The Organ
St. Alfred’s selected Casavant to design the pipe organ. The organ consists of three Manuals and Pedals, 33 Ranks, 28 Stops, with a total of 2019 pipes in four Divisions (Swell, Great, Pedal, and Antiphonal). There are also five digital stops by the Walker Technical Company.
As part of a robust stewardship campaign, St. Alfred’s received generous gifts from several lead donors in the Parish, raising enough funds to pay 80% of the cost of the instrument at the time of signing the contract in November 2021.
The design of the case is inspired by the church’s architecture and various features of the interior of the church, incorporating the angles already present in the architectural elements of St. Alfred’s. The red oak is in keeping with the wood of the existing platforms. The layout of the façade pipes not only recalls the angular style of St. Alfred’s, but the ancient origins of the pipe organ with this organ’s neo-baroque design.
History of Arts
The legacy of Worship and the Arts at St. Alfred’s, Palm Harbor began with the vision of Fr. David R. Moores, the Second Rector of the Parish (1982-1990). He was not only a charismatic priest in The Episcopal Church, but also an accomplished pianist and organist. He had been playing piano since the age of 5, had given several organ concerts in our area before coming to St. Alfred’s. He was also active in the Clearwater Chapter of the American Guild of Organists.
When it came time for the current church building to be designed, it was intentional that the Chancel area was designed to be a place that could be used for musical and theatrical events. The eventuality of a pipe organ was part of the original plan. Fr. Moores hoped that the new nave would enable the congregation to put more emphasis on music and the arts. He believed that a church is a place where art, music, liturgy, majesty, and mystery ought to be combined to give people “a sense of God.” In an interview with Fr. Moores, he is quoted as saying: “I think we in The Episcopal Church are at our best when we use the arts as an expression of our faith. The arts make it easy to fall in love with God – to discover God in your own way – and we’d like to share this with the community.”
As an expression of this commitment to the arts, the church also commissioned Christopher Still to design and install a collection of stunning murals that adorn St. Alfred’s Outdoor Chapel and Narthex walls and ceilings. Mr. Still was the grandson of long-time parishioners of St. Alfred’s and the murals were some of his first large-scale works. Mr. Still has since become a major artist producing significant works including the murals at the Florida State Capitol Legislative chambers.
“I really feel like this is an incredible opportunity to frame this undertaking within the greater understanding of what it means to be good stewards of the dream we’ve inherited, all the hard work of preparation and building. In effect, this new center for the arts is the ultimate act of stewardship of our parish identity, mission, and DNA,”
““The song and music of worship has carried this congregation forward in good times and bad, in prosperity and adversity, in joy and in sorrow, giving breath and life to its praises,,”
The Organ was dedicated on Sunday, Oct 22, 2023.
