Pipe Organs in Current Books and Movies

[PipeOrganResearch]

I am an amateur singer, musician, and mother of a pipe organ student. My daughter and I share an interest in music and popular culture in the form of books and movies and we were very interested to note the recent (and not so recent) appearance of Pipe Organs in current movies: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (Captain Nemo plays a pipe organ), Interview with the Vampire, Beauty and the Beast Enchanted Christmas (Forte the animated pipe organ) , Pirates of the Caribbean II and III (Davy Jones plays the pipe organ) , and Phantom of the Opera (the Phantom plays the pipe organ).

Are any of you aware of more movies or books in which the Pipe Organ appears, not as background music, but is actually seen and played?

The pipe organ is obviously makes a powerful visual and audio statement. Its use reminds me of the love affaire movie directors have with the Steam Locomotive. In the above mentioned movies, the pipe organ is also associated with strong villains or anti-heroes who have strong emotions which they express through playing music on the pipe organ.

Does anyone else have a comment on this phenomena or find it interesting?

[Krummhorn]

Hello PipeOrganResearch,

Welcome to MIMF

There are numerous other movies in which the pipe organ is utilized. A rather large list exists in this (click here) thread originated by Frederik Magle.

Interesting to note that the Pipe Organ featured in the original 20,000 leagues movie became the ballroom organ in the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland, played, of course, by a ghost of Capt. Nemo .

[PipeOrganResearch]

Thank you for the interesting bit about the Captain Nemo organ. Because my daughter is a teenage organ student...she loves to know about the use of the Pipe Organ in Popular Culture because those links are more impressive to her non-musician friends.

I am compiling research on this subject because I would like to write an article on this subject. However, I want to limit my topic to popular media where the Organ is actually on-screen being played and not just part of the sound-track.

Thanks again

Paula (Pipe Organ Research)

[Krummhorn]

You are welcome, Paula.

How long has your daughter been studying organ? Is she planning on persuing this career into the college years?

Kh

[PipeOrganResearch]

Kh,

My daughter has been studying the piano for 10 years, but she started the organ in the summer of 2006 at an AGO Pipe Organ Encounter. She is now 15 and yes, the current plan is to major in Organ Performance at UCLA studying with Christope Bull. This could and will change, but that is the current plan.

Paula (PipeOrganResearch)

[Contratrombone64]

Paula, it always makes me smile to read about young(er) pianists turning to pipe organ. At my church, Christ Church St. Laurence, we hold competitions each year for junior, intermediate and senior classes. This means that Sydney's young and upcoming organists can get a chance to prepare a selection of qualifying pieces and play before a critical audience. The adjudicator is always one of the professors at one of our conservatoria or local Sydney universities. The prize money, whilst not huge, comes from a benfactor.