On September 26, 2023, CUMC bids farewell to the Viscount Unico 250 organ console as it receives a new console (Ouverture 365) as part of the project to update and re-integrate the pipes with the digital organ.

Background
The pipe organ at Clemson United Methodist Church was purchased in 1968 from Schantz Pipe Organ Company in Orville, Ohio, during the construction of the new church following the fire. In 2004, when the church decided to move from its location in downtown Clemson to the current location at 300 Frontage Road, the church contracted Schantz to remove the pipe organ, clean and re-leather some of the mechanical components, and install it in the current space in the Worship Center. At the time, the move would be temporary until the Sanctuary was built, and the organ would be moved again and further renovated.

1968 Schantz Organ Console brought to new church

In 2019, the electrical wiring from the 60s in the console began to fail, and an action plan was formed to address some of the issues with the pipe organ. The church bought a digital organ from Viscount, a company based in Rimini, Italy, to solve the old console’s electrical issues temporarily. Additionally, the Viscount organ can wire into the Schantz pipe organ.

In the Fall of 2022, a task force was formed to address the steps involved in connecting the pipe organ to the Viscount system to allow the original pipes to be played again. Additionally, there was continued discussion from 2019 about having a three-manual (or keyboard) console in place of a two-manual console. 

A new contract was signed in April 2023 with Instrumental Solutions, Inc. of Columbia, SC, the regional dealer for Viscount, and CUMC, to complete those two significant tasks. The Ouverture 365 was built to order at the factory in Rimini, Italy, and shipped by cargo in July. Plans to make the connections to the pipe organ will occur later in 2023.

Viscount Unico 250, installed 2019

We are excited to be able to take the historical integrity of CUMC’s past in the Schantz organ from the 60s and combine it with the modern innovations of digital sounds in the Viscount to have a hybrid instrument to support the liturgy & worship of the church and enhance our music ministry.
 
Alex Armstrong
Director of Music Ministries

FAQ
 
Q: How does a modern digital instrument connect to a historical acoustic one?
The Viscount console has a port to connect a single data cable, which will go to a computer board manufactured for pipe organ controls. Wiring from that board will extend to the chests (large tables that the pipes sit on, hold pressurized air, and contain the components to allow one or more pipes to play on command). A thermometer and microphone will also be installed in each room and connected to the main board that collects real-time data from the pipe organ. This will allow the tuning of the pipe organ to be in sync with the digital organ sounds.

Views from the Great Chamber (above the choir loft)

Q: What is the purpose of having a hybrid instrument? Can’t we just have the pipe organ if it’s connected?
While we can play only the pipe stops (or sounds) once wired and programmed to the Viscount, the reason for purchasing the Viscount instrument serves two purposes: 

• Having a functional, up-to-date console that can play the pipes
• Broadening the diversity of sounds that were limited or missing from the original instrument

 
The pipe organ, in general, can have an extensive range of sounds, depending on the number of stops/pipes. The original Schantz had 22 stops available. The new Viscount has 55 stops that could be used at any moment (this number will include the Schantz pipes programmed into it, plus the internal library with hundreds of digital pipe sounds that can be programmed to the different knobs). To have the same number of pipe stops as the digital, it would not only cost upwards of $500k+ for the pipes and additional playing components but would also require renovations to expand the space the pipe organ is currently housed in

Ouverture 365, installed Sept. 26, 2023

Q: Why a three-manual console?
The different manuals, or keyboards, correlate to different “sections” (called divisions) within the organ. The Schantz pipes are housed within the two rooms on each side at the front of the Sanctuary. When the Viscount was put in, speakers were added in each of the rooms plus a set of speakers directly behind the screen. This added a more cohesive blend of sound between all divisions of the organ. Having three keyboards assists the organist both in the literature that is frequently played on Sundays or concerts, along with additional flexibility to enhance the weekly liturgy.
In the initial discussions in 2019, when the church was looking for solutions to the state of the Schantz organ, several proposals included having a three-manual console replace the two-manual one at that time. A three-manual Viscount was brought in temporarily to try when the move to purchase a digital instrument was made. However, adequate funds were not available then to acquire a three-manual console. The plan then was to buy a two-manual console until raising more funds, and then trade the console back in for credit applied to the three-manual option.
Compared to the Viscount model that was purchased, the Ouverture 365 is not adding additional stop knobs, but rather distributing them more equally among three keyboards and pedal. 

​Q: How was this project phase paid for?
The phase of this project did not use funds from the operating budget or building reserves. It was soft-funded by a few church members who wished to see the project through to its final state. As mentioned in the last answer, the current model was traded back to Instrumental Solutions, Inc. for nearly the total value paid in 2019 and credited toward purchasing the new model.

Views from the Swell room (above the handbell area)

​Q: Now that we have a new console, what is next?
The new console needed to arrive before the pipes could be re-connected to avoid additional costs that would’ve occurred as a result of re-programming the system to another console model. We are finishing getting quotes from local electricians for work needed to address certain requirements for adding the new control system and allowing the pipes to play again. Once that is completed, a sub-contractor who specializes in this technology will come in and install the new pipe organ control system and wire it to the pipes. The projected time from start to finish once they begin is estimated to take about one week.

​Q: After all is done, is there anything else?
Discussions within the Task Force were made about possible updates much further in the future after the pipes are connected and console arrived. A couple of items that came up were replacing one set of rarely used pipes with a different set, switching a couple sets of pipes between the two spaces, and adding a set of pipes in front of the grill cloth on each side to give a nicer presentation to the organ. 
Routine tuning and maintenance will still be required for both pipe and digital components of the organ (tuning is at minimum twice a year, between changes of the seasons). However, and other major maintenance requirements to any parts of the organ should not be expected for several years.