March 15, 2000: See the Latest Photos of the Finney Chapel Organ - Opus 116 - as it is Crafted at C.B. Fisk; Organ Slated for Summer 2,000 Installation Story by Linda Shockley Photos by Mark Edward Nelson
	RELATED Finney Memorial Chapel at Oberlin College to Receive New Symphonic Organ Finney Chapel - Organ Construction Photos - August 2, 1999		From C.B. Fisk, Inc. -- Glueing a chest together using pressure from wooden sticks in tension What weighs 45,000 pounds, has 60 voices, and 3,951 pipes ranging in size from 32' long to the size of a child's finger? It's the Opus 116 symphonic organ now being created for Finney Memorial Chapel by acclaimed organ designer and builder, C.B. Fisk, Inc. of Gloucester, Massachusetts. The acclaimed Fisk workshop is crafting an instrument of some 60 voices and 3,951 pipes that will occupy the front of the chapel. The large pipes range in length up to 32' long, with the largest, made of poplar, weighing 600 pounds. The entire instrument will weigh 45,000 pounds. The smallest pipes are the size of a child's little finger. Fast Facts from Fisk Opus 116 Dimensions 35 feet wide, 38 feet high, 15 feet deep Stops 60 (A stop is a full set of pipes with at least 1 pipe for each key on the keyboard. Each stop represents a particular "sound color" or "voice".) Keyboards Three manual keyboards of 61 notes each (CC-c4). Keys are covered with cow bone; sharps are made from ebony. The pedal keyboard has 32 notes (CC-g1). Divisions The instrument is composed of four divisions: Grand Orgue, Positif, Récit and Pédale. Modeled upon instruments made in France in the latter half of the nineteenth century by the renowned builder Aristide Cavaillé-Coll, this instrument will render with authority the French Symphonic repertoire, thus complementing the other historical instruments on the Oberlin campus. Action Key action is mechanical. A servo-pneumatic lever may be engaged which allows the player to maintain effortless control when playing all the divisions of the instrument at the same time. Stop action is electronically controlled. Pipes 3,951 pipes are made of wood as well as alloys of tin and lead. The largest 32' pipes are of poplar wood and weigh 600 pounds each. The smallest are the size of a child's little finger. Casework & Weight Quarter sawn white oak. Incorporating parts of the existing casework from Finney Chapel. The instrument will weigh 45,000 pounds. The lowest section of the case will accommodate concert grand piano storage. Wind Pressure The organ is winded from a 6 1/2 horsepower blower, providing 2,189 cubic feet per minute at pressures that range from 3 1/2" to 5" water column. Organ Photos 1 Rob Hazard making keyboards (bone naturals) 2 Swell shades. Note the Z shape, felted for sound deadening 3 Structural model for the Finney organ 4 Reed blocks and shallots for the Finney organ 5 Glueing a chest together using pressure from wooden sticks in tension 6 Brenda Copping fits dividers into the Grand Orgue chests 7 Oberlin alum Michael Kraft solders an Hautbois resonator to its block 8 Three manual keyboards with sharps (Rob Hazard in background 9 Patrick Fischer makes rollerboards
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