The organ’s more than 10,000 wood and metal pipes provided the soundtrack to some of the most memorable events in the history of Washington National Cathedral: the funerals of Presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower and George HW Bush, the visit of the Queen Elizabeth II, the 2019 World Cup of the Nationals. Win of the series, to name a few.
But feeding so much music took its toll on the organ, especially with pipes weighing more than 400 pounds. As the years passed, an important part of the instrument stopped working. On Wednesday, cathedral staff began the arduous process of removing the pipes so they can be restored and reinstalled, part of a $14.5 million, five-year project that officials hope will leave the organ sounding like new.
“Each flute will have a series of moving mechanical parts that have to work perfectly for that flute to function,” said Tom Sheehan, organist and associate director of music at the cathedral, noting that it was time for the instrument to be updated and replaced. “Over 10,000 pipes, literally tens and tens of thousands of moving parts; anything that moves mechanically will weaken and become out of adjustment over time.”
At 86, the organ “died a natural death,” said Kevin Eckstrom, director of public affairs at Washington National Cathedral.
Patrick Smith, deputy director of facilities and preservation at Washington National Cathedral, said it took several years to plan the organ renovation and the project has officially begun. this year. The grand organ was decommissioned in early January after the cathedral concluded its Christmas season. From there a scaffolding was built over the Great Choir of the cathedral.
Early Wednesday morning, about 20 workers on scaffolding dismantled pipes as the sun beamed through the cathedral’s glass windows. They used a hoist to transport pipes and wind boxes up to the main floor.
The pipes will be shipped to Connecticut and restored by a repair shop that has also restored organs for Duke University Chapel and Boston Symphony Hall. Transporting them will not be easy, since they have a wide range in length, width and weight. Of the more than 10,000 wooden and metal pipes, the organ’s largest pipe is nearly 18 feet long and weighs 442 pounds. One of the organ’s chests weighs even more, 495 pounds, making it the heaviest item transported.
Douglas McKeever, director of field operations for Foley-Baker, said the chest is the mouth of the organ. The organ pipes sit above the chest, which compresses the air passing through the pipe and produces the sound coming out of the organ.
Once the pipes are repaired, the organ will be reinstalled with key historical elements intact, as well as some new hand-made pieces. Preserving the history of the organ is an important factor in the renovation project, in addition to ensuring the safety of the instrument.
One goal of the renovation is to redirect sound from the pipes so it can reach as many of the cathedral’s audiences as possible, McKeever said. When Ernest M. Skinner and Son Organ Co. installed the organ in 1938, only one-third of the cathedral building seen now was built. As a result, the sound of the organ does not extend into the main body of the cathedral, where the people are sitting.
“We never had the opportunity to build an organ in this space in the finished cathedral building. Therefore, we are going to have that opportunity now and we have already developed a design that reflects the specific needs and characteristics, in terms of sound, of this building “Sheehan said.
Meanwhile, the cathedral is using a digital organ from Walker Technical Co. of Pennsylvania. The 70-speaker organ has been in use since the original organ was dismantled. Once the pipe organ is renovated, the digital organ will be kept as a practice instrument.
Sheehan said he is looking forward to the return of the pipe organ. While the digital organ has 70 speakers, it doesn’t match the sound of thousands of pipes.
Sheehan will have to wait a long time. The renovation is scheduled to be completed in 2029.
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