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MMD > Archives > August 2010 > 2010.08.02 > 02Prev  Next


Wurlitzer 103 Band Organ Instrumentation
By T. J. Fisher

Thank you all for your great responses to my last question!  Now
here comes another one.  I spent a delightful day on the island of
Martha's Vineyard at the Flying Horses Carousel, America's oldest.
That carousel has a really beautiful Wurlitzer 103.  Something about
the sweet, clear tone of that organ really appeals to me and it's one
of my favorites.  There were some great arrangements on the roll today,
including "Ramona," "Charmaine," "Let Me Call You Sweetheart," and one
of my fav'rite songs on any instrument, "Moonlight and Roses."

My question is, what scale/range does the 103 not use that is on the
125 roll?  Based on what I heard today and in years past, I would
venture that it has one rank of pipes each in the melody, accompaniment
and bass, and that it foregoes the trumpet section (as well as the
snare and bass drum, of course).  I would also guess that it has the
full complement of notes found on a 125 roll in each of those sections,
for I think Wurlitzer would have made sure that any of its rolls was
musical on the smallest and the largest organs intended to play it.
If anyone has any information in this regard, I'd really appreciate it.

Incidentally, if anyone's traveling to the area, I would really
recommend a trip down to this carousel.  The ferry is a bit pricey
to be sure, but the carousel and the organ are beautiful in their
simplicity, the brass ring game is enormous fun, and they have had,
year after year, one of the most consistently polite and pleasant
staffs of any of the New England carousels.

TJ Fisher
in Dover, New Hampshire, for the summer

 [ Ref. http://www.mmdigest.com/Gallery/Tech/Wur125/w125spec.html 
 [ -- Robbie


(Message sent Tue 3 Aug 2010, 02:24:34 GMT, from time zone GMT-0700.)

Key Words in Subject:  103, Band, Instrumentation, Organ, Wurlitzer

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