Jim McFarland

Born in Baltimore, Maryland, James McFarland graduated from Baltimore Polytechnic Institute majoring in Engineering Studies. He built his first two organs (mechanical action) in 1967 and 1968.  Jim worked with several Baltimore and Washington DC organ tuners, worked at the Smithsonian, and worked with Evan Getz and William Hitchcock at Lewis and Hitchcock in the 1960's. While at Lewis and Hithcock, he also worked with Irving Lawless. Jim studied organ at Peabody Conservatory with Elsie Rau, and later under the direction of Dr. James Boeringer at Susquehanna University.
 

In 1969, Jim started McFarland-Visscher Co. and eventually formed James R. McFarland and Company in 1972. There were approximately 50 major works completed between 1972 and 1987 including the restoration of two 18th century instruments by David Tannenberg. His largest new organ was a pseudo-Victorian tracker of 40 ranks.  Jim then went to work as Technical Director for Columbia Organ Works from 1987 to 1994. In 1994,  Jim took the same position at SDG Organs.  Jim has brought to SDG a wealth of technical knowledge and is an expert at troubleshooting, woodworking, and voicing.  He was also responsible for bringing and mastering solid state technology to SDG when we started doing solid state conversions. 

Jim resides in Millersville, Pennsylvania restored Carpenter-Gothic Victorian Home.

ABOUT Jim's Mentors :

James Akright was a well known independent builder in the greater Baltimore, D.C. and Northern Virginia area. He specialized in new and old tracker action instruments and theater organs. Some of his early training is obscure, but he at one time worked as a pipemaker at Reuter and with Charles McManis.

William Hitchcock, was Skinner’s Plant superintendent until he relocated to Washington DC. where he formed his own firm along with Theodore Lewis, and installed nearly every Skinner and Aeolian Skinner Organ in the D.C. area.  He later moved on to become foreman of the chest department at Skinner.

Evan Getz, was one of the first console builders for E. M. Skinner. Sometime in the 1920's he took a similar position with the firm Lewis and Hitchcock, and worked there until 1971.

Irving Lawless trained in tonal finishing with Donald Gilette in his capacity as Skinner Installer with Lewis and Hitchcock. When Lewis and Hithcock changed hands in the late 1960's, he went on to become the new area installer for Aeolian Skinner. He was responsible for installations at National Presbyterian church and the Kennedy Center. He subsequently was assistant to the Vice President of Möller, and is now independent.

email Jim -  jrm@SDGOrgans.com

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              Hans Herr                                         

A listing of Hans Herr's experiences:

At age 6, Hans “helped” dismantle for storage a Hook and Hastings tracker organ.  His first organ experience was at age 12 when he rebuilt a Mason & Hamlin Reed organ.  By the age of 14 he had built a small, one rank, tracker organ.  By the time he was 15, Hans was working for Columbia Organ Works during the summer.  Here he studied under Harold Ulmer and Larry Pruett.  During this time he helped to build and install a 2 manual organ in Puerto Rico.  During this time he  also continued to restore and rebuild reed organs.  In January of 2002, Hans came to work for SDG and in August of 2003,  Hans married the shop foreman’s daughter!

 

Hans shown below with some pipes that he has made. The pipe on the right is a ludwigtone and the pipe on the left is a labial tuba.

 

Hans’ list of hobbies is ever increasing:

• Woodworking of all kinds

• Antiques

• Antique electronics

• Reed Organs

• Model trains

• Antique cars

• Theater Organs

• Steam engines

• Clocks

• Pianos

• Books

• Junk collecting

• Mechanical devices

• Antique tools and machinery

• Record collecting

• Jim's Daughter !

 

 

email Hans - hch@SDGOrgans.com

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                 Jim Hoover

 

Jim has been with SDG since October of 2000.  Prior to that he worked with Columbia Organ Works.  Jim has also worked in various machine shops and brings a wealth of machinery and tooling knowledge to our company.  He is our resident Luthier (see other photo), he makes Pennsylvania German style furniture, restores reed organs, and works on pianos.  Jim's first interest in pipe organs came from an recording he heard of the West Point Military School organ.  Jim had neither seen nor heard a pipe organ until he was 17 years old! (Such a sheltered childhood!) However, he started reading books about organs and learning everything he could about them.  The David Tannenberg organs, located in the Moravian Church in Lititz, Pennsylvania, were the first organs he ever saw in person.  Jim now lives and breathes pipe organs and will rarely pass up an opportunity to climb into one.  Jim, through SDG, now maintains the historical Tannenburg organs in Lititz.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jim holding the beginning of a Hurdy Gurdy.  He also is working on a barrel organ, a harp, a guitar, a Spanish mandolin, and a small table top organ.  He does most of the work before hours and during his lunch break!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

email this Jim -  jmh@SDGOrgans.com

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                 Bill Napier

