Restoration of Opus 414

Opus 414 was installed in the Chicago Temple as that structure was being built in 1924. Since then, the organ has provided music for tens of thousands of church services, weddings, concerts and other community activities.

Time has taken its toll on the organ and the normal problems of age and use have been exacerbated by three water leaks in the past 35 years, each of which caused serious damage.

Although still in use, recurring problems have been mounting. It has been increasingly difficult for organists to compensate for issues like notes that do not play, notes that play when they should not, and airflow variations that cause the organ to play out of tune.

To help resolve these problems, The Committee for the Restoration of Opus 414 was convened in July of 2017.

After determining that restoration was preferable to replacement, the Committee commissioned three leading organ builders to bid on the restoration of Opus 414.

Submissions were received and reviewed in early 2018 and the Committee decided that the Schantz Organ company of Orville, Ohio, submitted the most compelling bid. The unanimous recommendation is that the contract be awarded to Schantz, once the finances are fully in place.

The Committee’s focus is now on fundraising and, once complete, it is expected that the entire project, including reinstallation of the fully renovated organ, will take no more than 18 months.