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Queen Victoria Memorial Organ





The pipe organ in St Paul’s cathedral



History. In 1902 it was decided that the small tracker organ should be replaced with a larger, better type. Subscriptions from the then resident British community were sufficient to order the best pneumatic instrument from the same makers, Forster & Andrews, and the old tracker organ was sold to the Lutheran church, where it functions to this day. Installed soon after the death of Queen Victoria, it was agreed to commemorate her reign, and name the new instrument “The Queen Victoria Memorial Organ”, in her honour.

     The earthquake of 1906 did little damage to the body of the church, but the organ, especially the pipes, suffered. In 1910 the makers were asked to send a specialist to “rebuild” the organ, which they did in 1910. There is an ivory plaque on the right hand side of the console to that effect.

Characteristics. Actually there are four organs in one, powered by an electric motor turning a blower delivering 800 cubic feet of air per minute at five inches pressure. The first instrument was powered by a reciprocating pump driven by water through a 1 1/2” galvanized pipe. It is still in place. The beautiful organ case is a masterpiece of carved oak, showing off the polychromed pipes to perfection. The dates of Queen Victoria’s reign and the royal coat of arms are engraved on either side.

     The great and choir organs are on the left side of the church (looking towards the altar) and the swell and pedal organs on the right. The console is placed in front of the right hand organ. It consists of three manuals of 58 notes each and 30 pedals. 34 stops, 10 couplers and two tremulants control about 1,500 pipes. No other church in Chile has 32-foot pipes. It is the special quality of these pipes, wood, antimony-lead and iron that gives this organ its unusual, glorious tone.

Operation. Air pressure from the main bellows is distributed to the secondary bellows and from there to the pipe-chests where it flows through the pipes when the notes are played and one or more stops are open. Each “family” of pipes is placed in rows on the sound-boards, over channels carrying the air. Each channel carries pipes of the same note, e.g. all the “C”s in line, then the “C” sharps on the next channel, and so on. At right angles to the channels are “Sliders”, flat hardwood 2” x ¼” slats, perforated with 58 holes exactly matching the holes in the sound-boards. When the stop is closed the sound-board holes are closed and the pipes do not sound when a key is pressed. When the stop is opened the slider moves in its slot and the holes coincide allowing air to flow when the holes are pressed, so the pipes sound.

     The stops are operated by oak and ebony push-pull rods situated on either side of the console. At the end of each rod an ivory disk is engraved with the name of the stop. Pull the stop and it opens. Push it back and the stop closes.

     The pedals and manual keys are connected from the console to the wind-chests by pencil thick lead pipes. The wind-chest has about three inches of air pressure. Each lead pipe is connected to a small bellows and so has the same pressure, controlled by a grub screw. The action of pressing a key releases the pressure in the lead pipe (at the console). The effect of the loss of pressure causes the small bellows to collapse, allowing air to flow through a ½” felt disk valve, and inflating the secondary, slightly larger bellows. In turn, the inflation of the second bellows opens yet another valve and air flows out of a narrow, foot-long bellows in the second wind-chest. This long bellows is connected to a clapper valve under the pipe, by means of a flat cotton tape. So when this bellows collapses, because of the pressure in the wind-chest, it pulls open the clapper valve and the pipe sounds; providing of course that a stop has been opened.


Musica en las Alturas - Conciertos todos los Domingos a las 12:30 hrs.








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