Improvements in and relating to Organs.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 3rd Jan., 1890.
Complete Specification Left, 29th Sept., 1890-Accepted, 27th Dec., 1890
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and relating to Organs.
We, JOSEPH GILDERSLEEVE, of 20, Torbay Street, Kentish Town, in the
County of Middlesex, Organ Builder, and ROBERT EDWARD JOSHUA MATTHEWS,
of Warnford Court, in the City of London, Solicitor, do hereby declare the nature
of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates chiefly to the construction of a chamber pipe organ, that
is to say, an organ suitable for a drawing room as it will occupy no more floor space
than an ordinary cottage piano.
In our improved organ all the notes of the instrument are organ pipes and are
voiced to sound well in a drawing room.
In carrying out our invention we employ a wood case closed up to a height
slightly above the level of the key-board, the top forming the sound-board, on the
front portion of which two stops of pipes are placed. All the pipes are placed in
the natural order of the scale, so that each pipe is nearest to the key which sounds
it whereby we do away with the roller-board (which is part of the action of an
ordinary organ) and make the action as direct or quick and easy as that of a piano
and also economize space and expense.
The back portion of the top of the instrument is raised to a sufficient height to
form the upper portion of the enclosure of the swell. On the front of this, and
facing the key-board, are placed the shutters of the swell regulated by a pedal or
the like worked by the knee of the performer.
The whole of the lower part of the case is, nearly up to the level of the key-board,
utilized for the bellows. The feed is worked by two pedals. An escapement is
provided worked by a valve as soon as the bellows are fully inflated.
Immediately over the bellows, at the back portion of the instrument and
extending under the whole of the upper portion of the swell case, is placed the
sound-board on which stand the pipes enclosed in the swell.
The sound-board may be at any convenient level below the sound-board of the
front pipes so as to allow of employing any required height of pipe but we employ
only one set of pallets and one wind chest with its partitions for each note, no air-
conveying pipes being required. The two stops of pipes in front of the instrument
are worked with slides in the ordinary manner, that is to say, horizontally and
immediately under the pipes. But the swell pipes are worked by a slide placed
vertically at the back of the divisions over each pallet and at a right angle to the
top of the sound-board. All these slides draw with "hit and miss " holes in the
usual manner.
There being but one set of pallets etc., the wind has to be conveyed
to the swell pipes (and sometimes also to other pipes) and we effect this by forming
the flues or air-conveyers in the thickness of the material of the swell case.
This can be advantageously carried out in the following manner.
The lower part of the front of the swell case is made in three thicknesses, the
inner one having marked on it the lines of flues which take the direction that the
ordinary metal air-conveying pipe would take; these are afterwards cut out in any
suitable manner such as by means of a fret saw. This fretwork is then glued
between two thicknesses of suitable material such as veneers of hard wood and holes
are pierced where required at the ends of the flues within. These holes correspond
with others in the draw slide of the stop and also with holes in the edge of the
sound-board, (which is also made in three thicknesses with flues in a similar manner)
on which the pipes of the stop in the swell stand.
It will be obvious that the flues may be cut to any curve thereby offering less
resistance to the wind than the ordinary jointed air-conveying pipes do, quicker

page_text: action being given and a saving of space effected, the wood case of the instrument
itself serving the same purpose as a bulky part of the action of an ordinary organ.
Also more room is left for the pipes to "speak" in, in proportion to the size of the
organ. This system of air-conveying channels in the thickness of the wood may be
applied to other parts as well as to the swell.
It will be understood that our improvements are in part applicable to other pipe
organs than chamber pipe organs.
Dated the 3rd day of January 1890.
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London, Agents for the Applicants.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and relating to Organs.
We, JOSEPH GILDERSLEEVE, of 20, Torbay Street, Kentish Town, in the
County of Middlesex, Organ Builder, and ROBERT EDWARD JOSHUA MATTHEWS,
of Warnford Court, in the City of London, Solicitor, do hereby declare the nature
of.this invention and in what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
This invention relates chiefly to the construction of a chamber pipe organ, that is
to say, an organ suitable for a drawing room as it will occupy no more floor space
than an ordinary cottage piano.
In our improved organ all the notes of the instrument are organ pipes and are
voiced to sound well in a drawing room.
In order to enable our invention to be fully understood we will describe how it
can be carried into practice by reference to the accompanying drawings, in
which―
Figures 1 and 2 are a front and side elevation respectively of a chamber pipe
organ constructed according to our invention and having three stops of pipes
forming four draws.
