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Pipe organs have been evolving over the last three thousand years. With this rich heritage, they have retained a position among the traditional keyboard instruments. However, a dispassionate eye would have to see that the role of the pipe organ, within the larger cultural framework, has subtly changed over the years.
By the Baroque period, the pipe organ had earned the title, "King of Instruments." One can imagine the emotional impact on the listeners of that time as they sat in the splendor of Baroque churches and cathedrals in various parts of Europe. However, by the 1800s, challengers to the mighty pipe organ appeared on the scene, including the symphony orchestra and the piano. As the nineteenth century unfolded, the formerly predominant position of the pipe organ as a musical instrument had to be reactive to the onslaught of the newcomers. In a sense, organists and organ aficionados were forced to become a breed apart from the mainstream of the musical world, which included the piano and violin as primary solo instruments and the symphony orchestra as the preferred unit for recreating the works of the masters. The fact that the pipe organ still plays a role in today's musical world is a tribute to the tenacity of the organ enthusiasts of the last century.
Today, pressures on the pipe organ as a viable instrument have intensified. For example, there is simple economic pressure. The cost to construct and maintain a pipe organ has skyrocketed. A potentially good pipe organ can cost over one million dollars. I say "potentially good" because there is certainly no guarantee that a newly built pipe organ will perform up to expectations. Moreover, customers footing the bill for these expensive "shots-in-the-dark" are rebelling. Another economic reality is felt by organists directly. Today, a concert pianist of recognized stature can command a fee many times greater than that of an organist of comparable musical stature. This economic discrimination has only increased the isolation of organists from the mainstream.
Other factors have dampened the pipe organ's effectiveness as a musical instrument. We don't build as many mammoth cathedrals of stone as we did formerly. Instead, we build churches, auditoriums, concert halls, etc., using modern materials such as steel, concrete, brick, acoustic tiles, carpeting, padded seats, etc. The once mighty reverberant sound of the pipe organ is often almost entirely swallowed up in these new environments. Generally, little can be done about it.
Occasionally, even the organist admits to being frustrated with common quirks inherent in pipe organs. For instance, the variation in tuning as a function of temperature, humidity, and barometric pressure is well known. Sometimes a pipe organ is rendered unplayable because it's so far out of tune. More often, everyone just tolerates it. Pipe organs are massive, mechanical machines subject to various failure mechanisms. Wooden parts sensitive to variation in humidity become warped, cracked, and jammed. Critical leather parts deteriorate and fail. Worn-out motors, blowers, bellows, and regulators are common. Pipes can be stuck "off" or, more seriously, they can be stuck "on" much to the chagrin of the organist.
Another very important factor must be addressed at this point. It has to do with who controls the fate of the organ as a musical instrument. On one hand, we have the "elitists" who believe they alone have the expertise to determine what is proper in the world of organs. On the other hand, we have the "ordinary people" who do most of the listening and are often the ones paying the bills. In the middle are the organ designers and manufacturers without whom the organ would be just a mind exercise. Finally, and perhaps most crucial to the future of the organ, we have the "realists" who seek to achieve the best balance between traditional values and the realities of today's world.
The realist viewpoint is reflected in the following quote from a university professor of music who had just critiqued a recent Allen installation and wrote to me with his findings:
"I find no difference between the sound of the Allen and any of the many piped instruments I have played in the past forty years. Indeed the sound quality of the Allen exceeds many of those wind-blown instruments.
I can imagine places and situations in which, for historical or aesthetic reasons, a wind-blown pipe organ would be necessary. However, for most practical church and institutional installations, the electronic-blown (pipe) organ seems most desirable."
In contrast, the elitists appear to be more concerned with the form of the organ than its overall utility. They are often the most vocal and aggressive in pushing their views. Because of their persistent activism in trying to control the direction of organ development, it would be well to understand more deeply the nature of the elitist influence.
In the following paragraphs I will go into a little more detail about the evolution of the pipe organ with respect to the elitists—their attempt to control the details of pipe organ construction according to their own parochial viewpoint and their lack of regard for the overall success and acceptance of the instrument. I will then reference a recent, well-documented, real-life example of a hotly-contested, yet very successful, Allen installation.
First, let me share with you recollections of one personal encounter I had with elitists in France in the spring of 1980. A new Allen Organ was being dedicated and I had made arrangements to attend. As I approached the church, I saw people handing out leaflets. As I took one, I realized that these folks were actually protesting the installation of the organ. The following, which has been translated accurately, to the best of my knowledge, from the original French, is excerpted from their handout. Sadly, the local organist became part of the emotional protest and refused to play the organ. Thus, the church was forced to let the organist go. In turn, this incident was used by the elitist protesters as a further "call to arms." In the end, cooler heads prevailed, and the organ was well received by the "ordinary people" of the congregation.
