The organ at Old Zion is one of my favorite organs, both to look at and to listen to. Admittedly, until recently one had to listen with a forgiving and understanding ear as the pipework was in such wretched condition as to render the instrument un-tunable. What was once a grand church organ had been reduced to a wheezing and noisy machine. This condition was due to the damage the organ had endured through years of unqualified tunings misguided additions and poor quality workmanship. The organ, as it until recently stood was but a shadow of its former self. I first saw the organ twenty years ago when I was sent to make some repairs, I was immediately taken with it. Despite the damage and the indignity it had suffered, it still performed, and one could hear under the noise and windleaks that this was indeed a gem.

Like most inner city churches, the congregation of Old Zion is small, with a big building to maintain. This being said, the dedication and passion for their mission is hands on, reaching far beyond the collection plate, with almost every member of the church pitching in with painting, cleaning and just about everything else. Surrounded by this spirit, it was easy to undertake what was assured to be a truly daunting task, the restoration of the organ. Given the limited budget, it was clear from the offset that this restoration was going to be completed over a long period of curatorship, and the end would be a long way off. Much of my dilemma with the project was simply where to begin. The organ was in such poor condition that there was no aspect that did not need to be addressed.

I settled on a practical beginning to the project, i.e. returning the organ to a playable condition.

The work began in Easter of 2005, and involved removing all of the pipes to our shop for significant repair. Additional work including rebuilding a Principal unit chest that had been added to the organ in the 20’s, restoring the Pedal slider chest, and repairing the main chest tables. Cracks had appeared in the main chests, and some minor runnings were present. Likewise, the slides had become tight, and the coverboard were somewhat warped. There were no funds available to take the chests to our shop to restore them. Instead the repairs and restoration were performed in place. Although hardly ideal, it was nonetheless effective and worthwhile.

As the photos show, repairing the pipe work was an enormous feat. Tuning slides were fitted to most pipes, as the pipes were no longer capable of supporting cone tuning. We returned the organ to its original pitch of A:455 and will address a more permanent pitch once the restoration is complete. I look forward to the completion of this particular project as a truly worthwhile effort.

Divisions:
Great, Swell, Choir, Pedal

40 Stops