I'm taking the plunge!
 

After giving it a lot of thought, and thanks to the influence of all you rabble-rousers here...I've enrolled in a two-year Associate of Engineering Science degree program at a local college. I'll start this fall, then in 2020 transfer to the University of Illinois (or another four-year; I'll see how I feel then) mechanical engineering program, then perhaps a Master's after that. I'm going to be an aerodynamicist!

For those who don't know my background, I've been a professional organist since I was 14, and have a Master of Music degree from the Eastman School of Music. I came to Illinois originally to work on a Doctorate of Musical Arts; I'm ABD but haven't bothered finishing since I decided I didn't really want to teach music after spending two years doing just that, one at Pacific Lutheran University and another year in the Theory Department here at Illinois. The benefit of my job as Music Director at a large Catholic church is, it leaves my days mostly free to take classes. And, in the future I can always take a part-time or full-time job as an organist or organ builder (I spent three years full-time with a local builder, and a firm in Tennessee wants me to come work for them right now).

Anyway, I promise I won't come on here in future and lecture you all about how smooth closeout panels don't work when I start fluid dynamics coursework.:p

Woo, congrats. IMO that sounds fun, but I'm an engineering geek so... ya. Good luck to you!

I'll be upset if you don't.

Makes perfect sense to me: you're already extremely well-versed on the importance of carefully managed airflow! :D

Congratulations!

Awesome! Too bad you're not in Indiana, Purdue is a pretty good school you know... (Purdue grad here)

I have/had dreams to work for an auto manufacturer, didn't pan out that way for me.

There's a joke in there somewhere. :p

Good luck in your new goal!

An associates of engineering will almost get you as far as a 4 year degree because engineers are that badly needed here.

Purdue is definitely a school I'll be looking into; it's just a couple hours from here, and I know several Purdue grads who speak very highly of their experience there.

In undergrad, our studio was known as the "Organ Mafia." We talked about getting shirts printed to read, "Hey Baby--Wanna Play My Organ?"

And, a lot of what I did (and continue to do on occasion) as an organ builder is voicing--the process of making pipes play. It's all about managing pressures and airflow through the foot, flue, and body of the pipe.

http://www.flutopedia.com/img_anatom...Anatomy_lg.jpg

Organ builders have been voicing since the days of the Roman empire, but only recently have they become interested in things like metallurgic composition, CFD, historical casting techniques, etc. and learned how all these things interplay to create a specific sound. It's allowed the current generation of American builders to create "old" sounding organs by doing things like sand casting, which cools the metal much faster and results in a tighter grain structure that makes for both a stronger pipe and a more harmonically complex sound as the metal resonates differently.

That's awesome.

https://i.imgur.com/G5NYP.jpg

Know your history. :)

edit:
I know Eric Dollard, for one, claims the true art of organ building is lost to time. Maybe you can be the first to try cryogenic tempering to tighten grain structure.