Worthington, OH
3/36 Muller-Schantz
1975/2009
Great Division
Click on the photo to get a larger image
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A unique characteristic of this organ is the set of pipes mounted on the front of the choir loft. Usually this is a division of pipes all its own called either the Positiv or Antiphonal. However on this organ these pipes are part of the Great division. |
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Here's
a top down view of the pipes seen in the above photo. These are some of
the smallest pipes in this division, which also means that they are
some of the hardest to keep in tune. Rank names from top to bottom: III
Fourniture, 2' Super Octave, 8' Gedeckt (wood pipes), 4' Wald Flute, 4' Octave, 8'
Principal. These pipes, when combined with the pipes in the chamber, create a unique quasi-stereo sound when listening in the choir loft. |
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Here's a view of the larger pipes in this part of the organ. The black stop knobs in the wood pipes double the fundamental pitch of the pipe. So a 2' long pipe will sound as if it was a 4' long pipe. This view also gives some perspective how high the pipes are above the floor. |
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Here's a closer look at some of the pipes of the 8' Principal rank located in the chamber opening facing the middle of the choir loft. The division, rank name, and pitch are stamped on the pipe for easy identification. |
| Below: Photos of some of the facade pipes in the 8' Principal rank. As noted above, these pipes face towards the center of the choir loft. From the outside it appears that all pipes speak, but a few dummy pipes have been inserted in order to make the pipe work look symetrical. This also creates an odd arrangement for the organist whereby the pipes for this rank are speaking from three different locations within the organ. | |
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| Below
are photos of the 8' Tromba rank. The name "tromba" implies that the
sound of this rank is meant to be a mixture of a trumpet and a tuba.
The trumpet can be too brassy, and the tuba can be too powerful, so the
Tromba takes a little edge off of both sounds to come up with a
compromise between the two. The bottom two photos show some of the details of the Tromba. The left photo shows the brass tuning slides on the pipes, and the right photo illustrates the flared construction of the pipes. The Tromba rank sits in the right chamber (when facing the rear of the church). |
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Speaking of trumpets, here is half of the regal 8' Trompette en Chamade rank flaring out towards the front of the church. Depending on the wind pressure, scaling, and acoustincs of the church, these can be really loud! Perfect for those occasions when someone of great distinction needs their own coronation march! Note that the smallest pipes do not have a bell on the end of them. The silver pipes behind the trumpets are dummy pipes placed to block the pipes and other equipment in the chamber from view down below. |
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