In August 1969, while preparing to begin his teaching career at Pacific Lutheran University, organist David Dahl visited the new Christ Episcopal Church building in Tacoma, Washington. His friend Morris Hauge, a priest at the church and former classmate from PLU, showed him the around. David’s immediate thought upon seeing the magnificent Brutalist architecture, designed by renowned Seattle architect Paul Thiry, was that the space deserved a truly fine organ.
At that time, Christ Church housed only a 3-manual Allen electronic device. This “device,” as David called it, had replaced an Estey tubular pneumatic organ that was in the former building—an English country-style church that had been torn down due to limited seating capacity and dry rot.
The Estey Organ at Christ Church
The original Estey organ, Opus 1206, was installed in 1914 in a chamber on the left side of the chancel of the original building. It remained unaltered until 1959 when it was dismantled. Some of its pipes were given to the Annie Wright School in Tacoma for use in their chapel’s organ.
Here is the stop list for the Estey Opus 1206:
| GREAT: (ENCLOSED) | SWELL: (ENCLOSED) | PEDAL |
|---|---|---|
| 8′ Open Diapason | 16′ Bourdon | 16′ Bourdon |
| 8′ Viol d’Gamba | 8′ Concert Flute | 16′ Lieblich Gedeckt |
| 8′ Clarabella | 8′ Viol d’Orchestra | 8′ Bass Flute |
| 8′ Gemshorn | 8′ Unda Maris | Gt to Ped |
| 8′ Dulciana | 4′ Flute traverse | Sw to Ped |
| 4′ Wald Flute | 8′ Oboe & Bassoon | |
| Tremolo | 8′ Clarinet | |
| Gt to Gt 16-4 | Tremolo | |
| Sw to Gt 16-8-4 | Sw-Sw 16-4 | |
| Sw Unison Off |
During that initial visit, Hauge mentioned to Dahl that the music director position would soon be open. Dahl was interested but felt the University might prefer him to work in a Lutheran church, so he didn’t apply. Another person was appointed, but it didn’t work out, and the church contacted David again, urging him to apply. Feeling unfulfilled at Trinity Lutheran Church, where he was then attending, he decided to apply. David was appointed and began his service the Sunday after Easter in 1970.
A Dream Begins: Replacing the Electronic Device
Though David Dahl was already keen on tracker organs, he found himself playing an electronic instrument. Its console was in a circular area intended as a choir loft, with speakers and other electronics located above the front door. He invited David Robbins, PLU’s new percussion teacher, to be the choir director. Robbins, despite being a percussionist, had sung in a good choir at Christ Congregational Church in Silver Spring, Maryland, which had a 3-manual Möller organ.
They soon discovered that the choir sounded significantly better singing from the wall opposite the pulpit—an area that was, at the time, empty space. This new choir space also accommodated instrumental ensembles, which wouldn’t have been possible in the original layout. David couldn’t help but envision that, should the church ever acquire a “real” organ, it would sound best on that same wall, next to the choir. Thus began David’s dream of replacing the Allen.
Coincidentally, the Allen started “acting up,” producing squawks, distortion, and other unexpected, non-musical sounds. David played the electronic instrument as well as he could, making it sound as good as possible, but was jokingly accused of sabotaging it to justify a replacement. To this day, David denies the accusation.
David wanted to propose a tracker organ, but he understood the need to build trust with the congregation. He felt they wouldn’t be receptive to spending $100,000 on the advice of someone who had just joined the church staff. He approached Bill Gill, a tenor in the choir and a music lover, about forming an organ committee. Gill, a “rough and tumble” Chicago native known for his direct manner, agreed to chair the committee, which was formed around 1975. He is remembered for saying in meetings, “Let’s keep the main thing the main thing,” and that’s how he approached the organ committee.
The possibility of a transition to a pipe organ was complicated by the continuing presence of the donors of the Allen “device”. Bill Gill, who knew the donor family, successfully negotiated an agreement that allowed the church to sell the Allen and use the proceeds towards a pipe organ.
