Dobson Pipe Organ Builders,
Lake City, Iowa
St. David’s Episcopal Church,
Wayne, Pennsylvania
Faced with rapid growth in the late 1990s, St. David’s Episcopal Church in Wayne, Pennsylvania planned to replace a worship space erected in 1956. That building had been constructed in response to the post-war population surge in this mainline Episcopal parish, whose congregants for the prior 241 years had worshipped in a small stone church built in 1715. Founded by Welsh colonists, the congregation and its stone church were immortalized in 1880 by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow in his poem, “Old St. David’s at Radnor,” a stanza of which reads,
It is not the wall of stone without
That makes the building small or great,
But the soul’s light shining round about,
And the faith that overcometh doubt,
And the love that stronger is than hate.
The new chapel, so named to mark this edifice as, despite its greater size, the spiritual offshoot of the still-standing historic church, was designed by Atkin, Olshin, Lawson-Bell (now Atkin, Olshin, Schade) of Philadelphia. Seating 585, the chapel is the newest gathering point for a congregation that has long valued music.
From the beginning of the construction planning process, it was determined that a pipe organ and acoustics supportive of singing would be significant features of the new chapel. Under the leadership of Dr. Joseph Bonn and organ consultant Jonathan Ambrosino, St. David’s organ committee undertook an extensive search that ultimately resulted in the decision to commission a new instrument from Dobson Pipe Organ Builders of Lake City, Iowa, the firm’s Op. 84.
Standing at the front of the worship space, the new organ, like the chapel itself, draws architectural inspiration from the 1715 church across the street. Built of oak and lightly painted white, the organ case’s simple lines are enriched by gilded carvings. The layout of the organ is straightforward, with location of the divisions within the case corresponding to the arrangement of the keyboards. The largest pipes of the Pedal stand on the floor behind the organ. The Choir division, played from the lowest manual keyboard, is located behind the latticework grille. The Great, played from the second manual keyboard, is located behind the tall groups of pipes at the outside of the case; some of the smaller Pedal pipes are also located with the Great. The Swell is placed behind the upper group of pipes just below the window.
The organ generally employs mechanical key action for all divisions, with electric action being used for the largest Pedal pipes. A multilevel combination action is also provided. The console, built of black cherry with a mahogany interior, is detached from the main case to provide two rows of choir seating. Most of the organ’s 2,751 pipes are made of alloys of tin and lead, with tin content ranging from 12% to 75%. The largest pipes, and some smaller ones as well, are made of wood, specifically yellow poplar, hard maple and black walnut. Wind is supplied by a blower located in the undercroft, and regulated by large weighted reservoirs in the base of the case.
The organ was dedicated in a festival worship service on September 23, 2007, during which St. David’s choir sang Parry’s “I Was Glad.” It was followed by a dedication recital given that afternoon by David Higgs of the Eastman School of Music. Subsequent dedication series programs have been presented by Dr. Clair Rozier, director of music at St. David’s; Dr. Robert Gallagher, associate director of music; and Ann Elise Smoot, a daughter of the parish and now a concert organist and teacher in London.
—John A. Panning
Dobson Pipe Organ Builders
Photographs courtesy Wm. T. Van Pelt
GREAT (II)
16? Principal 61 pipes
8? Principal 61 pipes
8? Hohl Flute 61 pipes
8? Gamba 61 pipes
4? Octave 61 pipes
4? Spire Flute 61 pipes
22?3? Twelfth 61 pipes
2? Fifteenth 61 pipes
13?5? Seventeenth 61 pipes
2? Mixture IV 244 pipes
8? Trumpet 61 pipes
4? Clarion 61 pipes
Swell to Great
Choir to Great
SWELL (III, enclosed)
8? Diapason 61 pipes
8? Bourdon 61 pipes
8? Viola 61 pipes
8? Voix Celeste (CC) 61 pipes
4? Octave 61 pipes
4? Harmonic Flute 61 pipes
22?3? Nasard 61 pipes
2? Piccolo 61 pipes
13?5? Tierce 61 pipes
2? Mixture III 183 pipes
16? Bassoon 61 pipes
8? Trumpet 61 pipes
8? Oboe 61 pipes
4? Clarion 61 pipes
Tremulant
CHOIR (I, enclosed)
16? Bourdon 61 pipes
8? Salicional 61 pipes
8? Gemshorn 61 pipes
8? Unda Maris (GG) 54 pipes
8? Lieblich Gedeckt 61 pipes
4? Fugara 61 pipes
4? Recorder 61 pipes
2? Flageolet 61 pipes
8? Trumpet 61 pipes
8? Clarinet 61 pipes
8? Vox Humana 61 pipes
Tremulant
Swell to Choir
PEDAL
32? Contra Bourdon 32 pipes
16? Principal (Gt)
16? Violone 32 pipes
16? Subbass (ext 32?) 12 pipes
16? Bourdon (Ch)
8? Octave 32 pipes
8? Violoncello (ext Violone) 12 pipes
8? Gedeckt (ext 32?) 12 pipes
4? Choralbass 32 pipes
16? Trombone 32 pipes
8? Trumpet (Gt)
4? Clarion (Gt)
Great to Pedal
Swell to Pedal
Choir to Pedal
42 voices, 49 stops, 47 ranks, 2,751 pipes
