Vol. 19, No. 30 |
May 10, 2000 |
Installation of new custom pipe organ begins in Sharp Hall
| Traffic was a bit more congested than usual at the intersection of Elkton Road and Delaware Avenue on Monday morning, May 8, as vehicles from Lake City, Iowa, arrived to deliver a new custom-built pipe organ to Bayard Sharp Hall. The organ, donated to the University by Edward and Naomi Jefferson of Greenville, was built by Dobson Pipe Organ Builders Ltd. When its installation is finished, the University's restoration of this historic Newark building, which formerly housed St. Thomas Episcopal Church, will be complete.
Several University faculty, staff and students were on hand when the organ arrived to assist with the unloading. According to David Herman, music department chairperson and professional organist, helping transport the organ's 34,000 individual pieces from the vehicles into the former church is a tradition when new organs are delivered. Since a large number of organs are associated with churches,"Herman explained, John Clayton, University development, was one of the earliest volunteers to arrive. "I'm a pipe organ enthusiast," he said. "And, when David put out a call for help, I responded. I've dreamed of having a pipe organ on this campus for years, and it's finally happened." Herman, who has performed in concert on pipe organs throughout the U.S. and abroad, said this will be the first new pipe organ he's ever played on his life. "We're very excited," Herman added. "This will give us the opportunity for students and professional programs that we have never had the ability to do before. We're planning a recital series that will feature the organ itself and other concerts featuring the organ with other instruments." He said the organ will be used by faculty and students for the new minor in church music studies. UD's organ is the 74th new instrument created by the Dobson company, which currently is designing an organ for the Philadelphia Regional Performing Arts Center. This is the first Dobson instrument to be installed in Delaware. It has 18 stops, 22 ranks and 1,234 pipes and will be erected in the Gothic Revival-style building's balcony. Lynn Dobson, president and artistic director of the firm, visited Bayard Sharp Hall in January 1998, to prepare for the instrument's construction. He also was present at the unloading. "As with all our instruments," Dobson said, "the available space is of course, an important factor in a given organ's design. However, first and foremost, one must learn about the instrument's intended function. What type of music does the organ need to be able to play and how will the instrument be used. The answers to these questions drive the entire design, and, in some situations, even the placement of the organ. "With the placement of this particular instrument, the load-bearing capacity of the balcony was looked into to ensure that it could support the weight of the organ. Also, the architectural details and acoustics of the room were scrutinized so that the organ could be physically proportioned to the room's size and the pipes 'scaled' for the planned acoustics. When dealing with the restoration of an historic building, coloration and case design is planned carefully to compliment the interior space.
The physical installation takes from two to four weeks, and at the end of the that period, "voicers" arrive to complete what is called the tonal finishing. This process takes several additional weeks, as each pipe of the organ is carefully adjusted to suit the acoustics of the room. "Although installations are carefully planned," Dean Zenor, Dobson projects manager, said, When the organ is completed, Zenor, said, "There is a door or panel on the organ that each of us signs as a permanent record of the pride we take in our work. I don't know many firms that do this." The 1,234 pipes in the Jefferson Organ include some constructed of wood and others of a lead/tin alloy. The main organ case is constructed of white oak with a fumed, oiled and lacquered finish with polychrome and gold leaf accents. The case, or façade pipes, are made of burnished tin. The organ's case design has many English characteristics, such as the console being on the side of the case rather than in front, and it relies on the architecture of the building as inspiration for many of its details. The Jefferson Organ was constructed by 19 craftspersons taking more than 6,500 hours at the Dobson shop in Iowa, before the installation and tonal finishing on the campus. There are approximately 34,000 individual pieces in the organ, with the largest component weighing about 300 lbs. The total instrument weight is approximately 10,000 lbs. The smallest pipe is less than 1/2" long and the largest pipe is 16' long. The total length of the mechanical keying action is about 1,400 linear feet, or 1/4 mile and encompasses about 8,500 pieces. About the builder Dobson Pipe Organ Builders Ltd. was established in 1974. The company's skilled craftspersons are internationally recognized as leaders in the art of building fine mechanical-action or "tracker" pipe organs. Each instrument is individually designed, crafted and assembled in Lake City, then dismantled and reassembled at its final destination. The firm's organs have been installed in churches, universities and concert halls across the United States. Stunning casework, beautiful sounds and meticulous attention to detail are the hallmarks of the firm. --Ed Okonowicz |
congregations often assist in the unloading as part of a church social and community event. He said he decided to offer the same opportunity to members of the music department student body and others in the campus community.
"This organ has been designed primarily for its use as a teaching and recital instrument," Dobson said. "It is capable of accommodating a generous amount of organ literature and is particularly well-suited for use with small instrumental ensembles. The intimacy of Bayard Sharp Hall and the organ's location require that the organ produce a warm, rich tone that invites the ear of the listener."
"on occasion, a part is inadvertently left behind or some unforeseen circumstance necessitates a new part being made and shipped to the job site. Most of the time, however, installations are uneventful and proceed as anticipated."