Boardwalk Hall Auditorium Organ


The Boardwalk Hall Auditorium Organ is the pipe organ in the Main Auditorium of the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey, built by the Midmer-Losh Organ Company. It is the largest organ in the world, as measured by the number of pipes.
The main auditorium is with a floor area of, giving a volume of. Consequently, the organ runs on much higher wind pressures than most organs in order to achieve a volume loud enough to fill the hall.
The organ has four entries in Guinness World Records, including "Largest pipe organ ever constructed", "Largest musical instrument ever constructed" and "Loudest musical instrument ever constructed", and holds several records in the organ world. It is one of only two organs in the world to have an open 64-foot rank, and the only organ to have stops voiced on 100 inches of wind pressure. Its console features seven manuals.

Construction and layout

Construction of the organ took place between May 1929 and December 1932. The organ was designed by state senator Emerson Lewis Richards and was built by the Midmer-Losh Organ Company of Merrick, New York. Most of the pipes were built by Midmer-Losh. Anton Gottfried made some of the reed pipes, including the Brass Trumpet, Egyptian Horn, Euphone and Musette Mirabilis. The German firm Welte-Mignon provided the Bassoon with papier-mâché resonators and wooden Tuba d'Amour for the Echo division.
The organ is built around the Main Auditorium of the Boardwalk Hall. The organ's divisions are divided across 8 organ chambers, as follows:

The current layout of the organ was Emerson Richards' third design. The first design was to house 43,000 pipes in six chambers, but the quoted cost greatly exceeded the allocated $300,000, and there wasn't enough space to house all the pipes. The numbers of pipes was then reduced to 29,000. Later, when the Forward Chambers were also used, some stops from the original plan were reinstated, raising the numbers of pipes to the present official number of 33,114. The contract price was $347,200.

Console

The organ's main console is the biggest in the world. It has 1,235 stop tabs controlling 587 flue stops, 265 reed stops, 35 melodic percussions, 46 non-melodic percussions, 164 couplers, 18 tremolos, 120 swell pedal selectors for the 6 swell pedals controlling 15 swell boxes, and a stop crescendo pedal. The console is also the only one in the world with 7 manuals. The lowest two have a range of seven octaves, and the next lowest has a range of six octaves, while the rest have a normal five octave range. The bottom five keys on the Swell manual are in place mainly for cosmetic reasons, as there are no pipes, in most ranks, for those notes. The manuals from top to bottom are:
VIIBombard5 Octaves, 61 Keys, CC to c4
VIEcho5 Octaves, 61 Keys, CC to c4
VFanfare5 Octaves, 61 Keys, CC to c4
IVSolo5 Octaves, 61 Keys, CC to c4
IIISwell6 Octaves, 73 Keys, GGG to g4
IIGreat7 Octaves, 85 Keys, CCC to c5
IChoir7 Octaves, 85 Keys, CCC to c5

The Great and Choir manuals have been enlarged to seven octaves so that specially extended stops in the pedal can be played throughout the 85 note compass of both manuals. These stops can be selected by stop-keys in two divisions in the right stop jamb. The Grand Great controls stops from the Pedal Right and the Grand Choir controls stops from the Pedal Left. For example, the Grand Ophicleide can be played from the pedalboard, but also from the Great manual by means of the Grand Great.
Also, some divisions are playable on two manuals. For example, the Choir-Swell division is usually played from the Choir manual, but it has been duplexed stop key for stop key to the Swell manual, so that all the stops can also be played from there as the Swell-Choir, no matter what stops are drawn on the Choir manual. The same is true for the Great-Solo, which is usually played from the Great manual, but can also be played as the Solo-Great from the Solo manual.
Although the four Gallery divisions can be played from any manual, their "home" is the Bombard manual. Not only are they the only divisions playable from it, but its keyslip contains the pistons for the Gallery organ.

