DaveHarries

Very sad. I don't live in the area but I love exploring churches, particularly old ones. In this instance, however, one under arrest suspected of arson. It appears from the pictures on BBC News that the tower, spire and outer walls survived, which is something, but the loss of the rest is very sad especially at this time of the year. Organ was II+P/14. NPOR N00467. BBC News links is at https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-derbyshire-55158763 and more details can also be found on the Diocese of Derby website at https://derby.anglican.org/en/news/latest-news/fire-damage-at-mackworth-all-saints-extensive.html which confirms tower, spire and extenal walls are all intact. Dave

Bristol Cathedral are doing online bookings for services. No music booklet for December has yet been produced though but I imagine one will appear soon. It could well be that the chapter, along with our (still fairly new) Dean, are still working it out and you can't rush things in times like those we find ourselves in. I am booked in for the 6pm service this coming Sunday though which is, I believe, planned to be an Advent service of sorts. Dave

What is going on with that fabulous instrument then? Dave

A pity. Presumably the partnership (with Klais of Bonn and Zych of Poland) on the organ at St. Elizabeth, Wroclaw was not keeping them busy enough. Dave

Didn't see a mouse - unless you are imagining things. Saying that I wouldn't blame any mouse for doing that! Dave

Fair enough. Dave

Good luck with getting permission from the church. Some churches, such as my local one - St. Mary's, Stoke Bishop, Bristol (III+P, 1979 Daniel of Clevedon (NPOR D07728) - charge a small fee for it which is understandable. Purely OOI which church is it? Will look them up on the NPOR. Dave

I know what you mean about being able to practice more than once a week between lessons: I wish that I'd had access to a small organ for home use. As it was I started learning at school and, to begin with, used the organ in the school hall (1986 by unknown builder; extension ranks; II+P/18 - NPOR E00643) which my teacher referred to more than once as a "squeezebox" (well, the cases are rather cramped... 😁). Later I was able to use the organ in the school chapel (IV+P/49, H&H 1911/1947/1994/2017 - NPOR A00255) but I then changed schools and had to use the local church in the end which made practice somewhat tricky, especially in the wedding season, and that became trickier after the verger - who used to give me the key out of hours - was made redundant. Anyway does the school your son is at not have a chapel (or school hall) with an organ in? Either way I wish him much luck. Dave

Just had a look on Exeter's website. Luckily they will have Mr. Parsons' talents among them for a while yet as he doesn't move on until April. https://www.exeter-cathedral.org.uk/news-events/latest-news/exeter-cathedrals-assistant-director-of-music-to-take-up-new-role-at-st-edmundsbury/ Dave

My experience of Carillons only goes so far as my being a shortwave radio listener. When it used to broadcast both on shortwave and mediumwave the foreign language services of RNW (Radio Netherlands Worldwide, Hilversum, NL) used to use a tune played on a carillon as their sign on. It can be heard here, along with the carillon in question: RNW is no longer on the air: it closed back in 2012 but was easily one of the best English-speaking stations in Europe. I considered it better than its BBC counterpart. Dave

Thanks for the info. Dave

Quick update on this one. The pew sheet from Southwark Cathedral on 18th October advises that the lunchtime organ concert of 19th October was given by Peter Wright - previously (?) DoM of Southwark Cathedral - who is referred to as Interim DoM of Ripon Cathedral: it seems he will be in post as such until Summer 2021. I say "previously" DoM of Southwark Cathedral with a question mark: it is not clear if his departure from Southwark to Ripon is only until next Summer pending return to Southwark after he finishes at Ripon, unless he obtains the Ripon job on a permanent basis of course. Dave

Westbury-on-Trym, which is not far from me, was renovated in 2011 with the work being done by Skrabl (Slovenia) who now seem to have quite a few organs on our shore (Lyme Regis, for one, which is the only one I have ever seen in the flesh: lovely looking instrument). I don't know if any alterations to the stoplist were made to the Westbury organ by Skrabl though: the NPOR entry (N03846) has some stops marked as "new" but the mention of the renovation is under the same record as the Percy Daniel rebuild of 1965 so it is unclear if PD put them in or Skrabl: I guess the former. Dave

Indeed Paul: I will look forward to that. Dave

At least Canterbury have, by the sound of things, all their choristers in full voice. Certainly doing better than at least one cathedral I can think of where the choristers are not singing services for the whole term! I am also a Cathedral volunteer and missing being on duty. I trust that your sons are enjoying their time as choristers. Dave

Thank you for the correction on the location where that Battle Music was played. I watched HG's series at the time it was first aired and it was great seeing all those historic organs and the fabulous churches which house them. If you get a chance to go to Braga it is worth the visit. When I went to the Cathedral there the gallery at one end was open to visitors and the organ photos I got came out very well. Dave

Bristol's ordinations, delayed from July, are happening on Sunday 04th October, the day after the installation of Rev. Canon Mandy Ford (who recently finished her time as Canon Chancellor of Southwark Cathedral) as Dean of Bristol although I don't know if she will be having a part in that service. Should be interesting although I also don't know if it will be streamed live. Dave

Here is a very nice clip of the organs of Braga Cathedral, Portugal. I was fortunate enough to spend a day in Braga a few years back and the cathedral was a definite highlight. The music in much of this clip featured on Howard Goodall's "Organ Works" programme on TV several years ago when it was played on an organ in, IIRC, Salamanca. The city is considered a major religious centre and was, at least for a time, known as the "Rome of Portugal" (its line of Bishops and Archbishops has, if records are correct, only been broken 3 times since AD45, specifically AD716-1070, 1641-1670 and 1728-1740 according to Wikipedia). The organs date from around 1735-1740. HTIOI, Dave

I went to a service in Norwich once back in 2012: very nice music. Dave

This is well worth hearing. The untouched 1737 Baumeister organ of the Klosterkirche in Maihingen, Germany. Still has original blowing mechanism (as an alternative to electric blowing, I think?), pipework, keyboards and all. Lovely sound. Dave

I had an organ teacher who was convicted of such things but never tried anything on me. I won't mention his name but he was also a member of this forum and, as far as I know, is no longer: I haven't heard anything of him for a long time and have no wish to. My sympathies are always with those who suffer abuse. Dave

The website of Mander Organs survives has now been updated with the contact details for FH Browne as well as a shortened version of the message from Stephen Bayley. Dave

Indeed and I would. Given the space I would indeed love to have a small box organ with an 8ft pedal but which could easily be transported in a van. Manders would certainly be in contention for such a contract. With me, however, space is one object and money is the other! Dave

Excellent news: I wish the new Mander Organs well. Dave

No indeed but those Tubas in Cologne Cathedral are, it would seem, very effective for making the crowd shut up when you are playing! Dave