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Keeping Pipe Organs Alive
- Providing technical services since 1999
- Manufacturer-independent assessment and recommendations
- Tuning, maintenance, repair, restoration, rebuilding and installation
- Expertise across pipework, wind systems, windchests, consoles and control systems
- A direct W-2 workforce for primary service, with third-party specialists used in collaboration with customers when unique projects require additional domain expertise
- In-house apprenticeship program for developing the next generation of pipe-organ technicians
- Written findings, work records and closeout documentation to support long-term continuity of instrument care
- Flat monthly billing programs offered for recurring tuning and maintenance
- National service coverage and long-term care relationships
Phone: +1 (888) 561-9121
Pipe Organs of San Diego County
San Diego County’s pipe organs include the instrument at Spreckels Organ Pavilion, historic theater organs, large church installations and smaller instruments in neighborhood churches and schools.
Their histories bring together builders such as Austin, Möller, Casavant, Reuter and Wicks with work by Lyle Blackinton, Knight Organ Company and other firms. Some instruments have remained in their original settings; others have been rebuilt or adapted through successive projects.
Craftsman provides pipe organ tuning, repair and restoration in San Diego County.
Notable San Diego pipe organs
The following examples come from Organ Historical Society records reviewed in October 2026. Specifications belong to the dated entries shown and may differ from the instruments today. A rank is a set of pipes; it is not necessarily the same as a stop.
| Instrument | Builder and date in the cited record | Recorded ranks |
|---|---|---|
| Spreckels Organ Pavilion, Balboa Park | Lyle Blackinton & Associates, 1993; earlier attribution: Austin Organ Co., opus 453, 1915 | 73 |
| St. Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral | Quimby, Opus 68, 2012 | 81 |
| First United Methodist Church, San Diego | Lyle Blackinton & Associates, 1989 | 106 |
| First Presbyterian Church, San Diego | Casavant, Opus 3142-R, 1983; earlier attribution: Casavant Frères Ltée., opus 3142, 1973 | 101 |
| La Jolla Presbyterian Church | Lyle Blackinton & Associates, 2016 | 64 |
| Fox Theatre / Copley Symphony Hall | Knight Organ Company, 2024–2025; earlier attribution: Robert Morton Organ Co., 1923 | 70 |
| Balboa Theatre | W. N. Shoberg and Company, 2009; earlier attribution: Robert Morton Organ Co., 1929 | 23 |
| St. Brigid Roman Catholic Church | Martin Ott, Opus 64, 1992 | 51 |
| All Souls’ Episcopal Church | Fritts-Richards, Opus 5, 1986 | 51 |
| Mission Basilica San Diego de Alcalá | Wicks, Opus 6218, 1991 | 17 |
| Episcopal Church Center / Holy Trinity Episcopal Church | Möller, Opus 10689, 1969 | 6 |
Spreckels and the church organs
Spreckels Organ Pavilion’s history begins with Austin’s 1915 instrument and includes later work by Lyle Blackinton & Associates. Original specifications and records of later rebuilding help trace what was retained and what changed, both at the pavilion and in the county’s church organs.
San Diego’s theater organs
Robert Morton appears in the histories of both the Fox Theatre / Copley Symphony Hall organ and the Balboa Theatre organ.
A June 2026 OHS note describes Knight Organ Company’s removal and cleaning of the Fox Theatre / Copley Symphony Hall organ during the Jacobs Music Center renovation, followed by reinstallation in 2025. It also describes a new 28-rank Positive, playable independently and from the Robert Morton console.
The Balboa Theatre entry records work by W. N. Shoberg and Company in 2009, with an earlier Robert Morton attribution dated 1929.
Craftsman’s restoration of Möller Opus 10689
Craftsman is restoring Möller Opus 10689, the six-rank organ built in 1969 for Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in San Diego, for a new home in a composer’s studio.
The project includes removal, re-leathering, modernizing the console and controls for MIDI, a new swell box, and installation for playing and recording. Apprentices work alongside experienced technicians throughout the project.
The original factory drawings provide a reference for the restoration and preserve details of the organ’s first installation.
Smaller organs around San Diego County
Smaller instruments appear throughout the county, including in Carlsbad, Chula Vista, Encinitas, Escondido, Coronado, Oceanside, La Mesa and Poway.
| Recorded location | Builder and opus | Recorded year | Ranks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Westminster Presbyterian Church, San Diego | Möller, Opus 9700 | Circa 1962 | 4 |
| Carlsbad Union Church | Möller, Opus 10398 | Circa 1966 | 8 |
| Point Loma United Methodist Church / Water’s Edge | Reuter, Opus 1591 | 1967 | 9 |
| St. Mark’s Lutheran Church, Chula Vista | Reuter, Opus 1622 | 1968 | 13 |
| Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Encinitas | Möller, Opus 10632 | Circa 1969 | 4 |
| Trinity Episcopal Church, Escondido | Reuter, Opus 1843 | 1973 | 21 |
| Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church, Coronado | Fratelli Ruffatti | 1978 | 27 |
| King of Kings Lutheran Church, Oceanside | Möller, Opus 11440 | 1980 | 5 |
| St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, La Mesa | Schantz, Opus P-838 | 1982 | 9 |
| Incarnation Lutheran Church, Poway | Bond, Opus 12 | 1987 | 20 |
Carlsbad Union Church also has a 1979 Lawrence Phelps & Associates record. The cited records do not establish how that entry relates to the earlier Möller instrument; the row above describes the historical Möller record.
Builders connected with San Diego
Lyle Blackinton & Associates
Lyle Blackinton & Associates appears in the histories of Spreckels Organ Pavilion, First United Methodist Church and La Jolla Presbyterian Church. The OHS builder directory places the firm in El Cajon.
Knight Organ Company
The OHS builder directory identifies Robert Knight with San Diego. The Fox Theatre / Copley Symphony Hall entry documents the company’s recent work on that instrument.
National and international builders
Möller, Reuter, Schantz, Wicks, Casavant, Austin, Martin Ott and Flentrop are among the builders represented in San Diego County’s records, from compact church instruments to large installations.
The builder and opus number are a starting point for identifying an organ. Later records can document changes to its action, console, wind system and pipework.
Researching and caring for your organ
Keep original contracts, specifications, factory drawings and console photographs alongside records of rebuilding, service, modification or relocation. Documentation for replacement consoles and controls is useful even when the original factory records are missing.
You do not need a complete archive before contacting Craftsman. Send whatever information you have, along with a description of the problem or proposed work.
Craftsman provides tuning, maintenance, repair, re-leathering, condition surveys and restoration. We also handle removal and relocation, seeking new homes for instruments that can no longer remain where they are.
Call 888-561-9121, email projects@craftsmanpipeorgans.com, or visit our San Diego pipe organ service page. For projects elsewhere in the region, see our Southern California service areas.
About the historical records
Historical instrument and builder information comes from Organ Historical Society records reviewed on October 18, 2026; the Opus 10689 restoration section describes Craftsman’s own project. One instrument may have several entries, and recorded dates, locations, specifications and builder histories do not establish present condition or business status. Except for the explicitly identified Craftsman project, the instruments listed are historical examples, not a list of Craftsman customers.