Carl Locher - Revival: Dictionary of the Organ (1914): Organ Registers, Their Timbres, Combinations, and Acoustic Phenomena

Routledge Revivals

DICTIONARY OF THE ORGAN

DICTIONARY OF THE ORGAN

ORGAN REGISTERS, THEIR TIMBRES, COMBINATIONS, AND ACOUSTIC PHENOMENA

BY

CARL LOCHER

ORGELINSPEKTOR DER STADT BERN

AUTHORISED TRANSLATION FROM THE FOURTH (1912)
GERMAN EDITION

BY

CLAUDE P. LANDI, L.R.A.M.

First published in 1914 by Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner & Co., Ltd

This edition first published in 2018 by Routledge

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A Library of Congress record exists under ISBN: 84132616

ISBN 13: 978-1-138-55090-2 (hbk)
ISBN 13: 978-1-138-56592-0 (pbk)
ISBN 13: 978-1-315-12321-9 (ebk)

DICTIONARY OF THE ORGAN

AUTHORISED EDITIONS OF THE PRESENT WORK

Even the smallest extracts from this work are forbidden without the authors permission.

DICTIONARY OF THE ORGAN

ORGAN REGISTERS, THEIR TIMBRES, COMBINATIONS, AND ACOUSTIC PHENOMENA

BY

CARL LOCHER

ORGELINSPEKTOR DER STADT BERN

AUTHORISED TRANSLATION FROM THE FOURTH (1912)
GERMAN EDITION

BY

CLAUDE P. LANDI, L.R.A.M.

INSCRIBED

BY THE TRANSLATOR

TO THE

ROYAL COLLEGE OF ORGANISTS

AUTHORS PREFACE TO THE SECOND ENGLISH EDITION

THE appearance of this, the second English edition of my book on the Organ-Stops, affords me the opportunity of expressing my warmest thanks to my English and American colleagues for the sympathetic reception given to the first edition.

Many experts in physics and acoustics, as well as organists, organ-builders, and several Colleges of Music, have recognised the pressing need for some such book of reference, and have most kindly welcomed these results of my fifty years research work as organist and organ expert.

The high repute of the translator and the well-known name of the publishers will suffice to assure the public that in this new English edition all the latest demands of organ-building, as well as the many recent improvements, have duly been taken into consideration.

I therefore venture to offer this book to all those interested in that king of instruments, the organ; for those who are interested know that in the organ we have the most valuable instrument for the comforting and uplifting of the human soul.

CARL LOCHER.

AUTHORS PREFACE TO THE FOURTH GERMAN EDITION

MY revision of this modest treatise, undertaken with the greatest conscientiousness and after repeated new journeys, comes in the fiftieth year of my organistic activities. The aids to playing have been in latter years partly increased, partly considerably improved; and the art of voicing has been greatly developed. I may mention, for instance, the many super- and sub-octave couplers; the melodic coupler; the effective Echo and Swell contrivances of every kind; the interesting suggestions of Silbermann; the new simplification in the electric blowing apparatus; the practically regulated register-transmission; the impressive voicing of certain flue stops by means of partly reduced air-pressure; the increasing brilliancy and endurance of the reed stops; the convenient disposition of the draw-knobs.

It was therefore made easier for me to complete in a thorough manner the combination of the various registers by means of carefully carried-out experiments on the new organs of various countries, and thus make varied registration possible even on the smallest instrument. Also, those portions of the book more closely related to tone-sensations have been amplified and brought thoroughly up to date. In spite of this, however, much of note has no doubt escaped my notice.

I have, as formerly, tried to compress the wealth of material into the smallest possible compass, in order not to exceed to any great extent the former bulk of the book. This circumstance must be my excuse for the use of abbreviations and lack of elegance, which could not well be avoided.

I am very glad to take here the opportunity of expressing my thanks to my learned colleaguesfellow-organists, experts, and organ-builderswho were kind enough to support me with repeated encouragement and useful suggestions, thus making possible this work, which has now spread over into so many countries. I may say that suggestions and information of any kind will at all times be welcomed by me.

The co-operation of my dear friend and colleague, Herr Musik-Direktor J. Luz, organist at the Frau-mnster in Zurich, was of especial value to me in amplifying and critically revising this new edition.

C. L.

TRANSLATORS NOTE

SINCE the publication of the first English edition of Herr Lochers book in 1888, a number of excellent works on organ-construction have appeared in England. The present translation has been made from the fourth German edition (1912). No apology should be needed for presenting to English readers a new and up-to-date edition of a work which has been translated into eight different languages (as well as a Braille edition) in addition to the English language, and which has met with universal and unqualified approval among musicians and scientists, chief among whom should be cited the great Helmholtz, to whom Herr Locher dedicated the original edition. The book contains a vast amount of information which is not to be found elsewhere. Herr Lochers knowledge of Continental organs is unequalled, and this should offset the somewhat scanty reference to the magnificent work of English builders, due solely to the fact that Herr Locher is not well acquainted with this country. I am therefore responsible for a separate chapter, in which I have endeavoured to sketch the progress of organ-building in this country. I am indebted to the Rev. J. H. Burn, of Ballater, for drawing my attention to several slight inaccuracies, and for some interesting references to notable instruments built since the appearance of the last German edition of Herr Lochers booksuch as the 187-stop organ in the Centennial Hall, Breslau, and the Liverpool Cathedral organ.