鱿鱼视频app

TORONTO - For an organist, preserving an instrument鱿鱼视频app sound is like maintaining a relationship. It calls for strict attention to atmosphere, communication and a whole lot of listening.

鈥淵ou try as hard as possible to keep the air in the church as consistent as possible,鈥� said John Paul Farahat, organist at St. Basil鱿鱼视频app Church in downtown Toronto. 鈥淲hen you have changes in humidity, when you have changes in temperature, it really affects the pipes because they are all either made of wood or some combina tion of metals.鈥�

In Grade 12, after playing the piano since childhood, Farahat began studying the organ. Now pursuing a masters of music and performance at the University of Toronto, Farahat, 23, has worked with the National Catholic Broadcasting Council鱿鱼视频app Daily Mass since 2007.

Farahat took over as the principal organist at St. Basil鱿鱼视频app in May 2011, meaning his relationship with the church鱿鱼视频app 93-year-old pipe organ had officially become serious.

鈥淲hat essentially I try to do as the principal organist here is try to maintain it,鈥� said Farahat. 鈥淥ne of the things an organist can do, when you have a pipe organ, is you always make sure, first and foremost, that those expressive pedals are in an open position so that the shutters are opened. Gradual (temperature) changes ... have far less of an effect on how far the instrument goes out of tune.鈥�

This allows air to flow freely around the pipes ensuring that when the temperature inevitably changes in the church it also changes in the boxes that enclose selected pipes.

During the summer months Farahat admits efforts to ensure a constant temperature are often in vain, though it hasn鈥檛 discouraged him from trying.

鈥淚n a church like this where there is no air conditioning, in the summer you are kind of at the mercy of the weather and the most you can do is just open the windows and hope for the best,鈥� said Farahat. 鈥淚n the winter (the University of St. Michael鱿鱼视频app College鱿鱼视频app) heating system is what runs this church and so you have a certain degree of control over the heat.鈥�

But keeping things comfortable is only part of the equation. Like any relationship, the key to preserving an organ鱿鱼视频app sound is communication.

鈥淭he second way to maintain it, really, it鱿鱼视频app the one thing I know a lot of organists have, is a log book (to) record whenever you find something wrong,鈥� said Farahat. 鈥淪o when the maintenance crew comes in the next time, they look at this book. They don鈥檛 look at the organ and say what鱿鱼视频app wrong because they would never get the job done... you essentially point them in the right direction.鈥�

Farahat also goes through every note in every stop regularly 鈥� at least once between the three to four annual maintenance services.

It鱿鱼视频app a practice veteran organ technician Robert Hiller encourages organists to do.

鈥淚t鱿鱼视频app very important to have more detailed instructions (because it takes) less time to find the problem,鈥� said Hiller, of Alan T. Jackson & Company, which has maintenance contracts for more than 200 organs, including St. Basil鱿鱼视频app. 鈥淚f it is only misfiring the odd time it is difficult to find where the problem is until it happens right in front of your eyes. Sometimes it is just a certain combination of stops that makes the problem happen.鈥�

At an average cost of $500 per fourto five-hour visit, keeping troubleshooting short and sweet is the aim of the game. While many parishes, such as St. Basil鱿鱼视频app, hold fixed rate contracts, it is those that try to scrimp and save who often lose out.

鈥淚f we don鈥檛 go regularly then the list of troubles will take more time and you are spending more money,鈥� said Hiller. 鈥淚f you don鈥檛 maintain your organ regularly, if you are someone who calls only the odd time, then you won鈥檛 get that kind of service. We鈥檒l have to bill by the hour.鈥�

St. Peter鱿鱼视频app Church on Bathurst Street is a parish without a maintenance contract and it shows. Built in 1927, the open concept church was acoustically designed to maximize the potential of the organ, which has since taken a turn for the worse.

鈥淭he organ has been here since the church was built in 1927 and the organ has been very much a part of our tradition,鈥� said Fr. Jim Haley.

鈥淲e would love to have it up to par.鈥�

It鱿鱼视频app a matter of dollars and cents which prevents the much needed restoration 鈥� not to mention a tuning.

鈥淚f I had some extra money I would gladly put it into the organ to see if we could build it up,鈥� said Haley. 鈥淩ight now we have some other priorities in the parish that we have to attend to.鈥�

This is the story for many parishes where a once enchantingly booming organ now screeches off key, if it makes any noise at all. Hiller said full restorations of traditional electro-pneumatic organs, which often means converting them to digital-console organs, costs between $50,000 to $150,000.

Klaas Bos, the founder and owner of the Classical Organ Centre in Norwich, Ont., first fell in love with the instrument in his native Holland.

鈥淲hen I was back in Holland, I immigrated (to Canada) in 1989, I got interested in organs. A lot of times, like on a Saturday afternoon, we鈥檇 go to an organ dealer and play a couple songs,鈥� Bos told The Catholic Register.

While there, he got to know an organ dealer who, being wheelchair bound, would ask Klaas to assist him with deliveries and in fixing small parts.

鈥淚 got acquainted with the organs, like the 鈥榞uts鈥� side of it,鈥� said Bos.

After moving to Canada, Bos wanted to get back in the organ business, and decided to start up a market for European-style organs.
鈥淚 bought myself a ticket, went back to Holland and met with seven of the dealers that I knew personally and I knew wouldn鈥檛 鈥榩ull the skin over my nose,鈥� 鈥� laughs Bos.

So, in 1992, the Classical Organ Centre was born, with an emphasis on the Content brand of instruments 鈥� a make of pipe organ from the Netherlands that was not common in the Canadian market.

鈥淚t was not known here, so this was a big step for me to do,鈥� said Bos.

鈥淥bviously, trying to market something that people know is a lot easier than trying to market something that people don鈥檛 know about. But, I thought to myself: 鈥業鈥檓 going to stick to my guns.鈥� 鈥�

That attitude has paid off, as Classical Organ now exclusively sells the Content brand, a move Bos feels secures his company a certain niche in the organ industry.

鈥淭he capabilities that are in the Content organs, they go far beyond what any other organ in the industry can do at this moment, especially with the new Cantata series,鈥� said Bos. 鈥淓verything is totally adjustable.鈥�

The Content brand, while digital, allows for a user-friendly set up that can be easily modified to suit the needs of the setting or player. The style of play can be adjusted to suit different voicing, such as a more European-style Baroque sound to a Romantic sound, from a symphonic pipe organ to a cathedral pipe organ.

Additionally, the Classical Organ Centre will also accommodate existing manual pipe organs by creating a hybrid instrument 鈥� the melding of some the original pipe work with an electric instrument so that both components can act together.

鈥淲e set it up for the customer 鈥� we ask them what do they like, where do they want to be. From there we follow up a bunch of times to see if that鱿鱼视频app exactly where they want it,鈥� said Bos.

鈥淔or all these extra features and options, the price doesn鈥檛 go up.鈥�

From a performance standpoint, Bos also notes that the sheer adaptability of the Content organ can allow the player a multitude of different musical experiences that he may not have previously been able to have.

鈥淲hen I started, I was always a more Romantic-style player,鈥� said Bos. 鈥淣ow, because it鱿鱼视频app just a matter of hitting a button and you have a totally different organ, I鈥檓 getting more interested in Baroque music and symphonic music.

鈥淏ecause it鱿鱼视频app on here, I practise with it and see the value of the different organs.鈥�

For more information go to www.classicalorgan.ca.