A Vision Takes Shape: John Brombaugh
Meanwhile, Dahl attended a summer organ institute at Oberlin in 1976, featuring Harold Vogel. One of the primary teaching instruments was a 2-manual organ by John Brombaugh in the Oberlin Methodist Church. Vogel praised Brombaugh’s work, solidifying David’s goal to pursue a Brombaugh organ.
To avoid the appearance of favoring only one builder, David also invited Fisk and Karl Wilhelm (of Canada) to submit proposals. He invited Schlicker as well, as his friend John DeCamp worked on their installations. DeCamp, however, eventually told David, “You know you don’t want one,” and Schlicker did not submit a proposal.
The church’s vestry approved the purchase of an organ, provided the price did not exceed $80,000. Fisk proposed a pedal division with only two 16-foot stops (a Subbass and a reed). Wilhelm proposed a 2-manual organ with an enclosed Brustwerk. John Brombaugh initially proposed a 2-manual organ (Great and Brustwerk) and a Cornet on a third, half-manual.
The church’s chancellor, an attorney, was against replacing the Allen. On his own initiative, he added a $100 per day late penalty to the contract for Brombaugh. David wrote to Brombaugh, clarifying that this penalty was not the vestry’s will, but Brombaugh did not respond for several days. Brombaugh then wrote back, saying that his contract was canceled because the church evidently didn’t trust him.
David Dahl went to Bill Gill’s Mercury dealership to figure out what to do. Dahl preferred Brombaugh, and Gill called Brombaugh directly, saying, “You are the builder we really want. Will you do it?” After a long pause, Brombaugh agreed. However, the new contract he sent omitted the mounted cornet—an obvious signal of his displeasure.
During a reception at the Oberlin workshop, Dahl spoke with Klas Bolt, organist at the Church of St. Bavo in Haarlem. He showed Bolt their plans for Christ Church. Bolt questioned the Brustwerk, asking if David planned a lot of continuo work and noting its inadequacy for congregational accompaniment. He asked about the available height and why they weren’t getting an organ with a Bovenwerk and a 4-foot Principal.
Upon returning home, Dahl called John Brombaugh, relayed Bolt’s comments, and asked, “Why can’t we get an organ like that?” Brombaugh laughed and explained he was building two similar organs—for the University of Connecticut Chapel at Storrs and St. John’s Presbyterian in Berkeley. He asked if David would like an organ similar to those, with a 4-foot principal on the Bovenwerk (which Brombaugh calls a positiv). David agreed but explained he would need vestry approval. John quoted $85,000, and the vestry approved the new amount. David personally donated the 4-foot Octave in the pedal and the Nasard/Tierce on the Positiv. A year later, a choir member donated the Harfenregal.
Still feeling unsettled, Dahl called John Brombaugh again to discuss tonal specifications. The Connecticut and Berkeley organs were to have wide-scale Tierce stops, which Brombaugh had never done before. David suggested that they be principal scale for use in the plenum, to which John readily agreed. The Positiv was slated to have a Dulcian, but Brombaugh wanted to build a Krummhorn modeled after a Schnitger Krummhorn, which David found agreeable.
Before the installation at Christ Church, and after installing the two sister organs, John Brombaugh decided that the Scharff mixture on the Positiv was too high and lowered it for Christ Church’s organ.
Installation and Later Alterations
During the installation, after voicing the first five stops at 65 mm of wind pressure, organist and organ scholar Peter Williams visited with John Brombaugh while David was at a conference. Williams commented that the organ wouldn’t be strong enough for congregational singing. Without discussing it with David, Brombaugh increased the wind pressure, resulting in a stronger sound.
In the late 1980s, after 15 years of using the organ, David realized the utility of an 8-foot stop on the Positiv with minimal weight, especially for choral repertoire. He called John Brombaugh to inquire about adding a soft 8-foot stop to the Positiv division. John initially replied that it would require buying a new chest. David called a second time and received the same answer. For reasons still unclear to him, David called a third time, and John, with his characteristic whooping laugh, said, “Yes, I think there’s a way we can do that.” David then asked if it could be a double-draw celeste, and John confirmed it was possible, albeit with a smaller gamut.
