Tony Newnham

Hi If you mean Whitworth's "Cinema & Theatre Organ" then I have a copy in my library. Or is there another one? In comment on a later post, I played a couple of Compton Theatre organs earlier in the year, and you can make a pretty respectable Compton church organ sound - and if the trems of their church organs are heavy enough, the reverse is also true. Every Blessing Tony

Hi I bought my copy from Mrs Elvin - I assume she was trying to clear stock and had advertised in one of the organ magazines. I think Roger Molyneux had the remaining stock - try www.organmusic.org.uk or e-mail rogermolyneux@organmusic.org.uk Every Blessing Tony

Thanks - I've passed that info to the person on another list who was asking. Every Blessing Tony

Hi Andrew David Wylde at Willis' is the person to ask. He's on this list, so might get an answer - if not, contact him direct. Every Blessing Tony

Hi According to NPOR it was supposed to go to Greenwich - probably room G46 - the source of the info is a well respected organ builder, but that was in 2001. Maybe someone changed their mind? Please let NPOR know if you discover the fate of the organ. Every Blessing Tony

Hi I think the organ at Bolton Abbey orriginally had a hydraulic blower, using waqter drawn from the enarby river, if that's the case, it may never have had hand-blowing feeders. A number of Yorkshire organs had hydraulic blowers at one time - does anyone know of a complete example still in situ? Every Blessing Tony

Hi Sadly, so it seems, and lack of records makes the job much harder. Every Blessing Tony

Hi Hope-Jones, yes, but not Robert but his brother who was an eminant horologist. See the fascinating article on Colin Pykett's web site http://www.pykett.org.uk/ - at present there's a link on the first page to the article. I concur with MM that a biography is well overdue - the problem being finding someone with the becessary skills and time to write it! Every Blessing Tony

Hi There a a couple of web sites dedicated to Compton organs - on the Theatre Organ side there's Ivor Buckingham's Compton List, for the electronics there's the snappily named Compton Melotones and Electrostatic Organs:- http://uk.msnusers.com/ComptonMelotonesand...trostaticOrgans and there's a similar site for Compton Pipe Organs:- http://www.msnusers.com/ComptonPipeOrgans Then there's http://www.musicalmuseum.co.uk/compton.html And there may well be others - that's just what I've come across. There's also the chapter in Elvin's "Pipes and Actions" which was mentioned the other day, and articles in the period magazines - The Organ has one about John Compton's wartime activities in Italy and another about the COmpton Miniaturas (and there may well be others - those are what I can remember seeing in my collection). I don't know if any Compton factory records survive - I suspect any at Rushworth's were destroyed along with that firm's records recently. There's plenty to go at - and the time to write a biog. is probably now, while there at least a few people with first-hand memories to talk to. Any takers? Every Blessing Tony

Hi It's possible that there are errors (and missing stops) - the survey hasn't been checked and finalised yet. If it had been an update of an existing survey, you wouldn't be able to access it on te public site until the checking is finished. I'll be revisiting it today - hopefully be this evening it will be correct to the information that we have. Every Blessing Tony

Hi How about that for service - the survey of the C-C in it's original form was only added to NPOR (by me) last Friday! Every Blessing Tony

Hi I did know about the Annessens - not the Walcker, and I did know of the former 4-manual in Manningham. Every Blessing Tony

Hi There will almost certainly be a redundant ex. Methodist (currently Ukrainian Catholic) church building with a 3/36 Abbott & Smith organ still in situ (organ unused since the 1960's) just round the corner from here! (Not to mention that there will be several ex-Catholic buildings available in Bradford soon. Sadly, we can't offer much in the waqy of historic organs - there was too much money floating about in the Victorian era! Every Blessing Tony

Hi What about Holst's Duet for Trombone and Organ ( recording on Naxos 8.553716). I have a piano & trombone version of the score - one of these days my eldest son & I will play it. Every Blessing Tony

Hi I know a few Christians who wish this miracle wasn't in the Bible! The attitudes to alcohol actually reflect the Victorian temperance movements more than the Bible's teaching, which is not to get drunk. (Incidentally, I don't think that the Cana story says that anyone got drunk! - wedding celebrations could last several days) The wine was, in my opinion, wine, not grape juice - and I hate the use of Ribena for communion. From preference, I would use real red wine - but we have, at present, to compromise on grape juice here because of the hang-over from the Victorian ideas - hopefully it will change at some point. Every Blessing Tony

Hi The same old hoary chestnuts! If you actually look properly at the evidence (and ignore the patent rubbish of Dan Brown and his ilk) the contents of the New Testament werfe pretty much settled by common usage long before the Council of Nicea. I've read some of the writings of modern scholars - and it's often clear from their conclusions that they have preconceived ideas (e.g. that miracles don't happen, so they must be later additions). As far as I'm concerned, the Bible is the inspired word of God. Obviously not all is literally true - the parables are obviously fictional stories used to make a point. There are some issues with translation - but that's a different matter - and we're in danger of getting into deep theology, which isn't what this list is about! Every Blessing Tony

Hi NIV (simply because it's what I can access on my computer easily). As for your appearance on the day of judgement - could be entertaining - but probably not. The Last Judgement is serious business. Every Blessing Tony

