Stephen Tharp plays the Skinner Organ at Rosary Cathedral video

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 night 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 ...