George Keith Taylor, 83, died February 13 in Fishersville, Virginia. He was born April 26, 1942, in Richmond, Virginia, and completed his secondary education at Woodberry Forest School, Woodberry Forest, Virginia, in 1960, where he was first introduced to playing the organ and the study of pipe organs and organbuilding. He graduated from Washington and Lee University, Lexington City, Virginia, in 1964. Upon graduation, he was awarded a Ford Foundation grant to serve an apprenticeship with Rudolf von Beckerath in Hamburg, Germany, where he learned aspects of design, construction, installation, and maintenance of mechanical-action organs in the style of those from the period of Johann Sebastian Bach. At the completion of his four-year apprenticeship, Taylor accepted a position with John Brombaugh & Co. in Germantown, Ohio, where he worked with his future business partner, John Boody. In 1977 Brombaugh decided to move his organbuilding company to the west coast, but Taylor and John Boody opted to found their own business, Taylor & Boody Organbuilders, in the Shenandoah Valley near Staunton, Virginia.
Taylor & Boody opened its doors in 1979 in a renovated elementary school building, creating organs that have been installed throughout the United States and in England, Japan, and Hong Kong. Taylor was asked to contribute a chapter on organ design and pedagogy for an upcoming book from Oxford University Press, a project he nearly completed prior to his death. In 1988 George married Carol A. Harris, who moved to Staunton from Canada. During their 38-year marriage, they transformed their parcel of land into a wildlife preserve, reintroducing native trees, plants, and vernal pools as they determined to be ecologically sound stewards of the land entrusted to them. George Taylor’s love of and concern for nature was evidenced in his support of the Jane Goodall Institute, The Nature Conservancy, and other organizations devoted to care of the environment. He enjoyed volunteering for the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank. He also loved to sing and was a choir member at Trinity Episcopal Church, Staunton, where his wife served as organist and choirmaster.
In addition to his wife Carol, George Keith Taylor is survived by his sister Martha Finley Taylor Sutton (David) of Norwood, North Carolina; sister Jennie Taylor Shirey (David) of Lexington, Kentucky; three nephews, two nieces, and eight great nieces and nephews. A private burial service was held in Lexington, Virginia. Memorial contributions may be made to the Jane Goodall Institute (janegoodall.org) or the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank (brafb.org).
