Barry Oakley

Sorry to correct your undoubted knowledge, MM, but John Compton actually died in 1957 which would have made him 81. As I understand it he took considerable interest (although not actively) in the work at Hull City Hall when he was around 76. PS. I knew Jimmy Taylor also died in the 1950's but at the time of posting the above, but could not remember the exact year. In fact it was only a year later than Compton and (by today's standards) at the young age of 66. I have often reflected that had Jimmy Taylor lived at least into his 70's then perhaps the company would not have suffered the collapse that it did. Although I was in my last year at school when the Hull project was coming to its glorious fruition, I felt privileged to have met and spoken to him many times when the work was taking place. Indeed, were it not for my late father, through my interest and contact with him I was all set to become an apprentice with the company with organ lessons thrown in as well.

John Compton was certainly hands-on during the rebuilding and enlargement of Holy Trinity, Hull, circa 1937/38. But Hull City Hall, the rebuilding and enlargement of the war damaged 1911 Forster & Andrews in 1950/51, was entirely under the direction of the equally talented Jimmy Taylor. At that time John Compton was a sick man and the John Compton Organ Company was under the control of JT.

Some years ago I enquired of Alistair Rushworth if R&D had any historical Compton documents. His answer was in the negative although he suggested I made contact with some of the ex Compton people (a very few) who were working for him out in the field. It led nowherevoicer and of those I managed to speak with their comments were more of an anecdotal nature. The most interesting person I was finally able to speak with was the wife of Frank Hancock, Compton's former head reed voicer.

I have always rated Philip very highly ever since I first heard him when he was sub-organist at Southwell many years ago. I rate him much, much higher than his step-father.

Correct me if I'm wrong and I apologise if I am, but something nudges my memory to reflect that Thomas Trotter was involved in a consultancy capacity. I'm not sure if he contributes to this forum but it would be interesting if he could shed some light. But on the matter of Bridgewater's main purpose and in view of the fact that it was well publicised beforehand that the hall was to become the new home of the Halle, I would have thought that music should have been the deciding factor for the architects and acousticians.

The point this topic has reached reminds me of the apparent situation that occurred at Sheffield City Hall in the early 1930’s. Designed by Bairstow and built by Willis III, the organ was a big disappointment to designer and organ builder when the hall was finally opened and the organ heard for the first time. I suspect the circumstances were not dissimilar to the Bridgewater Hall inasmuch that at Sheffield the organ was designed when the hall was in its embryonic stage, perhaps even at a drawing board stage. Having a typical concert hall stoplist the organ remains acoustically dead to this day and accounts for why it is rarely heard as a recital instrument.

Emphaticaly agreed! And what's the betting he's planted someone in the audience who suggests he improvises on a Gershwin theme?

I have to agree with most of what you say, pcnd. There was some, shall I say, difference of opinion when this project kicked off under the direction of William McVicker. When I was in touch with the late Freddie Meynell I understood the prime objective of the church was to get the organ playing again using the stoplist as it presently stands. But as Freddie said to me, “It is a gallon in a pint pot.” I’ve never had the privilege of peering into the restricted chamber and from what I gather the tuner’s physique needed to be that of an anorexic. It is questionable as to whether in the first place (1876) this was the correct choice of organ for Hoar Cross. But with Bangor Cathedral hanging a price tag of £25 from the case it was probably seen as a bargain not to be missed. I am unsure if the present benefactor’s gift is further enhanced by a grant, but there are more than a few instances of grant awarding organisations insisting on what can only be retrograde steps.

The organ at Holy Angels, Hoar Cross, Staffordshire, is to be restored by Bishops to the 1876 specification, thanks to a donation by a generous benefactor. Dismantling is scheduled to happen during early 2012. http://www.npor.org.uk/cgi-bin/Rsearch.cgi...ec_index=N05336

Yes indeed. I had been in touch with Freddie on a number of occasions after he announced on this forum the news of the organ's possible restoration, the last time being in May. I was only thinking earlier today about the project and the fact that I had not heard from him since that time when I discovered he had sadly died.

