and a nice hello

June 15 I became organist at Neffsville Mennonite Church, Lancaster, Pa. Here are some of the pipes of its organ.

new organ at Hesston, Kansas

I you keep track of tracker organs (such as ours at Zion) or of organs in the Mennonite world, you'll know that a new one has just been installed at Hesston Mennonite Church, Kansas.

Tracker means mechanical. It means that when you press a key on the keyboard or a pedal on the pedalboard you are physically opening a pipe and it sounds. So inside, there are many lines of cord connecting the keys to the pipe valves. Most organ keys throw a switch which opens the pipe valve. Tracker action is kind of like rack and pinion steering on a high end car.

You can take a tour of the organ on YouTube online. You can also find the video on the Hesston College web site (hesston.edu). Go to academics, departments, music, and finally find the tour link down the page. Earlier I posted a photo of its installation. In the video you can hear it and take a tour of its insides.

Might not be a bad idea to have a little video of our own organ.

pipes at the seminar

Once during the master class, when my mind wandered just a bit, I pointed my camera up and over my right shoulder and saw the facade of the pipes. Of course, any organ builder puts the shiney ones in the front.

These are especially stunning. And they sounded just as good.

I'm from the plain school of singing means singing--like with our own God-given voices. But in this beauty I'm ready to say that these pipes can help singing and lift our hearts just looking at them or hearing them. It's not this OR acappella. Why not this AND acappella.