Pipe Organs of Temple Square -- Conference Center Organ Updates

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PIPE ORGANS OF
TEMPLE SQUARE

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH

Conference Center Organ -- Updates

Update: 7 September 2000

[Photo of Conference Center organ facade]

Conference Center organ façade
(photo taken 1 June 2000)

Organ facade showing acoustical
reflectors. Notice person standing
next to right pipe tower, giving an
idea of scale (photo taken 1 June 2000)

Façade/casework: essentially complete since March 2000. The first stage, which began in late 1999, consisted of the construction of a steel framework for the case. Design and fabrication of the structural steel was carried out by Allen Steel Co. of Salt Lake City. Installation of the structural steel was done by Crossroads Construction of Murray, Utah, and Western Construction Specialty of West Jordan, Utah. Following the installation of the steel framework, Fetzers, Inc. of Salt Lake City began the job of installing the wooden case. Finally, in early 2000, Schoenstein & Co. installed the façade pipes so that the organ would be presentable for the April 2000 Annual World General Conference of the LDS Church.
Three trivia items having to do with the façade:

For the 170th Annual World General Conference, there were, coincidentally, 170 façade pipes in place.
The mold used to create the gold medallion in the top center of the case resulted from the creative use of a plastic snow saucer and a Leggs pantyhose container.
The five curved wooden "acoustical reflectors" at the top of the organ case (see photo at left) were constructed by Louchard Yacht Restoration, Ltd. of Port Townsend, Washington. Fetzers', Inc. delegated this job to Louchard because of the special challenges of constructing such a shape, which is similar to strip-planking a boat hull. The largest reflector is 12 feet by 6 feet by 2 feet tall, and is held together by about 2,000 screws.

Pipe chambers: Following the April 2000 General Conference, work began on earnest on the installation of the pipe chambers. By late May, the Swell chamber had been installed, while the Solo chamber materials were on site but remained uninstalled until the crew returned in late June. By early August 2000, the Solo, Choir, and Orchestral chambers were all in place.
Wind system: Installation of the blower room is basically complete. The crew will return on 11 September to finish winding.
Electrical system: The crew will return on 11 September to finish up wiring.
Pipework: Roughly one-half of the pipes have been planted, most having been put in place on 21-22 August. Schoenstein & Co. President Jack Bethards will arrive with voicer Steuart Goodwin sometime around 26 September to begin rough voicing in preparation for the instrument's first test use during the October Semiannual World General Conference.
Console: The console is scheduled to arrive in Salt Lake City on 25 September. Robert Rhoads will be on site for several days to supervise the installation of the console.
General: It is anticipated that the Swell, Choir, Solo, and Grand Solo divisions will be playable for the organ's first test use in October General Conference. In addition, the low end of the Orchestral Tibia Clausa and several other pedal stops are expected to be up and running.

This site is maintained by Richard Elliott, who is solely responsible for its content.
This is not an official publication of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
©2000 Richard Elliott
(This page was last updated on 23 September 2003 )
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