Vol. 1 No. 7
Exploring trends in all the arts
IN THIS ISSUE
MUSIC
Pipe Organ “Helmuth” Finds New Home
POETRY
George Herbert
PHOTOGRAPHY
Ray Wilcox
RESOURCES
MUSIC
Terry Yount: ‘Helmuth’ moves to a new home
This story is about an organ transplant. In case you were wondering, this is not a medical essay but one about a pipe organ rescue. When I received a phone call from my previous church’s music director in early 2023, I learned I would be the owner of an organ I had selected for that church’s worship space 20 years earlier. Helmuth needed a home.
Helmuth’s story began in 1980, built by Houston organ builder Pieter Visser. Pieter is now retired in his eighties. Helmuth was purchased and installed in 2003 and began 17 years of service.
By 2021, the church decided to refurbish the sanctuary and install an electronic instrument. The old organ was stored in the choir room. Despite being listed on Organ Clearing House for more than 2 years, Helmuth remained unclaimed--an ‘orphan organ’. I began networking. No prospective buyers responded, and who would want to invest in a pipe organ? It was no help, of course, that Helmuth was in storage and unplayable.
In a few months, another local church agreed that Helmuth would be welcome to stay in its rehearsal hall until it could be sold and moved to a permanent location. With it there is potential for a concert series using Helmuth, the continuo organ, the harpsichord, and the two grand pianos.
On May 6, a group of 8 helpers moved the pipes which were arranged in order of pitch and tone in their trays, the large bass wood pipes, the chassis with pipe tables, air pump, case,
keyboards, pedals, and other parts. It was a big job for some very dedicated people, among them organ students. By mid-afternoon Helmuth was safely inside its new space, and a week later was fully playable.
The result, thankfully, is a gracious ‘temporary’ space for Helmuth, now up and playable, ready to resume service. In the process of negotiating for my orphan organ, I learned that many organs are homeless, and in need of relocation. Salvaging old or unused instruments encourages people who value pipe organs, of course. But beyond the efforts of groups like Redundant Organs (UK) and Organ Clearing House (USA), it will be organists, music directors, and their audiences, who make the difference.
In a world where things of beauty shape us, there is no good reason to discard an unused organ no matter how troubled its condition. The Church of England says on its
website: Putting an organ into storage is very much a last resort and is generally not advisable, buyers want to see and hear what they are getting.
A fine musical instrument proves its value not only for its craftsmanship but its unique voice. Helmuth is but one example of thousands of organs currently being rescued. My hope, as an organist who teaches young musicians to enter the profession, is that more churches and schools will join the cause, as participants in making and maintaining beautiful music far beyond the present.
POETRY
George Herbert
Called one of England’s greatest lyric poets, George Herbert (1593-1633) spent his life in service to the Church of England. Although he lived less than 40 years, his poetic output was prodigious, influencing fellow poets such as Henry Vaughan, and later luminaries Samuel
Taylor Coleridge and Ralph Waldo Emerson. Among his most influential works is The Temple, a collection of 164 poems about the nature of Herbert’s own life as a servant of the church, published shortly after his death. His poems about love are uniquely transcendent and visceral, exemplified in “Love Bade Me Welcome.”
Love bade me welcome: yet my soul drew back, Guilty of dust and sin. But quick-eyed Love, observing me grow slack From my first entrance in, Drew nearer to me, sweetly questioning If I lacked anything.
"A guest," I answered, "worthy to be here": Love said, "You shall be he." "I, the unkind, ungrateful? Ah, my dear, I cannot look on thee." Love took my hand, and smiling did reply, "Who made the eyes but I?"
"Truth, Lord; but I have marred them; let my shame Go where it doth deserve." "And know you not," says Love, "who bore the blame?" "My dear, then I will serve." "You must sit down," says Love, "and taste my meat." So I did sit and eat.
PHOTOGRAPHY
Ray Wilcox
Baltimore native Ray Wilcox has been a pro photographer for nearly 40 years.
Ray is a friend, and an artist/photographer whose Christian faith guides his work.
His portraits and landscapes are complemented by some mixed media. For those who know his work, Ray gently edits what he has captured on digital media. It would be easy to go too far with this, but Ray’s works do not manipulate as much as enhancing original images. These examples are merely a sampling—if you go deeper, you will see the full montage of his work. See more of his photographs here.
Resources for further exploration
Biography of George Herbert with complete poems at Poetry Foundation
Ray Wilcox Photography
For information, full articles and past issues
* This issue is the last until Fall—over the summer we will research, travel, attend conferences, and write about beauty.
A Word from Terry Yount
Executive Creator, Mere Beauty
Subscribers to the website and journal issues will have access to archives, sound and video files, and exciting resources for arts advocacy and support. Your feedback, as always, is welcome.
In all the confusion of the modern world,
Mere Beauty is your place to stop, to observe, to listen,
to become part of the beauty all around us.
Comentários