John Furse

Today, 20th April 2024, is International Organ Day. Perhaps I should have headed for Worcester. There has been, is and will be an impressive amount of innovative performing on offer: International Organ Day - 20th April - The Association of English Cathedrals However, R3 has managed ONE solo item (‘the’ Widor) on Breakfast. Despite much of the revised Saturday fare consisting of chat-type programmes, with a multiplicity of varied output, not one organist features. (Wayne Marshall’s sister, yes SISTER, appears in Jool’s Holland’s hour.) This was an ideal opportunity for organ-related programmes for the general, as well as specialist, listener. I find this incomprehensible. I remain most grateful to this station for how it has educated, entertained, consoled and puzzled me for most of my life. Also, for the world première and broadcast of one of my pieces (by the fabulous BBC Singers) but, as an organist, cannot help feeling short-changed today. If I have missed something, please add it below.

That is Magnificat news ! But, inside gen ? Can you reveal more ?

I'll accept the accolade with grateful thanks. (Sorry: I couldn't resist !) But, seriously, I seem to have missed spotting which builder will be doing the work on the old St John's instrument and then installing it in Kennington. Perhaps it is not in the public domain, as yet. In any case, it will probably have to head West or North, before journeying to Cobbett's Great Wen. I'm still most interested to discover whether the 1955 Trompeta Real will be retained in Cambridge - re Tippett's Magnificat.

Wasn't quite as simple as that but, with slightly more 'fiddling', it worked, thanks. The functionality on that website isn't the best.

The M11 ?

Nope.

Despite going back and forwards on the net, I have so far been unable to track down a specification for the Winchester organ's latest incarnation. Can anyone assist, please ?

As Rowland writes, H&H state it will have 67 stops: 24 more than in its Brighton incarnation. This is an increase of more than half the existing number of stops. Currently, Swell and Solo are enclosed. I’ll leave it to others to suggest what this enlargement might include.

Yes. But I can't imagine they will have any difficulty in attracting applicants for such positions in such a glorious building (not mentioning the organs) and with such a great DoM. 2024 looks like it will be a merry-go-round of organ benches.

Again, exactly. What is 'rubbish' to one, is treasure to another. For instance, in the disparate worlds of reclamation by Archaeology and from car boot sales and refuse disposal.

Exactly.

I agree with S_L: on the one occasion (in the 90s) I visited this fabulous church with the orgues being played, I thought I would have concussion, so head-splittingly loud was the volume. As regards the state of the instrument(s), Hyperion released this month a CD of David Briggs's music (with improvisations) recorded in July 2022. In the over a dozen one-minute clips available to listen to for free, it don't sound too bad at all. That's not to say how difficult it was for the performer (Briggs) to achieve this.

"In the 1971 instrument the soundboards were reconfigured so that the organ spoke clearly to the east and west. This effective idea will be perpetuated with a Nave division speaking west."

Sir James has composed a surprising amount of organ music. This only became apparent to me after I had the privilege of being the page-turner for a couple of recordings on this CD [Freak out | Extraordinary music for organ - Regent Records (regent-records.co.uk)] – including the MacMillan. The ‘Rouault’ is a fascinating, kaleidoscopic work which, to me, seems to require an organist equipped with four arms. sjf1967 will, of course, know this, as he recorded it on his wonderful (Apple-linked above) CD [James MacMillan: Organ Works | RES10266 – Resonus Classics & Inventa Records], which I purchased after my trip to Suffolk. Some of these pieces need to be listened to several times for their qualities to become manifest. Until my visit, I had somehow not managed to hear the fabulous Holbrook Grand Organ [NPOR | N00981], despite having lived some twenty miles away. This vast, gorgeous, basilica-esque Chapel (with a second organ in the Choir area) has a reverberation period which rivals St Paul’s Cathedral. If at all possible, I would urge members to make a pilgrimage.

On NPOR as West Auckland: NPOR | E01563. A curiously low roof.