Not only is this an excellent tour, but can we all take a moment to appreciate Robin Côté's and Alex Ross's choice of literature which they played/recorded playing in the background? Brilliant arrangement for a large two manual.
I am stunned by a number of things about this instrument. In particular, the 16 ft. Violone seems to be a fabulous stop, which I hope will be repeated elsewhere. The belled reeds also seem to be an excellent feature. But this is all high-tech and state-of-the art: thanks to J-S mechanical action organs have really entered the 21st. century.
Hello Alex and thank you for the two wonderful videos that you have set on UA-cam. My question is a triple: Could you please talk a bit Bell reeds of the Recit ( are these after the French CC Hautbois)? The Mounted Cornet does it have flute pipes for the composition? And finally could you review the chorus mixture composition briefly (basically what style are these mixtures based on)? Thank you Ray Moderski, Philadelphia PA. (Any JS instruments in the Philadelphia area?).
Hi Ray, The Hautbois on the Récit has some basis on French 19th c. models (medium scales found in Pierre Chéron's book), though we determine the length of the bells differently. The shallots, however, are generally more closed than CC, for example, with a progressive opening in the tenor to help the transition from Basson to Hautbois. The Basson part is really more akin to 19th c. Canadian examples than French ones. The Clarinette also has bells and is a creation of our shop. Very large, conical shallots. The Cornet is in the French style: all flutes. The 8' is a chimney bourdon, and the rest are all wide-scaled open flutes. The composition of the Fourniture V (2') in the G.O. is like classical French models with the breaks falling on the F's. The lowest rank only comes on with the Montre 16'. The composiiton of the Plein-jeu IV (1') in the Récit has the breaks on the C's -- not particularly French this time. Despite some of theses classical elements, we also used quite a bit of slotting to give the sound more direction (though nowhere near as much nicking as 19th c. examples!), with a progressively smaller amount of overlength towards the trebles to keep the sound from being too nasal in the smaller pipes. No instruments near Philly yet. You would have to go up to Pelham, NY, or down to Richmond VA. to see the closest ones. Best, Alex.
Are the carbon fiber trackers at all elastic? I played a tracker organ back in the 80s that had what appeared to be fiberglass trackers that WERE elastic and it had a wierd feel to it.
Our testing showed them to be very INelastic. In fact, the organist has an amazing amount of control over the attack which adds a lot to the musical capacity of the instrument (though care must be taken to not have sloppy attacks and releases!)
Wonderful to see this great organ established just down the street from us in Wauwatosa. We cheer you on as we watch other liturgical churches move in the direction, sometimes completely, of praise bands. We're interested in the two manuals of the console which seems limiting for the size of such a great organ. Is cost the only factor involved or are there other reasons for such a limitation?
Thanks for the comment! There are a few factors at play that ultimately made a large two-manual more logical in this project. The mandate was to have an organ that was very strong in accompanying the congregation and choir, and repertoire was secondary. For us, this meant full choruses (based on a 16' Montre in the G.O.), many 16' and 8' stops, and a wide variety of colour stops. Going to three manuals necessitates more bread-and-butter stops at the expense of colour stops in the other divisions since there is simply no more space. To top it all off, adding another division would actually diminish the total number of stops possible since more space would need to be dedicated to windchests, bellows, wind trunks, and action.
Of course! As you go lower in the keyboard, the pipes become exponentially larger. This means that the wind consumption becomes exponentially larger, so the pallets must also become exponentially larger and therefore the keys would become exponentially heavier to play because a bigger pallet = more resistance to the wind pressure. One way around this is by setting some of the pipes in the first octave on a separate channel whose pallet is opened by an electromagnet so that the mechanical pallet can remain smaller and therefore lighter to play. The magnet needs an electrical switch in order to know when it has to play. One possibility would be to put a contact somewhere on the key, or on the action. The problem with this is that depending on potential changes with humidity, the calibration of the contact relative to when the mechanical pallet actually opens may change and the attack of the mechanical pallet and electric pallet may become unsynchronized. By using a pressure switch, you are guaranteed to have a synchronized attack regardless of how the action may change during the year. Of course, there is a microsecond delay between the two pallets, but it is so small it is not noticeable. In fact, the electromagnet is so fast that its pallet often arrives at its fully open position before the mechanical pallet does! Summary: It allows us to have a comfortable action in the bass while having multiple large stops, and guarantees a precise attack. Without this assistance, an organ with all these 16' and 8' stops would be very difficult to play in the bass (or the pipes would be underwinded).
