Cathedral Church of St. Mark, Episcopal

519 Oak Grove St
Minneapolis, MN 55403


Builders:
 
1871 - E. & G. G. Hook Opus 581
 1928 - Welte Organ Co
 1929 - Welte-Tripp Organ Co
 1930 - Kimball Organ Co
 1953 - Aeolian-Skinner Opus 1278 (trumpet)
 1961 - M.P. Möller (Console) Opus M-13082
 1965 - M. P. Möller Opus R-738
 1976 - M. P. Möller Opus M-8399
 1983 - Gould and Schlutz
Manuals: 4
Divisions: 7
Action: Electropneumatic

--Organ Historical Society Organ Database. Additional information from David Engen, Howard Don Small. Photo from Richard Rasch. 2009

Notes: Moller Opus M-8399 in 1976 was for addition of 5 manual stops and a 1/2 length bottom octave 32' Bombarde. See below

In 1976, Howard Don Small, organist at St. Mark's Cathedral from 1971 to 1998, arranged to add a French-type trompette to the swell division, place two ranks of principal pipework in the choir division, and add a 32-foot bombarde octave to the pedal division.

As part of the celebration of the 125th year of St. Mark's, the organ was "completed" in 1983. The long-awaited positiv division (5 stops) was installed on the west side of the chancel, an exposed principal (8/4/2) was added to the antiphonal division, and a two-manual console was placed in the gallery. These additions were designed, built and installed by the firm of Gould and Sons, Inc...There are four blowers, one to main organ, one to positiv, one to gallery, and a small high-pressure blower for the festival trumpet.

Between 1993 and 1995, Gould and Schultz, Inc. completed a major refurbishing of the instrument, including a thorough cleaning of all the pipes, a revoicing of the swell reeds, a releathering of the reservoirs in the front organ, and a releathering of the shade actions. In 1996, under the supervision of Canon Musician Howard Don Small, the Schantz Organ Company of Orrville, Ohio, replaced the aging Moller console with a new four-manual solid-state console. Provided as well was a remote and portable one-manual console without pedal designed for playing in continuo in instrumental ensembles. The latter's keyboard contains six general pistons that duplicate the first six on the main console.

[ed. note] The high-pressure festival trumpet in the gallery was installed and voiced by Timothy Patterson. The Vestry declared the trumpet too loud and it was banished to the antiphonal chamber. Through some quirk of acoustics, a row of pews near the back of the church got an especially loud dose of the Festival Trumpet. It was nicknamed “death row”.

[Bit of trivia from Nils Halker] I just picked up another bit of trivia about St Mark's Cathedral. I had known that the Clarinet in the Antiphonal was from an E.M. Skinner, but I just learned the full story:

It is from the Skinner Opus 283 that was installed in 1917 in Sixth Church of Christ Scientist, just down the road from St Mark's. Shortly before the building was to be demolished, Don Small drove over on a snowy day and loaded the clarinet into his hatchback and drove it over to St Mark's. It was installed in 1983 as part of the Gould & Schultz expansion/rebuild. [Ed note: The clarinet was retained in the Foley-Baker rebuild.]

POSITIV
8' Copula
4' Flachflöte
2' Principal
    Scharff IV
8' Krummhorn

The M.P. Möller Company
The Cathedral Church of St Mark. Minneapolis, MN
September 1, 1976

SPECIFICATIONS

for

TONAL CHANGES AND ADDITIONS TO

PRESENT WELTE ORGAN (R-738, 1965)

PRESENT Möller CONSOLE (M-13082, 1961)

CONSOLE
Present console to be used without change except draw knobs need for tonal changes and additions.

CHESTS AND PIPES
Install new pipes and/or actions as required to carry out tonal changes and additions according to specifications. Rework or install new toeboard/rackboard assembly for Choir 1-1/3 Larigot.

SPECIFICATIONS CHANGES
FOR
CONSOLE AND ORGAN
(Numbering refers to original specification)

GREAT ORGAN Unenclosed
8.2 Waldflöte, new pipes; present 2-2/3 Twelfth action 61

SWELL ORGAN Enclosed
23.2 Principal, new pipes; present 2 Flautino action 61
26.8 French Trompette, new pipes; present 8 Oboe action 68

CHOIR ORGAN Enclosed
32.4 Principal, new pipes; present 8 Erzähler action 68
33.1-1/3 Larigot, new pipes; present 8 Erzähler Céleste action 61

PEDAL ORGAN

84 2 Bombard (1/2 L), new pipes and action; 20 from #85, 32