new church life: september/october 2014
On August 3, a semi-trailer full of organ parts pulled into the Cathedral
parking lot. Since then, the Kegg Pipe Organ Company has been working long
hours to install this large instrument in the Cathedral. This follows a year of
work restoring the 1920s pipes, reservoirs and wind chests in Kegg’s shop in
Ohio, as well as constructing several new ranks.
During the installation, we at the Cathedral have had a chance to see firsthand how an organ is assembled. Our instrument has 3,230 pipes, divided into
46 ranks. Each rank is an instrument type of its own, a set of pipes made out of
different materials and to a different design than the others. There are whistlelike square and triangular wooden pipes, alongside metal pipes of varying
shapes and alloys. Another type of pipe is the “reed,” which has a metal tongue
inside that vibrates like the reed of a clarinet. The largest pipe is the low C of
the 32’ Bourdon, and the smallest is the size of a pencil. The former is much
more difficult to install than the latter!
To control volume, the pipes are enclosed in rooms with shutters on the
front. The organist can open or close the shutters to make the pipes sound
louder or softer. After the largest pipes were in place in the façade and against
the back wall, one of the first steps in building the organ was to construct these
rooms.
Next, the ductwork was put into place, bringing air up from the blower
in the basement and distributing it to the wind chests that make up the floors
of these rooms. Only then could the smaller pipes themselves be put in place.
Fine tuning an organ is a lengthy and delicate process, and is expected to
take the month of September. We may start hearing it in services in October,
but it will first be heard to full effect at the Dedication Service to take place
on the evening of Friday, November 21. If you are able to be in Bryn Athyn
that night, you are warmly invited to join us as we hear this new and historic
instrument begin its life in service to the church.
(See photos of the installation on page 463. You can also view a full
collection of photos on the Bryn Athyn Cathedral Facebook page.)
academy secondary schools
Jeremy Irwin, Sue Odhner — Principals
As of this writing in mid-August, the Academy of the New Church Secondary
Schools expects to start the 2014-15 academic year with 100 students in the
Girls School and 130 students in the Boys School, for a total of 230. The school
year started with 204 students in 2012 and 224 students in 2013.
The bulk of the staff remains the same, but there are a few changes. Cory
Boyce is taking a leave of absence to teach abroad in Italy. Although he will be
sorely missed, we are all very happy that he is able to experience this wonderful
470