Historic Trinity's E. M. Skinner Organ

The Organ of Historic Trinity, designed and built by the Ernest Skinner Company, is a rare gem in a magnificent setting. Ernest Skinner was regarded as the premier organ builder of his day and, indeed, the most prominent American builder of his time. Skinner's organs were characterized by excellent craftsmanship, great warmth of tone and a lush romantic sound. Organists during these years were more concerned about playing historical organ literature and less concerned about playing orchestral transcriptions. When considering which organ to build several organ sales persons said, "We can build you just as good an organ as Skinner can." The remarks helped convince the donor, Mr. Gauss, that the Skinner Organ Company of Boston was regarded the best in organ building.

Historic Trinity's organ is Skinner's Opus 808 of 3-manuals, 27-voices, 31 ranks, 5 divisions, with chimes made by Skinner. The main organ is housed in the front bell tower, with the Echo Division in the smaller Luther Tower to the west of the chancel. It is a medium-sized organ, appropriately scaled to the size of the room. The instrument is very rare because so few Skinner organs have survived in their original state. This instrument is one of the most admired of all pipe organs - an original, unaltered E. M. Skinner organ. Few of these remain anywhere in this country, and an organ of this size and era are extremely rare.

Skinner organs in Detroit include:

• First Unitarian, Cass Ave., 1919, relatively early in Skinner's career, the builder was still primarily concerned with orchestral imitations, now in poor condition.



• Jefferson Avenue Presbyterian, 1924, one of the largest, best Skinners in the midwest, donated by the Dodge family.



• Masonic Temple, Scottish Rite Cathedral, a large organ rarely heard by the public.



• St. Columba Episcopal Church, Manistique and Jefferson. This smaller instrument has had solid state equipment added to the console which allows the organ to play itself as pre-programmed by an organist. This device lets the organ be used even though the congregation has sometimes been unable to keep an organist on staff.

Ernest M Skinner

Ernest M. Skinner, the builder of Historic Trinity's organ, was born in 1866, the parents of two opera singers. He was probably born in a hotel in Clarion, PA, where his parents were staging an opera. He grew up in Taunton, Massachusetts, where he pumped the bellows at the Unitarian Church. Ernest attempted to build his first organ at the age of 12. It did not work. He was eventually apprenticed to a local organ builder, starting his own shop in Boston in 1900. Skinner, who preferred Wagner to Bach, felt that the first priority of his early organs was to imitate orchestral sounds. It was only in his later organs that it became important for an organ to sound like an organ. Skinner was a constant tinkerer, always determined to improve his products. His obsession with excellence got him the contracts to create most of the important instruments of the 1920's including huge organs at Woolsley Hall, Yale University; the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, NYC; the National Cathedral, Washington, D.C.; and Rockefeller Chapel, University of Chicago.

Skinner took on a young English partner, G. Donald Harrison, in 1927. Harrison followed new tastes in organ building, which required the organ focus on earlier historical organ literature. The company became the Aeolian-Skinner Organ Company in 1932, with Harrison and other company leaders forcing Skinner out of the business. While Aeolian-Skinner organs are often excellent organs, they have a different character than pure Skinners. Historic Trinity's organ, completed in 1931, was one of the last fine instruments in the pure Skinner tradition. Skinner attempted to re-form his own company, but his attempts were fraught with problems as taste turned away from his orchestral style of building. He would not change. He was out of the organ building business by 1951. He lived on sad and forgotten until 1960.

The source of this information is "The Life and Work of Ernest M. Skinner, the definitive biography of Skinner by Dorothy Holden. It is dedicated in part to her husband, Ken Holden, who helped with research for the book and is completing the organ restoration project at Historic Trinity.

Skinner's work went out of fashion after World War II. The "Organ Reform Movement" encouraged the replacement of older romantic instruments with organs which imitated those of the 18th century. Most of Skinner's fine instruments were replaced or rebuilt beyond recognition. As luck would have it, these were the years when Historic Trinity's membership was declining. Because money was often in short supply, no changes were made to the organ. As a result, it remains a pristine example of the best of early 20th century organ building, and the envy of many congregations which replaced their Skinner organs.

