ORGAN UPDATE

January 2010

The Phoenix organ has proved a wonderful instrument for accompanying regular services, weddings and funerals, and was put through its paces with great aplomb  by Mike and Peter Wilcock and Colin Edmondson during the special Advent and Christmas services. What news do we have, however, of our pipe organ?

 Despite losing three weeks’ work because of the snow, considerable progress has  been made, and parts are now returning from Huddersfield. The painted wooden  areas have been rubbed down and painted black. Nearly all the old felt and leather, worn steel and wood have been replaced. One of the soundboards has been repaired, and work has begun on the other. The old pipe-work is being cleaned.  The new pipe-work is currently being voiced by the best voicer in Britain, Dr. David Frostrick, who is ensuring that the sounds produced will be authentic for a Harrison & Harrison organ.

 Other changes you may have noticed include the repair of the plaster of the organ chamber. The work fortuitously revealed the cracks before lumps of plaster rained down on the organist’s head! (Once again, the hard work of the Thursday team as plasterer’s labourers saved the church a considerable sum.) Furthermore, the interior has been covered with brown paper, another authentic touch used by the Harrisons to improve the reflection of the sound into the church. This is particularly important as our lovely wooden screens and carpets absorb so much of the resonance!

 Hopefully everything will continue smoothly to allow completion of the work around Easter time. A settling-in period will then be necessary before the official ‘opening’ of the organ. Having attended an opening where the celebrity organist had to cope with sticking stops and ciphers, and the organ builders diving into the organ at intervals to fix the problems during the programme, I can appreciate the value of a little patience in this respect.

 David Wood has invited some of us to see the progress of the work in Huddersfield at the end of the month.

Clare Harding 

 St. Peter’s Church Organ

When the ‘new’ Jubilee church of St. Peter’s was built at Salesbury in 1887, it was decided that an organ was needed to encourage attendance, improve the singing, and compete with the successful nonconformist churches springing up in the area! The Vestry Committee members at a meeting on 24th November 1890 donated £65 towards the purchase of such an instrument, on condition that the remainder of the cost was raised by subscription. Parishioners were canvassed, the choir went carol-singing to raise further funds, and by January 1893 the firm of Harrison & Harrison of Durham was in correspondence with John Ward, an alderman of Blackburn, soliciting the contract for the organ.

The specification drawn up by Harrison & Harrison was accepted by the Committee in April 1893. After protracted negotiations concerning materials, stops and mechanism, from which the organist appears to have been excluded, the organ was finally sent in December 1893. It was dedicated in a service on the afternoon of Wednesday, 17th January 1894.

Whilst the employment of the firm of Harrison & Harrison owed much to luck, and not a little to business ‘sweeteners’, the Committee could not have made a happier choice. Our 2-manual tracker organ, although small, has a beautiful tone, and has been described as a ‘Rolls Royce’ among organs. The firm that built it went on to construct many famous organs, including those at Durham Cathedral, London’s Albert and Festival Halls, and King’s College Cambridge, and gained an international reputation.

Why is Restoration Needed?

•  Many of the materials from which the organ is made are original, and the wear and tear of more than a century of playing has led to a certain amount of clattering and wheezing becoming audible! So much air leaks out that some combinations are unusable.
• Whilst there has never been a complete overhaul of the organ, some ‘improvements’ have been made, which were fashionable at the time, but which are now regarded as retrogressive in musical circles. It is proposed to return the organ to the original intention of the builders.
• Finally, it is hoped to augment the original design in the true spirit of Harrison & Harrison to give more flexibility in the many roles which the organ is called upon to perform.

How much will it cost?

The original estimate for the cost of the organ was £520-6-6!

• Sums are rather larger today, and the estimate of the well-regarded firm of David Wood for £58,000 was accepted by the PCC in November 2007.
• The Organ Fund was originally instigated by Michael Payne, and thanks to the efforts of Mike Wilcock and the choir, contained £14,000 at the start of the project.
• A massive program of fundraising, application for grants, and the generous donations of local and not so local benefactors has raised to date the sum of approximately 
  

£53,000

How can I help?

• Support the various fundraising events. The next one is:

 Further details from Clare Harding on 01254 240127

Purchase goods for the Organ Restoration Fund from the back of the church.

These include;

• cards made by Liane Dorée
• notelets by Lakeland artist Christine Isherwood
• votive candles commemorating the church’s bi-centenary
• a book ‘Keys to Heaven’ giving the full history of church music in the area
• assorted home-made preserves

• Make a donation in the ‘organ pipes’, also to be found at the back of the church.

• If you are a tax-payer, please consider adding value to your contribution by completing a ‘Gift Aid’ envelope.

Want to find out more?

• Read the book ‘Keys to Heaven’
• Have a word with the organist after the service

THANK YOU FOR YOUR INTEREST and SUPPORT!