Contrabass Digest

2000-09-27

Date: Tue, 26 Sep 2000 20:59:51 -0700
From: "Timothy J. Tikker"
Subject: Re: [CB] Mother Church of CS, Boston

List Server wrote:

> Date: Tue, 22 Aug 2000 23:22:14 +0000
> From: Lawrence de Martin <
> Subject: Re: [CB] [Contra Digest]
>
> I thought someone on the list previously mentioned that the Christian Science Mother Church in
> Boston has a 64' rank.  My aunt said it was still in service, although she has never played it.
>
> Larry de Martin
>
> From: Opusnandy
> Date: Wed, 23 Aug 2000 11:35:13 EDT
> Subject: Re: [CB] [Contra Digest]
>
> >I thought someone on the list previously mentioned that the Christian
> Science Mother Church in Boston has a 64' rank.
>
> That was I who said that.  A tour guide at the church told me it was a "64
> foot pipe".  I don't know if she ment speaking rank, diaphone, actual pipe
> length, or if she even knew the difference.  All I know is that the center
> pipe was the most gigantic I have ever seen in person.  Another list member
> replied that this was incorrect and that it was only a 32 foot pipe.  My
> visual guess would have been that it was bigger than that, but who knows if I
> can judge that acurately.  32 feet is still big!
>
> Jon Carreira

I've studied the stoplist of this organ for years, and just saw it again in the booklet for this
year's national convention of the Organ Historical Society, which was held in Boston.

This organ, built 1951-52 by Aeolian-Skinner of Boston and designed by Lawrence Phelps, originally
had 235 ranks, including four at 32' pitch, none at 64'.  Two of these were manual stops, a Great
Quintaten and Swell Kontrafagott.  The former was stopped, so only 16'-length.  Kontrafagott stops
are sometimes made half-length;  however, I'm told that the same stop on the A-S organ at the
Mormon Tabernacle in Salt Lake City is full-length, so this one may be too.  The Pedal 32's were a
Contrebasse and Contrebombarde, both full-length.

The organ has undergone changes in recent years, culminating in a recent restoration supervised by
Phelps, shortly before his recent death.  From the OHS program book I saw the the Great 32' is no
more, having been replaced with an 8' Harmonic Flute.  But there was still no 64' stop.  Frankly,
Phelps is the sort who I would imagine to have frowned upon such a thing, as his preference was
for bright, light-toned organs.

- Tim Tikker

***End of Contrabass Digest***

 
Next Digest ->
Previous Digest <-
Index
Top