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St. Matthew's hosts organists guild's 'Pedals, Pipes and Pizza'

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The pipe organ may seem like a bygone instrument, but not for the group gathered at St. Matthew's United Evangelical Lutheran Church in Scranton on Sunday afternoon.

The so-called "King of Instruments" is alive and well for members of the Pennsylvania Northeast Chapter of the American Guild of Organists. After St. Matthew's services were over and congregants departed, about 40 members of the local pipe organ enthusiast group moved in for "Pedals, Pipes and Pizza," with some taking turns playing pieces on the church's organ.

For organ players, the opportunity to play a different organ is a treat. Unlike a trumpet, or even a piano, each pipe organ is distinct, said Raphael Micca of Shickshinny, co-dean of the chapter.

"A very experienced trumpet player may tell the difference between instruments, but the difference among pipe organs is much more profound," he said. "The configuration is the same, but the sound depends on the design, who made the organ, when it was made and the place you are in."

This is a long way from the pipe organ's heyday of secular and sacred popularity, when it accompanied silent movies, was an expected feature in many churches and was even built into homes of the well-to-do. The rise of electronic organs and keyboards dealt a setback to the large, expensive and immobile pipe organ. The closing of churches further reduced the number of pipe organs in existence.

But Northeast Pennsylvania is fortunate for the number of pipe organs that remain in use, said chapter co-dean Michael Sowa.

Scranton and Wilkes-Barre each had chapters of the American Guild of Organists until the groups merged in the 1990s. Now the group meets monthly at area churches to check out different pipe organs' sound and feel.

The group is hopeful the uplifting high notes and torso-rumbling low notes unique to the pipe organ will live on. Many new pipe organs combine the authentic analog pipe sound with digital manual controls and playback features. Some new performance halls are incorporating pipe organs into the design again, encouraging organ fans.

"Organizations like ours are trying to promote and preserve what the pipe organs have to offer," Mr. Sowa said.

Contact the writer: dfalchek@timesshamrock.com


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