Writer Musical instruments rise and fall in popularity over the centuries. When you talk about producing music with wood, metal and wind, it can't get much more organic than that. Eaton is professor of organ at HSU, and he has been charged with reviving a program that fell all but dormant after the retirement of professor John Campbell. This semester, Eaton is teaching six students how to play the pipe organ, an instrument that involves both hands and feet, and which can be as large as some rooms. James Thomashower, executive director of the American Guild of Organists in New York City, was pleased to hear that HSU is reviving pipe organ studies.
Several signs point to revived interest in the organ.
Part of the reason is the good economy, Jaeckel said. Churches and universities who have benefactors interested in creating a lasting legacy have been more likely to install organs for the past five to eight years. Some pipe organs in Europe are still being played 300 years after they were built. Jaeckel said organ builders also have improved the quality of pipe organs. Poor quality marked organ construction in the first half of the 20th century, he said, and the high cost of maintaining poor organs scared off many churches and symphony halls.