M. P. Moller
Encyclopedia
Mathias Peter Møller was a prolific Danish
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...

 organ
Organ (music)
The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...

 builder. He was a native of the Danish island of Bornholm
Bornholm
Bornholm is a Danish island in the Baltic Sea located to the east of the rest of Denmark, the south of Sweden, and the north of Poland. The main industries on the island include fishing, arts and crafts like glass making and pottery using locally worked clay, and dairy farming. Tourism is...

. He founded the M.P. Moller Pipe Organ Company in Greencastle
Greencastle, Pennsylvania
Greencastle is a borough in Franklin County in south-central Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 3,722 at the 2000 census.-History:...

, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

 in 1875. The city of Hagerstown
Hagerstown, Maryland
Hagerstown is a city in northwestern Maryland, United States. It is the county seat of Washington County, and, by many definitions, the largest city in a region known as Western Maryland. The population of Hagerstown city proper at the 2010 census was 39,662, and the population of the...

 took notice of Möller's early successes and induced him to move his business to that city to help make Hagerstown a viable business center in Western Maryland. The result was M. P. Möller, Inc. and the company remained in business until 1992, with a production of over 11,000 instruments.

History

The earliest instruments were built by industry supply houses under contract to Möller. The early Möller instruments utilized tracker action
Tracker action
Tracker action is a term used in reference to pipe organs and steam calliopes to indicate a mechanical linkage between keys or pedals pressed by the organist and the valve that allows air to flow into pipe of the corresponding note...

 which links the organ console
Organ console
thumb|right|250px|The console of the [[Wanamaker Organ]] in the Macy's department store in [[Philadelphia]], featuring six manuals and colour-coded stop tabs....

 to the pipe chests by mechanical means. By 1902 tubular-pneumatic action was used until the company developed its own version of electro-pneumatic actions by 1919 (pitman action). Möller thought that anybody that wanted a pipe organ should be able to get one. So, the company built many "Portable" (3-ranks) and "Artiste" (3 to 9 ranks) type instruments, smaller mass-produced organs which incorporated standard specifications with fewer sets of pipes. Möller organs can be found in churches/synagogues, concert halls, educational institutions, funeral homes, hospital chapels, movie theaters, municipal auditoriums, restaurants, private residences, and social/service organizations.

The first major contract that Möller obtained with the United States Service academies was for the instrument in the Cadet Chapel of the United States Military Academy
United States Military Academy
The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...

 at West Point, New York
West Point, New York
West Point is a federal military reservation established by President of the United States Thomas Jefferson in 1802. It is a census-designated place located in Town of Highlands in Orange County, New York, United States. The population was 7,138 at the 2000 census...

. This was Möller Opus 1200. The project bid package included an approved organ design of three manuals and pedal. The winning bidder was allowed to suggest and implement changes to this design following contract award. As a result Möller, as the builder of the organ, got to demonstrate his best practices in the Cadet Chapel organ. Möller remained the primary supplier of additions until after WWII. Today the mostly-Möller organ is the largest all pipe organ in a religious structure in the world, although the First Congregational Church of Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...

 makes a similar claim with their two pipe organs.

Prior to WWII, Möller had been a low cost supplier. With the end of the war Möller began to compete directly with Aeolian-Skinner
Aeolian-Skinner
Æolian-Skinner Organ Company, Inc. — Æolian-Skinner of Boston, Massachusetts was an important American builder of a large number of notable pipe organs from its inception as the Skinner Organ Company in 1901 until its closure in 1972. Key figures were Ernest M. Skinner , Arthur Hudson Marks ,...

. One example of Möller's product are the two instruments at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception
Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception
The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception is a prominent Latin Rite Catholic basilica located in Washington, D.C., honoring the Blessed Virgin Mary as Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, the Patroness of the United States...

 in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

. A three manual organ occupies the transept
Transept
For the periodical go to The Transept.A transept is a transverse section, of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In Christian churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform building in Romanesque and Gothic Christian church architecture...

 and a four manual is located in the rear gallery. The largest Möller church organ, built as a single new instrument, is installed in Calvary Church, Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte is the largest city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the seat of Mecklenburg County. In 2010, Charlotte's population according to the US Census Bureau was 731,424, making it the 17th largest city in the United States based on population. The Charlotte metropolitan area had a 2009...

, Opus 11739, completed in 1990. Möller also built a large number of theater organs (often known as the "Möller Deluxe" organ) and the company's largest theatre instrument still resides in Atlanta's Fox Theatre
Fox Theatre (Atlanta)
The Fox Theatre , a former movie palace, is a performing arts venue located at 660 Peachtree Street NE in Midtown Atlanta, Georgia, and is the centerpiece of the Fox Theatre Historic District....

, affectionately known as the "Mighty Mo."

Möller introduced solid state electronics for console
Organ console
thumb|right|250px|The console of the [[Wanamaker Organ]] in the Macy's department store in [[Philadelphia]], featuring six manuals and colour-coded stop tabs....

components and other innovations in the 1980s, later than many other competitors. This, coupled with serious labor problems over the years, lagging investments in the plant and escalation in the cost of fabrication contributed to the end of the company which came in 1992. Several investors attempted to revive the company and move it from its ancient factory on Hagerstown's Prospect Street, but to no avail. Möller's assets were auctioned off in 1993. Beautiful completed and almost-completed consoles, voiced pipes, and hardwoods were sold for a fraction of their value. Some churches never received their new pipe organs.

The Möller name, customer list and equipment were purchased from the bankruptcy court in February, 1993, by Paul D. Stuck. The new company identified itself as “Möller Organ Company, A Division of King of Instruments, Incorporated." Möller had four organ projects that year, and then it closed. With the closure, the Möller organs came to an end. All but one of the four projects were to refurbish existing organs. The last Möller was constructed for and installed in the Chapel by the Sea of Fort Myers Beach, Florida, in 1992.
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