The Organ at St. Paul’s

The fourth church building (1840-1929) had a pipe organ on the liturgical North wall of the chancel. Photos tell us that this instrument underwent an expansion at some point. When the current church was built in 1929, the Moller Organ Company provided a 3-manual and pedal instrument in the Chancel, however no case or facade was designed or installed. The Moller was modified and “renovated” many times over the years, and by the late 1980s was virtually unplayable.

In 1992, John Randolph of New York City installed Skinner Organ, Opus 753, which was originally built for and installed in St. Paul’s Church in New Rochelle, NY, in 1928. The organ was enlarged and installed in St. Paul’s on a shoestring budget and therefore the installation was less than successful. By 2003, the organ was failing mechanically and not ready for the next chapter in the church’s musical history.

In 2006, as part of a larger capital campaign, the Reuter Organ Company was selected to restore the Skinner pipework and chests, enlarge the organ and design, build and install an appropriate case and facade – at long last! The original Skinner console from New Rochelle was saved and retrofitted for use with all of the existing and new pipework. A highlight of the organ project was the addition of the St. Nicholas Trumpet, 61 horizontal polished copper pipes mounted in the west gallery. This brilliant stop was named for the church’s current rector, Father Nicholas Lang.

In addition to leading the many liturgical services at St. Paul’s, the organ is featured regularly in concerts and recitals. There are 3 manuals and pedal controlling 53 ranks of pipes, or 3,432 individual pipes. The only digital stop is the 32′ Bourdon, of which the bottom 12 notes are provided by Walker Digital to play as an extension of the Skinner 16′ Bourdon. For the organ’s complete specification, click here.