Wurlitzer style 270

The Rudolph Wurlitzer Company, an American company based in Cincinatti, had its origins in Germany where the Wurlitzer family were long established as musical instrument makers. In the mid 1800's, Rudolph Wurlitzer emigrated to the United States where, from humble beginnings, he set up the eponymous-named business which would eventually become one of the 20th century's most recognised musical instrument brand names.

Around 1910, the Rudolph Wurlitzer Company entered into a development contract with the Englishman, Robert Hope-Jones, mercurial inventor of the Hope-Jones Unit Orchestra. The Unit Orchestra was the ultimate embodiment of Hope-Jones' revolutionary ideas in orchestral pipe organ design, and the eventual take-over of Unit Orchestra design and development by Wurlitzers led to the production of a wide range of standardised organs during the 1920s and 1930s, designed and built in Wurlitzer's North Tonawanda NY plant. These organs ranged from the humble pit organ/piano combination (the "Photoplayer") to the colossal and magnificent 'Fox Specials' with four manuals and thirty-six ranks of pipes. The market was primarily driven by the ability of an organ, played by one musician, to replace an entire orchestra used for silent film accompaniment; marketing being what it is, even the smallest of these large, new-fangled and tonally impressive instruments would also be irresistible to cinema owners hooked on playing the one-upmanship game with their competitors. 

In 1927, Wurlitzer’s design team issued blueprints for several new models, most being updates of earlier designs to incorporate recent developments such as Tibia extensions to 2⅔ and 2ft pitches.  One of the most successful both musically and sales-wise of the 1920s designs had been the Style 260, of three manuals and fifteen ranks, although it had become a “catch-all” designation for many variants, some with four manuals, and up to 19 ranks.  It was decided that the new line-up should include a four-manual version of the Style 260, with five additional ranks: Tuba Mirabilis, Gamba, Gamba Céleste, Dulciana and Unda Maris (TC) (20 ranks).  Either it was forgotten when the description of Wiring Schedule 901 was listed on the factory cards, or it was quickly added, but a twenty-first rank (Horn Diapason, with metal diaphonic 16ft bass) found its way into the line-up. 

The scheme was designated “Style 270” and was included in the Wurlitzer price list dated 1 September, 1927, with a ticket of US$50,000.  Somewhat unusually for that time, all the organs built to this design were exported, three to Australia (the first being opened only weeks after talking films were launched in Sydney and Melbourne) and one to England.  A fifth instrument, designed but never built, was planned for Loew’s Theatre, Brooklyn (the information is unclear as to precisely which theatre this might have been).  These organs were also unusual in that every example of the Style 270 differed in some way from all the others.  Opus 2005 was apparently the standard 270, all the others being designated “Special” and having separate Wiring Schedule (referred to below as “W/S”) numbers, including the aborted Brooklyn instrument.  A sixth, extra-special, but officially designated “Augmented Style 270”, organ was created in Australia in 1947 out of Opus 1902 and Opus 359.

The Style 270 has a special place as being the largest standard model instrument to be exported from the United States, and the one standard 4-manual model only to be exported. Notably, it found its way into only the finest theatres in Australia and England and became a flagship instrument for these important export markets. Of these five instruments, it was the Trocadero organ which became renowned for its musical connection with Quentin Maclean, one of the most outstanding theatre organists ever.

Ian McIver and John Abson