This year marks the 25th anniversary of the Chapel of St. Thomas Aquinas organ. Kevin Seal, the chapel organist, said he was impressed with the organ when he applied for the job.

“When I first saw this job posted, the first thing that attracted me was the organ, because this is really one of the finest instruments in the state,” Seal said.  “Any organist would be happy to play week in and week out.”

In 1984, former university president Msgr. Terrence Murphy formed the three-member committee that would select the chapel organ builder.

Once Merritt Nequette, former chair of the music department, Robert Strusinski, former director of the Liturgical choir, and James Callahan, professor emeritus of music were appointed, they began to outline what kind of organ they needed on campus.

“We came up with three purposes (for the organ). One was for the services, the second one was for teaching and the third one was for recitals,” Callahan said.

Callahan said six organ builders submitted proposals to build the organ the committee envisioned, but Gabriel Kney of London, Ontario, caught their attention.

“Several of the instruments we heard had some extraordinarily beautiful sounds,” Callahan said. “We were just very attracted to his aesthetic, his knowledge of organ building and the solidity with which those instruments had been built.”

Kney and his team handcrafted and installed the organ in July 1987. It stands 32 feet tall and is built out of Pennsylvanian red oak to match the other woodwork in the chapel. Callahan said Kney incorporated special details into the organ’s design.

“The carvings are the same design that are painted in the ceiling,” Callahan said.

All of the scroll work and detailed carvings on the organ were done by Kney himself.

Bob Vickery, adjunct professor of music and organist for 43 years, explained the instrument’s musical features.

“It’s a classical design based on the principles of the organs that were built in Bach’s time with some added things so it can play all kinds of literature,” Vickery said.

David Jenkins, liturgical music director of the St. Paul seminary and organ lesson teacher, said the funding for such an intricately designed organ came from a special donor.

“It was funded by a donor Robert Asmuth whose grandson was a student here for a while and was killed in an auto accident before he finished his study here,” Jenkins said.

The organ is dedicated to Asmuth’s grandson and has a plaque on the side of the instrument in his honor.

Senior Ryan Williams said he thinks the organ has helped uphold the Catholic tradition over the last 25 years.

“When you look at what it does for the liturgical community, I think it really helps to reach out to the congregation and set that atmosphere they come to Mass to achieve,” Williams said.

Senior Kelly Blissenbach, an organ student at St.Thomas, said she is privileged to have such a grand instrument to practice with.

“It’s definitely a very humbling experience when you see this great organ,” Blissenbach said. “(The) first time I saw it, I was afraid to touch it and make a sound out of it just because it’s so beautiful and makes such a wonderful sound.”

Even though 25 years seems like a long time, Seal said this special gift will be able last in the St. Thomas community for as long as it is needed.

“As long as it’s well maintained, well designed and well built … an organ can last pretty much indefinitely,” Seal said.

Tarkor Zehn can be reached at zehn0241@stthomas.edu.