The Organ at Our Lady Queen of the Most Holy Rosary Cathedral was built by the Skinner Organ Company of Boston in 1931 as their Opus 820 and dedicated with great fanfare with a recital by Professor Palmer Christian of the University of Michigan, and a performance of Elgar's Dream of Gerontius. Ernest Skinner designed and oversaw the construction and installation of the organ at the Cathedral during his final years at the company he founded in 1901 before being forced out in 1936.
It is remarkable to think of all of the Skinner Organs that once were to be found in Toledo. However, with time and changing fashions, some people wanted to try to improve Skinner organs, but only managed to compromise their integrity. Mr. Skinner's organs are like the string instruments of Stradivarius; no improvements are needed! In the city of Toledo, after a time many of the "improved" and renovated organs were removed, leaving only two original Skinner Organs; the one at Rosary Cathedral and the newly restored organ at the Toledo Art Museum, Opus 603.
I first recorded Stuart Forster at Rosary Cathedral in 1998, and then later Todd Wilson and Ken Cowan. This organ is always a joy to visit, and the staff and clergy of the Cathedral are a joy to work with. This is a short video I made of Stephen Tharp recording the Rosary Cathedral organ on the ni
ght of August 31, 2006. The resulting CD will be a collection of much-loved hymns played on this organ. I hope you enjoy these video samples of the CD that will be issued in the winter of 2007. I'm certain that you will agree with me that this organ is truly an American treasure. You will note bett
er sound on these videos. I took the audio files from the sound I recorded for the CD and synchronized it with the video. I think you will appreciate the improvement. If you, my loyal and valued patrons, buy more of my Cds, this will allow me to buy a better camera and some lighting! I genuinely enj
oy making these videos, especially for those of you who cannot share in the hair-raising thrill of hearing these spectacular instruments in person. I am a firm believer in the majesty and beauty of the world's greatest pipe organs, and in the need to preserve and document them, as well as promot
e the incredibly gifted performers who know how to play them so effectively. These instruments and players deserve to be recognized, and I am pleased to serve as their advocate. With your help, we can assure the future of the great pipe organs of the world. My thanks to you for your continued sup
port! Visit the JAV Webstore at www.pipeorgancds.com; there you will find over 70 different titles of organ recordings from around the world Now get ready to enjoy my latest video! Joe Vitacco - JAV Recordings, Inc. http://www.pipeorgancds.com ---------------- From the organist: Tonight I
finished a CD recording of hymns, both familiar and unfamiliar, at Holy Rosary Cathedral, Toledo, Ohio. This is the first full-length hymn disc that I have done, and having the opportunity to bring it into fruition on this particular Skinner organ made for an incredibly artistic result and a most
memorable experience. On this video, I play Comfort, comfort Ye my People and The Strife is O'er. The sound from the recording session itself is matched up here with the video made during actual takes. This will be my fourth disc for JAV Recordings, and my thirteenth CD recording-to-date. I am
very grateful to Joe Vitacco and JAV for asking me to make this recording on such a rare, beautiful and noteworthy instrument. Stephen Tharp.

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