Creative and design
Organ builder
Design, manufacture and assembly of the components required in a pipe organ.
Summary
This occupation is found in the cultural, religious, educational, craft/musical instrument making sectors and within entertainment/public venues and domestic settings. Employers vary from micro businesses to SMEs that will often be engaged in contract work, either directly with the customer or with others throughout the trade or sector.
The broad purpose of the occupation is to use skills and labour for the bespoke fabrication and/or restoration of pipe organs and/or their constituent components. This includes tuning of pipe organs, re-leathering of bellows, restoring soundboards, working from CAD drawings, polishing, staining and finishing timber, working with hand tools and woodworking machinery, voicing of pipes, cleaning of pipework and working with electrical systems. Employees in this occupation will work both on-site and in workshops to complete their tasks. Occasionally they may need to work at heights and are sometimes required to work flexibly to accommodate public events on-site where the work is taking place.
In their daily work, an employee in this occupation interacts with other organ builders, reporting to a senior organ builder or the principal builder. They will work closely with the staff members of the organisations they are contracted by e.g. members of the church.
An employee in this occupation will be responsible for the design, manufacture and assembly of the components required in a pipe organ; in putting organ pipes onto speech and tuning them; and in the repair, maintenance and tuning of existing organs. They will be using materials such as wood, leather, tin and lead, and will be primarily working either in a workshop or on site.
Employees will be supervised in the workshop and on-site, working to drawings provided by the principal builder. Employees would also be expected to perform tuning and maintenance tasks unsupervised.
Organ Builders will be responsible for maintaining their tools and machinery and acting where required to maximise the efficiency of their tools/machinery.
When carrying out restoration or conservation activities, employees must be mindful that materials and techniques used are appropriate to the age and historical context of the instrument.
Typical job titles include
- Designer | General Organ Builder | Organ Builder | Organ Tuner | Pipe Maker | Voicer
Knowledge, skills and behaviours (KSBs)
K1:
Health & safety legislation and regulations in the work environment (in particular those relating to working at height, heavy lifting and noise abatement)
K2:
The methods of safe handling of materials and work processes that ensure the safety of self and others
K3:
The safe and sustainable disposal of waste materials
K4:
Properties, uses and limitations of materials used in organ building
K5:
The respective advantages and disadvantages of softwoods and hardwoods
K6:
The purposes of different grades of leather
K7:
The tonal qualities of pipes made from different metal alloys
K8:
Techniques for protecting, moving, handling and storing resources
K9:
The key hand and machine tools and equipment used
K10:
The principles of how the tools and equipment work, are prepared, maintained and safely used (including how to sharpen chisels and hand planes; the different cutting actions of band, cross-cut and rip-saws)
K11:
How the material must be presented to the tools and equipment in each case
K12:
The importance of using the right combination of guards when creating mouldings using hand-held and fixed routers
K13:
Employer’s quality standards how to apply and monitor including methods of recording work.
K14:
The elements and principles applicable to the design of pipe organs
K15:
The historical and contemporary contexts of organ building
K16:
The different forms of action & mechanisms and how they are developed and applied
K17:
The key differences between rebuilding, restoration, conservation and reconstruction and their respective advantages and disadvantages
K18:
How to diagnose, analyse and assess for manufacturing and maintenance options
K19:
How to diagnose faults (such as electrical or pneumatic actions) during maintenance visits and plan for their repair
K20:
Relevant applied mathematics & science (including metric & imperial dimensions/measurements, geometry, lever law, musical theory, acoustics and electric circuitry)
K21:
The anticipation of risks and resolution of problems
K22:
Knowing when it is appropriate to seek advice from other craft specialists and experts
K23:
Technique for staining, polishing and finishing
Technical Educational Products
- ST0382: Organ builder (Level 3) Approved for delivery
- Reference:
- OCC0382
- Status:
Approved occupation
- Average (median) salary:
- £30,903 per year
- SOC 2020 code:
- 5449 Other skilled trades n.e.c.
- SOC 2020 sub unit groups:
- 5449/07 Musical instrument repairers, makers and tuners
S1:
Maintain correct standards of health and safety for self and for others, using safe working practices such as when handling heavy components
S2:
Prepare and maintain materials, tools and equipment appropriately and safely, always fitting guards to machines as required
S3:
Identify and minimise hazards and risks in the working environment, e.g. casting and soldering, or when treating timber with volatile compounds
S4:
Create and interpret technical specifications, drawings, and other written and verbal instructions (such as cutting lists, rollerboard layouts and soundboard plantings)
S5:
Identify and respond to problems appropriately (including testing and adjustment); seek advice and guidance when appropriate
S6:
Select and use the appropriate processes/techniques to undertake organ building tasks from inception to realisation
S7:
Select and use correct materials as required by the specific task
S8:
Select and use correct tools and equipment as required by the specific task
S9:
Construct timber components such as soundboards and wind trunking
S10:
Use leather to make pneumatic motors and hinges and gussets in bellows
S11:
Connect and test low-voltage electrical equipment
S12:
Make wooden pipework
S13:
Make metal pipework
S14:
Put pipes onto speech and tune them
S15:
Lay bearings for tuning
S16:
Put individual pipes and complete ranks back into tune
S17:
Identify and resolve action faults in existing instruments
S18:
Remove and dismantle components safely and systematically
S19:
Re-assemble components and test that everything is working properly
S20:
Select appropriate stain/polish for finishing woodwork
S21:
Applies quality assurance checks throughout the organ building process
S22:
Follows policies and procedures; has consistent attention to detail
S23:
Communicate and work effectively with others as part of a team
Technical Educational Products
- ST0382: Organ builder (Level 3) Approved for delivery
- Reference:
- OCC0382
- Status:
- Approved occupation
- Average (median) salary:
- £30,903 per year
- SOC 2020 code:
- 5449 Other skilled trades n.e.c.
- SOC 2020 sub unit groups:
- 5449/07 Musical instrument repairers, makers and tuners
B1:
Takes ownership of work
B2:
Committed to continuous professional development
B3:
Acts in a professional manner. Be courteous, respectful and professional whether workshop or site-based
B4:
Team focussed and works effectively with colleagues and others
B5:
Accepts change and is adaptable to meet customer needs
B6:
Champions and promotes pipe organ building
Technical Educational Products
- ST0382: Organ builder (Level 3) Approved for delivery
- Reference:
- OCC0382
- Status:
- Approved occupation
- Average (median) salary:
- £30,903 per year
- SOC 2020 code:
- 5449 Other skilled trades n.e.c.
- SOC 2020 sub unit groups:
- 5449/07 Musical instrument repairers, makers and tuners