The acquisition of the "Allen" Electronic Organ has stirred lively controversy among organists and musicians of St. ...* Church.
In effect, this instrument is an organ in name only.
In a region like ..., which one could legitimately call a "land of organs," in a church like St. ..., which has known a prestigious musical past, it is inadmissible that one should cause to come from America a mass-produced instrument.
We possess world-renowned organbuilders who would have been able to realize a quite superior instrument at the same price (around 200,000 Fr.), and which would have been a true organ endowed with its proper qualities and of a personality that one would not abandon....
Let us recall that, according to the directives from the Second Vatican Council, the Church recognizes only the pipe organ as the true instrument suitable to perform liturgical functions...WHERE ARE THE PIPES IN THE ELECTRONIC "ALLEN" ORGAN OF...?
Know equally that for taking a position against the acquisition of this "Allen electronic organ," and for wishing for St. ... Church an organ worthy of the name, Mr. ..., after 23 years of devotion to the parish, has seen himself notified of dismissal by the...Council.
* Names of persons and places purposely deleted.
Recent debate among pipe organ enthusiasts has revolved around the mechanics immediately behind the keys of the organ. The pipe organs of the Middle Ages and on into the 1800s were entirely mechanical. The keys on these organs were connected directly to the valves by means of mechanical linkages. As a result, the name "tracker" or "mechanical" organs evolved.
During the late 1800s, with the advent of electricity, organ builders who sought to improve their designs turned to electromagnetic keying systems. With this system, the depression of keys caused the closure of electrical contacts. The contacts acted as switches relating to the turning on and off of electromagnets which, in turn, physically opened and closed the valves. Use of electromagnetic keying allowed the console to be easily moved away from the sound generation part of the organ to a more appropriate location.
After World War II, there was a revival of the tracker organ among the elitists. It is not certain why this happened. Perhaps the great movement of troops into Europe during the War brought some American organists into contact with the old European tracker organs. These organists would have been used to the electropneumatic organs which predominated in America during the early and mid-1900s. The European trackers with their more intimate sound and playing "feel" would have contrasted sharply with the fuller, more romantic sound of the electropneumatics. Perhaps enough of these organists were captivated by the tracker that they sparked the renaissance or reinterest in the mechanical action organ, a renaissance which has now been ongoing for the last few decades.
The problem with this great swing backwards is that the elitists attempt to control the world of pipe organs including the design details of new installations. They often convince the "ordinary people" that a tracker organ is the only kind acceptable. After the tracker is installed, the elitist organists may be happy playing it. However, the "ordinary people," perhaps intuitively expecting to hear the more popular, romantic sound of the earlier electropneumatics, are not always able to comprehend the organist's enthusiasm for the tracker and end up losing interest in listening to the organ. Extending this scenario many times, I fear that, unless the interests of the "ordinary people" in the audience are taken into consideration by those making the decisions about new organ installations, the fate of the organ as a musical instrument may be placed in grave jeopardy.
So far I have been talking about pipe organs. What does all that have to do with Allen Digital Computer Organs? Well, Allens are outselling pipe organs by an overwhelming margin. Given the success we have had in building high quality organs, it is entirely possible that the Allen Digital Computer Organ will become the next major step in the long evolution of the organ as a viable musical instrument. In spite of our success, or perhaps because of it, the Allen Digital Computer Organ, with its ability to faithfully capture the nuances of pipe organ sound be they low pressure or high pressure, is perceived by the elitists as a threat to the pipe organ. So, by the 1980s, the elitists closed ranks in hopes of preventing this "outsider" from penetrating what they consider to be a sacred bastion and the sole preserve of the pipe organ.
The following article appeared on October 24, 1988, after the organ had been taken through its paces in several concerts. The jury was unanimous — the Allen organ sounded magnificent, “like a French Cathedral organ.” The Lansing State Journal called it a success, and both musicians and audience members praised its tonal beauty and power.
In this chapter I have reviewed some of the realities challenging the practicality of the pipe organ in today's world. As previously stated, the elitists are having a difficult time adjusting to these realities and, in my view, are too enraptured with the glories of the past to accurately perceive the present and future. In their zeal to move backwards, they have often given poor advice, which has resulted in many costly "sacrificial offerings" to the "pipe organ goddess."
There once was a kingdom called Org… where the wandering organist brought an Allen Digital Computer Organ and dared to play it before the high priests of pipe organ reverence. Though resistance was fierce, those who truly listened recognized its beauty and potential. But Madame Aspingrass and her circle ensured the project was halted—for a time. The people of Org would have to wait for another day for their Allen Digital Computer Organ.