wish her all the best in her continued career in teaching at the College. She is
a wonderful asset for the College, the overall Academy and the New Church.”
The Academy Board of Trustees considered this development at its
January 14 meeting and a search committee has been appointed to find and
recommend a replacement. We will update the process as information is
available.
dedication of the new cathedral organ
A special dedication service was conducted at the Bryn Athyn Cathedral on
November 21, 2014, for the new Chara Aurora Cooper Haas Pipe Organ. This
world-class organ was a gift of Frederick Haas in memory of his mother, who
grew up in Bryn Athyn and loved the Cathedral and loved music. Fred played
The Holy City as part of the service, which was led by Pastor Eric H. Carswell.
Fred also made the formal presentation of the organ at the conclusion of the
service.
Also participating in the service were Terry Schnarr, Principal Organist at
the Cathedral; Bryan Dunnewald, Assistant Organist; Peter Richard Conte,
guest organist; Graham Bier, Director of Music for the Bryn Athyn Church;
and the Bryn Athyn Cathedral Choir and Choristers.
Following are excerpts from the program for the service:
Organ Details: In the spring of 2012, Mr. Frederick
Haas proposed a gift to the Bryn Athyn Church in
memory of his mother, Chara Aurora Cooper Haas,
a beloved member of our church and community.
This fully restored and expanded Skinner pipe
organ is an instrument uniquely appropriate to the
architecture and history of our special cathedral
building.
The Chara Aurora Cooper Haas Pipe Organ is
a 46-rank instrument containing 3,230 pipes. It has
Fred Haas playing the
significant historical resonance with the Bryn Athyn
Chara Haas organ
Cathedral. In 1918, architect Raymond Pitcairn
chose the Ernest M. Skinner Company to build an organ for the new Cathedral.
Through meetings and correspondence, a design took form that bears many
similarities in size and style to the organ being dedicated today, not least of
which is the involvement of Skinner.
Due to various circumstances, the planned organ was never installed
at Bryn Athyn, though the regard with which Skinner’s work is held among
organists today is a testament to Pitcairn’s good judgment. How fitting that,
nearly a century later, this organ should be installed that shares so much with
the one originally and carefully selected for the building.
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