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Walnut Hill Gazette
Office of Operations
Ridgecrest, California
Office Phone - 1-727-230-2610
Monday through Friday 9AM to 5PM PDT
Volume Five
Issue Eight
The Control Room - Richard Mogridge, Webmaster
Console Up! - Tom Hoehn, Assistant Webmaster
The Skandia WurliTzer - Per Olof Schultz, Associate Editor
MidiTzer Boot Camp - Russ Ashworth, Associate Editor
Mighty Hauptwerk - Jim Reid, Associate Editor
Desktop Goodies - Fred Willis - Founding Father
NYTOS Field Reporter - Eugene Hayek - MidiTzer and WurliTzer
ORGAN OF THE MONTH
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Opening MessageWelcome to the Walnut Hill Gazette. The month of August sees the site reaching over 71,420 visitors, the average now being a bit lower at around 800 visits per month. During 2007, we broke an attendance record with 26,442 viewers. Many of these folks are young people from the large art communities in cyberspace, where we have built portal pages such as those at deviantART and Renderosity, to name a few. The month of August saw the two Theatre Pipe Organs that were damaged during major flooding in Cedar Rapids, Iowa being removed from the theatres and taken to the Cedar Rapids History Center where they will be kept during the evaluation phase of restoration work. Also during the month, two major events occured in the Land of the King that will have far reaching consiquences. The first was a concert at the Radio City Music Hall, courtesy of the one and only Colonal Jack Moelmann, the first inductee to the Theatre Organ Society International Hall of Fame. The second was the passing of the legendary Dan Bellomy, who showed the world that it was cool to play jazz on a TPO.
Repairs Made To Mighty ConnOn July 20th, just one day before my father's 85th birthday, my good friend Cyrus Roton, whom I can never thank enough, helped me get the Mighty Conn 650 Analogue Electronic Theatre Organ going again with his excellent skills as one of the best organ techs out there. A switching transistor in the Great 2-2/3 Tibia buss bar circuitry had burned out, and a coupling capacitor in the power amplifier had failed. These are common problems for an anologue instrument that is over 41 years old.
Latest VideoMore Videos
Moving To Sweden In 2009Walnut Hill is on the move again, this time overseas. The move will take place sometime in the fall of 2009. Details are not clear yet, but I can tell you that I am relocating to the Stockholm, Sweden area. This will afford Walnut Hill Productions the opportunity to help out with the only known instrument of its kind in the country, the 2/7 Mighty WurliTzer Theatre Pipe Organ now being restored for possible reinstallation in its original home in the Skandia Theatre. Stay tuned as the story unfolds. Click here to learn more about this wonderful little TPO and the folks who love her and are working hard to bring her back to life.
Another reason for the move is so that I can make a home with a fine lady who lives there, one whom I intend to marry, the lovely and talented Erika Laur of Åkersberga, which is a small community to the north of Stockholm in the Osteriker municipality of Uppland, Sweden.
I met the one I affectionately call the Rain Woman on deviantART in the fall of 2006 and we immediately became close friends, but it was not until the spring of 2008 that we began to fall in love, after many electronic letters and video conferences. During the summer, we began to colaborate on several projects in the art community. Today, we are inseperable and want very much to be married. We have lots in common, our love for the great outdoors, music, technology and art. To learn more about this major change in the lives of two people who finally found eachother at long last, read on in the Headline News Section below.
Closing MessageI want to thank each and every person who visits this site during this Summer Season and beyond. Without you, our loyal patrons, there would be no Walnut Hill. We are indeed making a difference in the Land of the King, preserving a wonderful and important slice of American and World History. Blessings be to one and all.
Richard Mogridge |
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Dan Bellomy Promoted To Glory
Dan Bellomy could make a TPO giddy up and go. His style was so unique you never forgot it, and so refreshingly new you could not get enough. He could play jazz on the King that made you dance in your seat. He knew so many chords I was amazed at how he figured out where to put them all. You simply have to hear this man playing for yourself. On August 29th of 2008, Dan left this world to play the Mighty Theatre Organ in the sky. We who are left behind will miss him much. The TPO community is now less one more highly talented player and enthusiast, who will be remembered as one of the greats. Nobody played like Dan played. If you have not yet heard him, you still can. His recordings are available. You owe it to yourself to listen to the pure genius he possessed while on the bench. Below is a link to one of Dan's recordings. Click the picture to learn more about it and purchase your copy.
