Playing the Algorithm Blues on the Pipe Organ

Written By Jonathan Krogh

Dear Organ Donors:

I’ve got an algorithm problem. That sounds like a condition that may require a cardiologist, and perhaps it should, because my algorithms are hurting my heart. After the Paul Johnson benefit concert at Emmanuel Episcopal Church yesterday, one of the attendees asked me about the pipe organ. The congregation of Emmanuel is rightfully proud of their 1970 Casavant Frères, Limitée, of Saint-Hyacinthe, Québec, Canada, Opus 3062, a 3-manual, 46-stop, 63-rank, electro-pneumatic action organ, with the 2024 addition of a full antiphon. (When someone else wants to geek out on pipe organs, I’m right there with them!)

The guest’s question was a harmless one; he asked if there were very many organists left who could play such an instrument. I concurred that it’s difficult to find capable organists, sometimes harder than replacing pastors. (Please, please, please, don’t tell Tyler!) But then I followed up with a comment revealing the full depth of my algorithm disorder. I told him there was a great renewal of interest in these magnificent instruments and an upcoming generation of musicians promising a renascence of their popularity. I knew even while talking that I was speaking from a possible algorithm-induced hallucination, but I could not stop myself. After all, my social media feeds are full of videos from pipe organ influencers along with quick facts about the restoration of the world’s largest instruments, a stream that over the past few years has conveyed a firehose of popularity. And yet…

When I arrived home, my queries illustrated the depth of blockage created by my algorithmic disorder. First, I asked Google if pipe organs were making a comeback; I typed in "resurgence", so the oracle knew I wasn’t messing around. My suspicion was instantly confirmed. The query revealed all manner of media proving how interest in pipe organs is flourishing! Somewhat skeptical, however, I then inquired if there was a growing shortage of qualified organists. This time my results painted a dismal future. Membership in the American Guild of Organists has dropped every year for the past several decades, and few musicians are interested in mastering these beasts of pneumatic wonder. The more I moved from search results to actual research, the more I found how significantly I had succumbed to an algorithmic disorientation, a condition common to enthusiasts of all esoterica. I slumped with the sorrow of a model railroad enthusiast finding out that the annual convention had been moved from the civic arena to an IHOP party room.

It’s hurting my heart, this algorithmic disorder of mine. I thought my interests were surging in popularity, when maybe the only things surging were the filters generated by my search prompts. Such sorrow reminds me of the dramatic end of French organist and composer Louis Vierne (1870-1937), who died while performing an organ recital at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris—right in front of the console. But you probably already made that connection given the flurry of articles you’ve seen due to new research finding that he did not die of a heart attack but a stroke.

Wondering if you too are tired of all the banner ads about stroke medication, I remain,

With Love,
Jonathan Krogh
Your Pastor

P.S. The photograph accompanying today’s musing is all that is left of the pipe organ in the Cathedral of Saigon, Vietnam. The instrument was finished in the 18th century by the noted builder François-Henri Clicquot. Some of Clicquot's original pipework in the pedal division was retained when the organ was completely rebuilt and expanded in the 19th century by Aristide Cavaillé-Coll. This two-manual organ was rebuilt again by Gaston Gutschenritter Fils, Paris, and is believed to date from around 1900. It was apparently imported after World War II by a French bishop who had been assigned there. When it was in fine working condition, our own organist emeritus, Henry Sybrandy, performed the Fauré Requiem on this instrument with the Saigon Cathedral Choir when he was stationed there during the war in spring, 1971.

Jonathan Krogh
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