Richards, Fowkes & Co. Opus 17 The Episcopal Church of the Transfiguration Dallas, Texas
The Organ Story The story of a major organ for the Episcopal Church of the Transfiguration, in Dallas, Texas, dates back over 40 years, to a formative time in the parish’s history. A dream was being inspired in the people of the young congregation to build a church structure on top of the hill at Spring Valley and Hillcrest Roads, then buildings on either side to house the entire life of the community. The History of the Parish
The Episcopal Church of the Transfiguration was founded on Holy Cross Day, September 14, 1956. The first permanent church building was built and dedicated in 1961 on Spring Valley Road, just a short distance southwest of the present campus. After devastating damage by the flooding of White Rock Creek on September 21, 1964, the parish made plans to move to higher ground. Construction of the present Tau Cross (T-shaped) church was begun in March 1969 and the first service was held in the church on Easter Day, March 29, 1970. Along with the new church building seating just over 500 persons, in nave, transepts and gallery, was a plan for a glorious pipe organ to fill the new space with sound and to lead the growing congregation’s song. A contract for such an instrument was drawn up between the church and the Æolian-Skinner Organ Company of Boston, Massachusetts for a large 3-manual electro-pneumatic action organ, similar in scope and placement to the firm’s instrument built for Southern Methodist University’s Caruth Auditorium in 1965. The engineers at Æolian-Skinner and architects of the church designed a raised “shelf” in the back of the gallery to house the organ with lighting and mechanical equipment placed in an enclosure below. Unfortunately, economic conditions would prevent expenditures for the church and for the planned organ. Thus provisions were drawn up for a much different instrument.
The Æolian-Skinner/Robert L. Sipe Organ
Robert L. Sipe, an early pioneer of mechanical-action (“tracker”) organs, and resident of Dallas, became a Vice President of Æolian-Skinner in the late 1960s. At the end of 1969, a two-manual and pedal organ of 13 stops (17 ranks) was contracted with the firm as its Opus 1525 with Mr. Sipe as the tonal director. This instrument was given to the parish by Bob and B. L. Wylie. An “interim” organ – it was intended to be moved to a chapel to be built at a later date – it was positioned at the very front of the gallery in order to provide the greatest leadership for congregational singing, and turned at a slight angle in order that the organist could also direct the choir. Its bright, clear sounds were very much inspired by the “Organ Reform Movement,” a reaction to the heaviness of late 19th and early 20th century romantic and symphonic organs. Among the distinguished organists to perform recitals on this instrument have been Luigi Tagliavini (for the 1972 National AGO Convention), Marie-Claire Alain, Dong-ill Shin, winner of the 20th Grand Prix de Chartres International Organ Competition in 2006, and James David Christie, the first American to win the International Organ Competition in Bruges, Belgium, in 1979, who later would play the dedicatory recitals for Richards, Fowkes & Co.’s Opus 17. Transfiguration would wait nearly 40 years for the dream for a permanent organ designed for the church to be fulfilled.
Fulfilling the Vision The Rev’d Jerry D. Godwin, Rector of Transfiguration since 2000, called Joel Martinson as the parish’s second Director of Music and Organist in the spring of 2004, succeeding Howard E. Ross, who had served in that position for 39 years. Together they assembled an Organ Committee to begin work toward fulfilling the dream of a new organ. Meeting first on July 1, 2004, Fr. Godwin, charged the committee to choose “a notable organ by a builder not already represented in the Dallas area.” It is important to note that when a church undertakes an organ project, the result is an instrument for use by that parish, but also a gift to the greater community: to organists in the region, college and university organ students, and music lovers. The Committee’s task was a profound one. Over the course of a few meetings, the committee decided that most “notable” instruments normally had at least three manuals and pedals (four “divisions”) and at least 40 stops, in order that each division had a full chorus (set of principals and a mixture) and a variety of flutes and reeds. They also decided, in part because of the durability of the Æolian-Skinner/Sipe, to pursue a builder skilled in the art of mechanical-action organs. A list of accomplished organbuilders who had not yet built in the area was compiled and studied. Even during the time of the search, two Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex institutions signed contracts for new organs, eliminating their chosen firms from consideration. The Committee listened to commercial recordings of organs by builders on the list, then George Gilliam, Jonathan Maedche and Joel Martinson made two trips – one to Minnesota and another to the Northeast – to play six organs by four builders. George made recordings of organ literature, choral accompaniments and hymns that Jonathan and Joel played on each instrument. These were later played for the Organ Committee, and two finalists were chosen, both whom had ties to John Brombaugh, a builder greatly influenced by the historic organs of North Germany and the Netherlands.
