725 Pine St.    Winnetka, Illinois 60093    847-441-3400

Home Worship Schedule Contact Calendar Messenger Join Us Our Faith Our History The Facilities The Staff Child Care Church School Youth Programs Adult Education Volunteerism Music Council Pledge

Organ Project - Recommended Organ Back to Organ Project Main With the assistance of consultants hired with the approval of Council, the VOWS committee took the following are actions to form its recommendations: Investigated the condition of church and chapel organs Investigated the cost and feasibility of repairing the church organ Studied the possibility of constructing a new organ from usable parts of the church and chapel organs Seen and heard a variety of organs (a total of twenty-one) in a variety of acoustical and visual settings in the Chicago area, Milwaukee, Indianapolis, the Seattle area, and in Knoxville, Tennessee Solicited, received and evaluated proposals for a new organ from five organ builders. The committee has recommended to Council that the existing church organ be replaced with a three-manual, 47 stop tracker-action organ to be built by Pasi Organ Builders Inc. of Roy, Washington. The style of organ takes its name from thin strips of wood, called "trackers," which directly transmit motion from the keys to the pipes. The process is purely mechanical and does not involve electrical or pneumatic elements. In terms of initial cost, the tracker is the most expensive of the alternatives studied by the committee. However, the mechanical advantages result in significant cost savings for the long run. Tracker by Pasi Organ Builders Mechanical Advantages Mechanically, tracker organs are superior in the following ways: Simplicity Reliability Longevity Tracker organs easily last for one hundred years or more. Many fine organs built in this country starting in the 1850s are still in use. Some trackers in Europe are more than three hundred years old. Only normal maintenance and occasional, uncomplicated repairs are needed to keep them working at their peak levels. Musical Advantages Compared to alternatives, the tracker-action organ possesses the potential for greater musicality. In electric-action instruments (such as our existing organ), the link between the keyboard and the valves admitting wind into the pipes is electrical. By contrast, in a tracker-type organ, the linkage is mechanical. The mechanical design allows for a more natural relationship between the organist and the instrument, which is the norm for all other acoustical instruments, and is the principal reason why tracker organs are preferred by organists. The up-and-coming generation of young organists is being trained almost exclusively on tracker-action organs. Next Topic: Sanctuary Design