Stops

DepartmentVoicesRanksPipes
Pedal Right1111903
Pedal Left1016955
Choir29372,792
Unenclosed Choir69657
Great38634,647
Great-Solo 13131,152
Great-Solo 1212972
Swell36554,456
Swell-Choir17171,542
Solo22332,085
Fanfare21362,364
Echo22271,896
Gallery I410754
Gallery II79621
Gallery III69681
Gallery IV88596
Brass Chorus810730
String I11201,436
String II24372,657
String III9171,217
Total31444933,114

In addition to 852 stopkeys controlling the speaking stops summarised above, the organ console also has the following:
The organ possesses a unique stop in the organ world, the 64-foot Diaphone-Dulzian in the Right Stage chamber, one of only two true 64-foot stops in the world. The stop is unique, because it is a reed/diaphone hybrid.
When construction of the organ commenced, it was planned to have two 64-foot stops in the pedal, a Diaphone Profunda and a Dulzian. Later, the design was revised, and the Diaphone was cut, because it was feared it would crowd the Right Stage chamber. Consequently, the Dulzian was moved to the Right Stage chamber. However, the sound of the 64-foot Dulzian did not meet the criteria, requiring Diaphone pipes to be used for the lowest 22 notes. The remaining pipes in the rank are reeds. Because of the low frequencies involved, and because the diaphone is voiced to imitate a reed stop, the transition from reed to diaphone cannot be heard.
The Diaphone-Dulzian's low-C pipe stands tall, weighs, and produces a frequency of 8 Hz, a tone that is more felt than heard; the sound of the vibrating pallet is described as "a helicopter hovering over the building". The pipe stands upright for about, the remainder is mitred towards the Right Stage chamber's grill, like an upside-down L. All pipes taller than are designed in this manner.
The Diaphone-Dulzian rank spans from C3 to g2; it is sufficiently extended so that the 64-, 32-, 16-, 8- and 4-foot unison stops, and the -foot, -foot and -foot mutation stops, may be drawn from the same rank. No other extension rank in the world spans that far. Also, when the 64-foot and -foot are combined, the resultant tone simulates a 128-foot stop, equivalent to a 4 Hz tone on low C.
Use of the Diaphone-Dulzian is rare, being used primarily in registrations of moderate volume. "In very big combinations it is lost and in smaller ones it is too loud."

Grand Ophicleide

The Grand Ophicleide in the organ's Pedal Right division, speaking on 100" wind pressure, is recognized by Guinness World Records as the loudest organ stop in the world. It is described as having "a pure trumpet note of ear-splitting volume, more than six times the volume of the loudest locomotive whistle." The Grand Ophicleide produces up to 130 decibels at a distance of 1 meter.
Because of the high pressure on which the pipes stand, they must be tightly secured to the pipe chest, with individual parts secured to each other. If any wind leaks, a whistle, almost as loud as the tone of the pipes themselves, may be heard. Completing the rank presented a problem; the highest 12 notes are produced by special flue pipes having a similar voice and timbre. All of the reed pipes use weighted tongues. The tuning wires are held firmly in place to maintain the correct tuning.
The Grand Ophicleide rank is extended one octave above the 16' unison rank, allowing an 8' register to be drawn from the rank; it is playable from the 85-key Great manual and from the 32-key pedalboard.

32-foot stops

To provide all the power needed in the pedal, the organ has ten 32-foot stops:
StopDivision
Tibia Clausa 32′Pedal Right
Bombardon 32′Pedal Right
Pedal Left
Diapason 32′Pedal Left
Bombard 32′Pedal Left
Fagotto 32′Pedal Left
Sub Principal 32′Great
Fanfare
Violone 32′Echo
Diaphone-Dulzian 32′, Pedal Right

Records

The organ has been recognized by Guinness World Records as the largest musical instrument, the loudest musical instrument and the largest pipe organ ever constructed, although some debate still exists about the last. Guinness also recognizes the Grand Ophicleide 16′ in the Pedal Right division to be the loudest organ stop in the world.
The organ was recognized by the Organ Historical Society as an instrument "of historical value and worthy of preservation" as part of its Historic Organs Citations program. The Citation, No. 313, was presented to the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority by Paul Marchesano on October 26, 2004.
Officially, the organ has 33,112 pipes, but the exact number of pipes is unknown. A detailed survey conducted in 1999 concluded that the organ had 33,114 pipes, recently revised it to 33,116 after the discovery that one rank went down two notes lower than specified in the organ builder's contract. It is very hard to determine exactly how many pipes the organ has, also due to the condition the organ is in.
The organ is the only one in the world to have stops standing on 100 inches wind pressure. It is also the only organ to have two 32-foot pedal stops on 50 inches wind pressure. There are two more organs in the world with stops on 50 inches, but these are 8-foot solo trumpet or tuba stops. 100 inches wind pressure is about 30 times more than a normal organ stop. The organ has four stops on 100 inches and ten stops on 50 inches wind pressure:
StopDivisionWind pressure
Grand Ophicleide 16′Pedal Right100"
Tuba Imperial 8′Solo100"
Trumpet Mirabilis 16′Gallery I100"
Gallery I100"
Diaphone 32′Pedal Left50"
Tuba Magna 16′Solo50"
Bugle 8′Solo50"
Bombard 32′Pedal Left50"
Major Posaune 16′Pedal Left50"
Diaphone Phonon 16′Pedal Right50"
Posaune 16′Fanfare50"
Harmonic Tuba 8′Fanfare50"
Ophicleide 8′Fanfare50"
Fanfare50"