A third prospective finalist, also with Brombaugh ties, had just received a large contract, and took themselves out of the running. Both of the remaining finalists had made overtures to other national schools and eras in their building styles, such as including some French reeds, 19th century strings, and an effective Swell division under expression (in which the volume of sound coming out is controlled by wooden shutters). The committee also knew that an organ, like a work of art, becomes “notable” after the fact. However, the best chance of enabling this kind of instrument was securing a firm with a proven track record of excellence and consistency, which was a hallmark of these two firms and was supported by the many phone interviews the committee conducted with leading organists in the United States. In Dallas, there was no organ directly influenced by John Brombaugh or the significant number of small organ shops owned by those who once worked with him or were influenced by him, including Ralph Richards and Bruce Fowkes. An American master organ builder who apprenticed with and was a close colleague of Fritz Noack and Charles Fisk, Brombaugh was known for his historically-oriented mechanical-action (“tracker”) instruments. His contributions to modern organ building include using solid wood instead of plywood, employing fine architectural concepts and details for case designs, making pipes out of hammered metal, and voicing of the pipes to achieve the tonal beauty common in organs prior to and during J. S. Bach’s lifetime. Brombaugh is also known for the first use worldwide of the high lead content pipe metal alloy, such as was found in the work of Hendrik Niehoff in 16th century northwestern Europe, for his Opus 19 at Central Lutheran Church in Eugene, Oregon. The dedicatory recital played by Harold Vogel in 1976, and a subsequent recital by David Boe of Oberlin Conservatory on this organ, greatly inspired Joel Martinson, and his own time playing this instrument as a teenager would forever change his view of organs and organ-playing. The Organ Committee interviewed two builders and ultimately chose Richards, Fowkes & Co. as the company to create the new instrument for the church. Chief among the reasons for the decision were that Ralph Richards and Bruce Fowkes were both organists, were Episcopalians, and understood what an organ needed to accomplish in supporting the rich liturgical worship tradition of The Episcopal Church. Also, there was an over-riding belief among the committee that the visual look of the organs they designed were unique creations and complemented the spaces in which they were placed to a much greater extent than their competitors.
Richards, Fowkes & Co. Richards, Fowkes & Co. was founded by Ralph Richards and Bruce Fowkes in 1988 in Ooltewah, Tennessee, now a part of Chattanooga. They take as their primary inspiration 18th century German and Dutch organs, particularly the organs of Arp Schnitger (1648-1719) of Hamburg. He was the most important organ builder in Northern Germany and the Netherlands and took organ building there to its zenith. Richards, Fowkes builds on this centuries-long tradition of innovation. Our goal is “not to recreate organs of the past, but to create uniquely American organs,” says Bruce Fowkes, “Opus 17 is really Northern European in character, in that it also has influences from France. Our musical goal is the spirit of the 18th century: well-blended sounds, fresh and lively, with each stop being individually interesting and beautiful on its own, but the sum combining into something much greater that its parts.” In the 18th century, the harmonic range of the organ outpaced even orchestras. A court orchestra only consisted of 30 instruments, and a typical organ of the period outnumbered that with many more stops. Also, the organ can play one octave lower than an orchestra and two octaves higher. The most important mission of the organs built in North and Eastern Germany and The Netherlands from the 17th through the early 19th centuries was to accompany the singing of the congregation. This was especially true in the Lutheran regions where the chorales (hymns) were sung with great gusto, in the spirit of Martin Luther’s support of music in worship, in contrast with the other major reformers. Luther said, “Music is the art of the prophets and the gift of God.” These organs sing, and, because of this, support all vocalists – from soloist, to choir, to full congregation – in a way no other style of organ or national school has ever achieved. They also are highly successful with instrumentalists, in supporting roles and as equal partners. Thus, the organ is the perfect instrument to accompany glorious voices singing to God. It can simultaneously provide a musical foundation below the vocal register, support the vocal register, and increase brightness above the vocal register. The political and cultural changes of that time also led to increased wealth for burghers, middle class citizens of the towns. This development resulted in a flourishing of musical innovation and community pride in the organs they were able to build for their churches. Organ builders in Northern Germany and The Netherlands developed more variety of flutes and reeds than predominantly Roman Catholic countries. Glorious sounds and sights were not restricted to the royal courts or the Catholic Church but flourished in parish churches where they were revered as the great human accomplishments of skill and labor, as well as gifts to the glory of God.
