Kilgen Pipe Organ

Restoring the Pipe Organ at OLR

In 2006 an effort was undertaken to get the historic pipe organ of the parish working after nearly a decade of silence. Inspection of the organ revealed that the first priority was to rebuild the bellows, and by January 2007 the organ was playing again for the first time in ten years. In spite of being badly in need of a full restoration, the organ impressed both the parish and the local community, many of whom were hearing it for the first time.

Unfortunately while the initial repairs were being carried out a more serious problem came to light. The exterior pointing of the church was leaking, allowing water to seep into the organ chamber, threatening both the instrument itself and the structure of the church. The Organ Clearing House removed the organ from the church for safekeeping before the repairs to the interior and exterior walls were carried out.

The parish has been able to raise awareness about their effort to save this historic instrument by creating a YouTube video of Stephen Tharp playing the organ at Our Lady of Refuge. This video was successful in initiating the fundraising effort, but more work remains to be done before the complete restoration of the organ will be possible. To assist the parish in this effort, several world-renowned organists have joined JAV Recordings in order to create a benefit CD. This will consist of recordings of the Kilgen organ at Our Lady of Refuge made prior to its removal, and also of recordings made on some of the most famous organs in the United States, France and Germany. All funds from this CD, less bank fees, will go directly to the restoration project.

The organ has historically formed the core of the musical life of the parish and assisted the faithful in their daily worship. Through making a donation for this CD you can help the members of the parish to restore this historic organ and further enhance the fine musical tradition of Our Lady of Refuge Church.

The recordings will form a two-CD set and will be accompanied by an extensive booklet describing the parish's organ and the other featured organs. The booklet will also contain a reflection from each of the organists on their first encounter with a pipe organ as well as informative notes on the music.

Joe Vitacco of JAV Recordings who is volunteering his time to oversee the fundraising and restoration of this organ at the console at Our Lady of Refuge