Apart from the aforementioned stops on record wind pressure, almost every division stands on at least 15 inches wind pressure, except for the Choir which stands on 10 inches, and the Unenclosed Choir stands on 3 3/4". Also, some individual stops stand on lower wind pressure, for example, the Diapason X of the Great division stands on only 4 inches.
The organ's wind supply is the most powerful ever used in a pipe organ. The DC motors for the original eight blowers had a total power of. These were replaced with AC motors in the early 1990s, which have a total of and their seven blowers pump of wind per minute. The Right Stage chamber has two dedicated blowers, a high-pressure blower and a low-pressure blower. A step-up blower is fed from the low-pressure blower, and provides 100" pressure to the two 100" reeds in the Right Stage chamber and the two 100" reeds in the Right Center chamber. The Left Stage chamber is similar in having a high-pressure and a low-pressure blower, with the low-pressure blower originally also winding the Left Forward chamber. However renovations to the arena resulted in cut windlines going through walls that no longer exist. The Left Forward chamber will soon be winded from its own independent blower in a new location. The Left Center chamber and Left Upper chambers are winded from a common blower, and the Right Forward, Right Center, and Right Upper chambers are fed from a common blower, less the two 100" reeds in the Right Center chamber.

1944 damage

The instrument has not been fully functional since the 1944 Great Atlantic Hurricane, when the 4 subterranean floors of the Boardwalk Hall were flooded with seawater. This did a lot of damage to the blowers and especially the combination action mechanism.

1998 restoration

In September 1998, the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority provided a $1.17 million grant, which was used to return the Right Stage Chamber of the Main Auditorium organ and the entire Ballroom Organ to playable condition. Afterwards, a recording session took place, which captured the organ's record holders.

2001 damage

Further damage to the organ took place during a 2001 renovation of Boardwalk Hall due to lack of planning and oversight and the carelessness of workmen. Pipes were removed, bent, and stepped on. Windlines to various pipe chambers were cut, with no effort to identify the lines, nor any plans to re-route or repair them. The relay for the left stage chamber was cut out without regard to its restoration, and various switching and control cables were cut. The 5-manual console connection was cut. Cement dust disrupted the switching contacts, magnets and the organ pipes. All this left the entire organ damaged and the Right Stage chamber, which was 98% operational in 1998, was completely disabled. The relay of the Ballroom Organ was also removed in a careless way, which rendered that organ unplayable as well.

Ongoing restoration

In 2013, the organ once again began to be restored, with 15-20% of the organ operational. The organ was played in September 2013 during the Miss America pageant, its first public performance in 40 years. Since May 2014, free half-hour noon concerts followed by free half-hour tours are offered Monday through Friday from May through October, excluding holidays., in-depth "behind the scenes" tours are available weekly on Wednesdays at 10 a.m. throughout the year.
Both organs of the hall have begun to slowly return to the regular musical life of the building as their mechanical condition permits.
The current restoration project led by the Historic Organ Restoration Committee is a $16M project entirely funded by donations from the general public and charitable foundations. Since the inception of the project, 2014 is the first year that the restoration effort has been fully funded. The restoration effort focuses on the re-leathering of the entire instrument as well as the correction of damage to pipework and mechanical systems sustained from construction and water in the intervening years.
Dr. Steven Ball was named titular organist on July 1, 2013. On September 1, 2015 Nathan Bryson became the fifth Curator of Organs at Boardwalk Hall. Full restoration of the organ is estimated to cost up to $13 million.
HORC reports that as of 2018, 95% of the Ballroom Organ is operational, and 50% of the Main Auditorium organ is operational. Restoration work is ongoing and proceeding.