Martin Cooke

Well, from the website, it looks as though "it's all happening." Not my scene in terms of church and music but it looks lively and busy which is more than can be said for many churches, unfortunately.

Yes - both will be very interesting - and we mustn't forget Robert Sharpe's most generous offer to host us at York one day!

Very interesting, David. Henry IV tried to sell me something akin to this once - it was a bit like someone going into a car showroom to look at a Jaguar being told they'd be ok with a used Bedford Beagle. (Those were the days!). And I believe there is one in a church just up the road here in Wiltshire. In all seriousness, HW's suggestion wasn't, at the time, going to be adequate for a school chapel full of lusty singers, but I can certainly see this one's attractions as a practice instrument... I think. The question for me is, assuming I had the space, would I rather have something like this as a practice instrument, pure and beautiful sounding, I expect, but with limited tonal possibilities, or a 2/3 manual Viscount, assuming I had the funds. I suppose it's apples and pears to some extent - the pipe organ would take up a lot of room, but the Viscount would cost a lot more money... and so on... I certainly wouldn't write off extension organs. I played a Walker for four years and it was extraordinary how versatile it was, but it was one of the bigger ones. The biggest weakness for me was the Lieblich rank which served (until Willises fettled a 16ft bottom octave for the trumpet rank when they rebuilt it) as the only 16ft. It really was very weak - great to go with the quiet stuff, but when you had the full swell coupled to the two unenclosed diapason ranks on the great, it was inadequate. But, all in all, a great and very enjoyable compromise.

And Joseph Wicks (ADoM) is leaving Truro Cathedral to go freelance - https://www.trurocathedral.org.uk/news/leaving-truro-cathedral.

Thanks, Damian - really interesting and nicely presented by Fraser - well worth watching!

Yes - but also a relief to see that you are not lost to us, pcnd - and I am sure I speak for all your old forum friends.

I don't know about you, but over the years, I have often gone to IMSLP and typed in 'Organ'. This results in a lot of time wasting - especially if you are not a member and have to wait 15 seconds for every download - that's something I have also put right this weekend. [I am correct in thinking that you cannot search in IMSLP for both Organ and Composer, aren't I? In my experience, when you type in Organ you tend to get a list of titles of music without an indication as to who the composer is.] Anyway, a good way to cut down on the time wasting... Before you go to IMSLP, type 'Organ Music composers' into Google. You will be presented with a Wiki article with composers listed by nation and era - like this. So, suppose you go to France... Romantic... you will find, for example, François Benoist. Then, in a new Google window, you open up IMSP and search for him and proceed as normal. You can then continue juggling between your two windows and I have found some real treasures.

I haven't followed this thread at all closely, but I spotted an announcement yesterday that will interest Compton devotees - http://www.stbrides.com/news/2019/05/-harrison-harrison-appointed-for-imminent-organ-repair.html

Yes, this same chap I mentioned did this too.

Ah! The fellow I'm talking about had been brought up in the Methodist tradition - that may be part of the answer!

... used to put all the stops in whilst holding the last chord of every hymn so that we would go from something like Great to 15th + Full Swell and pedals down to the Swell Lieblich in a frantic decrescendo. I can't think where he picked up this quaint idea.

Mmm... not sure there is much by Ms Ashford that I shall want to play... but the website - (here it is again) - is definitely one that needs a good rummage - maybe a bit of a treasure trove of unusual pieces.

Ah - yikes! - a poke around on that website yields this - loads of pieces by Emma Louise Ashford! I haven't looked at any of them yet, but thought I would 'share' quickly!!

... which is available here.

And although most her pieces are miniatures, many are real gems which are ideal for church organists for service use. It was only a slip of the mind that meant I did not include her in my opening post on this topic - I have played many of her pieces and will continue to do so.

... a little piece called Adoration which is on IMSLP.

If you haven't had a look at the H&H site recently, you can now see a new set of pics of the new console for Canterbury cathedral - go to Gallery - Canterbury - Console - April 2019. It's going to be what we Cornish types call "an 'andsome job!"

