Our Organ

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The organ was designed and built in 1975 by Casavant Frères of Canada. It was installed at Williamsburg (Virginia) Presbyterian Church, where it remained until 2004. At that time, under the guidance of Pastor Msgr. Paul Enke and Director of Music Julia Parker, St. Edward’s purchased the organ. A group of parishioners traveled to Virginia with representatives from Peebles-Herzog Organ Company of Columbus, dissembled the organ, and moved it to Ohio.  
 
In 2005, Peebles-Herzog installed the organ. The tracker distance between the key desk and the lower chest of pipes was increased by about seven feet. After installation, the 8’ Trompette stop in the Pedal was replaced by a deeper-sounding 16’ Fagott.
 
In 2014, under the supervision of Director of Music Susan Brattain, Halbert Gober revoiced the organ. Two stops (the 8’ Gedackt and 16’ Subbass) were strengthened, and the brightness of another (8’ Hohlflöte) was reduced. The temperament of the organ was changed, and the Hauptwerk and Pedal wind pressure was raised by 10 mm.

In 2019, Peebles-Herzog cleaned and rebuilt the schwimmer, the air regulator for the lower chest of pipes. 
 
With rare exceptions, the organ is played for all weekend, Holy Day, wedding, and funeral liturgies at St. Edward’s. It supports congregational singing of the Ordinary of the Mass (the Gloria, Holy, Mystery of Faith, Amen, Lamb of God), other congregational responses, and hymns. It also is used for instrumental preludes, postludes, short prepared pieces, and improvisation.

The organ is bright and high-pitched, with flutes and mixtures dominating the stoplist. The stoplist reflects the influence of Laurence Phelps, the tonal director for Casavant Frères for almost two decades prior to the organ’s construction.
 

Couplers: HW/RP, HW/Ped, RP/Ped
Tremulant on RP
No division under expression
No combination action

Two 56-key manuals: the Hauptwerk (upper) and Rückpositiv (lower)
A 32-key radiating concave pedalboard
17 stops/22 ranks/1105 pipes
Mechanical key action with wooden trackers
13’ 8” tall and 8’ wide
70mm wind pressure HW & Ped; 60mm in RP
Temperament (since 2014): Bach-Kellner 1/5 comma
ebony natural keys, ivory-covered sharp keys
oak case

The organ is maintained by Peebles-Herzog of Columbus, OH.