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George Stevens, Maker,
East Cambridge, Mass.,
1847
STOP LIST
Great
Organ:
58 notes GG,AA-f3 |
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Swell
Organ:
58 notes GG, AA-f3 |
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Pedal
Organ:
13 notes GG-G |
| [8’] Open Diapason |
58 pipes |
[8’] Open Diapason f0 |
37 pipes |
[8’] Sub Base (low GG plays 10 2/3’ pitch) |
13 pipes |
| [8’] Dulciana g0 |
35 pipes |
[8’] Dulciana f0 |
37 pipes |
Couplers:
Couplet (Swell/Great)
Pedals (Great/Pedal) |
| [8’] Stop Diapason g0 |
35 pipes |
[8’] Stop Diapason f0 |
37 pipes |
Et. Cetera:
Forte: Pedal
Piano: Pedal |
| [8’] Stop diapason Bass |
23 pipes |
[8’] Swell Bass (unenclosed) |
21 pipes |
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| [4’] Principal |
58 pipes |
[4’] Principal f0 |
37 pipes |
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| [4’] Flute G |
47 pipes |
[8’] Hautboy f0 Tremulant |
37 pipes |
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| [2 2/3’] Twelfth |
58 pipes |
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| [2’] Fifteenth |
58 pipes |
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The Shirley Meeting House organ was built in 1847
by George Stevens of Cambridge, Massachusetts. While
not a style leader, the workmanship of his organs was
exquisite and they were constructed of fine materials.
Several of his organs still survive in an almost completely
original state. This little organ, a gift of Mrs. Henrietta
Whitney in 1847, is one of those.
In 1962 Douglas Brown renovated the organ, carefully
maintaining its original qualities. The Andover Organ
Company later made some repairs to the front pipes
and more recently George Bozeman, Jr. has made further
repairs and retuned the organ in an old English modified-meantone
temperament. This organ is especially important, and
interesting, because it preserves these archaic peculiarities
of English organs built during the first quarter of
the 19th century..
The keyboards of this organ have unusual compasses.
The manuals’ lowest note is a GG, two and a half
octaves below middle c’ and there is no low GG#,
a typical omission of this period in American organs.
The highest note is f3. The Pedal keyboard also starts
at GG, does include GG#, and has only one octave of
notes and pipes. Obviously, because of its short and
unusual compass it is useless for normal Pedal parts
such as in a Bach Fugue. Use it instead for pedal points
and at cadences.
The stopknobs on the left side belong to the Great
Organ; the Swell Organ knobs and the couplers are on
the right side. None of the stops have pitch numbers
such as 8', 4', etc. This is because during this period
the pitch of the stop was inherent in the name. The
Diapasons Open and Stopped, Dulciana, and Hautboy are
all unison stops. The Principal and the Flute are an
octave higher (what we call 4'), and the Twelfth and
Fifteenth should be self-explanatory (i.e. 2 2/3' and
2'). The Pedal Sub Bass is a unison stop, the same
pitch as the Open Diapason. Some of the stops are divided.
The Swell pedal is a lever to the right of the Pedal
board and has a notch to slide it into in order to
keep the Swell shutters open. One must keep one’s
foot on the pedal or leave the shutters closed. The
shutters are weighted to close
This organ can still be pumped by hand, and you should
experience this if possible. If you are fortunate enough
to have someone willing to pump while you play you
can easily imagine yourself living a century and a
half ago. Since the organ is tuned in an old-English
modified-turning, instrumentalists may have difficulty
tuning to it. Allow a trial before committing a soloist
to a program.
Playing this wonderful little organ is a rare treat.
We are very lucky that the good people of Shirley
have so lovingly preserved it for us to enjoy.
George
Bozeman, Jr.
Edited by Lois Toeppner
George Bozeman, Jr. and Company, Organ Builders
www.bozemanorgan.com
Lois Z. Toeppner, M.M.
www.toeppner.com
For use of the Meetinghouse please
contact Holly Haase
E-mail: holly@shirleymeetinghouse.org
Telephone:
978-425-2600, ext. 211
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