Earlier I proposed "Inventory of Mechanical Organs", but I like better
"Fair Organs". Thanks to Philip Jamison for the information that the
Fair Organ Preservation Society (FOPS) is already attempting an
inventory. I presume that it hopes to encompass all the large organs
down to some smaller size organs where the task becomes unwieldy. Thus
all these different names might be inventoried:
Fair Organ
Military Band Organ (Wurlitzer, DeKleist, ...)
Kirmesorgel ("Fair Organ")
Jahrmarktorgel ("Annual-Fair Organ")
Straatorgel ("Street Organ" of the Netherlands)
I don't know if FOPS includes the mechanical concert organs and dance
hall organs in their list.
What information should be gathered and preserved? Surely, if available,
the date the organ was shipped to the first customer, the customers name,
the name and location of the business, and so on. Often the organ was
modified later in its life, and perhaps converted from book music to roll
music, with accompanying alteration of the pipe ranks. What is the FOPS
inventory list like?
Robbie Rhodes
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