Meetinghouse UU Church
Provincetown, Massachusetts

Organ Specification
Edwin Holbrook, 1850
restored & renovated by
Stephen J. Russell & Co., 2001

2 manual & pedal
Wind pressure: 2 3/4"
Pitch: A=440 at 72 degrees
II/18

GREAT
      56 note compass  
8
   Diapason big and bright
8
   Melodia and stopped flute bass A little louder and cleaner than before, otherwise very sweet for a Melodia
8
   Dulciana tf soft and typical, use with flute bass
8
   Viola tf bass medium strength string - gemshorn tone, use with flute
4
   Flute small-scale Rohrflute, very nice
4
   Principal normal scale and average volume. Somewhat bright tone.
2 2/3
   Twelfth typical, a bit brighter than before.
2
   Fifteenth typical. perky
1 3/5
   Tierce 1 3/5 new addition, bright, matches twelfth for english chamber organ sesquialtera tone.
     
SWELL
   56 note compass
(labelled "Choir" for couplers and stop names)
8
   Diapason tc big and bright (same scale as Great) but more distant due to placement; use with flute bass
8
   Rohrflute and flute bass (1-12) A nice rohrflute for the period.
8
   Dulciana a fairly big string, (for the period) a nice balance to the Great Viola
4
   Principal somewhat narrow scale, bright. Works well with either Gt 8'
2 2/3
   Twelfth Very narrow in the bass but normal in the treble. Somewhat bright, stringy voicing.
2
   Fifteenth same description as Twelfth
8
   Oboe The only reed in the organ. Much better than before. Re-worked by Dave Broome

Tremulant historic construction after Dom Bedos (a Holbrook original!) Speed and depth varies with demand.
     
PEDAL
     27 note compass  
  Position Middle C manual over Tenor C pedal (typical older tracker).
Flat, not radiating Pedal keyboard
16
   Open Wood A wind hog. Don't hold double pedal with full organ and fistfuls of notes for a long time or it might run out of wind.
16
   Subbass added Steere pipes medium volume
8
   Bourdon extension of Subbass by transmission of wind. Low cut and slightly articulate.

Balanced Swell pedal in normal location, over E-F in pedal tenor octave.
Pedal keyboard placed in a position typical of AGO 2 manual consoles. Fairly comfortable to play. No sense of falling off the bench.
Pitch is a t A=440 at 72 degrees.

Ted Gilbert performed most of the re-voicing & regulation. The organ retains a typical early American tonal quality, though somewhat brighter than the later 19th century work we are accustomed to hearing. The key action is very comfortable for an old tracker without couplers. With Swell to Great engaged, it does take a bit of work to play. The action is the same as the original Holbrook.

Key aspects of the historically sensitive renovation in 2001:

  • New blower
  • Expansion of the pedal keyboard, Subbass rank from 18 to 27 pipes, and a new (flat) pedalboard (formerly had an unusual short-octave arrangement)
  • Expansion of seven Swell ranks from a 44- to 56-note compass
  • Replacement of Great Keraulophon 8' with Tierce 1 3/5'
  • Addition of a soft Bourdon 16' and 8' stop in the Pedal division
  • Complete structural refurbishing of the instrument, with extensive wood grain strategy improvement

 

Jamb layout:

Tremulant
Tierce
Oboe
Fifteenth
Fifteenth
Twelfth
Twelfth
Flute 4'
Principal 4'
Principal 4'
Rohrflute 8'
St Diap Bass
Open Diap 8'
Melodia Treble
Dulciana
Viola
"Choir" Bass
Dulciana
Sw-Gt
Op Diap
Sw-Ped
Bourdon 8'(ped)
Gt-Ped
SubBass 16' (ped)
Open Wood 16' (ped)

photographs this page by Will Sherwood