David Hyde Pierce and Family to dedicate organ at local church

Pierce and his siblings, Tom, Nancy and Barbara, donated the funds to rebuild a 1920 Skinner organ, located in the church’s gallery, also known as a choir loft, and to connect it electronically to the larger 1967 Casavant instrument located in the church’s chancel, beside the altar.

The Casavant organ was purchased in 1967, when David Hyde Pierce’s father, George Pierce, served on Bethesda’s vestry, or governing board.

The Pierces were active members at Bethesda, and David Hyde Pierce became an assistant to the organist as a teen, practicing on the larger instrument in the church.

Even then, the older instrument in the loft was in disrepair. For nearly 40 years, only the newer, front-located organ has been in use.

With this addition, that organ now has 3,185 pipes in 56 ranks.

Pipes from the Skinner organ were stored beneath the church for half a century and had deteriorated, necessitating the new organ builder, Daniel Lemieux and Associates, to conduct a nationwide search for suitable replacements. The new pipes include vintage ranks from the first three decades of the 20th century, chosen for quality and similarity to the style of the original Skinner organ.

The pipe display is silver zinc, with Gothic style mouths to match the façade pipes of the Casavant organ.

According to Bethesda music director and organist Farrell Goehring, the new organ was built to be an addition to the Casavant, but also can be used alone to accompany the choir. Each instrument suits a different style or period of music, he said.

The rebuilt organ will be named in memory of both of David Hyde Pierce’s parents: the George and Laura Pierce Gallery Organ.

Best known to the public as Dr. Niles Crane from the hugely popular television show, “Frasier,” Pierce and his three siblings will be present for Sunday’s 1 p.m. service, which will be led by Bishop David Ball, retired from the Albany Episcopal Diocese and described as a longtime friend of the Pierce family, and by Bethesda’s rector, the Rev. Thomas Parke.

The church is open to the public, and there is no admission fee for the dedication.

The service will begin with a procession of vested choir and clergy, followed by a responsory dating to the dedications of both the Skinner and Casavant instruments, called “Giving of the Keys.”

The Pierce family will address the congregation and hand the organ keys to Goehring.

Goehring said the dedication liturgy will include a said psalm, anthems sung by the choir, which is led by Anthony Holland, and a blessing of the organ by Bishop Ball.

The congregation will sing with the choir in Vaughan Williams’ “Old Hundreth.”

Following the liturgy, both Goehring and Pierce will play the organs, together and separately.

With the unique digital configuration of the instruments, it may be impossible to know exactly who is playing what instrument, and when.

Goehring says he’ll play Walton’s “Crown Imperial”on the Casavant organ, and then Hyde Pierce will play the Adagio from Widor’s Symphony No. 5 on the new Pierce organ.

“He said he’s grateful for the reason to refresh his skills at the organ,” Goehring said, explaining that Pierce does have an organ in his Los Angeles home, and also has been given opportunities to practice on an instrument in a church near his home.

Several other musical works have been chosen to show the new possibilities offered with the two instruments, and Hyde Pierce and Goehring will play together at the separate instruments in André Campra’s “Rigaudon.”

“It’s turned out to be even more organ than I expected,” Goehring said of the Pierce instrument. “It’s more versatile than the original concept.”

“We’re calling it “an organ-and-a-half,” with all its digital features.”