THE DIAPASON AN INTERNATIONAL MONTHLY DEVOTED TO THE ORGAN, THE HARPSICHORD AND CHURCH MUSIC Sixty-Filth 1'l!'ar, No. 12 - W hQle No. 780 NOVEMBER. 1974 The 1877 Johnson Organ in St. Mary's Church, Boston by Thomas Murray son patented a design for shallots which tury French music as well. Pro£. Mel· the reader may examine in the line ville Smith was extremely fond of the drawing submitted to the U.S. Patent organ, and (prior to his recording $CS' Ornce. In deSCribing his design. John· sions at Mannoutier, for which he was son wrote: awarded the Grand Prix du Disque) made tape recordings of c10lssical The object of my invention u to produce French repertoire on this organ. from ~·pipes sreakr openneu and ,ono,.... Although Johnson sent large organs itT of tone than hal heretCli fore ~en pouible to Chicago. Albany. Bu((alo and other from pipes of ordinary corutruction, owins "western" (in the 19th centu!), view) 10 an undue contl1lction of the air panase cities. the contract for St . Mary s repre· between the wind.gpening under the ~rd and. the lop of the lube. sented the only opponunity he e\er had Cafe ha, not bHn lillten in the COI! \lnK· to place a large organ in Bouon, a city don 01 .uch pipes to Jean: a sufficiently in which organs of the highest calibre: Irft egTUll fruDl the esc:hllllot lor the lOund had been produced by E. &. G. G, Hook ,"'avo crcated by the vibratlonl of the reed; and other makers since the 1820', . We bU1. on the contrary. the It!chatlot. Dr tube shaH therefore not be far wrong in as· against which the reed i. lecured and vi· suming that the Johnsons (William H . bratn. has senerally been constructed of a 10hn5On, 50n of the founder of the busi· less diameler at or nur its junctlon with lIess, had joined his father in partner. the main tube of the pipe in the block than ship in IBiI) spared no eHort tn mak· that at its base. I have found by experiment that by con· iug this organ an extraordinary "show· 'tructing the cscballot 01 It Indually·in­ casc" of their talents. making it aU the creasing diameter from it. lower end to its more regrettable that the splendid junction with tbe lower end of the tube in building (or which it was cOllce,,:ed the block. and by baving the taper of the must now give way to a housing com· tube Ilnd eschallot correspond, or very nearly plex. Nevertheless, with a serious de· 10, from base to top. that I obtain Il l~tlT cline in the congregation and the in· Abo"e: Facad. of the .rlan. improved tone, one entirely free from the tentions o( the Archdiocese to eliminate usual cramped or confined .ound which is what is to them a burden50me facility. prodllced from pipes 01 the old corutruction. demolition is now certain. Parties who wish to make serious in· In this organ. three registers (Como· quiries concerning the relocation of this Left: Original Johnson namepla'. now In pean, Trumpet. Trombone) are made organ may writel:r. Frederick Bailey, the coU'-dion of Alan Laufman. according to this plan. The brilliance of Rector. Church of 51. MaT)' of the Sac· these stops. enhanc~d as it is by a "ery red Heart. Endicott Olnd Thatcher resonant building, can only be described Sirects. Doston. Massachusetts. 02113, or by the mudl·abused adjcctive - breath· write the author of this article. Thomas After ncarly :I. century of usc, St (!) The addition of an Echo dh'Ision in taking, Because of the amwngly Mary's Church in Boston is coming the chancel with its own wind supply. Murray, Organist, Cath~dral Church o( "French" sound of these registers and St. Paul, 138 Tremont Street, Boston, down. The loss of this familiar Jesuit (4) The provision of an an~l~tnc the richn~M of foundation tone, I Ch05e MassadlU5enS, 02111. church and its parish school (closed in (Austin) console with OCL3\'e and sub. this instrument for recording the Trois 1973) will be greatly regretted by many octa"e couplers, combination pistom CllOrau of C~r Frnnck. but it should in Boston's north end. It will also be and other accessories common to mod· be noted that others have admired tlle regretted by musici:ms who remember em consoles. organ for its ability to handle 18th cen· (See slo-JJlisl on p. 3) the acoustical properties of the banel­ The slider windchests are 'till in usc \'autted "al'e and the distinctive sound and in their original positions: the of one: of Boston's most interesting or­ Great at the front of the case, just gans. 1II'. 