The
exceptional pipe organ at Corpus Christi Church is one of the only pipe
organs in the Buffalo area whose builder is of Polish heritage. The
three manual 32 rank pipe organ dates to l928. It was installed in a
divided case by the A. Radziewicz Pipe Organ Company of Milburn, New
Jersey at a cost of $23,000.
The casework of the instrument is made of
chestnut wood The instrument had 2,0l4 pipes when it was installed,
ranging in size from a half inch to twenty feet with most of the
facade pipes actually speaking.
A unique feature of the organ was that
it had a three manual horseshoe console that was mounted on a rotating
"Lazy Susan" type of platform that allowed the organist an easily
adjusted view of the choir.
It is said that the instrument was built on
site and used a house on Lombard Street as a temporary shop to
construct the necessary parts.
In l966, the Po-Chedley & Son Company of Tonawanda was commissioned
to completely releather and renovate the pipe organ. The horseshoe
console was replaced with a new contemporary console. Also replaced
were the reservoirs, relays and switches, swell engines. blower and
rectifier. Since the general tone quality of the instrument was
admired, only some tonal changes were
made.
In the l970's, the Tenerowicz Pipe Organ Service added a l6 foot
Trombone that came from the former Johnson pipe organ of neighboring
St. Ann's Church in Buffalo. A new Principal Chorus from the former St.
Paul & St. Mark United Church of Christ in Buffalo was also
added.
When an organist plays a superior instrument, "voices"or different
sounds of the organ are played individually, or in selected
combinations. Corpus Christi's organ, with its many fine examples of
"voices" from diapaisons or principal stops, to rich mellow flutes and
strings which are so lush, and even the brassy sounds of the reeds,
create a remarkably rich palette that is available to the artist. The
organ's quality, in combination with Corpus Christi's impressive
acoustics, make services a truly spirit-filled experience.
Page by Chuck
LaChiusa