 

The proposal we presented to the church trustees in April, 2006, included three possible options.  Ultimately, after considering these, the congregation decided on our three-manual, 26-rank tonal redesign, which also includes a new console, renovation of the winding system, and a Peterson ICS4000® solid-state integrated control system.

 

In our tonal redesign of the organ, we replaced the principal ensemble with new pipes of more appropriate scales and better speech characteristics.  Although ensemble elements can often be rescaled and revoiced with great success, we felt that new pipes were needed to achieve a more distinguished and cohesive sound.  Since the principal ensemble defines the tonal character of an organ, the investment in these new pipes is certainly worthwhile!

 

To provide the best possible sound from these new pipes, we replaced the Wicks toeboards for the new pipes with toeboards constructed in our shop using our CNC manufacturing process.  The toeboard is the top of the windchest, upon which the pipes are placed.  In the original windchests of this organ, the electromechanical valves are placed directly below and very close to the toe of the pipe, allowing wind turbulence from the motion of the valve to affect speech. 

 

Our new toeboards include specially designed internal channels to quiet this turbulence as it enters the pipes, and to eliminate the disturbing “popping” sound that is sometimes heard in electromechanical windchests.  Our experience has shown that this toeboard design is critical to good pipe speech, especially in the principals.

 

Along with the new principal ensemble, we have replaced the flutes in the Great division.  The new flutes include a Rohrflöte that plays in the Great at 8’ and 4’, and an open flute, the Offenflöte, that provides a rich and colorful sound, useful either as a solo stop, or to add depth and body to the ensemble.  Combined with the 8’ Principal, the Offenflöte has the effect of broadening the scale, yielding a sound much like an English Diapason.  Even in our smaller organs, we find that the inclusion of two 8’ flutes in the Great division is important.

 

The original specification did not include any celeste ranks.  These are ranks that are purposely tuned either slightly sharp (Celeste) or slightly flat (Unda Maris), to create a gently undulating sound.  At some time in the organ’s history, the original 8’ Spitzflote in the Choir division had been repurposed to serve as a celeste with the Gemshorn.  This left the Choir with no 8’ flute.

 

The Swell division now includes a new 8’ Viola.  The original Salicional has been rescaled and repitched as an 8’ Celeste.  Likewise, we have rescaled the 8’ Aeoline, moving it to the Choir division to serve as an 8’ Unda Maris, working with the Dulciana.  The Spitzflote in the Choir has now been returned to its important role as the unison flute in the Choir division.

 

The pedal division was also problematic.   Although the organ contains a very nice metal 16’ Principal and a solid Bourdon, it had little to support very quiet manual sounds.  In the new design, we have extended the Great Gemshorn to 16’, by adding a specially-constructed electronic voice extension that takes the place of the twelve very large pipes that would otherwise be needed. 

 

The 16’ Gemshorn in the Pedal gives the organist a very quiet string sound that is extremely useful.  Added to the Bourdon, it provides edge to the flute tone, providing better for pedal notes, especially in contrapuntal situations, where clarity of line in the bass is important.  The Gemshorn also plays at 16’ and 8’ in the Great, offering a sub-unison stop that does not obscure, and a quieter unison stop of very soft principal tone.

 

The organ has two reed stops, a Fagotto in the Swell that will play at 16’, 8’, and 4’, and an 8’ Clarinet in the Choir division. 

 

Taken together, we feel that the new tonal structure of the organ is very comprehensive for an instrument of this size, and that the new tonal architecture will make sense to organists as they register the stops for the wide variety of music required in a United Methodist Church.

 

The new console will also offer a host of new musical possibilities. 

 

With 100 levels of combination action, assignable by organist, setups for multiple services and users are possible, each without disturbing the others.  Organists can also program multiple arrangements for the crescendo pedal, and can transpose music automatically to a maximum of 6 half-steps sharp or flat.  This is a huge help when the wedding soloist can’t quite get the high notes!

 

The organ now has full MIDI compatibility, including both the ability to play electronic synthesizers and keyboards from the organ keyboards, and the ability to actually play the organ from an electronic keyboard.  This function is useful for providing occasional non-organ sounds (for instance, a harp on Christmas Eve), and for integrating the pipe organ into more contemporary music.  In some cases, the organist must provide accompaniments for songs that do not sound appropriate with traditional organ sounds.  In these cases, MIDI can allow these non-traditional sounds to be used.