Very high quality instrument. I've heard another organ by Juget-Sinclair and was very impressed by the quality and workmanship. Question: Is the tremolo operated by wind power or by electricity ?
Good question! It's a bit of both. When the tremolo is activated, an electromagnet opens a first pallet which admits a steady flow of wind into the concussion bellows on the side of the membrane that is normally exposed to the atmosphere. A second magnet controls a pallet that can close the opening of the concussion bellows to the atmosphere. When the pallet closes, the wind pressure on both sides of the membrane equalizes but the springs on the atmosphere side of the bellows plate are now able to push the plate down, causing a local rise in wind pressure. When the pallet opens, the wind pressure differential returns, the local pressure comes back down, and the springs come back into equilibrium with the wind pressure of the organ. The second pallet is controlled electronically, so we can change the frequency, amplitude, and waveform of the cycle to get the best result. With any other kind of tremolo, you have to shut off the concussion bellows temporarily anyway or else it will cancel out the trem: here we get a 2-in-1 unit in addition to the advantages mentioned in the video. So to answer your question in brief; the electronics control the parameters, but the wind and concussion bellows springs actually do the work. Hopefully that makes sense. It's difficult to describe without being able to open up the tremolo and show you.
Bonne question. Parce que cette vidéo a été ciblé tout d'abord pour les membres de l'église et la communauté d'orgue en Wisconsin. On a inclus les sous-titres en français qui sont disponible en cliquant sur CC en bas de l'écran à côté des paramètres.
Not only is this an excellent tour, but can we all take a moment to appreciate Robin Côté's and Alex Ross's choice of literature which they played/recorded playing in the background? Brilliant arrangement for a large two manual.
Beautiful organ. Love the slotted Montre’s!
Wonderful tour of a great instrument. Thank you people of Christ King!
I am stunned by a number of things about this instrument. In particular, the 16 ft. Violone seems to be a fabulous stop, which I hope will be repeated elsewhere. The belled reeds also seem to be an excellent feature. But this is all high-tech and state-of-the art: thanks to J-S mechanical action organs have really entered the 21st. century.
I'm looking forward to talking with all of you regarding the Cathedral organ in Fredericton, NB.
Hello Alex and thank you for the two wonderful videos that you have set on UA-cam. My question is a triple: Could you please talk a bit Bell reeds of the Recit ( are these after the French CC Hautbois)? The Mounted Cornet does it have flute pipes for the composition? And finally could you review the chorus mixture composition briefly (basically what style are these mixtures based on)? Thank you Ray Moderski, Philadelphia PA. (Any JS instruments in the Philadelphia area?).
Hi Ray,
The Hautbois on the Récit has some basis on French 19th c. models (medium scales found in Pierre Chéron's book), though we determine the length of the bells differently. The shallots, however, are generally more closed than CC, for example, with a progressive opening in the tenor to help the transition from Basson to Hautbois. The Basson part is really more akin to 19th c. Canadian examples than French ones.
The Clarinette also has bells and is a creation of our shop. Very large, conical shallots.
The Cornet is in the French style: all flutes. The 8' is a chimney bourdon, and the rest are all wide-scaled open flutes.
The composition of the Fourniture V (2') in the G.O. is like classical French models with the breaks falling on the F's. The lowest rank only comes on with the Montre 16'.
The composiiton of the Plein-jeu IV (1') in the Récit has the breaks on the C's -- not particularly French this time.
Despite some of theses classical elements, we also used quite a bit of slotting to give the sound more direction (though nowhere near as much nicking as 19th c. examples!), with a progressively smaller amount of overlength towards the trebles to keep the sound from being too nasal in the smaller pipes.
No instruments near Philly yet. You would have to go up to Pelham, NY, or down to Richmond VA. to see the closest ones.
Best,
Alex.