The original contract for the smaller Brustwerk organ included a 16′ Fagott in the pedal, unlike the 16′ Posaune in the two sister organs. Gary Hebedank, a church and choir member, donated $17,000 to add an Erzähler and Celeste to the Positiv, install a second wind trunk for independent Positiv wind supply, and change the pedal Fagott to a Posaune. Replacing the Fagott with a Posaune was technically straightforward. However, adding the Erzähler and Celeste required clever engineering: John added a slider at the bottom of the Positiv windchest and tubed the pipes off to either side of the windchest. The original 4-foot Octave pipes in the pedal had been unsatisfactory; John referred to them as “junk pipes.” David, having paid for this stop, was offended, and John replaced the pipes.
The Brombaugh Opus 22: Stop List and Details
The Brombaugh Opus 22 was manufactured in Springfield, Oregon. It was enlarged in 1989 with two new stops and the Fagott 16′ was modified. The organ has two manuals and pedal, with 23 stops. The wind pressure is 83 mm (3 5/16″). The wind system uses a Laukhuff blower feeding a large, single-fold wedge reservoir, with an exhaust bellows-type tremulant on the main wind trunk, affecting the entire organ and adjustable for speed and depth. The pitch and temperament are A440, Kellner (Bach) with five 1/5-comma fifths and seven pure fifths. The metal alloy used is after Heindrik Niehoff (ca. 1495-1560), composed of 98% lead, 1.5% tin, and trace mineral elements; all open fluework is cut to length with cone-tuned trebles. The key action is mechanical, suspended action , and the stop action uses slider chests with direct mechanical control and ebony stop knobs. The keyboard order is Great, II Positiv.
The Great and Pedal are on a common wind chest to facilitate mechanical transmission of selected stops from the Great to the Pedal, at a lower impost level. The Positiv is located above the Great behind the upper façade section, and the chest order follows the façade. The manual compass is CC-g³, 56 notes, with bone-capped naturals and ebony sharps, and gilded arcades carved into the natural fronts. The pedal clavier is CC-f, 30 notes, modeled after E. & G.G. Hook note spacing, flat and straight, with oak naturals and sharps.
Here is the stop list for the Brombaugh Opus 22:
| GREAT | POSITIV | PEDAL |
|---|---|---|
| Quintadena 16′ | Gedackt 8′ | Subbass 16′ |
| Præstant 8′ | Erzähler 8′ (New 1989) | Octave 8′ |
| Holpijp 8′ | Erzähler Celeste 8′ (New 1989) | Octave 4′ |
| Octave 4′ | Præstant 4′ | Posaune 16′ (New 1989) |
| Spitzflöte 4′ | Rohrflöte 4′ | Trumpet 8′ (from Great) |
| Quinte 3′ + Sesquialtera II | Nasard 3′ + Tierce | |
| Octave 2′ | Cigarflute 2′ | |
| Mixture III-V | Scharf III | |
| Trumpet 8′ | Krummhorn 8′ | |
| Harfenregal 8′ | ||
| Cymbelstern |
Regarding the pipe shades, the initial drawing depicted birds and leaves. The vestry rejected this design, requesting something else. John then replaced them with an abstract design better suited to the church’s architecture. These pipe shades have a solid backing, which is unusual, as pipe shades are typically open to the interior. This feature is unique to Christ Church and its two sister organs.
David Dahl retired in 2010 and was replaced by Mark Brombaugh, John Brombaugh’s brother. In 2012, Mark arranged with the Fritts Organ Company to add a wind stabilizer, leaving a mechanism to defeat it by pulling the tremulant knob one notch, allowing for flexible wind. David Dahl continues to serve as Director of Music Ministries Emeritus and the advisor to Ars Organi, a group of organists who play for each other and for David in a masterclass-like setting. In addition to its regular worship music, Christ Church hosts monthly organ recitals as part of “Third Fridays at Noon,” as well as the “Music at Christ Church” concert series.