Figure 3 is a central vertical section of the organ, and
Figure 4 is a front sectional elevation of the same, the section being taken on the
line xx of Figure 3. In this figure the pipes and pallets are shewn removed for
the sake of clearness.
Figure 5 is a section of the lower part of the front of the swell case; and
Figure 6 is an elevation of a part of the same.
Similar reference letters indicate similar parts throughout the drawings.
In carrying out our invention we employ a wood case a, Figures 1 to 4, closed up
to a height slightly above the level of the key-board b, the top forming the sound-
board c on which can be placed a series of stops of pipes. In the drawings two stops
of pipes are shewn so placed, the said stops being marked d and e respectively. All
the pipes are placed in the natural order of the scale, as shewn clearly in Figures 1
and 2, in which figures the pipes represent portions of the stops
and e.
By this arrangement the pallet g of each pipe is nearest to the key g' which
operates it, whereby we do away with the usual roller-board (which is part of the
action of an ordinary organ) and make the action as direct or quick and easy as that
of a piano and also economize space and expense.
h is the swell case which we arrange to form the back portion of the top of the
instrument. On the front of the swell case and facing the key-board, we place
the swell shutters which can be operated in the usual manner by the knee of the
performer through the medium of a lever ², lever h³, rod h*, cranks h³, he and
rod h².
The whole of the lower part of the case a is, nearly up to the level of the key-
board, utilized for the bellows i as shewn clearly in Figure 3, the feed being worked
by two pedals, in the usual manner. An escapement valve of the usual
construction is provided to relieve the bellows when fully inflated. This valve is
not shewn in the drawings.

page_text: Immediately over the bellows, at the back portion of the instrument is located the
sound-board on which stands the third stop of pipes enclosed in the swell h.
The sound board j may be at any convenient level below the sound-board c of the
front pipes so as to allow of employing any required height of pipes j¹.
The two stops of pipes d and e are worked with slides k and in the ordinary
manner, that is to say, horizontally and immediately under the pipes, the stop d
being worked by the slide k and the stop e by the slide 7 and another slide, not
shewn, the two slides corresponding with the two portions viz., bass and treble into
which the said stop e is divided. But according to our invention the swell pipes
are worked by a slide m placed vertically at the back of the divisions over each
pallet and at a right angle to the top of the sound-board j. All these slides draw
with "hit and miss " holes in the usual manner and are connected to the draw rods n
through the medium of levers n', rods n² and bell cranks n³. There being but one
set of pallets g the wind has to be conveyed to the swell pipes and we effect this by
forming the flues or air-conveyors in the thickness of the material of the front of
the swell case in the following manner :
The lower part of the front of the swell case is made in three thicknesses as
shewn at o, o¹, o² in Figures 3 and 5, the inner thickness o' having marked on it the
lines of flues which take the direction that the ordinary metal air-conveying pipes
would take; these are afterwards cut out in any suitable manner, such as by means
of a fret saw, as shewn at p in Figure 6, which represents an elevation of a portion
of the said thickness. The thickness o' is then glued between the two other
thicknesses o and o² of suitable material such as veneers of hard wood, and holes
are pierced where required at the ends of the flues p within. These holes correspond
with holes in the draw slide m of the swell stop and also with flues s in the sound-
board which is also made in three thicknesses with the flues s in a similar manner
to the lower part of the front of the swell case.
?"
s, and indicate the thicknesses of the sound-board j, the flues being formed
in the thickness 2 and connected to the pipes j' by holes j.
It will be obvious that the flues p and s may be cut to any curve thereby offering
less resistance to the wind than the ordinary jointed air-conveying pipes do, quicker
action being given and a saving of space effected, the wood case of the swell h itself
serving the same purpose as a bulky part of the action of an ordinary organ.
Also more room is left for the pipes to "speak" in, in proportion to the size of
the organ.
It will be understood that our improvements are in part applicable to other pipe
organs than chamber pipe organs.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is:
1. In a pipe organ, forming the air-conveying channels for the swell, in the
thickness of the material of the front of the swell box, in the manner and for the
purposes, substantially as described.
2. In a pipe organ having air conveying channels formed in the front of the swell
box, the arrangement of a slide such as m for admitting air to the swell, substantially
as described.
3. The combination and arrangement of parts forming the improved pipe organ
hereinbefore described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
Dated the 20th day of Santambor 1800.
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London, Agents for the Applicants.