The School Sisters of Notre Dame, Mankato, Minnesota, celebrated the fortieth anniversary of the relocation of the organ in the provincial motherhouse Chapel of Our Lady of Good Counsel with a recital on April 22.
Johnson & Son Opus 499 was installed in 1877 in St. Mary of the Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Boston, Massachusetts. The church in Boston’s North End was closed in 1973 and scheduled for demolition in 1975, which left the organ’s future in doubt. An article by Thomas Murray (who had finished an LP recording of Franck’s Three Chorals on this organ) on the front page of the November 1974 issue of The Diapason brought nation-wide attention to the impending loss of one of the largest surviving instruments by this builder.
The Sisters stepped into the picture, purchasing the organ, so that it was removed from Boston before its home was demolished. Another article on the front page of the May 1976 issue of The Diapason noted the organ was in use in its new home at Christmas Eve, 1975. The organ’s action had been electrified many years ago, and minor tonal alterations have been made, but the organ’s historical importance remains unblemished. The fortieth anniversary recital featured Franck’s Three Chorals performed by Kraig Windschitl, Christopher Stroh, and Jeffrey Patry.
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