On this recording, Dan Bellomy played the 4/26 Mighty WurliTzer Theatre Pipe Organ installed at the old Paramount Theatre, now known as the Brooklyn Center of Long Island University. The performance was a perfect match of a superb instrument and an incredible musician. When the Brooklyn Paramount Theatre opened in 1928, it was the world's first theater built expressly for talking pictures. Through the years, it also offered great vaudeville performers, and later, major stars like Bing Crosby and Ethel Merman. In the fifties, the Paramount created a sensation with Alan Freed’s famous rock ‘n’ roll shows with Chuck Berry, Fats Domino and others. What many people don't recall is that, additionally, the Paramount was a jazz cathedral. Duke Ellington, Charlie Parker, Ella Fitzgerald and Miles Davis are among the legends who performed on its stage. The Paramount brought jazz to Brooklyn. Considered a "proletarian palace", the rococo-designed theater had 4,188 seats covered in burgundy velvet. Its sky-blue ceiling had painted clouds, and its opulence included extensive Renaissance-imitated statuaries and sculptures. A 60-foot stage curtain was decorated with satin-embroidered pheasants. There were huge chandeliers and fountains with goldfish. The original Mighty WurliTzer Theater Pipe Organ, second in size only to the organ at Radio City Music Hall, still plays, with its 2,000 pipes and 257 stops that can imitate everything from a brass band to a honky-tonk piano. In 1950, Long Island University bought the storied theater and eventually it became part of the University's show in 1963, when the theater closed. The lush orchestra seats made way for a gymnasium, where cherub statues now watch Blackbird NCAA Division I basketball and volleyball games. The University also saved the magnificent lobby (now the Brooklyn Campus cafeteria) and the Mighty WurliTzer from the wrecker's ball. The organ is played at basketball games (by Yankee organist Eddie Layton) and organ concerts featuring top organists.
Below are some of Dan Bellomy's YouTube videos, provided by Ron Reseigh. Embedding was disabled on these tracks and the links will take you directly to the web page where they are posted. So, when you are done listening to one, hit your backspace key to see the others. Enjoy!
Colonol Jack Moelmann brought us the news of Dan's passing on the Theatreorgan-L Mailing List on August 29th. It came as a great shock to the folks at Walnut Hill, because I was a friend of this legend of the King of Instruments, having talked with him at length and seeing him play at the ATOS conventions in Pasadena, California and Tampa, Florida. We quote Jack in blue text below: Dear All, It is with deep regret that I advise that Dan Bellomy passed away earlier today, Friday, Aug 29, after a long battle with cancer. Dan was a unique individual with a unique style of playing both the pipe organ and electronic instruments. His last public performance was at the Trenton (New Jersey) War Memorial Auditorium during the 2007 ATOS Convention in New York and it certainly was a memorable concert. He was originally scheduled to appear at the recent Radio City Music Hall program but couldn't due to health reasons. He and his musical talents will be greatly missed. No other details are available and no Services are planned at the present time. RIP Dan. Respectively,
John Lauter, a close friend of Dan's, had this to say upon finding out the sad news. We quote him in blue text below: Jack, Wow. What a sad day. I have been good friends with Dan since sometime in the early 80s. Dan was outspoken about what he believed in, could be irascible when provoked, but my gosh, what a talented musician, on the Hammond and on pipes. Dan was one of the few respected by George Wright for his theatre organ paying, mainly because he did his own thing in his own style and didn't copy George from decades earlier. I'll miss our phone conversations. We were both close friends of John Seng (the last two Johnny didn't alienate, three counting Tom Yanitell) and we talked for hours the day we discovered that Johnny had died. he was a friend and a great booster for my playing. Dan treated the theatre organ like a modern orchestra playing contemporary arrangements of the tune of the moment. I loved his harmonic sense, he knew the value of polychords and when they are best used, and the boy could jam. He didn't need to write his improvisations out in Sebelius to jam, he could just jam on anything, at any time. Godspeed, Dan
Ian McLean, another close friend of Dan's, had this to say. We quote him in blue text below: This is indeed a sad day for theatre organ performance. I can remember when I first heard Dan's Potpourri CD - it was a revelation of just what contemporary musical performance could be on a theatre organ, especially on that snappy Trousdale WurliTzer. I was so enthusiastic that at a Christmas in July party, I took over the host's stereo to play this CD for David Johnston. David was similarly blown away. As a member of the TOSA Vic committee, David then went on to ensure that Dan became the next TOSA National Convention artist. As a consequence of Dan's participation in that convention, he was subsequently invited back for a number of concert tours in Australia. I always considered that Dan's talent wasn't appreciated as it should have been by many in the TPO scene in the U.S. I can remember being at the Organ Grinder in Portland and Dan was playing the most extraordinary improvisational, contemporary treatment of music of the day and yesterday. I mentioned this to, at that time, one of the most influential TPO impresarios of the time, and he completely dismissed Dan's efforts by telling me "ahhh..but you really need to hear Jonas Nordwall". I was astounded. Maybe this lack of appreciation accounted for Dan's sometimes curmudgeonly persona of his last years? He and Jonas, while different in style, were peers. In Dan's loss we have also lost one of the very few musicians who could improvise, who could be truly spontaneous at the TPO, and who was passionate about his music. In these days of so many sometimes sterile, parroted performances, personally, this is a huge loss.