The Design of Opus 17 The new instrument for Transfiguration takes advantage of a rear gallery placement, the best position for an organ, allowing the organ to speak over the choir and directly down through the nave to the transepts. The case is the most ambitious ever built by Richards, Fowkes & Co. Patterned after the organs of Albertus Antonius Hinsz (1704-1785), it is finished in bold red faux wood with trompe l’oeil garlands of fig leaves and fruit (a play on the parish’s name) and the front pipes are made of burnished 90% tin. There are 32 carvings or “pipe shades” of basswood (or linden) on the face of the organ, and a faux bas-relief painting by Cass Holly fills the center of the Positive division, traditionally a place for a carving of King David with harp or some other saint. In the Organ Committee’s interview with Bruce Fowkes he spoke of his belief that an organ case should be a visual work of art commensurate with the aural art produced by the instrument. A beautiful, rich case portends a beautiful rich, sound. “I want this organ to look as beautiful as it sounds and to truly be a tribute to God.” The color red was chosen to contrast with the overwhelming brown color of the nave: bricks, wooden pews, and ceiling. It is one of the two most striking colors used in the Transfiguration Triptych and altar, the other being the color blue. The presence of the triptych (dedicated in 1987) and altar in the front of the church, to visually inspire the people at worship, and the organ in the back to inspire the worshippers aurally, is a very traditional idea dating back to the Medieval period and carried through the Baroque era. An organ, such as the design of Opus 17, was seen as a balance to the altar and the religious images above it, an “ante-altar,” as it were. There has been much written recently about the symbolism of this organ design, its many levels, towers and enclosures being a visual representation of the City of God. Compare the organ case to the look of Medieval castles and fortified towns. The altar is the central focus of the liturgical life of the parish church, and the organ reminds us of the larger kingdom of God which we see as we leave worship to serve God in the world. This action is depicted even further in these two magnificent works of art at Transfiguration: one sees the glorification of the transfigured Christ in the triptych with the dove descending upon him, while the painting in the center of the organ shows two cherubs lifting “high the Cross” as a flying dove leads them heavenward. The height of the gallery enabled the organ to be designed in three stories. The Great division is positioned in the center of the third level, with the Swell directly behind it in an enclosed box. The Positive speaks from below on the second level, and in closer proximity to the choir, with the Pedal division housed in the two side towers. On the
lowest level, behind the keydesk and pedals, are three wedge-shaped bellows which provide wind for the organ, much of the wind trunk system, the electronic circuit boards for the stop and combination action, and the 12 wooden pipes of the bottom octave of the 32’ Posaune. Four 16’ stops on the manuals and three more independent 16’ stops in the Pedal division give the organ ‘gravitas’ commensurate with the imposing case. There are 47 stops (68 ranks) on 3 manuals and pedal of which twenty-five percent of the stops are reed pipes. Included are several unusual stops: the Hohlflöte 8’ in the Positive (open tapered wood pipes after similar stops of Arp Schnitger in Hamburg and Norden) and the Vox humana 8’, also in the Positive, based on similar stops by Christiaan Müller (1690-1763) and Hinsz. A “rank” is one set of pipes for each of the 58 notes of the manual keys or 30 notes of the pedal. A “stop” can be one pipe per note or a combination of pipes per note to create a specific sound, the latter being denoted by Roman numerals on a stoplist. Most of the pipes are made from various combinations of tin and lead with slight trace elements found in historic organs. These imperfections are actually part of the secret to the historic, timeless sounds produced by the Richards, Fowkes & Co. instruments. Some pipes in the organ are wooden and are made of poplar. All pipes are hand-made, and cut to pitch. Although 75-percent of the pipes are flue pipes, which function somewhat like a whistle, the remaining 25-percent are reed pipes. These pipes have brass reeds which vibrate against metal plates. The reed’s vibrations are coupled to metal or wood resonators which amplify their sound. The trumpet stops and other imitative solo stops are reeds. Most organs in the United States are made in a factory and the pipes are voiced there, as well, with some attention on-site once the instrument has been installed in its home. Opus 17 is the work of approximately 33,000 hours by skilled and dedicated craftsmen – designers, engineers, carpenters, woodworkers, metal makers, pipemakers, painters, and voicers. On this organ, each of the 3,261 pipes was pre-voiced in the shop, then finely-voiced in Transfiguration’s gallery to speak as envisioned in the church. The manual and pedal key action is the historically-proven mechanical system, whereby the key is directly linked to the “pallet” (or valve) in the windchest by a series of strips of wood called “trackers.” This allows the organist to directly control the speech of the pipe by the attack and release of the key which affects how the air enters the pipe. The stop action is electric, with a truly 21st century, state of the art combination system, in order that the organist can program thousands of stop combinations, assisting greatly in the performance of literature from the 19th century onward, as well as hymns and service music.
