On the day of my visit, Storey was addressing several upper “ranks” of reed pipes — i.e. pipes sounded by the activation of a thin brass strip against an internal brass tube . It’s a task that should take about four to five hours. Tuning the entire instrument — which happens in August, just before the season opens — can take three to four days.
When an organist presses a note, pushes a pedal or pulls one of the console’s 104 pull stops , those actions are translated into digital signals by an onboard computer. This data transmits to a distribution hub inside the organ, which then decodes the digital information, translates it to electrical signals and triggers a system of magnets that open precisely the right valves to the right pipes at the right moment.
“The sound is big enough and powerful enough that it excites the air that you breathe,” Storey says. “You can feel it in your lungs. It’s a thrilling sensation.”All that remains of the hall’s former Filene organ — donated by Kennedy Center trustee Catherine Filene Shouse at the urging of The Washington Post’s classical critic at the time, Paul Hume — is a stop of “regal” pipes and a heap of bad memories.
Neil recalls its “low-pressure and transparent” sound as the sonic equivalent of “a harpsichord in a Mahler symphony.” A 2008 assessment by organ builder Lynn Dobson determined the Filene organ was “in such an unusable condition” that it was “not worth saving and it really should be replaced.”
Entertainment Entertainment Latest News, Entertainment Entertainment Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Source: ABC7 - 🏆 67. / 68 Read more »
Source: denverwestword - 🏆 315. / 61 Read more »