Paul Fitzgerald, another close friend of Dan's, had this to say. We quote him in blue text below: Hey All, A very sad day but a blessed relief at the same time. Cancer is a terrible disease. Dan played Adelaide first in 1991 then 2003 and came back to make a CD on the Capri in 2004, but it was never released. There are only 3 words can describe his concerts properly in my mind, "Fab U Lous"! His keyboard mastery combined with and outstanding and amazing knowledge of chords and harmony made his concerts truly a memorable experience. I heard him three times during his 2003 tour, here in Adelaide then Sydney and Melbourne, and I was wowed every time. Dan and I clicked from the first meeting and have kept in contact ever since, in latter years by e-mail. Sometimes we just sent each other jokes etc but often it was a short note just to say "Hi, how are you?". It is my turn to play at the Capri tonight (Saturday Aussie time) and will be having dinner there with others who knew Dan. I am taking a bottle of "Turkey Flat Cabinet/Sauvignon" from the Barossa Valley here in South Australia which was Dan's favourite Aussie red to be drunk in his honour. When Dan was here in 2004 for the recording, Robert Wetherall and I took him to the Barossa for a tasting day. Coming home, Dan had us laughing so much I had to stop driving from tears of laughter. His "I Say-Yud" jokes were hilarious, EXTREMELY politically incorrect and in the worst possible taste, but hilarious. Robert and I talk about that day often. Vale Dan. Rest in peace, Mate. I Say-Yud.........
Jim Riggs, a close friend of Dan's and living legend of the TPO, had this to say. We quote him in blue text below: Ah, Dan. He smoked, he drank, he swore (!), he was deliciously politically incorrect, he could have been a charter subscriber to Town Grouch magazine and he didn't care if he pissed people off. He was indeed his own man and his fans loved him for it. Most of all (and fortunately for all of us), he was a REAL musician whose vision for his chosen instrument was unique. His music was like no other's. As filtered by his incredibly deep musical sense, melody, harmony and rhythm became one. His arrangements were completely personal---always elegantly constructed with that unmistakable Dan Bellomy flair. And when he played, the organs at which he sat seemed to proudly declare, "THIS is what I sound like today! Buckle up!". Appropriately, he approached the instrument itself holistically, not just as a collection of parts. Under his ministrations, the Unit Orchestra fulfilled its promise. Then there was his technical prowess. Yikes! He seemed to play the organ effortlessly---like a natural extension of his brain---as if his fingers transcended mere physicality and he was simply willing the music. All of this came together within a consummate musician that continually thrilled us, challenged us and made us think. We can ask no more of an artist; we can only be grateful. Our little insular world of the theatre organ has lost a unique voice at a time when uniqueness is becoming alarmingly rare. Let's hope that young musicians will listen to his work and be inspired to think out of the box and into their own hearts. Farewell Dan, you wonderful *#%&@?$*! I'll miss you more than I can say! Your fan forever,
Dear List, Dan was a hero from my youth, and later a personal friend. There are few who could transition from Hammond to TO and back with relative ease, and Dan was one of the gifted. His stellar Indianapolis convention concert was one that has been talked about much since, and Dan was kind enough at one point to give me some pointers on the Hammond. Dan also played a concert at the Fort Wayne Embassy Theatre and really put the Grande Page through it's paces with his seemingly effortless glissandi and very thoughtful registration. He will be missed. Sympathetically,
