Trinity Parish

Seattle, Washington

1989, 1994, & 2005

My first contact with Trinity Parish took place in the summer of 1978, when as an employee of Balcom & Vaughan Pipe Organbuilders of Seattle, I was on the crew that removed the 1906 Kimball instrument. I recall the rather thick layer of furnace dust & grime which made the removal fairly dirty! Since none of the windchests or reservoir were to be retained in the new organ project, these components were destined for the dump. That project incorporated some of the original Kimball pipework bul not with any degree of success. I subsequently relocated to Portland, OR and founded Marceau Pipe Organs in 1985. I had begun maintenance of the Trinity Pipe Organ in 1983 when Martin Olson was appointed organist/choirmaster. As the existing console began to show signs of advancing age, Marceau Pipe Organs was awarded the contract of building our first 3M, tiered drawknob console. With the able assistance of Frans Bosman (who built the console shell), we assembled new components from P&S Organ Supply (keyboards), Harris Precision Products (stop action controls) and Solid State Logic (combination action-now Solid State Organ Systems) and installed this in the Fall of 1989. The second phase focused on a redesign of the organ chamber to accommodate new slider-pallet windchests (produced in the Marceau shop) and a facade that would pay homage to the original Kimball facade. The budget did not allow for the total number of stops to be installed at that time. It was through fate that this instrument was completed! The massive Nisqually earthquake of 2001 almost closed this historic building for good if it were not for the unshakable vision of this congregation, led by their rector, Fr. Paul Collins. During the time in which the church was being rebuilt and upgraded, we were fortunate enough to acquire a large number pipe organ of about 35 ranks. From this inventory, stops that were prepared for future addition could be added at about half the cost for new pipes. One of the unique trademarks of a Marceau Pipe Organ is the inclusion of vintage pipework that is rescaled, revoiced and reregulated to be successfully integrated with stops, both old and new. The Trinity Parish Pipe Organ is no exception. A quick glance to the stoplist suggests a number of musical possibilities that make it possible to interpret organ repertoire from Bach to Manz and everything in between! In 2005, I moved back to Seattle to open a Seattle office for our activities in the Puget Sound region. In 2008, we moved into a small but very useful shop in the Ballard district and have seen our level of work increase dramatically since then. While I enjoy each project that comes through the shop, I will always think fondly of our Opus IV at Trinity Parish and how that instrument continues to be one of great satisfaction and pride.