When they broadcast it live on the first Sunday of every month, they should also stream it live to KZfaq. I'd watch it!

It's so good to see an enterprise that is large enough and stable enough to keep and maintain such a treasure. So sad to see other treasures similar to this one put in crates and forgotten because of earthquake damage, by short sighted individuals.

i play a trumpet, what do u play? i play a building.

Magnificent Treasure For USA to Preserve For ever !

Best documentary ever! Best narrating voice, love the voice!

I toured the Organ with my Daughter. It is truly a masterpiece Thank you for preserving this beautiful instrument

Awesome. Used to love stopping in here when it was Wannamakers .. happy Macys has kept it up.

I was privileged to meet Keith Chapman for a noontime program in 1973. He asked me what I would like to hear. As it was during store hours, it couldn't be full organ so I asked him if he would play the tunes from 'The Sound of Music'. He did - marvelously. At the time, there were only a few of the combination pistons working. Making all the combination action functional was considered a potential fire hazard due to the current draw through the original wiring made of copper wire wrapped in cotton then dipped in wax. Thanks to the development of solid state electronics and plastic insulated wires used in the instrument's restoration, now everything works. Peter Richard Conte is a marvelous performer as well. If Macy's every has to close the store (it is not in the best section of Philadelphia and internet sales have changed the way we shop) I hope the instrument ends up in the Smithsonian. There is also a CD available of Virgil Fox playing it in 1964 made from the original 35mm film recording used to make the original vinyl 33rpm records. As it was recorded to RIAA standard at the time, you will have to boost the bass and shade the treble to hear it correctly. One last note - The manuals are all playable from a sitting position as the keys were all made shorter from front to back. Hearing it live is worth the trip.

Wonderful Organ. I am never been in Philadelphia, but this is a good excuse to travel right there. I love Organs/

Fantastic instrument.

I still need to get up there to Philly and hear that beast played...I have saved so many pieces which various organists have played on it...and seen a "behind the scenes" tour of the "innards"...But I've never been there to hear it for myself. Oh yeah...I've been to Philly, but had other things going at the time. Yeah...would love to see that thing streamed live here on the 'net!

Fabulous. As a page turner when a youth, I really appreciate this organ & u tube! I would like to see & hear my grandson, a budding organist, play this fabulous instrument!

Back around 1963 my Mother worked at a Italian restaurant off of Cherry St.,a couple blocks away from City Hall......Rizzo was mayor. My Father would escort her to work. He was a excellent musician. My Mother was friends the manager at Wanamaker's She somehow got my Father the opportunity to play that wonderful instrument. He said it took him a few minutes to familiarize himself with it since took a moment for the organ to sound after the key was depressed. He played it very well .! He was asked if he could come again and play. I have to say that he talked about that experience often. I'm proud that Macy's has done the right thing and protect this part of Philadelphia's history. It's just a shame that Philly has lost so much since then.

I remember my late father playing the Wanamaker organ on a number of occasions. I also remember that the resident organist used to give several recitals throughout the day, and the music could be heard all over the store. It’s a pity that there is only one recital a week now.

A National Treasure!

A true treasure of Philly. Now if only they had kept Toyland with the ceiling train and the Crystal tea room restaurant. What great memories.

This video was perfect! I loved it!!!

28,750 PIPES!!!!!! ONLY in AMERICA what a rich and wonderful culture we have

Beautiful history. Thanks. Two quibbles: 1. In the underbar you provide "it's" current pipe count. You meant "its." 2. In the narrative you mention "downtown" Philadelphia. It's "Center CIty." Aside from that, what a wonderful presentation.

Fun fact: Charles Henry Galloway of St. Louis (instructor in Music at Wash U.), teacher of James T. Quarles (Head of Music at Cornell and Missouri), was the intended debut organist for this monster of an instrument at the St. Louis Exposition. A different celebrity organist was slated to play more recitals on the instrument however. Galloway, a frequent contributor to The Etude, died in the Wash U field-house several years later stepping off the podium having just directed a rousing choral and symphonic rehearsal. He had a heart condition which struck just then.

Beautiful!!!

Love this!

JUST AWESOME!

The very definition of grandiose

Thanks to Macy’s and Friends of the organ for preserving this

Quand je pense que nous ne sommes même pas capables du bon entretien de St Sulpice, de Rouen, sans parler de ce qui a été fait de Notre-Dame. Quand j'entends la justesse et la musicalité de ces choeurs, de ce orchestres... Désolant...

I'd love to hear Steven Tharp do some improvisation on that organ!

how do i get this vst plugin?

Hreat video. What is the music behind the narrative? I can't place it. Thanks in advance. I have heard the organ a couple of times. Amazing.

That was the scariest Shetland pony I ever did see

watching this to try and get over my fear of organs lol

Perhaps I missed it, but no mention made or image shown of the machinery that supplies air for the organ.

Nothing today is built like this. Pay attention to things.

Wanamaker Organ is so great just like her big brother Midmer-Losh but ever since the latter got severely damaged since 1944, Wanamaker is currently the biggest fully functioning organ in the world

it's only the worlds largest working pipe organ and the largest in the world is in Atlantic City

My Grandfather was supposed to have played this organ. Is there any list of people who have played it???

The Wanamaker’s Organ Broadcast can be heard most Wednesday evenings at 7pm est. on www.yesterdayusa.com

What is the name of the back ground music?

Here is a good enough reason to patronize Macy's (not to mention the parades, and fireworks displays), which they are so generous in doing for people from around the world.

ironic the background music comes from Liverpool Cathedral.

$105,000.00 in 1911 is over 2.5 billion dollars with inflation... and its only worth 71 million today :|

On 1987 and 1991 was filmed the comedy romance movie "Mannequin "( 1987) and " Mannequin on the move (1991) .

**In Macy’s**

I've never had a chance to see and hear it in the flesh. I'd like to before they shut it down at some point.

So the keyboards are still from 109 years ago

1905

I bet the Chinese would LOVE to have a replica of that to play their music in one of their big city shopping Malls. As America comes to a screeching halt economically there seems to be more interest in the past than in building the future.

280 tons ,,,, equivalent to 7 fully loaded Semi trucks .

Maynard ferguson newport

Did I drop down the Rabbit's hole? I thought that Macy's shut down that store YEARS ago. In fact didn't Macy's go out of business in the 1990's?

Yeah, but... what about the holiday tradition and COVID?????????????

It’s an organ presentation not an English lesson!!

Will ALWAYS be 'Wannies' to me........ Sorry Macy's . . .

I say "out with the old and in with the new!"

I swear, if I hear the phrase "The Wanamaker Organ" again, I will throw my speakers out the window.... Has this man not heard of pronouns? It sounds like a 3rd rate used car lot commercial constantly repeating their phone number to fry into your memory....

That thing is going to be a nightmare to maintain, I predict that Macy's is going to lose their shirt in maintaining it. Scrap it or sell it to a multi-billionare collector.

While it is impressive it is also obsolete and church music is not a good fit in a shopping store in modern America. They should only play baseball music and other secular melodies.