1,a.. ,o. above the feet of the fronl pipes, with r.Ul).ruu " .. nurt. The: organ W3.J completed in October. a generous space for a walkboard in J : lU 173 , ,.10. 10 . J r;. :a 11 11, 1877 - the opus 499 of 'Villiam A. the middle, l,e" between Lhe smallest MIXTURE COMPOSITIONS Johnson &: Son in Westfield. Mass. Al­ treble pipes. The unenclosed Choir though there were two or three John­ chest is behind the Great and on the son organs slightly larger in size. the same le\'el; the Swl'11 is above the Choir, Great Mixture IV organ in St. Mary's W;lS certainly one of but extends somcwhOlt O\'er the Great. their largest, and by far the largest The Pedal chest for registen #42 1-24 19 22 26 29 sUn'iving today. \Vith the demolition of through #47 are di\'ided on a e,ide and 25-42 12 15 19 22 the church proposed for spring, 1975, a C#-s:ide. flanking the Great. All of the bowc:\'c:r, the: (uture of the organ is un­ chests and pipcwork fit behind tI,e 43-48 8 12 15 19 cert:lin. large center section of the c:ue. 49-61 1 812 15 The stoplist (quoted exactly all it was U most visiton find it difficult to printed in Johnson's brochure on the admire the casc design, they are none­ organ) r~mams today as it was originally theless enthusiastic about the $DUnm Great Mixture III except for these minor changes, all of which emanate from it. The Great Dia· 1-24 12 15 19 which were carrkd out some 45 yean pason Chorus is truly exciting. John. ago when the aclion was milde electro­ son's "Spitz[Joctc" is actually :1 tapered 25-61 8 12 15 pneumatic by \"illiam Laws. Diapason. This stop, the Octave and (I) The uniting of "divided" stops into Mixture IV above it combine in a tight. one register (nos. 14 &: 15 in the swell: Ir·knit sound of remarbble brilUance. Swell Mixture III nos. 31 &: 82 in the choir), Of the flute stops. one organ builder 1-24 15 19 22 (2) The extension of the pedal 16' who recently v!Sited the instrument Double Open Diapason to plily ill 8' commented. "Not since the Oude Kerk 25-61 8 12 15 and 4' pitches. As the original Double in t\mstcrdam ha\'e I heard such ele· Diapason pipes were always on their gant sounds." own chest against the rear wall of the TIle family of tone which indisput. Swell Mixture II gallery, the addition of two more oc­ ably marks the organ as unique, how· 1-12 19 22 laves on an electric action chat was a ever, is the reed departmenL Earlier In simple matter. the same year the organ was built, John. , 13-61 12 15 Staying to the Finish THE DIAPASON &Iablish.d In 1909 In the April. 1974 issue of the CHRISTIAN HERALD, there is an interesting An International Monthl, Devo,ed ,h« Orlan, item for organists on page 20. Frederick W. Cropp wrote a small piece entitled '0 "The Music \Ve Seldom Hear." In it, he bemoans the fact that few church gaers the Harpsichord and Church Mwic ever listen to the postlude played by their organist. As one organist told Mr. Cropp. "So far as 1 am conccnu.'ll. the postlude is my one chance to play to the NOVEMBER. 1974 EdHa, glory of God. To judge from the exit rush, he is the only one who might possibly ROIERT SCHUN.MAN be paying any attention." Mr. Cropp goes on to relate his experience while ,'isiting a suburban church in the Washington, D.C. area (we know yia the grapevine that it was Bradley Hills DOROTHY ROSER Presbyterian Church, Hctlu.-sda. Md., where Donald S. Sutherland is organist). At litis particular church. there is a note in the bulletin at the bottom of the page: The 1&17 Jotm.OD. 0Iqan in St. Mary'. APi.'an' Eclltor Church. Bolton WESlEY VOl "TI1e congregation will remain seated until the postlude enw." Mr. Cropp dl.... by Thomas Murray I, a scribed tI1e experience: "Remain seated we did. children, parents. young and old, Cartl,i&uti"1' falto ... all of us worshipers listened as the postlude seemed to catch up all tI1C morning's The Orqaa Concerto Arrangements of LARRY 'ALMEI moving experience as a kind of reprise, and then sent us out as we should be Johann Gotl&l.d Walther - 'art I Harpsichord sent away, refreshed. amI eager to take what had happened to us in that hour br Scuah Eo Hcmb 5-8 and put it to work in the world." He was olwiously moved enough to recommend VICTOR WEIlER the experience to a large national readership of the magazine.