Indiana University Auditorium
An especially fine example of the art of organ building, the organ now in the Indiana University Auditorium has a history which goes back to 1889, when Hilborne L. Roosevelt of New York built it for installation in the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago. In 1942, when the Auditorium Theatre was being converted to a USO center, the organ was sold at auction to organ enthusiast, author, and businessman, Dr. William H. Barnes of Evanston, Illinois. Dr. Barnes, in turn, donated the organ to Indiana University where it was installed in 1944 in the IU Auditorium by the Aeolian-Skinner Organ Company.
In 1961 the console was damaged by water, making the organ unplayable. Later, a small fire damaged portions of the pipe work. In 1967, the Schantz Organ Company of Orrville, Ohio, was commissioned to redesign and rebuild the entire organ and reinstall it in the IU Auditorium. Working with members of the organ faculty of the IU School of Music and the university architects, the Company developed specifications for the instrument to meet the special requirements of the Auditorium |
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