The 1980's and 1990's was a watershed in how Skinner's organs were viewed. The view which had generally been held from the 1940's until the 1980's was that Skinner organs were too romantic and unable to handle organ music from before 1800. By 1990, most organists were recognizing that Skinner's organs were remarkable for their loveliness of tone and smoothness of speech. In fact, today, Skinner is acknowledged as the finest American organ builder of the early 20th century. Sadly, most of Skinner's organs had been replaced or altered beyond recognition by the time his work was appreciated.

This Skinner Pipe Organ Contains:

2,126 Pipes
31 Ranks
5 Divisions
3 Manuals and Pedal
34 Stops

CHARACTERISTICS

RARITY

Skinner organs are rare, but organs of this size and era (considered to be Skinner's apex) are extremely rare.

SUPERB QUALITY

DESIGN
Making a very small yet effective 3 manual organ is one of an organ builder's greatest challenges. Skinner outdid himself here with a plan of elegant simplicity and sophistication.

SETTING
There are few situations where organ and architecture fit so perfectly...like hand and glove. Musically and visually the organ is thoroughly appropriate to its setting.

PUBLIC APPEAL
In the past few years, Skinner organs have become objects of major attention by organ scholars, authors, enthusiasts, historical societies, and audiences.

Organist Plaques

Plaques on the wall under the front window list the organists of Historic Trinity Lutheran Church:

Balcony Railing The balcony railing is adorned with four angels symbolizing the bond between the people in worship and the company of angels. A shield in the center of the balcony screen contains a door and a castle, both depicting the church as a place of refuge. The crown over the shield symbolizes heaven, the crown of life, for the ultimate refuge for the Christian.

Organ Screens

The main organ screen in the nave of the church and the echo organ screen in the chancel were made by the Irving Casson Company of East Cambridge, Massachusetts and crafted by Mr. Kirchmayer of Oberammergau. Pipes in both facades are decorative only. Both screens incorporate the vines and branches motif used throughout the building.

The main organ screen in the nave contains carvings of the following:

Miriam

Miriam, the sister of Moses, was a leader of her people in worship to the true God.

David

King David was the writer of the hymn book of the Old Testament, The Psalms. He was noted for his music and his faithful worship of God.

St. Ambrose

St. Ambrose was one of the greatest and most loved church leaders. He was born about 339 A.D. in Gaul, son of a Roman official. He became a lawyer and governor of a province with a seat in Milan, Italy. When the Bishop of Milan died, the people of Milan demanded that St. Ambrose become bishop even though he had not yet been baptized. He was then baptized, ordained and consecrated as Bishop in December of 374 A.D. The new bishop faced serious problems of paganism and Arianism in the church. St. Ambrose became a famous preacher and strong defender of orthodoxy. He was the first to introduce metrical hymns in the church. Some of his hymn are still sung in the church today.

St. Gregory

St. Gregory was born in Rome in 540, and died there September 3, 604. He was the first and greatest of 16 popes named Gregory. Born into a patrician family, he devoted some of his wealth to establish a monastery in Rome and in other places in Sicily. He became a monk and later was elected pope. He was the first monk elected to the office of pope. Pope Gregory reformed the administration of the vast estates of the church. Large sums from this source were spent for those suffering from war, pestilence, famine, and imprisonment. His writings were directed to fostering the Christian life and the formation of pastors for pastoral care. His directions for the office and duties of a bishop became standard throughout the church. St. Gregory was a leader in church music so that today the Gregorian chant is know as his legacy.

Huser

George Huser was the first organist of Historic Trinity.

Plumhoff

Carl Conrad Plumhoff 1841-1907 was an ordained teacher, taught grade school at Historic Trinity Lutheran Church, served as a high school principal, Sunday School superintendent, and was organist and choir director at Historic Trinity . He was married to Anna Marie (Hauswirt).

Adoring Angels

The angels along the bottom of the organ screen are adorning angels in worship to the Lord.

CHOIRMASTERS ROOM

Choirmasters Room

The Organist's room is located on the east triforium level of the bell tower. It houses a desk, a robing cabinet, the "piano roller" bell player, the mechanism and key board for the computerized ringing of the bells, and a rest room.

