LCH’s Beckerath organ has been a wonderful part of the musical fabric of Lutheran Church of Honolulu and the greater Honolulu community for almost 50 years. With a few carefully curated improvements, the organ will be ready for the next 50 years of making beautiful music. The Beckerath Organ will look the same on the outside. The changes are only internal. The renovations will have two parts:
- Cleaning—Like any instrument, organs need to be cleaned on a regular basis. The Beckerath is due for a thorough cleaning to keep the thousands of moving parts working as intended. This work will be done in concert with modifications to the pipes.
- Modifications—The addition of an 8′ Salicional (string) stop in the Swell, and an 8′ Trumpet stop in the pedal will increase the organ’s capabilities.
- The 8’ Salicional is a rank of 56 pipes from 8′ to only several inches in speaking length. It will be playable on the Swell (upper) keyboard.
- The 8′ Trumpet is a rank of 32 pipes from 8′ tall to just under a 1′ tall and will be playable on the pedal keyboard. This rank will replace the current 4′ Schalmey rank. We will retain this set of pipes and store them carefully in a pipe box for historical value.
Fundrasing
Fundraising for the organ renovations will be carried out in conjunction with the celebration of LCH’s 125th anniversary, with $60,000 being raised for the Organ Fund and $65,000 for the 125th Anniversary Mission Fund, for a total of $125,000.
- Initial donors have already been asked to fund the start of the project
- A celebration dinner in September explained the project for further gifts
- A Support-a-Pipe Campaign will create opportunities to buy a pipe in memory or honor of a loved ones
- A commemorative plaque for donors will be affixed to the organ
We welcome your support of this project that will enhance worship at the Lutheran Church of Honolulu and the musical fabric of the greater Honolulu community for the another 50 years.
If you would like more information, please contact, Barry Wenger, dma, organist and directory of music and liturgy, at b.wenger@lchwelcome.org.
Donations may be made by check (made out to Lutheran Church of Honolulu with “Organ Renovations Fund” in the memo line) and sent to the church (1730 Punahou Street, Honolulu, HI 96822) or via PayPal using the button to the right.
Details of the Support-a-Pipe Campaign and a button for making online donations online are available on the Support-a-Pipe Campaign page.