This was posted in the Boston Globe on August 31st, 2009. Age 57, of Winchester, August 29th. Beloved husband of Christina R. (Hinchliffe) Bellomy. Loving son of Melba (Steeleman) Bellomy of Houston, TX, and the late Joe B. Bellomy. Dear stepfather of Kathleen "Kat" MacArthur of Lowell and Timothy MacArthur and his wife Colleen of Waltham. Funeral arrangements are private, and there are no calling hours. Donations may be made in Dan's memory to Parmenter Wayside Hospice, 266 Cochituate Road, Wayland, MA 01778. Online guest book at www.lynch-cantillon.com Lynch-Cantillon Funeral Home 1-781-933-0400
Colonol Jack Moelmann Wows 'Em
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Walnut Hill Productions To Move In 2009
Walnut Hill Productions has been operating at Mister Todd's residence in Ridgecrest since October of 2007. This location, though serving us well, was known to be temporary at best. Operations continued to be quite difficult and expensive, and things have changed in the Bone Doctor's life that spell major changes and historic events in the near future.
Ridgecrest as seen from the air.
It cannot be determined exactly how long Walnut Hill Productions will be at this current location in Ridgecrest, but it is expected that the company will remain here until the latter part of 2009 when it will be on the move once again, this time to the Stockholm, Sweden area. Why move to Sweden, you might ask? Going from the heat of the desert to the cold of the northland is quite a change, indeed.
Moving Walnut Hill Productions to Sweden will allow us to help fellow Walnut Hill Organ Club and Wall of Fame member Per Olef Schultz with the restoration of the 2/7 Mighty WurliTzer Theatre Pipe Organ, this instrument being the only one of its kind in the entire country, which originally had a home in the Skandia Theatre in Stockholm. Our goal is to see this great instrument returned to the theatre.
Further details about how we intend to accomplish the relocation will be released later in the year. Once the new location is known, we will update the Office address and phone numbers posted throughout the site and begin forwarding company mail to the new office in Åkersberga.
Funds received during the First Fund Drive: $2,105.00
The First Relocation Fund Drive is now closed as the move to California, though wrought with some peril in the beginning, was a success at last. Below is a listing of those who have generously contributed funds and items during the first fund drive:
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These most kind and generous folks have earned memberships in the Walnut Hill Organ Club and will be notified of their membership status when the club goes official after the move to Sweden. We have decided to push forward with the organization while awaiting an ATOS charter. We will post our progress in the Gazette during the fledgeling phase of this project which must still undergo much planning.
EDITORIAL ARTICLES
- Richard Mogridge - The Control Room
All about recording the King of Instruments - Tom Hoehn - Console Up!
How to play the Mighty Theatre Pipe Organ - Per Olof Schultz - Skandia WurliTzer
The last WurliTzer Theatre Pipe Organ in Sweden - Russ Ashworth - Mighty MidiTzer
Playing the Theatre Organ virtualy every day! - Jim Reid - Hauptwerk
Martyn Dyde's highly accurate virtual organ from Crumhorn Labs
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Mighty MidiTzer Style 216
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Download MidiTzer Version 0.881 Did you ever imagine you could put a Theatre Pipe Organ inside your computer? Well, now you can, with the Mighty MidiTzer by Jim Henry and Crew Glazjev. Best of all, it is absolutely free! Just click the picture to the left to get started on your way to playing the Style 216 2/10 Mighty WurliTzer Theatre Pipe Organ virtually every day! Listen to the Mighty MidiTzer! Below are some cuts from various Featured Artists here at Walnut Hill that will give you an idea of what the Mighty MidiTzer sounds like.
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Mighty MidiTzer Style 260 Special
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Pinellas Park Mighty WurliTzer
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 The stop sweep of the 2/9 Mighty WurliTzer Theatre Pipe Organ installed at the Pinellas Park Auditorium in Pinellas Park, Florida. |
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