Opus 32, Williamsburg Presbyterian Church
Williamsburg, Virginia, Drawing
Opus 35, St. Peter's Episcopal Church
Chicago, Illinois, Drawing
Opus 36, King Avenue United Methodist Church
Columbus, Ohio, Drawing
Opus 37, Second Presbyterian Church
Bloomington, Illinois, Drawing
Opus 38, St. Mark the Evangelist Catholic Church
San Antonio, Texas, Drawing
Frequently Asked Questions | Caring for Your New Buzard Organ
The process of designing a pipe organ can take on many forms, depending upon whether you are designing the instrument for an existing building, or one which has not yet been built. We are experienced in working in all phases and types of design processes, and enjoy working either directly with a client, through a qualified organ consultant, or on a team with other design professionals (architects, musicians, liturgical consultants, acousticians, for example). We are fully capable of taking your project from concept to completion.
Typically, a new organ project will proceed through the following phases:
- Client inquiry and discussions of musical needs and requirements;
- Visit by John-Paul Buzard to the client to inspect the building (or preliminary concept drawings if a new building is planned), meet the people involved, discuss the new instrument in general terms, and ascertain a preliminary budget;
- Submit a set of preliminary tonal and mechanical specifications to the Client, which may or may not include a rough sketch of a preliminary visual design;
- Selection of Buzard Pipe Organ Builders as the Client's builder of choice;
- Entrance into either a Design Contract, a Letter of Intent, or a Construction Contract, depending upon the Client's timetable;
- Arrival of the organ on the date or time-frame agreed upon; installation and tonal finish-voicing can occupy from four weeks to two months, depending upon the instrument's size; and
- Dedication of the new organ in public recital or concert six months after the organ's completion.
Design Contracts
A Design Contract engages Buzard Pipe Organ Builders to undertake all the engineering and concept drawings for the organ prior to signing a Letter of Intent or Construction Contract. A Design Contract can be an appropriate first step in an organbuilding project for a client in the preliminary stages of a pipe organ project, in which timeliness of establishing the organ's delivery date is not particularly important. It provides compensation for the organbuilder's professional time and expenses, a mechanism through which the organbuilder can work directly with a client's other design professionals, and furnishes the church with a handsome set of drawings and renderings to be used for fund-raising purposes. Generally, monthly billings to the church are based upon the organbuilder's hourly rate, with a negotiated ceiling limit for the organ's design costs. Any fees paid to the Builder under the terms of a Design Contract are rebated in the price of the organ.
Letters of Intent
A Letter of Intent publicly announces the selection of Buzard Pipe Organ Builders as the Client's organbuilder of choice. Payments of differing amounts can be made to: reserve the shop and delivery schedule; lock in the cost and exchange rate of the European pipework; and lock in the entire instrument's price and delivery schedule. A Letter of Intent "starts the clock ticking," because it specifies a date upon which a Construction Contract will be signed. Design work may also be undertaken under the terms of a Letter of Intent, in which case the Client's downpayment on deposit with the Builder would be debited to cover professional time and expenses spent on the project.
Construction Contracts
A construction contract in its full form includes all design, construction, and installation costs for the entire organ. A downpayment of approximately one-third the total amount is made at contract signing with smaller payments made until the organ is installed and accepted. The one-third downpayment incorporates any payments which had been made previously. Contract payments are tied to calendar dates. At the time the organ is completed and accepted, a final payment is due, typically from 5% to 8% of the total purchase price.
Performance Bonds are available, and represent an additional cost to the Client of from 3% to 4% of the cost of the organ.
Common Questions and Concerns
- Is there a guarantee?
- How long has the Buzard Pipe Organ Builders been in business?
- When the organ arrives, what will the Client be responsible for?
- Will we be able to hold services in our Church while the organ is being installed?
- If we need to conduct a funeral during the installation, how will we work this out?
- How soon should we plan the Dedication Concert?
Is there a guarantee?
Yes, our warranty is for a ten year term. Solid-state components and other electrical equipment are warranted by their manufacturers.
How long has the Buzard Pipe Organ Builders been in business?
We have been in business since 1980, first as a sole proprietor, then a corporation, now an Illinois Limited Liability Company, so that we can more easily share ownership interests with key employees. We are listed with Dun & Bradstreet, and are Members of the Associated Pipe Organ Builders of America.
When the organ arrives, what will the Client be responsible for?
When we arrive with your new pipe organ, and the components enter the building, the Client becomes its official owner, and then becomes responsible for its insurance. The Client will need to provide some room for storage of our tools during the installation in a convenient and secure place; The Client will need to secure adequate parking for our trucks and vehicles; The Client will have to insure that we are given unlimited daily access to the building, that the temperature is properly controlled, and that it is completely quiet during the finish-voicing. The Client will reimburse us for our crews' motel lodging and meals.
Will we be able to hold services in our Church while the organ is being installed?
Yes. We typically travel to an installation on Monday, and arrive at the Client's building on a Tuesday. We unload the trucks, placing the organ's components strategically throughout the building, so that we can begin efficiently erecting the instrument in its location. On Saturday afternoon we clean the Church and make sure that everything is back to normal for Sunday morning use.
If we need to conduct a funeral during the installation, how will we work this out?
If the need for a special service arises which cannot be scheduled at a time after the installation of the organ, we will make every effort to clean the Church and honor the Client's schedule.
How soon should we plan the Dedication Concert?
We ask that a public concert not be scheduled until about six months from the scheduled installation date of the organ. This allows the instrument to go through a change of seasons, and settle into its pattern of mechanical reliability. You may ecclesiastically dedicate an organ any time after we have pronounced it completed, and we receive the final payment.
Beyond the Dedication Concert — Caring for Your New Buzard Organ
Buzard Pipe Organs stay in tune remarkably well, and it is a rare occurrence that one of our organs mechanically malfunctions, once it has settled into its pattern of reliability. But, every pipe organ needs maintenance, tuning, and occasional adjustment. An organ's tuning changes when the ambient temperature in the building changes; some mechanical actions may need adjusting if the building experiences a wide humidity swing.
Therefore, we ask all of our clients to enter into a contract with us for the new organ's ongoing regular care and maintenance. The cost is reasonable, and if we can service more than one client in an area, the travel and per diem expenses are shared. If many miles separate us from you, then we audition and recommend a local technician to take care of any warranty issues which may arise. A local technician of our approval may undertake regular care of the organ after the instrument is two years old, and has been under our care. We pay for any warranty visits made to one of our organs, so that the Client doesn't have to suffer the inconvenience.
For more information about how we build organs, visit our Philosophy of Construction page.
Be sure to visit our gallery to see the instruments we have had the pleasure of building.