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THE ORGAN PROJECT:
During the Fall of 1987 First Christian Church received several significant anonymous gifts for the purpose of replacing our 1965 model Allen organ with a pipe organ. In January 1988 a pipe organ committee was appointed by our elm rch board to study and provide leadership for this vision.
Dr. James Moeser, Dean of Arts and Architecture at Penn State University, was selected as our organ consultant. Dr. Moeser met with our committee in June 1988 to begin guiding us through the project. Members of the organ committee were Mike Davis, Chairman; Dr. Les Ansley, Pete Broorme, Irma Davis, Ruth Fernandes, Don Kittrell and Edna Watkins (deceased). Ex-officio members included Sherri Richards, Jim Watt, Darryl Berry and Kim Clowe.
Upon Dr. Moeser’s recommendation, the committee met with four pipe organ builders and traveled to Dallas/Fort Worth to see and hear many fine organs. After this trip it was the unanimous decision of the committee to select Casavant-Freres Lirnitee, St. Hyacinthe, Quebec. Canada as our builder. Casavant is one of the largest builders of fine pipe organs in North America. The company has been in continuous production since 1879.
Through the faith and generosity of over 250 church members and friends, the total amount of our sanctuary preparations, organ, and choir chairs was totally underwritten. The purchase price of the organ was $399,750; consultant fees, building preparations and revisions totaled just under $135.000.
The organ has 46 ranks and 32.independent stops. it contains 9 couplers and 30 adjustable combinations with 8 levels of solid, state memory. The action is on slider chests. Unit. stops are on electro- pneumatic action chests.
The console is all electric, is detached from the organ, and is on a movable plaItform. The adjustable bench is made of oak. The pedal board naturals are made of maple and the accidentals are made of
rosewood. The drawknobs and intermanual couplers are rosewood. The manual sharps are rosewood with bone caps. The organ casework is made of Vermont Oak. There are 128 polished facade pipes.
The organ arrived to he assembled on July 8, 1991. It was played publicly for the first time on the occasion of our 90th Anniversary.Celebration, Sunday, September 8, 1991...
To God Be The Glory!
Kim E. Clowe
Minister of Music
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FROM OUR ORGAN CONSULTANT:
It has been my pleasure to serve as the consultant to First Christian Church for this new organ. From my first conversations with Kim Clowe and subsequent exploratory meeting with the organ committee, it was clear that the leadership of the church understood that vital corporate worship, including an excellent music program, was an indispensable characteristic for a downtown church if it was to continue to flourish, The church lacked two essentials for its music and worship program - a fine pipe organ, and an acoustical environment conducive to singing and participatory corporate worship.
I gave them my best layman’s advice for acoustical changes, but I urged them to retain a separate acoustical consultant to specify the detailed changes that needed to be affected. They retained arguably the best church acoustician in the country, B. Lawrence Kirkegaard, of Downers Grove, Illinois. More importantly, they took Mr. Kirkegaard’s advice, and the results speak (and sing) for themselves.
The committee told me that they wanted an organ that would have a personality different from any of the other fine organs in Lubbock. This, in part, led to the choice of Casavant, previously not represented among the organs in the city. It also led to the rather French accent of the organ, not only because the builder is French-Canadian, but as a matter of basic total design.
The driving force behind the tonal design of the instrument was it's primary function, the musical
leadership and support of worship, through the playing of hymns, the accompaniment of anthems both by adult and children’s choirs, and the performance of organ voluntaries before, during and after the service. Secondarily, the organ is designed to perform the major literature of the concert repertoire.
The First Christian Casavant will definitely make a statement unlike any other instrument in
Lubbock. Its sound is full, warm, vital, and above all, rich in color. Each stop, played alone, is beautiful; and yet when combined, the individual voices become one choir, not a collection of soloists. This is possible only through the hands of the artist who painstakingly “voiced” each individual pipe.
This organ is. both a work of art and an act of praise. I was glad to have a small part in the making of It. My thanks and congratulations to the artist and artisans of Casavant who brought it to life.
Soil Deo Gloria!
James C. Moeser
James C. Moeser is a native of Lubbock, having graduated from Monterey High School in 1957. He has two degrees from the University of Texas at Austin and the Professor of Musical Arts degree frcrm the University of Michigan. He is currently the Dean of the College of Arts and Architecture and Professor of Music at Penn State University and the National President of the American Guild of Organists.
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