I made the decision to leave for the Brussels airport along with the rest of my group, even though my flight was scheduled for 6:00 pm and their flights were all in the morning. I figured I’d rather not hassle with my luggage on the train and a taxi was going to be too expensive. Our bus left the hotel about 7:00 am.

So when my flight was delayed by 2-1/2 hours, making my airport stay over 12 hours, I was glad at least to see an art exhibit. Hey, it was something to look at, and I didn’t have to pay a museum entrance fee!

So when I finally arrived in Hamburg, I was happy to see this welcome sign:

I am spending 4-1/2 days with master organbuilder Hans-Ulrich Erbsloeh and his wife, Christiane, and it is like visiting family. You see, Hans has come to Hawaii many, many times, the first of which was as apprentice to Rudolf von Beckerath who installed the organ at the Lutheran Church of Honolulu in 1975. Since then he has returned to service organs in Hawaii countless times and most times stays with us as a houseguest.

It was in 1996, though, that we first visited Hamburg and the Beckerath firm. We also met Hans and Christiane in Leipzig in the year 2012 and we all drove to their family’s ancestral home in Irschenhaussen near Munich for an idyllic and unforgettable stay.

Now it has been 22 years since I have been in Hamburg, and the first time I have stayed in this house as Hans and Christiane moved here nineteen years ago.

Hans gave me a tour of his basement workshop as you will see in these photos.

He makes wooden pipes by trimming the bark from the wood and cutting into rough planks.

Next he planes the wood and cuts away the middle of the trunk which must be discarded because the wood there is too active. He then cuts the boards into different lengths, glues and clamps them for drying.

It was really eye-opening to see how much work goes into making a pipe organ and I gained a new appreciation for pipe organbuilders! As an organist, it’s far too easy to just sit down and play the instrument without knowing how much engineering and craftsmanship has gone into the instruments we play.

It’s a little like just driving a car and not knowing about all the millions of parts in the engine. I’m satisfied not knowing about the insides of a car engine, but it’s just fascinating to see the process of making a pipe organ.