The Hook and Hastings Organ

The Hook and Hastings pipe organ, Opus 1898, is a mechanical action instrument with 8 ranks. Manufactured in Boston in 1901, it came to Sacred Heart Academy in San Francisco by way of a clipper ship sailing "around the Horn." It survived the 1906 earthquake, was put in storage, and reinstalled in a chapel when the convent moved. In 1940 the convent moved to the Flood mansion in Atherton, and the organ was again put in storage and up for sale because it would not fit into its assigned space. Trinity bought the organ in 1940 for $800 from the Schoenstein Company in San Francisco, and installed it in its sanctuary, then located at 651 Hamilton at Byron. Church and organ were moved to the present location in 1953. The arson fire in 1993 caused smoke and heat damage that required extensive cleaning and some repairs. Its most recent renovation dates from 2012.

The Hook and Hastings organ is a “tracker” pipe organ, a design that dates back centuries, before the use of electricity. All action is mechanical in nature, using levers, pulleys, sliders and leather straps to open valves that allow air into the pipes. These are activated by either of two keyboard manuals, or by a foot-pedal keyboard. In deference to progress, the one change from older designs was the use of an electrically driven blower instead of a hand pump to supply air to the wind chest for the pipes. It appears that the foot pedals were a later addition, since only 27 of the 30 keys are active.

Above: Opus 1898 Hook and Hastings Organ at Trinity

Below: A look inside the (mechanical) tracker action of the

console of the pipe organ in Jørlunde church.

Tracker organs are still being built today. Some musicians prefer the control and feel of a tracker organ as opposed to later modern designs in which valves that allow air to the pipes are operated by electric solenoids or by pneumatic means.

Hook and Hastings organs are known for their fine craftsmanship, mellow tone, and smooth voicing. Trinity has certainly played a part in preserving the history of American organ building.