Announcing the Upcoming Completion of Our Pipe Organ

Work has begun on our pipe organ, adding 5 totally new sounds consisting of over 300 individual pipes (adding to the 2,630 pipes already in the organ)! Additionally, the entire organ will undergo “revoicing,” a process to alter how each stop sounds. The result will be a smoother, warmer, more foundational tone to better support congregational singing and to give the organist the ability to play music from a wider range of time periods. The new stops will contribute to a more solid foundation of lower sounds, while the highest pipes of the organ will be reversibly muted to create a mellower overall tone.

This project addresses several issues and writes the final chapter in the story of our organ – when completed, there will be no physical space for further additions, and the instrument will be a unified whole. There will be nothing left to do, unless something breaks or someone down the road wants to tear the whole thing out and replace it entirely!

Though our organ underwent major work just 4 years ago, Zachary and the Vestry agreed that it was important to seize this opportunity – with Lanny Hochhalter, our organ builder, retiring at the end of this year, this was the last chance to finish the organ under the same artistic vision. Further, Lanny has generously given us a stellar deal: any other organ builder would certainly be charging at least twice as much!

Thanks to healthy music program savings accounts that built up over the pandemic, as well as generous donors who helped get this project started, we have very little money left to raise. As of writing, we have only around $6,000 left to cover! As announced on October 30th, anyone who contributes to the project via check (with “organ project” in the memo line) or cash (in an envelope with “organ project” and your name on it) will be entered into a raffle for a chance to take home one of the limited number of pipes being removed from our organ. These will be smaller pipes that will look great displayed on your mantle – a piece of our church history and a wonderful conversation starter for your houseguests! We’ll have a public drawing of the raffle at the completion of the project, and, you do not need to be present to win.

Thank you for your generous support of our organ and our music ministry here at Good Sam! Always feel free to contact Zachary if you have any questions about the organ project, or other details of our music ministry.