The Impact of Culture, Organists, and Theology on the Professional Success of Herman Schlicker

Abstract

Herman Schlicker had a profound influence on the direction of American organ building because he was able to capitalize on a number of contemporary movements which allowed him to sell a product that he was already producing to a national market looking for the sound and the aesthetic his organs provided. This document explains how the early music revival, the Orgelbewegung (organ reform movement), and a reawakening in American Lutheranism of its own musical heritage spurred a reaction against the Romantic organs of the early twentieth century and created a market for organs capable of playing both early and modern music with a clarity and brilliance that had been unattainable on organs built by the previous generation.

An examination of correspondence demonstrates how Schlicker's work and personality impressed his early clients and allowed him to establish a business in the midst of the Depression of the 1930s. Schlicker also collaborated with key figures such as Robert Noehren, E. Power Biggs, Clarence Mader, Paul Bunjes, and Paul Manz who in turn promoted his work and not only gave him national exposure and recognition as an organ builder but also actively encouraged churches and academic institutions to purchase his organs. This enabled Schlicker to avoid reliance on traditional commercial advertisement to promote his company. The document will also examine the roots of Schlicker's success within the Lutheran church through an examination of the theology of Lutheran worship and music as expressed in the 1940s and 1950s and how the music of Lutheran composers such as Paul Manz equated the sounds of Schlicker's organs with the sounds of Lutheran music.