https://archive.triblive.com/aande/music/first-presbyterian-in-greensburg-will-show-off-organ-restoration-at-oct-21-recital/
First Presbyterian in Greensburg will show off organ restoration at Oct. 21 recital
Patrick Varine | Tribune-Review
John Salveson sits at the newly renovated Austin pipe organ at First Presbyterian Church of Greensburg, where he will play a recital on Sunday, Oct. 21, 2018.
The Austin pipe organ at First Presbyterian Church of Greensburg may not be as old as the congregation, but it will put history on display at an Oct. 21 recital as part of the church’s yearlong centennial celebration .
“There’s such a wide variety of voices and sounds I can draw from it,” said John Salveson, the church’s music minister, who will perform seven pieces written as far back as the 1700s.
The recital will show off recent repairs, rebuilds and renovations to the organ, which has been part of the church since 1974.
Over the years, more than 150 students have received instruction on the organ, many of them completing their sacred music internship at nearby Seton Hill University.
While there was a major electrical upgrade to the organ in the 1990s, Salveson said this is the first time for inspecting all of its systems and undertaking major repair work.
“It’s used so often by Seton Hill, and it also gets a lot of use just through the church,” he said.
The A.E. Sterner organ service company rebuilt the organ’s console, repaired and regulated its reed pipes, re-leathered the organ and added digital enhancements.
The completed organ has 3,500 pipes and 61 ranks. It replaced the church’s original E.M. Skinner organ.
The recital’s opening piece, “Konsertfantasie in C Minor,” is particularly special for Salveson.
“It’s by Oskar Lindberg, and he was my doctoral project,” he said.
In choosing pieces for the recital, “I wanted to choose things I thought would resonate with some of the Scottish heritage of the congregation,” Salveson said. “I also wanted to pick pieces that would show off various parts of the organ.”
Those pieces include the finale, “Sonata on the 94th Psalm” by Julius Reubke.
“It’s about a half-hour in length, and it really shows off all the parts of the organ,” Salveson said.
The organ will be dedicated at the church’s 10 a.m. service, and the recital — which is open to the public — will be at 4 p.m. at the church, 300 S. Main St., Greensburg.
Patrick Varine is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Patrick at 724-850-2862, pvarine@tribweb.com or via Twitter @MurrysvilleStar.
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