The Quimby organ in 1st Baptist Church, Jackson, MS
Pipe organ building is a fascinating blend of physics,
engineering, decorative arts and music. Behind the
flamed copper facade pipes in the arches on either
side of the baptistry stands a forest of straight or
flared pipes ranging in length from 32 feet to no
longer than a pencil.
The pipe organ built by Quimby Pipe Organs, Inc.,
with a tonal design in the Anglo-American romantic
symphonic tradition, has five manuals, 155 ranks,
with 9,079 pipes. The tonal concept of the new organ
incorporated pipes from several different organs. The
original organ for First Baptist Church was built in
1939 by E. M. Skinner and Son. From this organ sixteen
ranks, or sets of pipes, were used in the Quimby instru-
ment, along with nine ranks from the 1972 rebuild by
the Moller Organ Co. Also, 63 ranks were utilized from
the Casavant instrument acquired by the church during
the 1989 expansion of the Sanctuary. The Casavant
pipe organ was originally played in the Concert Hall
of the Royal York Hotel in Toronto, Canada, and was
constructed in 1929 by Casavant Freres Limited of St.
Hyacinthe, Quebec. At the time, many considered it the
firm's crown jewel.
The flue ranks retained from the previous instruments
have been rebuilt, revoiced, and rescaled for the new
tonal concept. The existing reed ranks have been rebuilt
and revoiced with new reed tongues for the new wind
pressures. The organ is winded by one Laukhuff and three
Spencer blowers, combined to equal 57 horsepower.
This job has been extremely gratifying for Quimby
Pipe Organs, Inc., because of the success of the research
undertaken to determine the best approach to fill the 1.5
million cubic feet of space with sound from a pipe organ
located in chambers on either side of the baptistry and
in the upper back part of the room. The Quimby staff
relearned voicing knowledge, winding, pipe construction
and techniques that were abandoned starting in the 1930s
during the organ classic revival period. Instruments that
influenced the direction of their work included the
Skinner Organ Company organ in Woolsey Hall of Yale
University, the 1933 Kimball Pipe Organ in the War
Memorial Auditorium, Massachusetts, and their previous
experience installing the rebuilt Casavant Organ for the
Jacoby Symphony Hall, Jacksonville, Florida.
The organ will enhance the church music ministry by the
support of congregational singing; providing sensitive
accompaniment of choirs, vocalists, and othe instrument-
alists; providing a spiritual environment for worship;
providing festive music to celebrate weddings and other
special occasions; and supporting the varied styles of
the church's diverse music program.