Sacred Heart Church.

Hastings Standard, Volume XI, Issue 5680, 9 December 1907, Page 2

Sacred Heart Church.

DEDICATION OF THE NEW ORGAN. YESTERDAY'S CEREMONY. Yesterday was an holy red letter day for the member.; of the Catholic Church in Hastings when a large congregations assisted at the ceremonies in connection with the opening of the new organ which has been built by Hobday, of Wellington. The altar was beautifully decorate 1 for the occasion by the Sisters of St Joseph. At II a.m. there was Solemn High Mass at which His Grace Archbishop Redwood, of Wellington, presided and preached the dedication sermon which was a mastering and soul inspiring discourse on music. Durthe sermon His Grace referred to the handsome legacy left to the Church by the late Mr Sullivan, and congratulated the congregation on their beautiful church which was now complete in all i;s appointments and requisites for Divine worship. The ntw organ was heard for the first time at High Mass, when the choir of the Sacred Heart Church was augmented b> several well-known local singers.

As the procession wended its way up the aisle, Mr Sydney Hoben played his " Ave Maria," the tones of the new instrument being at once apparent. At the offertory Baptiste's Andante in G was given, its avalanche of pearly runs supporting the melody, allowing of grateful contrasts in tone. As the large congregation left the edifice, Ketterei's " March Solennelle " rolled forth in brilliant resonant harmonies, finally concluding in massive volumes of thunderous power, all the resources of the organ being used by Mr Hoben. The opinion expressed universally was one of praise.

The mass performed was the "Mary Magdalen." of Turner, a wdl ha;monised, devotional and tuneful work. The choir sang admirably and with the aid of the fine new instrument gave much pleasure. The " Benedictus" was sung as a solo quartet by Mrs Mac Duff Boyd, Miss Price, Mr Baunton and Mr Frank Vickers. The other soloists were Misses Hickey Vickers and Mr J. Timmin^. The celebrant at the Mass was Rev. Fathtr Leger, Rev. Fathers Martin and Quinn being deacon and subdeacon respectively. In trie evening the church was packed to the doors. A new vesper was sung for the first time, and the soloists were Miss J. Vickers, Messrs Vickers, J. Donovan, and Owen McQuirk. Mr Hob?n again exhibited the resouroes of the organ by his various solos, including Batiste's " Angelic Voices." The evening Vespers were sung by the Very Rev. Dean S.nyth, and His Gracf, the Archbishop, again preached a beautiful sermon, reminding his hearers that the music of earth was but a faint echo of the music ol Heaven; that Jesus Christ was the great organist, the only one worthy and capabl: of giving glory to his Almighty F^th-r, andilthat if we wish to enjov the sweet haimonious strains of Heaven's eternal song we must lead good Christian iives, that we must so live as to be worthy to echo in our hearts the notes of thankfulness that peal forth to the Creator from the King of instruments, and thus truly honoring and praising God on earth we ahall be united with the Angels in glorifying him for all eternity. Benediction of the most Blessed Sacrament was given by Archbishop Redwood, and the ceremonies were brought to a close by the singing of that inspiring hymn " Faith of our Fathers." THE ORGAN. The organ dedicated by His Grace Archbishop Redwood yesterday was built by Mr Arthur Hobday, organbuilder, of Wellingtot, late of Melbourne and Adelaide. The construction of the instrument is on the modern and improved tabular pneumatic system. The touch of the manuals and pedals is very prompt, light and elastic —indeed the touch of the keys is equal to that of the best pianos. The Swell Crescendo mon - ment is controlkd by a balance pedal placed most conveniently in the centre over the pedal clavia. The pedal clavia is that known as Concave and Radiating, and the arrangements of the Console is that recommended by the College of Organists of London, offering to the organist every convenience for their successful manipulation of this instrument. There are two manuals and independent pedals, the compass of which is respectively CC to G, 56 notes, and C C E to F, 30 notes, and five pedals of combinations. Thi following is the disposition of stops, etc.: — GREAT ORGAN. 1 Open Diapason, metal, c c to g Bft 2 Loud Gamba, metal, c c to g Bft 3 Dulciana. metal, c c to g Bft 4 Claribel, wood, c c to g Bft 5 Octave, metal, c c to g 4ft 6 Harmonic Flute, metal, c c to g 4ft 7 Fifteenth, metal, c c to g 2ft SWELL ORGAN. 8 Lieb'ich Gedaciit, wood, e c to g l6tt 9 Violin Diapason, metal, cc tog Bft 10 Viol di Orchestra,metal, c c tog Bft 11 Celeste, metal. Tew, c to g Bft 12 Gedacht, wood, c c to g Bft 13 Principal, metal, c c to g 4f T 14 P.cc.jia, wood, c c to g 2ft 15 Horn, metal, c c to g Bft f6 Oboe, metal, c c to g Bft 17 Solo "I remulant PEDAL ORGAN. 18 Open Diapason, wood.c c c to f l6tt 19 Bourdon, wood, c c c to f l6tt zo Flute, wood, c c c to f Bft COUPLERS. 21 Swell to Great Organ >2 Swell to Great Organ.Super Octave 23 Swell to Pedal Organ >4 Great to Pcdkl Organ We can heartily congratulate the hurch and the builder, Mr Hobday, an the undoubted and marked success of the tone of this fine prgafi I _a§_

expressed by one of high authority "It suits the Church to a T," there is ample power yet the quality is exceptionally mellow, the balance of tone is excellent, and not a trace of hardness, yet full, rich and of great carrying power. At the services yesterday, the organist, Mr Hoben, brought out the character of the individual stops most ably, the full and rich Diapasons of both swell and great organ, the fascinating quality of Viol-de-Gamba, a very beautiful string tone stop, and also its companion the Celeste, <vh:ch

combined with the Viol, gives that delightful, undulating, wavery tone, soft yet pungent, making itself heard above tones like the violin of the orchestra. Tht Gedacht and Flutes are of beautiful refined mellow quality, the Claribel and Bft Fiuie deserving of special comment, its liquid and mellow tones were specially brought out in Baptiste's Andante. The fine quality of the Horn and Oboe stops was particularly noticeable in "Ave" and "Angelic Voices." The voicing of the organ throughout is of marked excellence, and reflects the greatest ctedit on the builder, Mr Hobday. The appearance of the organ is effective and good, the case work being of polished oak, and the pipes in the front ornamentally grouped, are beautifully illuminated. It suits, and gives a handsome finish to the choir end of the church. Mr Hoben expresses himself highly pleased with the organ. It is worthy of comment, that musicians, both here and from Napier, who have heard the instrument, assert that they consider its tone far superior to the Napier Cathedral's new organ.