Preparing for the New Organ Plans for the new organ necessitated a complete redesign of the gallery, which was the only part of the church untouched since it was built in 1970. Noisy lighting equipment and HVAC blower needed to be moved out of the space, and new access to the choir area engineered, to clear the back platform for the organ. Several acoustical studies were made, and Dawn R. Schuette, AIA, LEED AP of Threshold Acoustics LLC of Chicago was hired as the consultant for improvements to the church, as well as to work with the architectural firm on the music areas of the new Church Life Center South. Casual observers had noticed over the years that, though the church building had good height (57’) and no carpeting, there was a lack of reverberation and, more importantly, poor bass frequency response which provides the warm acoustical environment needed for human voices and organs. Three treatments were undertaken. Mass was added to the ceiling in the last three bays of the church – one over the organ, another over the choir, and the final one transitioning from gallery to nave. Three sets of panels on both sides of the nave were installed, consisting of two thick layers of sheetrock covered with the same wood as the ceiling. As with the mass added to the ceiling, each layer was screwed and glued together to provide a hard surface. The effect of this was to extend the rectangular “box” of the upper portion of the nave down toward the congregation, giving the room enough flat surface height to allow bass voices and the bass of the organ to be heard as well as other frequencies. This defeated the affect of the corbelled (stepped) brick walls which had diffused the sound and made it difficult for a singer in the congregation to get their voice up to the point where it would roll around and be heard with others. The third change was to close off and harden all surfaces in the gallery which had previously been open or were made of thin materials. In order to allow for these renovations, the Æolian-Skinner/Sipe Organ was moved to the South transept over a period of two weeks in January 2008 by a crew of parishioners under the leadership of George Gilliam. The gallery was demolished the following June, and the changes mentioned above were made throughout the summer and fall, with the first use of the completed gallery and new riser configuration being on Christmas Eve 2008. News of an impending, substantial bequest came to the parish leadership in 2004 and became the impetus for the new organ project. Gifts just prior to Christmas of the same year to the existing organ fund allowed for the contract to be signed with Richards, Fowkes & Co. in January 2005. A Jubilee Capital Campaign was launched in April 2006 to fund the organ, the South building of
the Church Life Center, renovations to the nave, and an endowment for Outreach. The parish celebrated its 50th anniversary in September of the same year with an address by Bishop Desmond Tutu and a festival service at the Eisemann Center in Richardson. A Buy a Pipe! campaign was begun in December 2007 in order to enable everyone from children through adults to participate directly in the organ project and to help close the gap left between donations to the Capital Campaign and cost of the building projects. This funding for the organ will continue in perpetuity, in order to allow for parishioners and others to honor and memorialize their friends and loved ones and to continue to participate in the building of the instrument.
Transfiguration Organ Committee
The Rev’d Jerry D. Godwin, Rector Joel Martinson, Director of Music & Organist Robert Doyna Jonathan Maedche Hollye Fisk Pat Shaughnessy George Gilliam Lindsey Young Ted Hole Linda Zrubek Patty Horsley Robbi Dietrich, Ex Officio Senior Wardens
Mike Minchew (2005-6) Deb Boopsingh (2007) Allen Rudy (2008) Jim Luke (2009) Nancy Clagett (2010)
