"Phantoms of the Organ" Halloween bash

[Oklahoma Wolf]

Originally Posted by bentoronto

Pretty good for a big organ.

Heh - about a week before I saw it, I toured the Boardwalk Hall organs in Atlantic City. Canada's largest sort of had some of the intimidation factor taken off after that.

We were in Boardwalk Hall for three hours, and still only saw about half of the Midmer-Losh. It just goes on and on and on. Of course, part of that three hours was getting stuck in the freight elevator for 30 minutes...

[bentoronto]

I have recordings of several of the organs that are the "world's largest."

If I recall, the Atlantic City and some others are impressive in their own large ways but as far as musical enjoyment with 10 sec reverb times, they are best for enduring classics such as the pokey "Sheep may safety graze..."

For big sound, the greatest big sound I am aware of is the Aeolian-Skinner in St. John the Divine, worlds largest stone gothic church, they claim. There is a stop called "the state trumpeter" with pipes horizontal under the rose window at the far (west) end. On stuff like Jeremiah Clark's march, no sound like it as the wave works its way down the hall. God knows how to play it with that kind of delay to the console.

In Toronto, the organ at Yorkminster Baptist is the King for reeds and the show-off French literature.

[Oklahoma Wolf]

Actually, reverb time wasn't that bad at Boardwalk Hall - it's had a lot of work done on that issue. I'd say it's around 5 seconds. The seating is quite a bit different than when the last recordings of the organ were done... it's in a tiered horseshoe shape now which has an effect on reverb. Of course, the Midmer-Losh may be louder now too, the way they've got the seating.



I didn't get to hear it while I was there to say for sure what effect the reverb has on the organ. The whole swell division was missing, out for restoration, so they wouldn't fire it up. It was cool standing in the half empty stage left chamber looking up and up and up at the distant ceiling.



The real surprise was that the organ was in much better shape than I was expecting. I was dreading the sight of crushed and mangled pipes, but didn't see much of that. Just a lot of dust from not getting any attention over the years.

I have Michael Murray's recording at St. John. That trumpet stop is magnificent. I need to see that organ in person too.

[bentoronto]

Last night, another fun dress-up Halloween organ event. I've attached the program. We sat mid-hall (quite good but couldn't see the clowning on stage as well). Measured around 92 dBC at loudest.

Biggest organ in Canada, they claim. Since the manuals are electrically connected, they moved the keyboard to centre of the church front. Maybe next year I'll get some pictures.

The special treat is that they try to put the most thundering organ music with the most and lowest pedals on the program. So a Halloween treat as well as an audiophile treat.

BTW, those variations on Amor Satis Est by Paul Ayres is "All you need is love..." by the Feb Four. Audience loved it and laughed a lot.

My "take away message" is still the same: you can set up a similar fun Halloween organ bash in your town too.

Ben