Are the carbon fiber trackers at all elastic? I played a tracker organ back in the 80s that had what appeared to be fiberglass trackers that WERE elastic and it had a wierd feel to it.
Our testing showed them to be very INelastic. In fact, the organist has an amazing amount of control over the attack which adds a lot to the musical capacity of the instrument (though care must be taken to not have sloppy attacks and releases!)
Wonderful to see this great organ established just down the street from us in Wauwatosa. We cheer you on as we watch other liturgical churches move in the direction, sometimes completely, of praise bands. We're interested in the two manuals of the console which seems limiting for the size of such a great organ. Is cost the only factor involved or are there other reasons for such a limitation?
Thanks for the comment! There are a few factors at play that ultimately made a large two-manual more logical in this project. The mandate was to have an organ that was very strong in accompanying the congregation and choir, and repertoire was secondary. For us, this meant full choruses (based on a 16' Montre in the G.O.), many 16' and 8' stops, and a wide variety of colour stops. Going to three manuals necessitates more bread-and-butter stops at the expense of colour stops in the other divisions since there is simply no more space. To top it all off, adding another division would actually diminish the total number of stops possible since more space would need to be dedicated to windchests, bellows, wind trunks, and action.
Thank you for this great tour!
12:18 Could you explain a little more the purpose/function of the pressure switches in the Recit?
Of course! As you go lower in the keyboard, the pipes become exponentially larger. This means that the wind consumption becomes exponentially larger, so the pallets must also become exponentially larger and therefore the keys would become exponentially heavier to play because a bigger pallet = more resistance to the wind pressure. One way around this is by setting some of the pipes in the first octave on a separate channel whose pallet is opened by an electromagnet so that the mechanical pallet can remain smaller and therefore lighter to play. The magnet needs an electrical switch in order to know when it has to play. One possibility would be to put a contact somewhere on the key, or on the action. The problem with this is that depending on potential changes with humidity, the calibration of the contact relative to when the mechanical pallet actually opens may change and the attack of the mechanical pallet and electric pallet may become unsynchronized. By using a pressure switch, you are guaranteed to have a synchronized attack regardless of how the action may change during the year. Of course, there is a microsecond delay between the two pallets, but it is so small it is not noticeable. In fact, the electromagnet is so fast that its pallet often arrives at its fully open position before the mechanical pallet does!
Summary: It allows us to have a comfortable action in the bass while having multiple large stops, and guarantees a precise attack. Without this assistance, an organ with all these 16' and 8' stops would be very difficult to play in the bass (or the pipes would be underwinded).
@@juget-sinclair Amazing! Thank you for that.
Very high quality instrument. I've heard another organ by Juget-Sinclair and was very impressed by the quality and workmanship. Question: Is the tremolo operated by wind power or by electricity ?
Good question! It's a bit of both. When the tremolo is activated, an electromagnet opens a first pallet which admits a steady flow of wind into the concussion bellows on the side of the membrane that is normally exposed to the atmosphere. A second magnet controls a pallet that can close the opening of the concussion bellows to the atmosphere. When the pallet closes, the wind pressure on both sides of the membrane equalizes but the springs on the atmosphere side of the bellows plate are now able to push the plate down, causing a local rise in wind pressure. When the pallet opens, the wind pressure differential returns, the local pressure comes back down, and the springs come back into equilibrium with the wind pressure of the organ.
The second pallet is controlled electronically, so we can change the frequency, amplitude, and waveform of the cycle to get the best result. With any other kind of tremolo, you have to shut off the concussion bellows temporarily anyway or else it will cancel out the trem: here we get a 2-in-1 unit in addition to the advantages mentioned in the video.
So to answer your question in brief; the electronics control the parameters, but the wind and concussion bellows springs actually do the work.
Hopefully that makes sense. It's difficult to describe without being able to open up the tremolo and show you.
@@juget-sinclair Thanks for your very complete answer !
Pourquoi en anglais de facto?
Bonne question. Parce que cette vidéo a été ciblé tout d'abord pour les membres de l'église et la communauté d'orgue en Wisconsin. On a inclus les sous-titres en français qui sont disponible en cliquant sur CC en bas de l'écran à côté des paramètres.