We’re happy to share that we have signed a contract with St. John’s Episcopal Church in Williamstown, Massachusetts, to build a new pipe organ for the parish, our Opus 4.
Nestled in the Berkshire Mountains in western Massachusetts, Williamstown is the bucolic home to Williams College, whose campus surrounds St. John’s, a fieldstone church constructed in 1896. The church’s first pipe organ, Skinner Opus 792, was rebuilt in 1965 by M.P. Möller, who retained a handful of Skinner stops. The organ’s accelerating deterioration in the last several years hastened the forming of an organ committee to investigate restoring or replacing the instrument.
St. John’s organ committee, advised by consultant Michael Brittenback, visited our Opus 3 in Cape Elizabeth, Maine in May, and shortly thereafter selected Ortloff Organ Company to build their new instrument.
Construction of the organ will begin next summer, with installation in 2025. The new case of rift-sawn white oak will be cantilevered in front of the current chamber opening, and contain the Great division. The Swell makes use of the original Skinner chamber, and speaks through the Great. Facade pipes of spotted metal will be from the bass of the Great Diapason.
As always, the relationships we build during these projects are some of our favorite parts of our work, and we look forward to working with Director of Music Matthew Thomas, Rector Nathaniel Anderson, committee chair Dennis McGill, Mike Brittenback, and the lovely people of St. John’s to bring this project to completion.
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Great
16 Lieblich Bourdon (Swell) 8 Diapason 8 Viola (Swell) 8 Lieblich Gedeckt (Swell) 4 Octave 2 Fifteenth II-III Mixture (Draws 15th) 16 Oboe (Swell) 8 Oboe (Swell)
Great 16 Great Unison Off Great 4 Swell to Great 16 Swell to Great Swell to Great 4
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Swell
16 Lieblich Bourdon 8 Viola 8 Viola Celeste 8 Lieblich Gedeckt 4 Principal 4 Harmonic Flute 2 2/3 Nazard 2 Harmonic Piccolo (ext) 1 1/3 Larigot (ext) 8 Oboe Tremolo
Swell 16 Swell Unison Off Swell 4
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Pedal
16 Bourdon 8 Bourdon 8 Viola (Swell) 8 Lieblich Gedeckt (Swell) 16 Oboe (Swell) 8 Oboe (Swell) 4 Oboe (Swell)
Great to Pedal Swell to Pedal Great to Pedal 4 Swell to Pedal 4
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