Hi I don't know where you get your info from - but I suggest you check the Bible before making statements that can't be substantiated. Satan is named in the Old Testament (1 Chron & Job for a start) and in the New Testament - Jesus addresses him by name in the temptation episode, so don't try and pretend that he's a later accretion. I'd rather accept what God says - anything else could be rather uncomfoprtable on judgement day! Evil is real. If Satan doesn't exist and there's no power of evil, then the whole basis of religion disappears. Every Blessing TOny

Hi I'm not surprised you had trouble finding theological problems in Kendrick's songs, as I happen to know that they are vetted by at least one highly qualified minister (as are some other contemporary writers works). As you rightly point out, Kendrick is an evangelical, and that inevitably shows in his writing. To look at your specific example MP 15 & 219. The concept of Satan as Lord of the earth comes from the Bible - so you can't call it heretical! (1 Cor 12:10; Jn 12:31; 14:30; to quote just a couple of verses). All heaven waits is primarily a call to prayer, He That is In Us is a reminder of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit that gives us the ability to walk in God's ways - both mainstream Christian doctrines. Yes - the earth is God's creation, and was created good - but the (currently unpopular) concept of spiritual warfare is also a part of the picture. Turning to the individualism issue, again a Biblical concept (Matt 10:30 illustrates God's knowledge and concern for individuals). Having said that, it's something that is emphasised more in Evangelical circles (and hence something I don't have an issue with) - I feel that there needs to be a balnce here which sometimes is missed by service planners. Actually, there are a good many traditional hymns - especially from the evangelical side - that are individualistic (I Need Thee Every Hour springs to mind). Indeed, you don't have to look far in Kendrick's writings to see the corporate nature of our Christian fellowship - MP 162 (From Heaven You Came); 427 (Lord, Come and Heal Your Church); 509 (O Lord, the Clouds are Gathering); 579 (Restore, O Lord) to quote just a handful. I can't think of any hymn or worship song which expresses a whole, balanced Christian doctrine - it would be far to long to be of any practical use! It's inevitable that certain songs/hymns will show a bias to one or two aspects of teaching. The real art is in service planning to maintain, as far as possible, an overall balance whilst also supporting the theme and aims of the particular act of worship - and that holds good whatever tradition (or mix of traditions) are involved. Every Blessing Tony

Hi There's an article in The Organ no.41 (July 1931). In summary, he was born Flaxton nr. York 1886. Deputy organist at Stockton-on-Forest aged 11 Organist of St. Dennis, York age 14 Wesleyan Chapel, Selby St. Helen's Dringhouses (also a school teacher) 1909 - organist of St. Peter RC, Lancaster (later the Cathedral) 1910 also Municipal Organist Lancaster Town Hall 1915 took B.Mus London Uni military service - returned to Lancaster after war Mus.D. Lond 1924 The only info I can find on the web is http://www.cathedral.plus.com/Organ.html His name (according to the Organ) is Dr. J.H. Reginald Dixon. I seem to remember reading article by him in The Organ, but could be mistaken. Hope this helps Every Blessing Tony

Hi I agree with you (although we may not agree on what is good and bad music!) - but if you look back into old hymn books, it's always been this way - the best survives, and the not so good drops out of favour. This is already happening with some contemporary worship songs - not a lot of the Fisherfolk's music has survived in common use, nor some of the early material in books like "Scripture in Song" (both 1970's-80's) -and going further back, I cringe at some of the things in Youth Praise these days - but all these books served a valid purpose in their day of making it possible for people to worship in ways that were culturally relevant. Every Blessing Tony

Hi You may not personally like Kendrick et al style of music - that's fine - but I challenge you to quote say half a dozen examples of Kendrick songs with theologically unsound lyrics. And just because something is "evangelical" doesn't mean it's claptrap. And why not accept new things - God is a God of creativity - and if the church hadn't changed, we would be worshipping in Aramaic (the language of the first apostles) and using music in Ancient Greek/Roman style. Every Blessing Tony

Hi I heard most of it (missed the first 15 mins or so). Interesting concept. To my mind, contemporary language would have been more approriate. As others have said, it was rather stilted - musicians from the Jazz tradition would probably have been a better choice. Some of the accompaniments (piano & Hammond organ) reminded me of the evangelistic crusades of the last century (Billy Graham, etc) The organ playing under the prayers again sounded a little stilted - that derives from Black Gospel traditions -and is sometimes done in contemporary christian music settings (I've done it at times when it's been appropriate). I can't recall a jazz choral evensong before, but jazz-infulenced services were around in the latter half of last century - and didn't Duke Ellington write a jazz mass? Now - what about a CCM evensong? Some settings already exist of psalms and the canticles. Every Blessing Tony

Hi There are a few around - I've dealt with some on NPOR. One example I can think of is (was?) Rye Methodist Church in Sussex, that has gt, sw & ped at the front of the building and the choir dept at the rear - not sure if there are any pedal stops at the back. St. Paul's Cathedral has bits of organ in several places and a number of other cathedrals have a choir department away from the rest of the instrument (e.g. Guildford). Then there#s the seperate Nave organs in some places - plenty of precedent. Every Blessing Tony

Hi It looks to me like the sort of children's hymn that could be lurking in "Golden Bells" or something similar from that era. Sorry - I don't have a copy in my collection of old hymn books. There is a tune called David in several books - but it's the wrong metre for these words. Have fun! Every Blessing Tony