I thought that we should let you know that our pipe organ is operational and that our organist Bob G. is having to go up and down the balcony stairs less and less. Soon he will be accompanying and leading the congregational singing and choir anthems entirely from the front in the chancel area. Below is his article.

— Pastor Bob

Our New Pipe Organ Speaks for the First Time

On Sunday, May 15 our new pipe organ in the chancel was played and heard for the first time at both the 9:45am service and for the Choral Conductors Guild Festival in the afternoon.

The feedback from the congregation, choir, and other musicians present was overwhelming. The bright, clear, and strong tone of the organ led enthusiastic hymn singing, supported the 100+ voice festival choir, and made for rousing preludes and postludes.

While only about 20% of the organ is installed and playing, the first group of working pipes — known as the Great Division — is the backbone of the organ that supports congregational singing.

Going forward, our organ builder, Greg R., will install additional divisions of pipes that will provide flexibility and variety. In particular, soft, lush sounds will be added as pipes are migrated from the old organ in the rear to the new organ. We’ll also be installing woodwork to conceal the mechanisms on the hanging pipe chests and improve the aesthetics.

When our pipe organ is complete, I believe it will quickly become the most loved pipe organ in the south bay. Not the largest organ because there are two or three larger ones in the area. But the most loved for its beautiful sounds from the soft and delicate to the blaze of full organ.

Along the way, this will truly be a learning experience for all of us as we explore how to use this wonderful new resource. Please bear with us as we experiment, adapt, and refine our approach. Any feedback or comments you have will be greatly appreciated.

Thank you all for your generous support of the sanctuary and organ renovation project which has made this possible.

— Bob G.

With these major components in place, our organ builder Greg Rister can begin connecting the chests to the wind supply, connecting wiring, and putting pipes in place on the wind chests. Within the next few months we look forward to hearing the first sounds out of the new organ. We hope to have a “critical mass” of the organ working by the time the Choral Conductors Guild Festival is held in our sanctuary in May.

I’ll continue to provide updates as progress occurs. Please let me know if you have any questions or would be interested in helping to support completion of the new organ.

— Bob Grasier, Organist

Great 3 w Trumpet - Great wind chest at Greg Rister's shop with Trumpet being racked

Zephyr Blower - New 3 horsepower blower delivered to the church

Choir and Solo Windchests - New windchests for the Choir and Solo divisions delivered to the church still in crates

When complete, our new organ in the front will provide dynamic support for congregational hymn singing, choir anthems and service music. It will be able to create a wide range of emotional moods from contemplative and reflective to jubilant and rejoicing.

Our current pipe organ in the rear loft was factory-built in Maryland by a team of 100 workers over a period of six months. The organ was completely manufactured, set-up, rough voiced, and tested in the factory. It was then disassembled and shipped to our church where it was reinstalled and ready to play in a matter of weeks.

Our current organ building project is being handled by a small team of local craftsmen and all work is being done onsite in the church. We’re using a mix of components including:

• pipes re-used from our current organ
• pipes we’ve acquired “used”
• and new components ordered from manufacturers in the east including the new console and wind chests

Because the work will be done onsite the whole process will be visible to us — unlike our current organ which more or less showed up on our door step nearly ready to play one day 40 years ago.

With the sanctuary renovation complete and the two new organ chambers ready, we can now begin the work on the installation.

Anticipated timeline:

• The first visible element we’ll see is the new console which will be installed in the pit in the October time frame
• Throughout the fall, components will begin to arrive and we hope to have a portion of the organ playing by Christmas
• We estimate the total project will take 18 months to complete

About 75% of the organ project was funded through the sanctuary renovation campaign. To manage our budget, we held back 25% of the work for the future as additional funds and gifts become available.

Please feel free to contact me if you have questions about the project, would like a tour of the new chambers, or would like to make a gift towards the project.

Thank you all for your patience and support.
— Bob Grasier, Organist