Born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Bill was known for being mechanically inclined. One Saturday, when he was about 13, he got a call from his church organist in a panic. There was a cipher on the 16' pedal reed and a wedding in a hour. Bill got a ride to the church and fixed the cipher just in time. This was his first "organ experience".  A few months later, a similar call was made to Bill and this time the Tutti piston would not reverse, and again, just before a wedding with full organ being the only option for registration, Bill rushed to make the repair.  Bill went on to attend the Philadelphia High School for Creative and Performing Arts and majored in vocal music. While attending West Chester University as a music education major, Bill held an organist/choir director position at a small area church.  The organ at this church was a hybrid of several organs and installed by volunteers from the congregation, two of whom were television repairmen. The organ was a wreck. (and didn't even have cable!)  Bill dove in and started cobbling repairs to allow more and more of the organ to play.  Now...he was hooked. In 1987 He married Karen and moved to Millersville, Pennsylvania.  Here, Bill met Jim McFarland and got involved with anything he could pertaining to pipe organs.  In 1994, circumstances were such that starting a pipe organ business looked like a good prospect...we celebrated our ten year anniversary in 2004!  In the interim,  Bill completed his music education degree at Millersville University and now works full time for SDG.  Bill, along with Karen, three children, and various pets, lives in a timber-framed house that is always in some state of construction or demolition.
 

 

 

email Bill - wjn@SDGOrgans.com

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                 Harold Ulmer

   

Harold Ulmer is the newest staff member at SDG, having worked previously at Columbia Organ Works for 11 years. While there he worked on several E.M. Skinner refurbishings/modernizations and supervised three Casavant projects over a two-year period.  He traveled to Antigua to install an organ in the world’s largest Moravian church. He also assisted in ongoing maintenance of the Steinmeyer organ at the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Sacrament in Altoona, Pennsylvania.

 

Prior to that, “Bluto” (his new shop nickname) served 20 years at several college/private schools as a public relations/publications director.  For ten of those years he also operated his own organ tuning and maintenance company. His photography skills landed him the opportunity to photograph the Austin Organ factory as a freelance project. SDG plans to use his various skills in woodworking, organ design/construction, solid state systems and project management.

 

Harold got the organ bug in high school when a teacher played a recording of Bach’s “Toccata and Fugue” on the Harvard Flentrop. “What is that and how do I work on one?” Record collections began. Audsley became his Bible – no small feat for a preacher’s kid. Shortly thereafter, a family friend invited him to visit the Methodist church where she was going to practice on the “pipe organ.”  “Now Sonny,” she said, “the organ’s in that room. You can look but don’t monkey with it.”  

    Harold wanted to be an industrial arts teacher and took six periods of woodshop instead of Calculus in his high school senior year. But parents prevailed and he earned a B.A. in English from Lebanon Valley College. While at LVC, he asked Dr. Pierce Getz (Professor of Organ) if he could audit an organ literature course. “Now Harold,” said Dr. Getz in class one day, “you must let the organ students answer some of the questions.”

     And like many naïve, young organ nuts, Harold found a church with a wheezing pipe organ that needed a loving hand. Imagine diving into a Roosevelt/Hall (poorly rebuilt with direct electric additions and under winded) as your first project!  He attempted a 37-note positiv but soon realized that tubular pneumatic action (Thanks, Audsley!) was not the way to go.  A hand-built keyboard and a set of wooden flutes survive.

    Harold and wife Susan have been married for seven years and between them have four grown children. Their orange Tabby cat is named Wolfgang. Susan is an accomplished organist/choir director and took a 30-voice choir to Rome where they were selected as one of three ensembles to perform for the Pope. The couple likes to travel and on a recent trip to California heard both the Disney and the Our Lady of Angels Cathedral organs in Los Angeles, both thrilling experiences. Harold’s hobbies include furniture design/construction, gardening, reading, music listening, theatre organs and general “tinkering.”  Space permitting he’d like to build a player organ for his home.

 

email Harold - hdu@SDGOrgans.com