St. Peter’s Basilica gets digital
organ for papal celebrations
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| Christmas Mass inside St. Peter's Basilica. |
A new, digital organ has been installed in St. Peter’s
Basilica for papal celebrations. The Director of the Pontifical Sistine Chapel
Choir says it responds both to the Basilica’s practical, acoustic demands and
to the liturgical reforms of the Second Vatican Council.
“New demands require new solutions,” according to Msgr.
Massimo Palombella, Director of the Pontifical Sistine Chapel Choir.
His remark refers to the introduction in 2017 of an
electronic organ in St. Peter’s Basilica for use during papal celebrations.
The state-of-the-art digital organ was donated by the Allen
Organ Company, a market leader in the United States for the last 70 years.
Msgr. Palombella says the system is able to fill
“excellently” the entire acoustic space of one of the world’s largest places of
worship.
The new organ made its debut on the evening of 24 December
as Pope Francis celebrated Christmas Mass During the Night.
Traditional pipe organ still in use
Despite the presence of this new, digital organ for large
celebrations, the traditional – and beautiful – pipe organ remains
irreplaceable for events held at the Altar of the Chair. “It is truly perfect
for that space in all its breadth, through the real sound of the pipes, without
requiring amplification,” Msgr. Palombella said.
Up to now, the musical production of the pipe organ had been
picked up by microphones and rebroadcast digitally throughout the Basilica and
St. Peter’s Square. This method, however, caused inevitable frequency
distortion and quite a few problems related to background noise.
Papal celebrations and the Second Vatican Council
The problem of filling St. Peter’s Basilica with organ music
came about only after the Second Vatican Council.
“Before Vatican II,” Msgr. Palombella explains, “papal celebrations
were held in the Sistine Chapel, and the problem with broadcasting
internationally or using microphones didn’t yet exist. Above all, there wasn’t
even a pipe organ. Celebrations in St. Peter’s Basilica took place, and still
do, at the Altar of the Chair, and the pipe organ is perfect for this acoustic
space.
“Following the liturgical reform of the Second Vatican
Council, the whole of St. Peter’s Basilica began to be used for celebrations.
This necessitated a continuous search for solutions to diffuse high-quality
sound. It also required a concerted effort by, first of all, the experts of
Vatican Radio – today Vatican Media – Deutsche Grammaphon, and the RAI,” Msgr.
Palombella said.
A living tradition
As the years march on, needs and technology change and
require new solutions.
The digital organ of St. Peter’s Basilica is a new way of
responding musically to the challenges set out by the Second Vatican Council
for a Church willing to dialogue with the contemporary world and always seeking
to broadcast the beauty and living reality of tradition.
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