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Reuter Organ Co. Opus 871 (1949)

First Baptist Church of Christ: Sanctuary
511 High Place
Macon, GA

Note: Not extant. Not playable. (in this location)


Images


2019-03-13 - Church exterior (Photograph by Jeff Scofield/Jeff Scofield)

before 1967 - Reuter grille with retained Pilcher facade pipes (Photograph from an archival source: Parish website - Pipe Organ History page, submitted by Jim Stettner/Jim Stettner)

Consoles

Main


Notes

2005-11-24 - Identified from the Reuter Opus List, provided by Chris Leaver, Reuter Organ Co., November, 2005. -Database Manager

2012-09-30 - Updated through online information from Jeff Scofield. -- The chambers were above and behind the choir. Not known if the organ retained a pipe facade from the Pilcher tracker. Update (2021-08-05): 10 pipes from the Pilcher facade were retained and combined with the Reuter wooden chamber grille. These were removed in 1967. -Database Manager

2013-08-31 - Updated through online information from Hunter Godsey. -- This Reuter organ was completely replaced by a Schantz Organ Company instrument in 1986. A few of the Reuter ranks (pedal ranks, we believe) were carried over to the new organ. The console frame was retained and rebuilt. -Database Manager

2021-08-05 - From the Pipe Organ History page of the church website, *"In the 1940s, Mr. W. Lee Wood, who had come to the church in 1934 as organist and financial secretary, championed the cause to replace the aging Pilcher organ. His guidance led the church to sign a contract with the Reuter Organ Company of Lawrence, Kansas to build a new instrument. Upon removal of the Pilcher organ in the summer of 1949, a chamber was built to house the new Reuter pipework above and behind the choir loft. This chamber continues to house the organ’s pipework today. *In January 1950, the church dedicated the new Reuter organ (opus 871), inviting Mr. Claude Murphree—who led the organ department at the University of Florida—to play for the service. The Reuter organ consisted of 3 manuals, a pedal division, 19 ranks, and approximately 1,400 pipes. An excerpt from the church’s bulletin at the time of the dedication: “The beautiful and majestic organ…is a modern three-manual instrument designed to give full and brilliant expression to the great compositions of sacred music. The organ has been placed so that the full tonal beauty can be heard by all and has been cased in an attractive grille designed to compliment [sic] the architecture of the sanctuary.” *The Reuter organ, valued at $18,000, was gifted to the church by the Mallary family in memory of Mr. Edgar Young Mallary, Sr., who had served as Chairman of the Board of Deacons, Superintendent of Sunday School, Music Committee Chairman, and teacher of the Mallary Bible Class at First Baptist Church of Christ. The 10 lowest pipes of the Open Diapason from the 1887 Pilcher organ were retained for decorative use in the façade of the Reuter organ. These non-functioning façade pipes were later removed during a sanctuary renovation project in 1967.* -Jim Stettner


Stoplist

Source: From THE DIAPASON March 1948 Date not recorded

        Macon, Georgia
        First Baptist Church

        Reuter   Op. 871   1949   3/19
        ____________________________________________________

        GREAT (encl w/CH)              SWELL
     8' Diapason I     61          16' Rohrflote       SW/PD
     8' Diapason II    CH           8' Geigen Diapason    73
     8' Grossflote     61           8' Rohrflote          61
     8' Concert Flute  CH           8' Viole de Gambe     61
     8' Gemshorn       CH           8' Voix Celeste       61
     8' Viola da Gamba CH           8' Aeoline            73
     8' Dulciana       CH           4' Geigenoctav        73
     4' Octave         61           4' Flute d'Amor       12
     4' Diapason       CH           4' Violina            12
     4' Grossflote     12       2 2/3' Nazard              7 
     4' Concert Flute  CH           2' Flautino            5
 2 2/3' Octave Quint   CH           8' French Trumpet     73
     2' Super Octave   CH           8' Vox Humana         61
     8' Trompette      61           4' Clarion            12
     4' Clarion        12              Tremulant
        Tremulant                      Sub
        Sub                            Unison Off
        Unison Off                     Super
        Super
        Chimes         pf              CHOIR
                                    8' Diapason           73
        PEDAL                       8' Concert Flute      73
    16' Diapason       12 GT        8' Viola da Gamba     73
    16' Major Bass     32           8' Gemshorn           61
    16' Gedeckt        SW           8' Dulciana           73
10 2/3' Quint          SW           4' Flute Harmonic     12
     8' Octave         CH           4' Gemshorn           12
     8' Rohrflote      SW       2 2/3' Gemshorn            7
     8' Cello          SW           2' Gemshorn            5
     8' Dulciana       CH       1 3/5' Gemshorn           --
     4' Super Octave   CH           8' Clarinet           73
     4' Flute          SW              Tremulant
    16' Trombone    GT 12              Sub
     8' Trumpet        GT              Unison Off
     4' Clarion        GT              Super
                                    8' French Trumpet     GT

    [Received online from Jeff Scofield September 29, 2012] 

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