Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1863-08-29

In the fourteenth century the keyboard was
much improved by the Monks. They made
the keys nicer and much smaller, so that they
could be played by the fingers, like modern
organs; they also extended its compass
About the year 1860 Taber, a priest, built a
great organ in the Halberstadt cathedral
Pr@torius says that it had three key.boards
and pedals, and that it was the first organ hav-
ing the semi-tones of the scale. The inven-
lien of pedals (keys for the feet is ascribcd to
Bernhard, German A. d. l470, but investi-
cation proves that they were in use nearly Il
century before, and that he only added i'm
provements.
The earliest known organ builder was AL
bert Van Os, A d. 1850, most organs to this
time having been built by priests and monks
In the sixteenth century began the develop
ment of the great and noble organ of our
time. In this century the Germans invented
registers, by which alone variety of tone could
be obtained. A registered commonly called a
Stop-is a set of pipes giving peculiar quality
of tone, usually in imitation of some instru-
will only sound when this is drawn out, and
these draw stops over the lettered knobs seem
ranged on each side of the player. All kinds,
including reed registers, were invented, the
bellows much improved and the manuals ex-
tended to nearly four octaves.
Among the curious organs of the past, was
one in Naples, which, except the bellows, was
made entirely of alabaster: and one in Ven
ice made wholly of glass; and another, near
Madrid, made entirely of silver. They have
also been made of paste-board, burnt clay,
porcelain, and other materials. These could
all be played upon, and Leander says the one
of glass made delectable sound. About the
year 100, the organ was degraded by the
most absurd and tasteless decorations, among
which were angels having trumpets in their
hands which moved to and from their mouths
other angels played upon bells and kettle
drums, and over all, with baton in hand, how
cred gigantic angel, conducting this celestial
orchestra. There was also armament hav-
ing movable suns, moons and stars, and all
kinds of birds singing and flying. and lastly
when lnquisitive persons came too near the
organ, they were suddenly warned away by
large fox tail whisking their faces During
the great rebellion of the seventeenth century,
bnt few of the English organs escaped de-
struction, and it was nearly century before
organs were again common in their churches
The first organ built in America was built
in l745, by Edward Broomfield, Jr. the first
organ-builder in this country worthy of the
name was William NJ. Goodrich, and his
most worthy pupil is Mr.. Ehas rrvvA Or
Boston. The embargo Of 1912 caused such
scarcity of some of the materias,-tin.
ztnc and ivory,-that there was temporary
decline in organ-buildings NOW almost every
church and concert hall testify to the high
state to which the art has advanced.
As these papers are for the people, few
words descriptive of the organ may be proper
The organ properly consists of three dvis-
ions, or organs as they are called, each hav-
ing its own keyboard or manual; the lowest
manual is for the choir organ, which is the
smallest, and contains the softest-voiced
great organ, which is the largest, and has the
loudest-voiced pipes; the upper manual is for
the Swell organ, all the pipes of which are en-
closed in a box the front of which is com
posed of blinds, wiich open and shut, thus
swelling and diminishing the tone, hence the
name. In concert organs and in a few
church organs-there is fourth manual for
the Solo organ, the pipes of which are blown
much stronger than the others, making it use
full in playing melodies. There are few or
gans with fifth manual, tor an echo organ.
but some having these have been reduced to
four, which is the highest number that can
well be employed by one player. There is
one even with sir manuals in London, but it
needs several performers to bring out the full
organ, and it is considered failure. Of such
and other organs, more hereafter.