The Reuter Organ Company manufactures and rebuilds electro-pneumatic pipe organs to be used in churches, concert halls, universities and for individuals. Growing from a company that had a single $1,800 contract in 1917 to a multi-million dollar, international firm, Reuter boasts organs in the United States, Canada, Taiwan and Korea. Reuter President JR Neutel has been with the company owned by his father for more than 20 years.
Predominantly built for places of worship, Reuter bases its organ construction around the stated theology of each church and reflects their individual desires.
“A church organ has three specific roles it must be capable of providing–lead congregational singing, choral accompaniment, and then playing the organ literature used in a service,” Neutel said. “A recital organ for a concert hall is designed with organ literature in mind and none of the other two church organ requirements. Organs for homes are usually built for the taste of the purchasers.” Given the cost of organs, there are few residential organs being built, as most aficionados choose to look for a nice used organ for their home.
The company was founded as Reuter-Schwartz Organ Company in 1917 in Trenton, Ill., and two years later established its new home in Lawrence, Kan. Albert Neutel, the son of a vegetable farmer from The Netherlands, bought the company in 1980 after 16 years of organ building, and in 2001 relocated the company to a new $4 million headquarters on the northwest edge of the city. Albert Neutel continues to serve as Chairman of the Board.
The Reuter team consists of Tonal, Design, Engineering and Production craftsmen who maintain the integrity of the instrument, and continue to provide service that reflects this ideology. Based on the rich traditions and history of the instrument, Reuter rejects the perception that one style of design or construction is superior to another. Although the craft of organ-making is a unique,highly specialized skill, Reuter has approximately 50 employees, and trains those with a desire towork in the field.
“Training time varies with each aspect of what they are doing. It may take 12 months to train someone to be a voicer–a job that takes a raw pipe and manipulates it toproduce the proper sounding tone. A cabinet maker must possess or learn woodworking skills. If a person has an interest in this field, usually they already have some of the skills we desire or could teach them,” the younger Neutel said.
As it can typically take more than a year from the time an organ is ordered, designed, manufactured and installed, economic down-turns seem to have little effect on this big-ticket item, although the repercussions of Sept. 11 were long-lasting and impacted the industry greatly.
“In times past, when the economy got tough, people returned to church and giving usually went up. This does not seem to be the case today. Inspite of all the media doom and gloom, the market for organs seems to be doing well. It seems that fund-raising goals are being achieved with fewer participants,” said Neutel.
Depending on size and other factors, Reuter typically produces 6 to 12 organs each year. It has installed more than 2,200 organs around the world in its history.
“Capacity for organ construction is based on the number of stops–an organ may have five stops, 23 stops, or upwards of 50 to 100 stops. Typically from the time a church signs a contract with us, the organ is delivered in anywhere from 6 to 18 months. Once an organ is delivered to a client, the onsite setup time and initial voicing of the organ can take anywhere from 3 to 12 weeks.
Reuter does face competition in its field, but Neutel says that competition comes not from other builders but from assemblers buying organ components from a catalogue and assembling the pieces.
“Here at Reuter, we build everything–we are truly a custom operation. As we oversee all aspects of construction, we can maintain higher standards than other builders.”
