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ABOUT US

   We are a small, "Mom and Pop" company who would be pleased to receive quiries form all interested persons.  During our long history we have manufactured everything pretaining to organs with the exception of blowers.

HISTORY

   Prior to 1960 Louis Rabalais was apprenticed to B.L. Gibson, Inc. and had some intallation and finishing experience with the Schantz Pipe Organ Company.  In 1961 he was accepted to the staff of Casavant Frères, Limitée as a Tonal Finisher when Laurence I. Phelps was Artistic Director.  By the late 1960's  the firm began to produce new organs of its own and was engaged in a little work with the John T. Fort and Steiner Organ Companies.  From that period until 1995 it produced organ parts and services under the subsidiary, El Dorado Organbuilders' Supply and custom keyboards for a New England Harpichord maker.  During much of this time the company was a regional representative for Casavant Frères, Limitée.

PHILOSOPHY

   Rabalais does not make period instruments or eclectic organ designs even though our inspiration is eclectic as we take that which seems to be good to us or a particular situation.  Understanding differences in liturgical traditions, we attempt to interpret these from a classical organbuilding perspective.  Except for practice organs or the smallest instruments we avoid unification in manual divisions.  Slider and pallet, with electric pull-downs and pitman chests are our preference for electric action, and we are most comfortable with mechanical action.  Tonally our organs may be reminiscent of the Phelps Casavant style, with principal stops which may be somewhat freer and bolder.  Our principals are voiced open toe with little or no feathering.  We have a great affinity for encasement but do make "Holtkamp" style configurations.

REBUILDING

   Much of our experience is in rebuilding and restoration of historic organs and we have found that one must be judicious in deciding when rebuilding is a good choice.  Rebuilding frequently requires more time than antipicipated and is therefore not always the least expensive solution.  It  is very situation specific, but always an option for historic or prized organs, however, not always for every pipe organ.

ADDITIONS AND CHANGES

   We frequently make additions or changes to an existing instrument, including revoicing.  Often this, with a good cleaning and/or releathering is all that an organ needs.  Through the years we have become adept at rescaling and reconfiguring pipework in organs or adding a casework to instruments.      

    

 

 

 

 

 

   Shop photo of a psudo-case for an organ which  was doubled in size and exposed by a hole in the west wall.          

      

The visual effect in the building

MAINTENANCE AND TUNING

   A mainstay of our practice  had been in maintenance for over forty-five years in at least six or seven states and we have experience in all facets of the craft.  Normal tuning, for us, includes setting a temperament and tuning every pipe in the organ.  Historical temperaments such as Werkmeister-III, Kirnberger-III and Mean-tone as well as Equal Termperament are possible.

CONSULTATION

   One of the most challenging, exciting and fun aspects of what we do is counsuting for indiviauals or institutions. We are always ready to do this and our prices for simple consultation are very reasonable.

OUTSIDE WORK

   Schedule permitting, we are willing to assist other firms with anything that they may need.  One of our specialties is rebuilding wooden stops and have developed some unique techniques, as well as employing standard practices for making dramatic or sutle tonal changes.

PIANOS

   Our shops were located adjacent to Southwestern Piano Company for many years, a firm which specialized in high-end restoration of grand pianos, and just prior to closing they were working on a new piano loosely based on a 19th century  Ernst Kaps.  A cooperative agreement allowed the sharing of facilities, equipment and personnel.  We became proficent at replacing soundboards, pinblocks, restringing, calculating stringing scales , action work, tuning as well as piano finishing.  With the closure of this business we absorbed some of their work and continue with it today.

