Letter from Ernest M. Skinner to William King Covell

Dear Mr. Covell,

I believe the hall is to go to a Greek Orthodox Church.

Now as to other questions. I believe the “Baroque” contingent claim that the music of J.S.B. should be played upon an organ of the Bach period. But when they build organs without the most fundamental of all organ voices dating pre-Bach, their claims are obviously spurious. Manual and Pedal Diapasons are of all stops the most peculiar to the organ. Two 32′ Pedal Diapasons were thrown away, absolutely cut up. One taken from the Columbia and the other from Cornell University. These stops cost (both) around $7,000, $3,500 each, and were a part of the gifts to these universities.

The Bach organ had an Untersatz 32′ and no such overwhelming proportion of mixtures as the present rubbish. You cannot produce synthetic tone with pipes so small that character is eliminated. The qualifying harmonics of a 6″ pipe are above audibility. Anyway, is anything synthetic equal to the real thing?

My prime interest is in music. The finest music ever composed is written for definite tone qualities. The tone qualities came first and inspired the symphonies, operas, etc. The modern orchestra and compositions have crystalized tone qualities into a tonal alphabet.

I have so far as possible developed like qualities for the organ, Trombone of real orchestral quality the chief thing yet to be done. If I can get a desired quality like English Horn with one pipe why employ a half dozen to produce a poor imitation? And what would you use to produce a synthetic French Horn?

Now you may say these voices are not desirable in the organ and that is where we can never get together. You stop at the organ. I care nothing for the organ apart from what it can do musically.

The kind of music I want for the organ, now that the organ is given a vast eloquence is coming along as I knew it would. The Sowerby Symphony as heard at the National Cathedral in Washington at last Guild Convention created a sensation in its color and grandeur. 660 organists there to hear it. An organ of the Germanic Museum type in a place like that, in com-parison, would be a farce.

I shall never understand why you pick on one of the greatest composers of all time to deny his music tonal charm. To create beauty is the first principle of all art.

I do not see how you can be a real music lover to choose voices destitute of tonal beauty and sound two or three octaves higher than called for in

If I had a son or daughter studying organ in Brooks school and should learn what sort of organ they were employing for instruction, I would sue them for obtaining money under false pretenses. They cannot teach registration for any use except to play on that particular freak organ.

Did I tell you the Aeolian Harrison Co. built a Baroque organ for Williamsburgh [sic], Va. price $16,000. In two years they had all they could stand of it. I put in all new pipes and they cannot say enough in praise of it. It sounds devotional and musical which cannot be so in an organ chiefly squeal and without diapasons. I ask you Covell, if I were to suggest the most extreme violation of classic practice regarding organ design, what can you suggest to outdo the elimination of diapasons?

There you go again with “organ color” — I say music and color whatever the medium.

Sincerely,
Ernest M. Skinner