Celestial sounds: Brainerd United Methodist celebrates 50 years with its pipe organ, 120 years as a church

Jeff Scofield must drive 20 minutes each time he wants to practice on his favorite instrument - a pipe organ.

Located in the sanctuary of Brainerd United Methodist Church, the massive pipe organ has been Scofield's instrument of choice for the last 58 years. And, for the last 34 years, he has played the very same one as the organist at the church.

"It's mostly handmade and a beautiful instrument," he says, then compares the complexities of a pipe organ to those of a computer.

"I don't know much about computers, but I know everything about this instrument," he says, demonstrating some of the instrument's sounds, ranging from the soothing trill of a flute to an upbeat, toe-tapping one that sounds like Popeye's theme song.

Seated at the console, his energetic hands gracefully maneuver aroundd the four-level keyboard as he reaches from side to side, pulling "stops" linked to individual sounds coming from any of the 4,242 pipes that are mostly visible in opposite walls at the rear of the sanctuary.

He's obviously comfortable sitting at the organ he has played regularly for more than three decades. And, while he can barely see over the top of it, he can move the console around with ease to watch the congregation as he plays. It's necessary to move it during a church service, he says, so he can see when the communion line is just about to end so he can finish whatever he's playing.

He'll be playing it Sunday when Brainerd United Methodist celebrates the organ's purchase 50 years ago as well as the church's 120th anniversary, says Rufus Williamson, chairman of the church's homecoming committee.

But the instrument, built by Mller did not come to the church without controversy. Turns out some members of the congregation were against raising nearly $63,000 - half the purchase price - back in 1965, says long-time church member Williamson. The other half of the $126,000 was paid by a member of the church who had come into some money, he says.

"That was a lot of money back then," says Williamson, 79, who joined the church in 1942. "It was such a big deal at the time to make such a large purchase. I was young then, but thought it was great, though it didn't reach in my pocketbook much."

The divide caused some members to leave the church and form Woodmore Methodist Church, which is no longer in existence.

The pipe organ, invented by the Greeks in the Third Century B.C., has long been a familiar instrument in churches and cathedrals worldwide. Using pressurized air forced through the pipes, the organ produces a variety of notes, pitches and timbres, one for each pipe, so it can sound like - and this was the kind of the point - a heavenly host of angels. The largest organs can have between 12,000 and 33,000 pipes and can rattle the foundations of heaven or, at the very least, the buildings where they sit.

The pipe organ at Brainerd United Methodist is the second largest in a Chattanooga church; the one at St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Chattanooga is bigger, Scofield says, noting that few musicians are familiar with a pipe organ simply because they're not readily available to play.

Jeff Scofield reaches to activate a trumpet sound as he plays the pipe organ.

Scofield, 66, says he's not considering retiring anytime soon. He began playing at the church when he filled in for the church's organist who was on sabbatical. When the position ultimately opened up full-time, he auditioned for the job, was hired and subsequently joined the church. The organ was not the primary reason he joined, he says, "but it didn't hurt."

The pipe organ fits in beautifully with the church's traditional one-hour service that starts at 10:45 a.m. every Sunday, he says.

"A lot of churches started contemporary services (which may not include traditional organ music) but they've found that they need to offer traditional services to keep some of the people there," he explains. "We've had young people join because they love the music and want to be in a traditional service."

He plays about 11 tunes at each Sunday morning service, including three hymns.

On Sunday, the homecoming celebration will welcome former parishioners, pastors and choir members. It will culminate with a pipe organ concert at 1:30 p.m. in the main sanctuary. Scofield and guest organist Gary Scott will perform, and Scofield says they will take requests from the audience.

Having played the pipe organs at Riverside Church and Radio City Music Hall in New York City, Scofield says there are still a couple of pipe organs he'd love to get his fingers on any cathedral in Paris and in the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine in New York City.

"There's a wonderful pipe organ in the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine that's twice the size of ours," he says. "It has to be big because the building is the length of two football fields."

Brainerd United Methodist's organ has fared well during the last 50 years, only occasionally requiring repairs, the last one a couple of years ago, Scofield says.

"The expression shades, which makes the sound louder or softer, weren't closing all the way," Scofield says. "When they didn't close, I couldn't make it louder. It was a minor project, but had to be repaired right away."

Pie-in-the-sky, he says he'd love to add more pipes to enhance the organ's sound. And though the purchase would be costly, "it's not out of the question," he says.

"I'd like to add ones that have English horn sounds and ones that have different-type sounding flutes than the ones we already have," he says. "It would cost upwards of about $150,000 to $200,000."

Contact Karen Nazor Hill at khill@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6396.