The master tapes were recorded on November 3rd and 4th, 1998. The recording was mastered by Ed Kelly of MobileMaster who is noted for his Organ Historical Society recordings. The CDs were edited at and produced by Sony Disc Manufacturing in Springfield, Oregon using their latest technology. The booklet contains a stop list, a brief history of the organ, and program notes about the selections included.
For a more detailed Stop List and Register List for the 7 manual console, please see our Literature Page.
The program is as follows: Bach Toccata in Dm, BWV 565, On The Boardwalk, There She Is, Miss America, Ol' Man River, Original Rag (Joplin), Marche Militaire (Gounod), On The Road To Mandalay, Berceuse (Vierne), Abide With Me, Psalm 100 (Bourgeois), and the final portion of Liszt's Ad Nos Ad Salutarum Undam.
The recording begins with the sound of the 100" compressor, low pressure, and high pressure (50") blowers for the right main chamber starting up. This represents only 225 horsepower out of the 600 horsepower used to drive the entire organ.
The last two tracks on the CD contain snippets of the Tuba Imperial and Grand Ophicleide on 100" of wind, followed by a pedal descent from top C of the pedalboard to low C using the 64' Diaphone. Not all notes were working on these stops, but the range of their power and beauty in the extraordinary acoustics of the Convention Hall is evident. The heartfelt cry for proper restoration is brought to bear on this track.
There are ciphers here and there. There are some big reed notes that are out of tune. As the cd booklet says, it is a "warts and all" recording, but the essence is there for all to hear.
This recording must be played carefully. There is tremendous pedal energy on the recording - perhaps unlike anything ever recorded, especially when the 64' Diaphone is used. Don't blow out your woofers!!!
There is nothing, NOTHING in the world like hearing this organ firsthand. It is awesome and inspiring. One can experience an almighty wall of sound of unequalled majesty coming towards them. On top of this there is an absolutely uncanny clarity and definition of all tonalities that boggles the mind. Calling this organ a National Musical Treasure is an understatement. And all this with only one of eight chambers working!
The recording is just a recording, but we hope it will reveal some of the glory and beauty of this most remarkable instrument, "truly the King of the King of Instruments", and inspire support for its preservation and complete restoration.
This recording is only available in CD format.
To order your copy please use one of our order forms. The are available both in Adobe Acrobat Format and as a Web Page that can be printed out.
Unfortunately, at this time we are unable to take credit cards or on-line orders. Orders must be mailed to our offices.