Grace and Holy Trinity Episcopal Church
Richmond, VA - Rebuilt by Lewis & Hitchcock
Dr. Beth Melcher Winger, Director of Music
Photographs:
The Holy Trinity building, built in 1895, contained a mechanical-action Hook & Hastings organ. When Holy Trinity and Grace church merged in 1924, Hook & Hastings enlarged the organ, using their new electro-pneumatic action to operate the existing windchests. The original Holy Trinity console was attached on the left side; the new console was detached on the right side. The organ had an abundance of unison tone. Perhaps the most unusual thing about the organ was that the very rare Hook & Hastings orchestral flute stop existed in both the main organ and in the Echo division. These pipes were made without traditional mouths; a tube conveyed wind from the toe to a hole in the side of the pipe, so they could be blown just like an orchestral flute.
Evidently the original windchests had problems, so that by the time of World War II, the organ needed to be rebuilt. The Tellers firm of Erie, Pennsylvania was very active in Richmond at this time, having rebuilt the organ in the Catholic Cathedral, so they were given the contract to rebuild and enlarge the organ. The console shell was retained, and most of the pipes, but all the manual windchests were replaced with the Tellers ventil windchests, and more stops were added, again mainly unison and solo stops.
By the 1970s the ventil chests and the console were beginning to show their age. Some repairs were made, but the dream of the churchs long-time Organist/Choirmaster, Tom Griffin, was for a new organ. This became reality in 1979, with the installation of the new Austin organ. The Hook & Hastings was sold, except for a few stops that were retained, such as the Pedal 16 Open Wood, and the Antiphonal Gedeckt, Viole, Octave and Pedal Bourdon and Diapason.
After the initial installation, additions were made through the years, such as the Trompette en Chamade in the back, and additional stops derived from existing resources in the main organ. The console was also converted from electro-mechanical combination action to solid-state. However, the work was entrusted to different firms at different times, each using the type of action they preferred. The result was a confusing array of devices that sometimes were not fully compatible. In addition there was metal fatigue in the largest reed pipes of the organ, the 32 Bombarde. Something needed to be done.
Our recommendation was to convert the organ to one system of operation, so that everything would be compatible. The console was removed to our factory, where it was fitted with a new system designed by the Peterson Electro-Musical Company of Chicago, Illinois. We recommended this system because of the simplicity of operation, and the reliability of the components, as well as the support available from the company. A matching system was installed in the organ chamber. All the information is sent from the console over an Ethernet cable. This data stream can be manipulated by a Transposer or recorded by a Sequencer.
Each organist has a data bank available to keep combinations, which may be locked. Crescendos and Full Organ settings may be revised to suit the music. As the system is software-based, it can be updated.
Austin Organ: #2638, 1979
Great Organ
1.
16 Geigen
73 pipes
2.
8' Principal
61 pipes
8 Geigen
from #1
3.
8 Bourdon
61 pipes
4.
4 Octave
61 pipes
5.
4 Nachthorn
61 pipes
6.
2 Super Octave
61 pipes
7.
1 1/3 Fourniture IV
244 pipes
8.
½ Cymbal III
183 pipes
9.
16 Fagot
61 pipes
10.
8 Trumpet
61 pipes
4 Clarion
from #46
16' Swell to Great
8' Swell to Great
4' Swell to Great
8' Positiv to Great
16 Antiphonal to Great
8 Antiphonal to Great
4 Antiphonal to Great
8' Great Unison Off
8 Trompette en Chamade
from #38
Chimes
Swell
11.
16 Gedeckt bass
73 pipes
8 Rohr Gedeckt
from #11
12.
8 Viola Pomposa
61 pipes
13.
8 Viola Celeste tc
49 pipes
14.
8 Flauto Dolce
61 pipes
15.
8 Flute Celeste tc
49 pipes
16.
4 Principal
61 pipes
17.
4 Wald Flute
61 pipes
18.
2 Block Flute
61 pipes
19.
2 2/3 Sesquialtera II tc
98 pipes
20.
2 Plein Jeu IV
244 pipes
21.
16 Basson
61 pipes
22.
8 Trompette
61 pipes
8 Oboe
from #21
23.
8 Vox Humana
61 pipes
24.
4 Clarion
61 pipes
Tremolo
16' Swell to Swell
8' Swell Unison Off
4' Swell to Swell
8 Positiv to Swell
Positiv
16 Geigen
from #1
8 Geigen
from #1
25.
8 Holz Gedeckt
61 pipes
26.
4 Principal
61 pipes
27.
4 Koppel Flute
61 pipes
28.
2 Octave Principal
61 pipes
29.
1 1/3 Quint Principal
61 pipes
30.
1 Sifflute
61 pipes
31.
1/3 Zimbel III
183 pipes
32.
8 Rohr Schalmei
61 pipes
Tremolo
8 Trompette en Chamade
from #38
8 Positiv Unison Off
8 Great to Positiv
8 Swell to Positiv
8 Antiphonal to Positiv
Antiphonal
8 Diapason
from #s 35 & 40
33.
8 Gedeckt
56 pipes, H&H
34.
8 Viole
56 pipes, H&H
35.
4 Octave
56 pipes, H&H
36.
1 1/3 Mixture III
168 pipes
16 Antiphonal to Antiphonal
4 Antiphonal to Antiphonal
Antiphonal Unison Off
8 Great to Antiphonal
8 Swell to Antiphonal
8 Positiv to Antiphonal
Solo
8 Vox Humana
from #23
37.
8 Festival Trumpet
61 pipes
8 Bombarde
from #46
16 Trompette en Chamade
from #38
38.
8 Trompette en Chamade
56 pipes
4 Trompette en Chamade
from #38
Pedal
39.
16 Bourdon Antiphonal
32 pipes, H&H
40.
8 Diapason Antiphonal
32 pipes, H&H
Zimbalstern F
Zimbalstern P
Blank
Blank
32 Resultant
from #41
41.
16 Open Diapason
32 pipes, wood, H&H
42.
16 Principal
44 pipes
43.
16 Subbass
32 pipes
16 Geigen
from #1
16 Gedeckt Bass
from #11
10 2/3 Geigen Quint
from #1
8 Octave
from #42
8 Geigen
from #1
8 Gedeckt
from #11
44.
4 Choral Bass
32 pipes
4 Nachthorn
from #5
45.
2 2/3 Mixture IV
128 pipes
46.
32 Contra Bombarde
68 pipes
16 Bombarde
from #46
16 Basson
from #21
8 Bombarde
from #46
8 Basson
from #21
4 Bombarde Clarion1
from #46
4 Basson
from #21
4 Fagot
from #9
8' Great to Pedal
Peterson ICS-4000 system
8' Swell to Pedal
Main control panel for all functions
4' Swell to Pedal
MIDI data filer (sequencer) for MIDI and
8' Positiv to Pedal
all data functions
4' Positiv to Pedal
SET key/lock
8 Antiphonal to Pedal
Pistons
Under Antiphonal:
Tutti, Antiphonal/Solo 1-4
Under Swell:
General 1-5, Sw/Ped, Sw 1-8, General 11-12
Under Great:
General 6-10, Gt/Ped, Gt 1-8, 32 Res, 32 Bomb
Under Choir:
Pos/Ped, Pos 1-8, General Cancel
Toe Movements
Left:
Center:
Right:
32 R, 32 B
Sw/P, Z, Tutti
General 1-5
Sw/Cresc
Gt/Ped, Pedal 1-4
General 6-10
shoes
Pos/Ped, Pedal 5-8