Towering over West Point and the Hudson River stands the impressive protestant Cadet Chapel. Built in 1910 with native granite, it combines the Gothic Revival style with the imposing weight of medieval fortresses. The chapel’s interior is 56 feet high and adorned by stained glass windows representing the biblical heritage of Christianity, with each window given in memory of one of the different graduating classes. The main 50-foot-high window depicts West Point’s motto: “Duty, Honor, Country.”
The Cadet Chapel in West Point, N.Y., on Feb. 12, 2023. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times) The interior of the Cadet Chapel at West Point, N.Y., on Feb. 12, 2023. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times)
Equally fascinating is the Chapel’s pipe organ, the world’s largest in a house of worship. With 23,511 pipes, it is roughly 20 times the size of an average organ, which would typically consist of 1,200 pipes.
On Feb. 12, Cadet Chapel received internationally touring Italian concert organist Salvatore Pronestì, artistic director of the International Organ Festival in Rome, for an organ recital. Pronestì studied the construction techniques of the instrument and opened his own Bottega Organaria for the construction and restoration of pipe organs. The Regional Council of Calabria conferred to Pronestì the title of Master Craftsman.
Salvatore Pronestì, internationally touring Italian concert organist, before his organ recital at the Cadet Chapel at West Point, N.Y., on Feb. 12, 2023. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times)
Pronestì performed some of his compositions and improvisation, as well as the ever-majestic sounding “The Star-Spangled Banner” and “My Country Tis of Thee.” His favorite composer is “Bach, of course!” but finds he can hold the public’s interest longer when he performs more varied styles. At the end of the recital, attendees were invited to have a closer look at the instrument, and some warm exchanges of “magnifico!” and “grazie!”
Salvatore Pronestì, internationally touring Italian concert organist, performs at the Cadet Chapel at West Point, N.Y., on Feb. 12, 2023. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times)
The Chapel’s organist and choirmaster, Craig Williams, gave a basic explanation of the instrument. The console has four keyboards and 874 stops, the buttons on the sides of the keyboard. The stops determine which pipes or combinations of pipes will sound the note from the keyboard. The pedal keyboard, played by the feet, is for the base or lower notes. The pedals just above the pedal keyboard allow the organist to make parts of the organ louder or softer by opening or closing what looks like Venetian panels that control the sound’s output volume into the chapel. The buttons to the sides of the pedals hold the same function as the upper buttons, though there are fewer of them, as an alternative for when the hands are too busy to operate them.A series of solid-state electronic relays connect the console of 874 stops to over 23,000 pipes. According to Williams, there is enough wiring involved to circle the earth several times.
The console of the Cadet Chapel’s organ at West Point, N.Y., on Feb. 12, 2023. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times)
The details and intricacies of Cadet Chapel and its organ are endless and leave one wondering how much more there is to be discovered. After a rich experience of architectural and musical beauty, one exits the Chapel to a view of the serene Hudson River, leaving one with an almost elevated sense of existence.
Stained glass windows at the Cadet Chapel in West Point, N.Y., on Feb. 12, 2023. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times) Salvatore Pronestì, internationally touring Italian concert organist, performs at the Cadet Chapel at West Point, N.Y., on Feb. 12, 2023. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times) Pipes of the Cadet Chapelís organ at West Point, N.Y., on Feb. 12, 2023. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times) A bust of composer Johann Sebastian Bach at the Cadet Chapel at West Point, N.Y., on Feb. 12, 2023. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times) Audience members at Salvatore PronestÏís organ recital at the Cadet Chapel at West Point, N.Y., on Feb. 12, 2023. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times) A painting at the Cadet Chapel in West Point, N.Y., on Feb. 12, 2023. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times) Salvatore Pronestì, internationally touring Italian concert organist, performs at the Cadet Chapel at West Point, N.Y., on Feb. 12, 2023. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times) A pipe chamber of the Cadet Chapelís organ at West Point, N.Y., on Feb. 12, 2023. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times() Stained glass windows at the Cadet Chapel in West Point, N.Y., on Feb. 12, 2023. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times) Audience members at Salvatore Pronestì’s organ recital at the Cadet Chapel at West Point, N.Y., on Feb. 12, 2023. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times) Audience members listen to Salvatore Pronestì’s organ recital at the Cadet Chapel at West Point, N.Y., on Feb. 12, 2023. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times) Stained glass windows at the Cadet Chapel in West Point, N.Y., on Feb. 12, 2023. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times) Stained glass windows at the Cadet Chapel in West Point, N.Y., on Feb. 12, 2023. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times) Audience members at Salvatore Pronestì’s organ recital stand for “The Star-Spangled Banner” at the Cadet Chapel at West Point, N.Y., on Feb. 12, 2023. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times) Stained glass windows at the Cadet Chapel in West Point, N.Y., on Feb. 12, 2023. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times) Salvatore Pronestì greets audience members after his organ recital at the Cadet Chapel at West Point, N.Y., on Feb. 12, 2023. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times) The Cadet Chapel in West Point, N.Y., on Feb. 12, 2023. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times)
