File: aeolian-skinner.mother-church.boston.us.1952 Date: Mon, 3 Apr 1995 00:01:06 -0700 From: Timothy Tikker Subject: Spex: CS Mother Church, Boston Extension of the Mother Church of Christ, Scientist, Boston, MA organ by Aeolian-Skinner, opus 1203, built January 1951 - September 1952; design by Lawrence Phelps * = from old organ (Hook & Hastings op. 2107, 1906/1929) first, original stoplist, then comments on subsequent changes: 8 divisions on 4 manuals & pedal; 61/32 compass; electro-pneumatic action; 235 ranks; 13,389 pipes GREAT (II, 4" wind) pipes: 32' Quintade 61 16' Geigenprincipal 61* 16' Bourdon 61* 8' Principal 61 8' Holzfloete 61* 5 1/3' Quinte 61 4' Prestant 61 4' Flute ouverte 61* 3 1/5' Tierce 61 2 2/3' Full Mixture IV 244 1 1/3' Scharf IV 244 2 2/3' Cornet IV-VI 309 Chimes --(SO) HAUPTWERK (II, 3" wind) 16' Quintadena 61 8' Prinzipal 61 8' Spitzfloete 61 8' Bordun 61 4' Oktav 61 4' Spitzfloete 61 4' Kleingedeckt 61 2 2/3' Quinte 61 2' Superoktav 61 2' Blockfloete 61 1 1/3' Quinte 61 2' Mixtur IV-VI 287 1' Scharf IV-VII 318 2 2/3' Sesquialtera II 122 16' Rankett 61 8' Trompette 61 POSITIV (I, 2.5" wind) 8' Gedeckt 61 8' Quintadena 61 8' Viola da gamba 61 4' Prinzipal 61 4' Koppelfloete 61 2 2/3' Nasat 61 2' Oktav 61 2' Waldfloete 61 1 3/5' Terz 61 1 1/3' Larigot 61 1' Oktav 61 1' Scharf IV-VII 337 1/4' Zimbal III 183 8' Cornet V 305 16' Dulzian 61 8' Krummhorn 61 4' Schalmei 61 CHOIR (I, expressive, 4" wind) 16' Dulciana 68 8' Concert Flute 68* 8' Lieblichgedeckt 68 8' Viola 68 8' Viola celeste 68 8' Dulciana 68 8' Unda Maris 56 (tenor C) 4' Flauto traverso 68* 4' Lieblichfloete 68 4' Viola 68 4' Kleine Erzaehler II 136 2' Zauberfloete 61 4' Carillon III 183 2 2/3' Sesquialtera II 122 16' Bassoon 68 8' Clarinet 68* 4' Trompette 68 Tremulant 8' Tuba 68 (15" wind) 8' French Horn --(SO) 8' English Horn --(SO) 8' Corno di Bassetto --(SO) Reed Tremulant (SO) Chimes --(SO) Harp --(SO) SWELL (III, expressive, 5" wind) 16' Gemshorn 68 8' Diapason 68 8' Flute harmonique 68 8' Rohrfloete 68 8' Flute dolce 68 8' Flute celeste 68 8' Viole de gambe 68 8' Viole celeste 68 8' Echo Viole 68 8' Echo Viole celeste 68 4' Octave 68 4' Nachthorn 68 4' Gemshorn 68 2 2/3' Nazard 61 2' Doublette 61 2' Spillfloete 61 2 2/3' Sesquialtera III 183 2 2/3' Plein jeu VI 366 1 1/3' Fourniture IV 244 2/3' Cymbale IV 244 32' Kontrafagott 68 16' Bombarde 68 8' Trompette 68 8' Oboe 68 8' Vox humana 68 5 1/3' Quinte Trompette 68 4' Clairon 68 Tremulant BOMBARDE (IV, 4" wind) 8'+ 4' Principal II 122 (8' Rohrgedeckt, 4' Principal) 2 2/3' Grande Fourniture VI 366 2' Harmonics VIII-VI 478 1/2' Scharf III 183 8' Cornet V 305 16' Bombarde 61 8' Trompette 61 4' Clairon 61 SOLO (IV, expressive, 5" wind) 16' Viola 68* 8' Principal 68* 8' Doppelfloete 68* 8' Gedeckt 68* 8' Orchestral Strings II 136 8' Dolcan celeste II 136 8' Kleine Erzaehler II 136 4' Prestant 68* 4' Orchestral Flute 68* 4' Zauberfloete 68 4' Viole celeste II 136 2' Flautino 61* 2 2/3' Plein jeu IV 244* 8' Harmonia Aetheria III-V 269* Tremulant 8' French Horn 68 (10" wind) 8' English Horn 68 (10" wind) 8' Corno di Bassetto 68 (10" wind) 8' Vox humana 68* Reed Tremulant Chimes 25 bells Harp 37 bars PEDAL (4" wind) 32' Contrebasse 44 (5" wind) 32' Quintade --(GT) 16' Principal 32* (5" wind) 16' Contrebasse --(fr 32') 16' Geigenprincipal --(GT) 16' Bourdon 44* (5" wind) 16' Quintadena --(HW) 16' Violon 32 16' Gemshorn --(SW) 16' Dulciana --(CH) 10 2/3' Grossquinte 32 8' Principal 32 8' Spitzprincipal 32 8' Bourdon --(fr 16') 8' Gedacktpommer 32 8' Viole de gambe 32* 8' Gemshorn --(SW 16') 8' Dulciana --(CH 16') 6 2/5' Grossterz 32 5 1/3' Quinte 32 4' Choralbass 32 4' Koppelfloete 32 4' Spitzfloete 32 4' Gemshorn --(SW 16') 4' Dulciana --(CH 16') 2' Nachthorn 32 5 1/3' Fourniture IV 128 4' Mixtur III 96 1 1/3' Scharf IV 128 10 2/3' Grande Cornet V 96 (draws 10 2/3', 6 2/5') 3 1/5' Cornet IV 128 32' Contrebombarde 44 (8", 6" wind) 32' Kontrafagott --(SW) 16' Ophicleide 32 (10" wind) 16' Bombarde --(from 32') 16' Fagott --(SW 32') 16' Bassoon --(CH) 16' Rankett --(HW) 8' Trompette 32 (5" wind) 8' Trumpet 32 (5" wind) 8' Chalumeau 32 8' Fagott --(SW 32') 4' Clarion 32 (5" wind) 4' Octave Trumpet 32 (5" wind) 4' Rohrschalmei 32 4' Oboe --(SW 32') 2' Kornett 32 Chimes --(SO) Subsequent changes: now 237 ranks; 13,595 pipes tonal revisions completed April 1979 by J. H. Steinkampf Jr. (reeds) and Jason C. McKown (flues) GT: 5 1/3' & 3 1/5' combined as Gross Sesquialtera II, Chimes borrow eliminated; two drawknobs thus available for added 8' Trompette & 4' Clairon, said to be moved from elsewhere in the organ (but where?); 4' Prestant and Full Mixture IV revoiced HW: new 16' Contrafagotto replaced 16' Rankett POS: 8' Quintadena, Viola da gamba, 4' Prinzipal, 2' Oktave, 1' Oktav, Scharf & Zimbel revoiced CH: 8' Gemshorn celeste II and 16' Rankett (ex-HW) added; 8' Tuba revoiced; also: Vibraphone (for SO Harp, probably), and borrow of SO Cor des Anges (see below); 4' Carillon III removed SW: Plein jeu VI, Cymbale IV, 4' Clairon revoiced BOM: Principal II revoiced SO: Added 2 2/3' Rohrnasat, 8' Trompette, 8' Cor des anges, 2/5' Jeu de Clochette II, Zimbelstern (6 bells), Vibraphone; revoiced Plein jeu IV (now 2'), French Horn, English Horn, Corno di Bassetto; removed Harmonia Aetheria; NB: stoplist also includes 8' Viola - original? PED: second 32' called "Untersatz" - new? Added 16'/8' Lieblichbourdon unit, removed 4' Dulciana borrow; revoiced 8' viole de gambe, 4' Spitzfloete, 2' Nachthorn, Fourniture, Mixtur, Scharf, 32/16 Bombarde, 16' Ophicleide, 8' Trompette, 8' Trumpet, 4' Clarion, 4' Octave Trumpet ------------------------------ Version 2: file: Date: Thu, 30 Nov 1995 11:28:31 -0500 From: James Lokken Subject: Re: Double Swell & double Great The Aeolian-Skinner in the Extension of the Mother Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, has both a Hauptwerk and a Great. It was designed by Lawrence I. Phelps and G. Donald Harrison. As completed in 1952, it looked like this: Hauptwerk Great Quintadena 16' Quintade 32' Prinzipal 8' Geigen Prinzipal 16' Bordun 8' Bourdon 16' Spitzflote 8' Principal 8' Oktav 4' Holzflote 8' Kleingedeckt 4' Quinte 5 1/3' Spitzflote 4' Prestant 4' Quinte 2 2/3' Flute Ouverte 4' Superoktav 2' Tierce 3 1/5' Blockflote 2' Full Mixture IV Quinte 1 1/3' Scharf IV Sesquialtera II Cornet IV-VI Mixture IV-VI Chimes (from Solo) Scharf IV-VII Rankett 16' Trompete 8' The eight divisions have 13,389 pipes. It's roughly the same size as the Aeolian-Skinner organs in Riverside Church and the Mormon Tabernacle. Hear it on Volume IX of the King of the Instruments series of LPs produced by Aeolian-Skinner, on which Ruth Barrett Phelps (who I think was married to Lawrence I. Phelps) plays Buxtehude, Bach, Franck, Purvis, Widor and Brahms. I'm puzzled by posts castigating G. Donald Harrison for supposedly turning romantic organs into neo-baroque screamers. Mother Church, Riverside, Mormon Tabernacle, et al. are as romantic as anything I've heard. It seems to me he didn't so much take away the romantic sounds as adding to them principal choruses and mixtures that enabled them to play contrapuntal music with some degree of clarity and authenticity. When the concept was supported with ample funding, the result was an enormous smorgasbord of sounds. GDH defends his own views quite well in his lecture on Volume I of "King of the Instruments." Particularly telling are his examples of Bach passages played on an Aeolian-Skinner Principal and the same music on a 1915 Phonon Diapason. The thick, opaque, heavy sound of the latter is obviously not suited to contrapuntal music. Someone remarked about the organ in the Mother Church, Boston, that Lawrence Phelps had boasted that the 32' Quintade on the Great was so well voiced that the Little G Minor Fugue could be played on this stop alone! (Perhaps. But why would you want to?) It seems to me that the classic/romantic organ debate turns on what kind of music is to be played. E. M. Skinner and G. Donald Harrison fought for decades over this, but both were right. The beautiful orchestral sounds of an E. M. Skinner need no apology, nor do the eclectic choruses of GDH's work. They were designed for different musical tastes. Jim Lokken ------------------------------