VOL. 23, NO. 8	OCTOBER 31, 1997

Record Photo by Eileen Barroso.

By Amy Callahan

  But for many of those years, the organ's keyboard console has not reflected the quality of the instrument. As many as three people had been required to maneuver its stops, because the hodgepodge of knobs and pistons proved too complicated for even the most virtuoso organist.

  No longer.

  On Sun., Nov. 9—with an inaugural concert by one of America's leading organists, David Higgs—the chapel will unveil a new organ console, rebuilt to preserve the appearance of the original while fully incorporating the additions made over the years. The result of the three-year University-funded project is four keyboards and a pedalboard, 114 draw knobs, 132 pistons and toe studs, 30 coupler tablets, and a solid-state multi-level combination system encased in American walnut and Honduras mahogany and finished with the original ivory keys made from 20,000-year-old mastodon tusks, unearthed in Siberia.

A customized knob featuring the Columbia crown. Record Photo by Eileen Barroso.

  Not to mention the organ's 5,348 pipes and 94 ranks, which were renovated in the years leading up to the present project.

  "The organ had never been properly completed," said University Organist George Stauffer, the director of chapel music since 1977. "What we've done is finished it in a grand way. The instrument is now in wonderful condition."

  University Chaplain Jewelnel Davis, who oversees chapel operations, said: "The new console reflects the University's generous investment in the programs of the Office of the University Chaplain, which includes the chapel music program. Provost Jonathan R. Cole consistently has shown his interest in the quality of the experience of students, faculty and staff—and this refurbished organ will certainly enrich everyone's experience at Columbia, including those outside our gates who come onto campus to enjoy the concerts and services in the chapel."

  The original organ was built in 1908, but the modern console was not added until 1938, when the Aeolian-Skinner Company built it under supervision of the firm's renowned leader, G. Donald Harrison. The instrument is considered one of the finest surviving examples of Harrison's tonal design and has been sought by premiere recording organists, including the late E. Power Biggs. It is also featured regularly on National Public Radio's "Pipedreams" program and is on "The Great Organs of New York" compact disc.

  The new console was built by master artisan Robert M. Turner of Hacienda Heights, Calif., who also recently constructed twin organ consoles for St. Patrick's Cathedral in Manhattan. John L. Randolph of Leonia, N.J., who has cared for the organ in St. Paul's Chapel since 1973, installed Turner's new console over the past summer.

  The custom-made elements of the console include Columbia crowns engraved on the draw knobs of the "Crown Trumpet," which sounds forth from the heights of the chapel dome.

  "The old console was in a state of advanced deterioration, and parts of the organ were no longer playable," Stauffer said. "The University must be applauded for having the foresight to preserve this extraordinary cultural resource for future generations of Columbians and New Yorkers."

  The University community is invited to help inaugurate the new organ console on Nov. 9. (Please see Calendar for details.)