Some Assembly Required
If you’ve peeked through the doors at Woodward-Dellis lately (and you shouldn’t, because the signs say “please don’t enter�), you might think we’ve landed a military contract with all the long tubes lying around like cannon barrels waiting to be fitted. Actually, if you'll forgive the play on words, these are meant for canons not cannons.
The Hardin-Simmons School of Music and Fine Arts has just received a rare Moeller 28 rank pipe organ which, when fully assembled, will fill Woodward-Dellis Recital Hall with richly textured tones that only an instrument of the finest quality can deliver. The works of Bach, Widor, Saint-Saens, and Frescobaldi will have to wait a while, though; since the new instrument now only fills the recital hall with a bewildering array of pipes, plumbing, electronics, and well, things that will just have to remain a mystery to mere mortals like me.
The organ, given to HSU by Dr. Burton Patterson, is a completely reworked Moeller from the early 1950’s. The assembly of such an instrument is a vast and complex undertaking. Nevertheless, master organ builder Tom Cotner is already at work on the instrument and estimates a completion date of 6-8 weeks.
Smaller than the Logsdon organ, the Moeller is a perfect match for Woodward-Dellis. The organ will be used as a teaching instrument, practice instrument, solo performance instrument, accompanying instrument for choirs, ensembles, and solos with organ accompaniment.
Mr. Lawson Hager, dean of the School of Music and Fine Arts, says the new addition will enhance the appeal of the HSU organ program by offering a selection of instruments with varying capabilities, “We are extremely excited to have such an instrument in our recital hall. It will definitely enhance the performance opportunities in the hall. It is wonderful that a man, who really doesn’t have any close ties to HSU but knew of our music heritage, was so gracious to give such a wonderful gift.�
A dedicatory program will be scheduled when installation is complete. Once the organ is assembled, it must become acclimated to its new home, be tuned several times, and be voiced for the recital hall. We’ll bring you more on the new pipe organ as assembly proceeds. For now, the organ-in-a-box is strewn (but carefully strewn, with each part marked for a specific location) across the entire stage, floor, and seating area of Woodward-Dellis. I guess the computer stand I put together last weekend wasn’t so difficult after all.
1 Comment
Matthew Irish writes:
Thanks so much for posting this blog! I would have never known, or seen, what was going on. I'm very bummed that I can't come to Homecoming this year due to my work, so I will be relying on this blog for updates on things! Please keep it up, and I promise to tell all of my HSU friends about it.
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