National Cathedral to get new organ--actually, two new organs

Story today in the Washington Post:  "Fans Pipe Up About Replacing Venerable Cathedral Organ."

The existing problem is that the current "venerable" organ is in the front, and, by the time the sound travels to the back of the cathedral--one-tenth of a mile--the people in the back wind up being about three beats behind on the liturgy and hymns.  Having sat in the back, I can verify that this is so.

The plan is to install two new organs, one in front and one in back, which are "linked together."  That would solve the problem, but devotees of the current organ argue that it has unique value in itself and could be renovated.  You can read about it at the link, if interested.

Comments

[Hypatia]

Nice article. I can understand the historical value of the old organ, but nothing lasts forever. It’s not like junking a Stradivarius. It sounds as if they have a good practical reason for wanting to make the change.

[John Petty]

Hypatia, are you very familiar with church? There are a lot of people who think that the phrase "we've always done it that way" was uttered by Jesus himself.