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Jim Tidwell...46 stop, 69 rank Kern tracker ALL MINE!


Mallette

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Last night I recorded the debut of an 11 piece baroque instrument group at my church. Finally, everything was right. The MBS-5 performed flawlessly, no heat no cool, and the baptismal font was fixed and no longer hums. They were really excellent and the recording is super. If they agree, I intend to make it available on my site.

However, that's not the big news. Our organist, a Russian national and Ph.D candidate at UNT in organ, asked me to record her next recital. It's at University ($$$$$) Park Methodist with their ($$$$$$) 46 stop, 69 rank tracker by Alfred Kern of Strasbourg. I almost wet my pants. Can't wait. It's on the 30th of Nov. I am going to try to get her to keep it PD so we can publish without a problem. She is a superb organist and I suspect she will throw everything into this performance.

This is what I built the MBS series for in the first place. Now, I am going to do a mic recce down there with her and must decide whether to go stereo or surround. As a tracker, this beastie is all in one spot, but I want to hear how the acoustics (unknown to me) of the church affect the sense of space. As I have said, for all the wonderful things about 2 channel, there are things it simply cannot do.

This is going to be FUN!

Dave

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Dave, you almost wet yer pants? If I was there to see and hear the recording process in action, I'd be crappin' in mine!14.gif

What kind of program will she be performing? If it's all the classics from Bach, Widor, and Franck, etc., and no new compositions, then keeping it public domain shouldn't be a problem IMO.

I've heard of Kern organs, but had no idea they're built in Strasbourg, France. Nice city...been there in '84. Wish I knew there was an organ firm there, would've paid 'em a visit and told 'em my dad was the electrical engineer for Klug & Schumaker, Inc. (like they would've cared, even if they spoke English)!

It's a shame you don't have two MBS-5 recorders to record the recital in both stereo and surround sound! I don't know, could you record the performance in surround and later mix down to two-channel stereo, or would that throw a monkeywrench into the works? If not, I'd go for the multichannel anyway...after all, this is why you built the MBS-5 for in the first place!

You lucky bastard, I'm sure it will be fun! Wish I could attend...

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Fact is, I can do that. I can use the Card Deluxe for the MBS-5 and put the ESI 24/192 card in the MBS-4 for 24/96 X 4 surround. I just loop the front channels out from the MBS-4 to the MBS-5. I did that at the Spankers and it worked fine.

That is probably just what I will do. MBS-4 is noiser, but that shouldn't be an issue in that big space with audience, and the extra horsepower will be put to good use streaming that much data at once.

Dave

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Dave,

Let us know if we can get a copy. I'd like to hear your work. I've heard a few well recorded (very small mastering houses) and they make a lot of the big compant stuff sound pretty bad. One recording I have here in Conch Classics CC-2 / James Johnson playing the Fisk Organ in Greensboro, N.C. Also some of the Methuen Organ recordings are small, but careful outfits.

I hope the session goes as well as this last one.

leok

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You got it. I hope to publish this one if it passes muster. No question the organ is worth hearing, and Jamilla has been with us over a year and coaxes extraordinary things from our nasty electronic organ (being replaced by Easter by a 38 rank Garland).

I'll keep all informed as to what I learn and the program when I get it.

Dave

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Can't wait to hear your recording!

Wish I had a website devoted to my dad's residence pipe organ. Well, at least you can see the stoplist to the 1983 G. Tidwell & Sons, Opus 1, 19 rank instrument:

Great:

8' Diapason

8' Rohrgedeckt

8' Dolce/Unda Maris*

4' Octave

4' Holzgedeckt

2' Fifteenth

III Mixture

8' Trumpet

Swell:

16' Bourdon Doux

8' Viola/Celeste*

8' Gedeckt

4' Principal

4' Kleingedeckt

4' Harmonic Flute

2 2/3' Twelfth

2' Waldflute

1 3/5' Tierce

1 1/3' Larigot

8' Hautbois

8' Vox Humana

4' Holzregal

Pedal:

16' Subbass

16' Lieblichgedeckt

8' Principalbass

8' Bourdon

4' Choralbass

4' Stopped Flute

16' Contra Bassoon

8' Bassoon

*2 ranks on same stop key. Can be played seperately or together.

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----------------

On 10/28/2003 3:57:24 AM jt1stcav wrote:

Can't wait to hear your recording!

Wish I had a website devoted to my dad's residence pipe organ. Well, at least you can see the stoplist to the 1983 G. Tidwell & Sons, Opus 1, 19 rank instrument:

Great:

8' Diapason

8' Rohrgedeckt

8' Dolce/Unda Maris*

4' Octave

4' Holzgedeckt

2' Fifteenth

III Mixture

8' Trumpet

Swell:

16' Bourdon Doux

8' Viola/Celeste*

8' Gedeckt

4' Principal

4' Kleingedeckt

4' Harmonic Flute

2 2/3' Twelfth

2' Waldflute

1 3/5' Tierce

1 1/3' Larigot

8' Hautbois

8' Vox Humana

4' Holzregal

Pedal:

16' Subbass

16' Lieblichgedeckt

8' Principalbass

8' Bourdon

4' Choralbass

4' Stopped Flute

16' Contra Bassoon

8' Bassoon

*2 ranks on same stop key. Can be played seperately or together.

----------------

Damn, now THAT'S a toy! It's great that he didn't skimp on the strings or reeds. So many smaller instruments do. And I love the do-it-yourself mixture on the Swell. Tremolos on both the great and swell?

Thanks for posting this.

Forrest

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Yeah, I think Jim should post his dad's email address so we can bombard(e) him with "Hie thee to Florida and fix ye damned aul orgel." emails until he does.

I've a world-class organist friend in Sarasota I believe I could talk into playing it for the "Organ in Residence" recording I'd love to do.

Dave

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Yeah Forrest, my dad feels the same way as you...many smaller organs do alot of skimping. Mind you, we do have many independent ranks, but because of budget constraints, limited space, and time, he also had to borrow from some, i.e. the III rank mixture is really borrowed from the Principal and the mutations, the 8' Gedeckt in the Swell Division has both 16' and 4' extentions, etc. And yes, each division has its own seperate tremelo.

Purists may disapprove of borrowing, but it is an acceptable practice in the organ building world...ol' WurliTzer theatre pipe organs of the '20s were all built around this design platform. Below is a 1927 Marr & Colton that is 4 manuals and only 12 independent ranks (that's me at 18 back in '80. This was the residence organ from a wealthy doctor in CT (now sold after a bitter divorce) who also had 4 Klipschorns in his huge music room powered by 2 Carver M-500t power amps)...anywho, there are literally hundreds of stops for this organ, creating much flexibility for the organist (which I am NOT) to successfully perform his/her music. If this organ had every rank independent, it'd probably be over 250 ranks!

MarrandColton.jpg

post-11084-1381924987201_thumb.jpg

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Dave, the Boston Symphony Aeolian-Skinner restoration is on schedule but still demanding all his time and efforts. My folks had planned to come down during the holidays, but with Christmas tunings on top of the BSO job, they might not be able to spend Christmas with their sons.

And so the organ sits. If there's a blown pneumatic valve (leather deteriorates all the time) or dead chest magnets (they tend to die, and all are from the '50s on), on top of the faulty MIDI device in the organ's console, who knows when it'll be playable again...

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