I've seen some unsurprising expressions of disappointment and incredulity recently at the lack of inclusion of the works of women composers in such things as the Proms programme and in the Classic FM Hall of fame - in this latter example, I understand that just one of 300 works is by a woman. The excellent DoM of Pembroke College, Cambridge, is including a work by a woman in every service this term in chapel and it is going to take more of this sort of determination to bring about change. Where are we with women composers of organ music? I play music by Ethel Smyth - in fact, I have gone to the trouble of transcribing two of the Choral Preludes that in their published version uses tenor clef so that I can perform them. I also play some pieces by Rebecca Groom te Velde which OUP has published over the last ten years or so in various albums, and Rosalie Bonighton is always worth a look in the Kevin Mayhew volumes. Then I have a piece by Florence Durrell Clarke which I don't play. There is some fabulous music by Rachel Laurin which sounds too difficult for me, and I bought a new piece by Judith Weir last year which I didn't really take to, if I'm honest, but after that, I am struggling a bit. Could we try to submit names we know of female organ music composers even if we don't play them? And... could we all try to recommend and provide sources for pieces we do know and play so that they can become better known? I am happy to help pinpoint the pieces mentioned here in a bit more detail, but will have to leave my armchair to do so! Can we do this?

I have had an email from a sheet music supplier that I have dealt with in the past, called Presto Sheet Music. They are offering a great deal of music published by OUP and Breitkopf at a 25% discount at the moment so it's a great opportunity to catch up. Can I stress that I have absolutely no connection with either of these publishers nor with Presto? However, think of the new B&H Bach series, all that Reger, Karg-Elert, Buxtehude etc that B&H publish! And could this be the opportunity you have been waiting for to buy some of the excellent OUP Hymn Settings for Organists volumes? I thoroughly recommend these - (and have done in the past.) There are some delightful items in Lent and Passiontide and also in Easter and Ascension, as there are in all of them. True, as in all albums, there are some duds as well, but all in all, if you're looking for some new service music, look no further. If you want to look ahead, you won't be disappointed with the Advent and Christmas volume - several specials herein!

I'm going to be digging out my ancient, waxy photocopy (70s) of Hommage à Pérotin by Myron Roberts to play before the 0930 on Easter Day and I think the Boellmann Prière á Notre Dame needs an outing as well.

I don't know the Romsey set up at all and have never heard any of the choirs, but the whole musical thing there looked astonishingly good - just what any thinking church would want to encourage and a great example of music being central to church life. Great to see... and to be part of, I imagine!

Great project... excitingly and fully portrayed on website. Festival looks spot on too! Cousans look amazing!

Well said, and welcome to the forum, both of you. Excellent to have two new members like this and I am sure all us 'oldies' look forward to hearing more from you as time goes on.

If only someone had said this to me... or better still... made me do it... You need to take your time but not waste the time, if you see what I mean. With the tests, the only way to face up to them is to start with very easy stuff... be secure in doing the easy stuff... and move on a notch at a time. So, 15/30 minutes a day, every day. The great thing about doing this now, if I may say, is that you have the benefit of wisdom and maturity. Whereas if you start too young, as I did, and are indisciplined, (as I was), then it all gets nowhere. I think folk can sometimes be lulled into a false sense of security about the pieces which are usually not at all difficult. I remember that I played the Bach Allebreve in D, for example, in my one failed attempt at ARCO in 1976. That isn't the hardest piece in the world by any stretch of the imagination - probably about ABRSM grade VI. But, whereas, with the ABRSM, you could probably get a decent mark by playing the notes and possibly playing a few wrong ones, we all know there is so much more to it than that... and you will be assessed by three people who are absolutely masters of their art who are looking for advanced musicianship and organ mastery. It would be wise to check the assessment criteria, by the way. Again, comparison with ABRSM may not be helpful - it isn't, for example when it comes to comparing Grade VIII and the A-level recital requirements, for example. If in any doubt about how well you need to play in the ARCO exam, find the video about it on the RCO website. You will see a young woman playing her way through a mock ARCO exam, pieces and tests. She is as master of it all - confident and secure, in all aspects.

There's no secret about the idea of returning to a screen organ at St Paul's and I for one do not think it would have been desirable given the size of events that St Paul's has to accommodate and the need to keep an 'all through' nave-chancel design. In terms of what was achieved in 1972-77 and subsequently, it surely has to be one of the most successful rebuilds of a large instrument ever. I don't think it was blinkered of the cathedral authorities not to pursue the screen organ idea taking all the needs and circumstances into account and I would hope that nobody was or is disappointed or frustrated.