AUDIO SAMPLES

   These are very much less than professionally recorded, consisting principally of tapes from live chruch services or spontaneous tapes from hand-held machines made on the job, some just after pipe installation and without finishing!  The improvised sample of the Hautbois had the tremulant's muffler off for adjustment!  A couple of tapes with choir are included to note the effect of the organs with choir.  To hear these please chick -

                                                                                                                  HERE   → http://www.box.net/shared/t75vg67ndy

PERSONNEL

        Andrea    Petrosh     is     our     most      recent      staff     member      and      comes    as   Business  Manager.    No stranger   to organbuilding,   Andrea    arrived  with  a  diverse   background  and a  liberal  arts   education,  holding  a    Bachelor of   Arts degree  from  the   University  of    the   South   at  Sewanee,   Tennessee  where  she   is presently a member   of   the   Board   of   Trustees.     She  was  a  piano student of  Mark Williams,  studied violin with  Dr. Elaine Allen and voice with Suzan Rupert  at     the   University  of   the    South.       Andrea   was  a   violinist   with    the       South   Arkansas   Symphony   and    has    been   a   choirster   with   the   university    choir     and    several    church   choirs,     presently    with      the   Cathedral    Choir   o f     St.   Marks,      Shreveport,   Louisiana     where      she    may   be   occasionally  heard  as  soprano    soloist.     There    she   is   joined    by     husband,   Lt.   Colonel     Michael  Petrosh,    daughter      Lauren    and      son,     Michael III     the    Cathedral     Organ Squire.   Additionally,   she   works  with choirsters  in   the  Training  Program   of   the    Royal  College  of  Music  and  she  was   recently involved in assessment and dismantling of a Katrina-damaged organ in New Orleans.

     Kathleen   Rabalais    was    an    occasional   visitor   at   the   Gibson    Organ  Company    and   she  and   Louis   were  working  together  in  1961   while   they  were  both   Organ   Performance    majors   at   Southern   Arkansas  University.     That  year  Kathleen was first  place  winner  of  the  Arkansas   Chapter   of   the   National  Federation  Of  Music  Teachers'   competition.    Kathleen   and  Louis  were   married  in   1962   and   formed  Rabalais and Company.    She has  served    two   churches   as     full-time    organist    and    several    as     interim    organist.     Her  expertise in  music,  organ   playing  and  organbuilding     is     considerable.         Kathleen's       specialty     is       planning      and  executing      wiring     in     a       way       that       is      difficult    to    match.   Kathleen holds  a   Master's  Degree   in   Social Work  and  practices  part  time  as  a  Licensed   clinical therapist. 

     Louis Rabalais    began  piano  lessons   in the second grade and at the age of sixteen   was  a  student  of   Mattie  Lee  Pate  at Louisiana   College.    After high school   he   remained    her   student    as     an   Organ    Performance    Major    at  Louisiana   College    where   he   completed   a   Minor   in   Piano   with    Author    King.       Subsequently     he   completed     two    degrees   at  Southern  Arkansas University.    In  high  school  he  began  tuning  organs and  was  an  apprentice organbuilder for five years.  Louis has been a church organist/choirmaster   for   a   church   while  in  college  and   Choirmaster   for   many    years   with     another.       He    has   taught  music  at    South   Arkansas   Community  College  where he was the College Choral Director, along  with    electrical  theory   and  building  technology,  and has played the violin with two symphony orchestras and composes music, mostly choral.

   Louis Rabalais, III     will   be    returning   sometime   in  the   Fall of  2008 in  a part-time    capacity.      Louis   was    tuning    organs    by    the    age   of   ten  and    at   eleven  or  twelve  and becoming accomplished   in   finishing.    By sixteen he proved    adept   at   diagnosing   and   correcting   problems  in  newly   finished   windchests   as   well   as   other    organ   mechanisms.        His   ability   has   been  discovered   by    other industries and he has been working elsewere.

     Louis  studied  violin,   double bass  and French Horn  in  high  school  as  well as singing in the  high school choir.    He  was  awarded a   choir scholarship to college and when a sophomore was recognized with  the   Most Outstanding Choir Student award.

Thank You For Visiting!

CONTACT INFORMATION

         Rabalais and Company  •   1230 Mount Holly Road  •   El Dorado, Arkansas   71730

         Telephone/Fax:     (870) 862-1729

         E-Mail:    rabalaisorgans@zoomshare.com   

        (Home)    mailto:lkrabalais@sbcglobal.net

          Andrea Petrosh, Telephone:   (318) 724-3193