Bell Roll Player

Located in the organist's room is a "piano roll player" type of mechanism that was used to play the bells in the bell tower. The bells could be rung by the "piano roll player" " by hand levels up in the tower, or by a key board adjourning the organ in the balcony. The bell ringing system was made by Taylor Bells of England and is the last such mechanism that was still operative in all of America. The sheets of the roll players had become frayed and were no longer produced, and an "automatic" clock attached to the system became inoperative. The system now has been replaced by a computerized disc system, and a hand held control (similar to a TV remote control) that plays the bells of the bell tower.

HISTORIC TRINITY'S ORGAN AND ITS RESTORATION

Church musical taste have changed over the years, so many Skinner organs were junked or altered beyond recognition. Fortunately, Trinity did not have the money to change the organ. It remained an aging snapshot of how the Skinner Organ Company left it in 1931. In recent years the organ has been undergoing major restoration, and at the same time maintaining the integrity of the original organ. Hopefully, this organ will serve as a fine example of romantic organ building for generations to come.

By 1991, when Karl Osterland became Historic Trinity's Music Director, the organ was showing its age. The organ had never had a thorough cleaning. Most curious of all, the wiring of the smallest pipes had been cut. This vandalism apparently occurred early in the history of the instrument by a tuner who was too lazy to fuss with the tiny pipes. While still playable, the organ was still operating with original wiring and leather parts. The usual life of such components is 40 to 50 years. It is a testimony to the quality of the materials and workmanship that the instrument was still working, at all, 70 years after its completion.

In 1991, Historic Trinity, too, was considering a large expansion and alteration of the organ. At that point, Jack Bethards of the Schoenstein Organ Company in San Francisco was engaged as a consultant. Mr. Berthards was also the consultant for the Morman Tabernacle organ renovation in Salt Lake City and many other Skinner and Aeolian-Skinner organs. His report identified Historic Trinity's organ as one of the finest surviving examples of a medium-sized Skinner organ, that it should NOT be changed but simply brought back to its original luster. That has been the guiding principle behind the entire restoration. The congregation should be proud to have supported a true RESTORATION of a fine, historic instrument, not a rebuilding or renovation.

These are the 6 phases of the organ restoration.

• Consultation-- About 15 years ago, Historic Trinity realized that its historic instrument was in need of major restoration. The consultation report by Jack Bethards, a nationally-known expert on Skinner organs from San Francisco, was commissioned and agreed upon. The report recommended a historical restoration, not a renovation. The rest of the work has been true to that concept.



• Blower-- The organ blower, which is located in the lower level of Otte Hall, failed soon after the consultation. It was rebuilt. This was planned as mechanical work only which would not effect the sound of the organ. However, to our great surprise the organ immediately sounded brighter and responded more quickly just from getting the wind supply stabilized.



• Swell-- The Swell Division is controlled by the top manual (keyboard) of the organ. It is the largest division on our organ and was in the poorest condition. Therefore, it was prioritized. As part of this phase, wind pressures were increased to what Skinner had intended. This information was obtained by the consultant from the Skinner shop papers which are still extant in the library on the east Coast. The result of cleaning, rewiring, releathering and correcting wind pressures was a brighter, bolder sound, undoubtedly more what Skinner originally had in mind. This work was done about 10 years ago. Phases 2 and 3 were done by the Brian Fowler Organ Company, in Lansing.



• Great, Pedal and Choir-- These were the rest of the pipes which are controlled by the center and bottom manuals and pedal. This involved more rewiring and releathering, reactivating many dead notes. This was done about 5 years ago.



• Chimes-- The old set of chimes was not original to the organ. The set was added later and was never of the same quality as the original organ. By the 1990's the dampers on the chimes had deteriorated to the point that the hammers were striking metal, giving a clunky sound. The mechanism on several of the chimes had stopped working. A national search located a set of period Deagan chimes of the type which was preferred by Skinner. These were installed 3 years ago.



• Console and Echo (current project)-- The 4 stops in the Echo Division, located to the left of the Chancel, are being releathered. This pipework was in the best condition so was left until last. The console, on the other hand, was in poor condition. (The console is the part of the organ that the organist actually plays). The console was still functioning on the original cotton-wrapped wire, even though the cotton was long gone. A "run" or short in the section of the Swell manual had rendered a whole section of the Swell unplayable. The wiring to the top octave of several stops had been cut many years ago, leaving most of the smallest pipes on the organ silent. All of the pipes and controls of the organ will be working at the same time for the first time in decades!