Receiving Opus 17 On Sunday evening, July 12, 2009, a large semi-trailer arrived from Ooltewah with the delivery of the case, windchests, bellows and keydesk of the organ. On Monday, July 13, over 150 volunteers and Richards, Fowkes & Co. shop members helped unload and begin assembly of the organ and feed the workers. “ODE” day – “Organ Delivery Event” – concluded with a brief service of thanksgiving in the gallery and celebratory dinner. The case was assembled and ready for the delivery of the façade pipes and others on July 20. Another crew from the parish helped unload the truck and the tin pipes were taken to the Performance Hall to have their mouths gilded. Voicing began in early August, and the first use of the new organ was on Transfiguration’s Feast of Title transferred to Sunday, August 9. Throughout the fall and winter more deliveries were made and voicing continued. The organ was used every Sunday during the voicing period in order to give voicers Bruce Fowkes, Patrick Fischer, and Ryan Albashian the opportunity to hear the organ’s interaction with congregational and choral singing and literature played in the space filled with people. Volunteers from the parish continued to assist Richards, Fowkes shop members whenever needed, and the Sunday worshippers eagerly awaited each new sound that came from the organ. Voicing was completed in time for the Dedication of the Organ at the 11:15 a.m. service on Sunday, April 18, 2010, and two sold-out recitals were performed by James David Christie at 3:00 and 7:00 p.m. later in the day. Opus 17 represents the vision and commitment of so many people over the course of Transfiguration’s history, especially in the years from 2004 to 2010: the leadership of the Rev’d Jerry D. Godwin and his staff, members of the Organ Committee, the artists and craftsmen of Richards, Fowkes & Co., donors to the Jubilee Capital Campaign and Buy a Pipe! program, and the overwhelming support of parish volunteers who worked on the project. “I am proud of what we have accomplished together,” stated Director of Music Joel Martinson. “If I am blessed to play on and compose new works for this organ for the next twenty years, I will continue to be inspired by the balance, the beautiful stops, and the range. Organs in the baroque period, were like the medieval cathedrals, in that they were the greatest things that could be built by human hands. They were a tribute to the Glory of God as well as a vehicle for God’s people to participate in the liturgy by joining their voices to the heavenly chorus.” This new organ, designed to fill the gallery, nave and transepts of the church with magnificent sounds and colors – supporting congregational singing, Anglican
choral repertoire and the rich diversity of organ literature from all countries and eras – is on par with these instruments of old. It is a tribute to the love and care of the people of Transfiguration for the rich tradition of liturgy and music used in our worship of the Triune God, and will transport us, even transfigure us, to be “people of the God we bless.”
Richards, Fowkes & Co. Ooltewah, Tennessee www.richardsfowkes.com
Shop Members During Construction of Opus 17
Ralph Richards Bruce Fowkes Trent Buhr Patrick Fischer Brian Miscio Nathan Perry
David Schroth, Jr. Patrick Spiesser Dean Wilson Andrew Wishart Jesse Mozzini, Accountant
Assisted by
Ryan Albashian John Brown Mark Ellsworth Anton Fleissner Karla Fowkes Pipe Gilders
Marylou Davis Phyl Kerrigan Marcy Lindstrom
Keaton Fowkes Cass Holly Marcy Lindstrom Anthony Miscio Richard Schulze
Richards, Fowkes & Co. Opus 17, 2010 Great 16’ 8’ 8’ 8’ 4’ 4’ 3’ 2’ 11⁄3’ 16’ 8’
Swell 8’ 8’ 8’ 4’ 4’ 3’ 2’ 13⁄5’ 2’ 16’ 8’ 8’
Principal Octave Gedackt Spitzflöte Octave Rohrflöte Quint Octave Cornet V Mixture VI Trompet Trompet
Rohrflöte Salicional Celeste Principal Flöte Nasard Waldflöte Terz Mixture IV Fagott Trompet Oboe
Couplers
Pos/Gt Sw/Gt Sw/Pos
Sw/Ped Pos/Ped Gt/Ped
Positive 16’ 8’ 8’ 8’ 4’ 4’ 2’ 11⁄3’ 1’ 8’ 8’ 4’
Pedal
16’ 16’ 8’ 8’ 4’ 2’ 32’ 16’ 8’ 4’
Quintadena Principal Hohlflöte Flöte doux Octave Spitzflöte Octave Sesquialtera II Larigot Scharff V Dulcian Vox humana Schalmey Principal Subbass Octave Spitzflöte Octave Mixture V Posaune Posaune Trompet Trompet
Accessories
Cimbelstern (6 bells) Vogelgesang (“bird song”) Tremulant Wind Stabilizer Off
Notes
• 47 stops, 68 ranks, 3,261 pipes • Windpressure is 73 mm (27⁄8”) water column • Three Wedge Bellows • Temperament is Neidhardt for a Small City 1732 • Mechanical Key Action (Suspended) • Electric Stop Action • 60 Memory Levels • 15 General Pistons • 10 General Toe Studs (#s 6-15) • 8 Divisional Pistons (on Swell, Positive and Great) • 5 Divisional Toe Studs for Pedal • Piston Reversibles for Sw/Ped & Gt/Ped • Pedal Toe Stud Reversibles for all Pedal Couplers • Piston Sequencer, Forward and Reverse Pistons, and Toe Studs
14115 Hillcrest Road | Dallas, Texas 75254 www.transfiguration.net