 

The new console also has record/playback capability.  This feature allows the organist to pre-record selections and to play them back on the pipe organ at a later time.  This is not audio recording; the system actually plays the pipes!  This can be useful in situations when the organist must be away from the console (or even on vacation).  It is also helpful as a practice tool, allowing the opportunity for the organist to listen to a selection from the pew.

 

Reynolds Associates is honored to have the opportunity to work with the First United Methodist congregation, and to create a modern, versatile, and more distinguished sounding pipe organ from their old instrument.  Their investment in their original pipe organ, made almost fifty years ago, is fully preserved, and will continue to be a blessing for worshippers for generations to come.

 

Hear Martin Ellis in a rededicatory recital on this organ on Sunday, May 4, at 3:00 pm.  See below for more details.

 

 

       

Organ Historical Society National Convention - 2007!

 

What a summer it was!

The National Convention of the Organ Historical Society was held in Indianapolis in July, and the nearly 300 attendees from across the United States got a real taste of Hoosier Hospitality and got to hear some wonderful sounds from many historic pipe organs in Central Indiana.

Since several of our instruments figured prominently in this event, I can only report on those events.  While most of the attendees were attending demonstrations and recitals, we were busy making sure the instruments in our care were in perfect condition for the world-class recitalists who performed on them.

The convention opened with a breathtaking concert at Broadway United Methodist Church, featuring the Broadway Festival Chorus and Orchestra under the direction of Jack Fox, with our good friend Christopher Schroeder at the console of the Reynolds III/54 organ.  The concert was a tour de force, featuring the Rheinberger Mass, and the Widor 6th Symphony, arranged by the composer for organ with orchestra.  The performance was stunning!  You can hear portions of this program HERE.

A major effort for us was the project to make the historic 1892 Sanborn organ at the Old Centrum (Central Avenue Methodist Church) play after many years of silence.  This instrument (picture above around 1910), which we hope one day to completely restore, revealed itself to have a very sweet and elegant voice, reminiscent of the quiet dignity of older days.  Dr. Charles Manning played a demonstration on the organ to a rapt and fascinated audience.  The organ is not restored - only perhaps resuscitated.  Dr. Manning worked around a number of mechanical problems to deliver a performance that revealed how vital it is to save this wonderful and eloquent piece of history!

Dr. Carol Williams, famed organist on the great Spreckels organ in San Diego's Balboa Park, played an amazing concert on the IV/76 Kimball-Reynolds organ at North United Methodist Church.  Dr. Williams, a proud native of Wales, is a great virtuoso, and also a very appealing performer.  Her amazing musicality and technical prowess is complemented by a warm, witty personality.  The day following her recital, Dr. Williams produced a short video of the organ at North.

 

The convention closed with a very unusual and thrilling program that will long be remembered by everyone who heard it.

Ken Cowan played a brilliant recital on the IV/66 Kimball organ (restored by Reynolds Associates in 1999) at Zion Evangelical Church in Indianapolis.  That Ken played brilliantly on this magnificent instrument is no surprise.  His virtuosity is legendary, and is matched by an appealing personality and stage presence.  This time, though, Ken had a secret weapon - his wife!

Lisa Shihoten is one of America's leading violinists.  Like her husband, she is also a warm and delightful person.  Ken and Lisa joined forces to bring us a concert of music for violin and organ.  Lisa's commanding musical presence was every bit a match for the mighty Kimball, and in fact, the colors of this great organ were a perfect match to the magnificent sonority of the violin. 

One memorable selection in the concert, the "Fuge, Kanzone, and Epilogue" by Sigfird Karg-Elert, began as an organ solo.  In the second half of the piece, though, a violin was heard coming from inside the organ chamber, soon joined by four lovely women's voices also coming from inside the organ.  The effect of this piece was stunning, and, at the conclusion of the piece, the performers were greeted by an enthusiastic standing ovation.

There were other great performances that I had to miss during this busy time.  But to all who planned, supported, and participated in the 2007 OHS National Convention, THANK YOU for a great experience!

 

Upcoming Concert Information.

 

Martin Ellis.  First United Methodist Church.  99 South Central Avenue, Somerset, KY.  Sunday, May 4, 2008.  3:00 p.m.. (See article above).

         

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