Pipe organs are impressive in many ways. The sound is remarkable, especially in appropriate acoustical spaces. (It must be quite an experience for a solitary musician to make that much sound, at volumes that can compete with full symphony orchestras.) The visual appeal is compelling and somewhat magical. But there’s another aspect that has long impressed me. Back in my college music teaching days, I used to point out to classes that early versions of these instruments were entirely mechanical — and that it is just about impossible to imagine a more complex and sophisticated technology from that time. And it was all for a musical instrument!
This set of pipes belongs to the organ at St. Giles’ Cathedral in Edinburgh, which we visited for several days earlier this year. Sometimes we have only the vaguest notions of what we’ll see in the cities we visit — and sometime I’ll explain why that can occasionally be a good thing. In that manner we essentially stumbled into St. Giles’ on. our first afternoon in Edinburgh and found it entrancing.
G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.
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