Organ matters - Organs matter!

hi guys -  thanks for the kind words - its been a while since i posted the details, but seems like someone already found the website I created to document the entire thing.

i have hundreds more photos on my Facebook page - if you are interested - friend me

as a matter of news - we haven't really done much since July as we've ben letting the dust settle - pun intended -  our parish offices were relocated and we had to drastically revision our outreach ministry - which is what St. Al's is known for int he Detroit community.  My organ task force is now working to  set up a 'non-profit' foundation to raise the money to restore the organ.

normally, a church would engage this project and raise the funds themselves, however, ours is a unique situation and many of our benefactors support the work of St. Aloysius because of the outreach work we do with the poor and homeless in Downtown Detroit.   Starting a campaign to raise money to restore a pipe organ sounds great to people like us, but when there are hungry people on the street who come to us for help , it is very hard to convince people to "support" an organ project - when we barely have the resources to feed the people that come to us.

at any rate - as news develops with the organ project, i'll keep the website updated, so that you can follow -

thanks

Aaron

well hello there...

I stumbled on this link while doing a Google search for this little project i'm working on :D

My name is Aaron and I'm the director of music at st. Aloysius Catholic Church in Downtown Detroit - the future home of the Ford Auditorium Aeolian Skinner.

this is something that i and several members of the detroit symphony have been working on for some years now and indeed, media coverage is sparse and often inaccurate.

this organ, is essentially 2 separate instruments that were controlled by 1 console.  the main organ (great, swell, choir, and pedal) will all be removed, restored, and installed with the original console in our HUGE vacant pip organ chambers, which originally housed a 4 manual Kilgen organ. The Kilgen was removed in the 70s, and a Gabriel Kney organ was installed in our balcony. While the Kney is a fine instrument, the placement is less than ideal for worship (you'd have to see the unique space to appreciate what I mean)

the Portativ, a complete unenclosed organ of 3 divisions will be relocated to Orchestra Hall in Detroit for the DSO to use once again as a chamber instrument.

We are working on this organ (removing it from Ford Aud) as we speak - I spent 8 hours there today removing pipe work.

While some might argue that splitting up this organ is a crime, the reality is that no one wanted it complete, and we are able to save it and put it back in service (it has been silent for nearly 25 years since the orchestra moved out of Ford Aud) The entire Portativ is redundant to the main organ, and this instrument is missing several things that one might want on a 70 stop organ...  so it will get to live again as two separate, yet complete instruments - in room far more suitable to their design.

Any further questions, please feel free to contact me.

All the best.

Aaron Kaleniecki
Director of Music,
St. Aloysius Catholic Church
Detroit, Michigan