Tonight at 7pm, former director of the Estey Organ Company's pipe organ division, Georg Steinmeyer, will be giving the third lecture in his series entitled "How to Build a Pipe Organ" at First Baptist Church on Main Street in Brattleboro.
It is presented by the Estey Organ Museum and is free and open to the public.
"But I've missed the other two!" you say. No worry.
In the first lecture we learned the 2000 year history of pipe organs and how they are all basically made from three parts - keyboards, pipes, and an air supply. The types and styles vary, as does the construction. We also took a look at keyboards and how they have evolved.
At the second lecture, Steinmeyer discussed pipes - how their size, shape, and construction influenced the tone. In the early days, all pipes were the same diameter. Over the years, pipes were made of varying lengths, diameters, and materials (woods and metals).
He mentioned historically interesting events. For example, a scientific study of the perfect pipe organ pipe dimensions and ratios was done a while back and it was found to be mathematically correct, but acoustically "off", indicating that voicers (those tuning the organ) should have an ear for getting the right sounds from the pipes they have available.
When an organbuilder designs an organ, the choice of pipes and how they get arranged into "ranks" determines the sound of the pipe organ.
Tonight's lecture is about the air - "Chests and Connectors" - and how it is created, stabilized, and moved through the pipes. (Pay attention and you might be able to turn your home heating and cooling system into a musical instrument.)
The final lecture will put it all back together. More on that later.
7pm at the First Baptist Church on Main Street in Brattleboro. Free. Hope to see you there...