Christopher Price

The only Hele I've come across personally is a 2-manual at Headley, near Bordon in Hampshire. A very pleasant job it was too. CP

Won't bother- methinks t'will all be far too fast as usual!! CP

For members that may not have seen any of Jonathan's performances on u-tube, may I commend them to you! He is a true virtuoso, and his interpretations of transcriptions are the equal of those we have heard from the likes of Thomas Trotter or David Briggs. Technique, filming quality, and stunning musicality are all there in abundance, and when he duets with his brother.....wow!! CP

This seemd to be largely useless to me- I played both it, and the temporary Makin, and I know which one I preferred. The Church no doubt would find a suitable home, but the Cathedral was not it! CP

The 'orchestral' third manual, in both name or nature, was a Colonel George Dixon hallmark (St.James Whitehaven, St.Bees Priory etc) though not perhaps unique to him? CP

Recital to be given by yours truly at Radford Road Church, Leamington Spa on Saturday 10th Sept, 7.30pm. Admission £5, available on the door. Proceeds to the Organ Fund, programme as follows:- Praeludium in Cma- JC Kellner Arioso- Bach Trumpet Tune- Stanley Grand Choeur Dialogue- Gigout Andantino- Franck Cantilene- Rheinberger Adagio from Symphonie 3- Vierne Melody- Dawes Andantino- Lemare Tuba Tune- CS Lang Pacques Fleuries- Mailly Benediction Nuptiale- Saint-Saens Toccata- Widor CP

This very problem seems to have beset the church of St.Wilfrid, Grappenhall near Warrington, where until the early 1970's they had a four-manual that was grossly out of proportion to the building and its needs! A past vicar had wasted a great deal of money on enlarging it, along with expenditure on other useless items, all in a personal campaign to get his deeds recognised. The organist may have played his part (excuse the pun) and what they have now is far more sensible! CP

I also commend you for your willingness to serve in this way. I too lost my own mother a few months ago, and on the basis that the only music available would be 'a lady on a keyboard' I promptly stood in and provided pre-recorded hymns and suitable music from our own church organ, 140 miles away. The tiny church where the funeral was held has no proper instrument, and the congregation was made up of those known to me as hearty singers so they needed a decent accompaniment. It worked a treat! CP

The new H&H at St.Edmundsbury has two superb reeds on the Solo- the Trumpet would be a Tuba on most organs, and the Tuba? GOSH!! CP

I played at St.Ed's on Tuesday evening after Evensong. James was most welcoming, and the organ truly fabulous, especially those two big Solo reeds! My wife was a little anxious going up the tight spiral stairs, and I was quite surprised at the roominess of the loft, which helped to offset the feelings of being so high up. The double swell pedal arrangement is very clever, though one has to get used to it, and as usual the console is a model of H&H comfort. I highly reccommend a visit. St.Mary's next door has a bigger instrument, but this is let down by its cramped chamber, and the lack of acoustics in the building- a surprise given the size of the church! CP

We used to have one from an old Ford Transit van! Very good view in it, but a bit inelegant! CP

Most of what has been posted so far seems to ring true with the Burnley organ, and this example may be a smaller version than others. There are no reeds, the ranks as far as I can deduce were mostly Flutes 16-2', Dulciana 8'&4', a second flute on the Positive, and a rank of conical pipes on the Great. There was no conventional Open 8' but I may have noticed a Principal rank from 4' up. It would have taken longer than we had available to work out what was what, although it was obviously on extended ranks. CP

A pal of mine from Cumbria is a keen potholer, I'll bet you know him! Mentioning no names without his permission, but he works at Sellafield, and is a good organist as well. CP

Our association visited some organs in Burnley yesterday, among which at St.Mary's RC there was an extension organ apparently by Willis, though not labelled as such. All the evidence was there- the tabs, voltmeter, etc, and the instrument was interesting in several ways. Of two manuals, but without a swell box, there were no more than six or seven ranks, with all pipework in metal, stopped 8's for the 16', sub/super octave transfers, and very pleasant 'classical' voicing. Sadly, the organ appears to be little used, and as the tuning was quite awful in places one would presume it hasn't been attended to for some time! It may date from the 1950's, and takes the form of an un-cased pair of semi-circular chests, with the central 16's at floor level, and the Positive to the rear. The detached console stands directly in front. This organ seems to have been provided as replacement for the still-extant (though nearly-defunct) 1855 G&D on the west gallery, itself an interesting job with all swell ranks to TC only, and a single large-scale Pedal Diapason. The preservation order on this is the only reason it is still there, and even the Willis is unused, replaced by a quite new cheap 'baroque' toaster, devoid of pistons, but capable of playing itself! Does anyone have any knowledge of similar Willis jobs to this one? CP

I've got the opportunity to play the new H&H at St.Edmundsbury soon. The console looks to be a long way up! Anyone been up there yet, and what is that like? CP