I heard today that Freddie Meynell, a descendant of the family who built the wonderful Holy Angels Church at Hoar Cross, Staffordshire, had died in May. He was active at the time in assisting the planning of the restoration of the 3-manual 1779 Samuel Green organ, originally installed in Bangor Cathedral. The organ was installed at Hoar Cross in 1876 by J C Bishop. Ironically, a contract for its restoration is presently being negotiated with Bishop & Sons and it is anticipated the work will be completed in a couple of years time. Sadly, Freddie Meynell will not see it come to life again. The present organ, housed in a beautiful case attributed to Bodley, has been worked on and enlarged by a number of organ builders over the years, including Bishop, Conacher Sheffield, and, more latterly, until the early 1980's (when it became unplayable) by Rushworth & Dreaper. I'm am unsure if it will be restored as it is or according to the original Samuel Green specification.

Paul Derrett ("Cynic") is giving a recital tomorrow, Tuesday, 6 September, on the organ of Oxford Town Hall - 1pm to 2pm. Programme: (as published) Elgar - Pomp and Circumstance March No.4 Bach - Toccata ad Fugue in D Minor (Dorian) SS Wesley - Andante in G Alcock - Introduction and Passacaglia S Clarke - Vienna March Dubois - Fiat Lux Dupre - Prelude and Fugue in D Minor

Yes, I did when I referred to Holy Trinity, Hull (24 August), and then went on to suggest that a couple of minutes up Whitefriargate there is an "exquisite Orchestral Trumpet". When I made my suggestions I was not thinking particularly of loudness but more of voicing; although Holy Trinity and the City Hall organs combine voicing with power.

I'm going to nominate Holy Trinity, Hull. Compton produced exquisite reeds and those at HT were voiced by the legendary Billy Jones. And a couple of minutes up Whitefriargate there's another Compton gem in the form of an Orchestral Trumpet.

Played with outstanding panache. I like!

Many years ago I knew the Rudston PC organist that I referred to in an earlier posting on this topic and he once allowed me to enter the organ chamber. As you say, it is a very large organ for a village church, the expansive case occupying just about every bit of available space on the west wall. What struck me about the sound that egressed from the organ was that it had a rather muffled quality and lacked, to my ears, clarity. Having seen inside the chamber I was rather under the impression that the instrument had fallen foul of the whims of an organist with a desire to have almost every tone colour at his disposable yet had little understanding of practicalities and pipe speech. It epitomised the expression, "quart into a pint pot". IMHO the pipe ranks were too close together, preventing correct speech from getting out. The whole chamber was packed to the gunnels. I would have loathed to have been the tuner.

The Sledmere House organ used to be played to the public most Sunday afternoons when the house was open during the season. The person who played it, perhaps still does, was the organist at Rudston parsh church not far from Bridlington.

Not far from where I live is the rather splendid Sandon Hall, twixt Stone and Rugeley, in which there is a house organ. I'm afraid I know nothing about its pedigree and neither is it listed.

It's a beautifully-sounding instrument that was last worked on, I believe, by H&H. My late friend, Peter Goodman, the former city organist at Hull, played it quite regularly on Wednesday afternoons when he lived at nearby Worksop.

Have you thought of trying Wilkinsons?

If the recording was made available by the BBC online and therefore placed in the public domain, and given that the forum member rightfully drew attention to the BBC, the performer and composer, I would have thought it did not contravene copyright. People are cutting, pasting and recording from the radio and television all the time.

Has anyone yet developed speakers that will accurately handle, and I mean accurately handle, 32ft pitch at bottom C (pedal) let alone 64ft? I have some excellent speakers that I can link to my laptop but they could not handle the RAH resultant down at the bottom end.

You can go a whole lot stronger on the Sixsmith rebuild of the 4-manual Hill organ at St Paul's, Newcastle-under-Lyme. Draw the Tibia Liquida and it opens up a cavern of miniatures and lead crystal glasses above the left-hand stop jambs.

I wondered when this topic would move into the realms of parish church organs and I see that Beverley Minster has now entered the scene. Yes, a very fine instrument in a much coveted acoustic. But if I go back 50 years and more and bring the Holy Trinity, Hull, Compton into the equation I can remember a one-time Minster organist expressing the view after giving a recital at Hull that he “wished he had this organ in the Minster”. Alas, and I have written about it before on this forum, it has fallen into an awful state of disrepair, having not been touched since it was completed in 1938. But I first heard it played by Norman Strafford in 1948 when magnificent would have been an inadequate adjective by which to describe it.