Aeron Glyn Preston
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Posts posted by Aeron Glyn Preston
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I like the idea of the "secret switch" mentioned in the Rutt organ's spec here.
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It was Henry Lincoln who started building the first organ, but the technical challenges proved too difficult, so William Hill was called in to finish the job.
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For interest, here is T. C. Lewis's paper about organ tone.
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I have the sad news to report that David Gedge, former organist of Brecon Cathedral, died peacefully this morning in Glangwili Hospital, having had a stroke a few days before. The funeral arrangements have not yet been announced. May he rest in peace.
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Please forgive my exhuming an old thread, but within the last year I have become acquainted with a fine instrument by this firm, at All Saint's Church in Newbridge-on-Wye. The Swell Bourdon and Keraulophon have been disabled (you can't even pull out the drawstops), but the rest is working pretty well. Earlier in the thread, someone remarked on the somewhat crude controls - this is certainly true of this organ, for the key action is pretty heavy, and quite deep; the pedal action is not particularly easy either. However, the sound of the instrument does more than compensate for these shortcomings. The four 8fts on the Great do not seem wasteful in the slightest, and offer a wide range of colour. The Open Diapason on the Great is rich and round, but also sings nicely; the Diapason chorus on the Great has power and colour without either shreaking or being too heavy. The pairing of Salicional and Voix Celeste on the Swell is ravishing, and the Full Swell is a pleasing if not thrilling sound. It is definitely worth playing if you find yourself in the area.
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From my knowledge of Conachers, this must be a splendid instrument. I do hope that it will be restored to use!
Paul Hale has been consulted on a rebuild, and we are currently raising funds.
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Irritatingly, on the instrument in my own church (sadly not in use at the moment), there is only the "Large Open Diapason". It would be so much more useful if there were a Small Open Diapason that fitted better with the Principal and Fifteenth.
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Dymunaf Ddydd Gwyl Dewi Hapus i'n cyfranwyr Cymraeg hefyd!
(From a real McCoy Welshman!
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I remember having to teach the choir at St John's some Welsh for the anthem "Dyrchafaf fy llygaid" by T. Hopkin-Evans, which was for a St David's Day Evensong. The result can be heard here. The choir did a pretty good job of the Welsh. The Dean made a hash of announcing the name, giving the impression that he couldn't give a flying proverbial. (Is being anti-Welsh the last acceptable racism?!) In the same service, the choir sang the Mathias Jesus College Service - I am particularly fond of the Gloria.
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Could this be it?
http://www.npor.org.uk/NPORView.html?RI=A01167
http://www.npor.org.uk/NPORView.html?RI=G01801
I only know it because I saw Paul Derrett installing it in its new home. It's not far from Shrewsbury.
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Any luck, Mr Farr?
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Very kind, thank you!
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Good evening all! I have a slightly unusual question for you to get your heads around.
I first discovered Leighton's Communion Service in D major, op. 45, in a Presbyterian Hymnal in a chapel where I used to practise the organ. This was obviously only the congregational version. I quite liked it, and so decided to buy the choral version from OUP, only to find that the Gloria was rather different! In the choral version, the Gloria, in 3/4, is at the end (following the BCP order), and is clearly written to be so, whereas the version in the hymnal, in 4/4, strikes me as being more suitable for the Gloria in its position after the Absolution, following modern liturgical practice. Both are clearly part of the same set, with motifs linked to the other movements, but I would be keen to find the 4/4 Gloria in its choral form, if it exists. Does anyone know how it may be obtained please?
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How I wish now that I had gone to John's recital at Hereford Cathedral during this year's 3 Choirs Festival. It was a date which was mildly inconvenient for me and to my regret I gave in to laziness.
I went to this recital, having heard some of the St John's choral scholars speak of him in glowing terms when I studied there - quite a number had been choristers at St Paul's under his direction. It did not disappoint. The playing was superlative, though I wasn't all that keen on the Lemare that he played - a bit cheesy for my taste!
What impressed me particularly was his kindness and patience in talking to the very long line of people (including me!) waiting to speak to him after the recital. To me, this spoke volumes about his character. I feel honoured to have met him.
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This organ has 10 speaking stops and 534 pipes. The seller says it is in Brecon but there is no NPOR entry for a Speechly organ there, even though s/he gives a screenshot of what looks like part of a web page taken from NPOR.
Could it be Gary Owens's firm who have collected it somewhere and are selling it on? He's based in Brecon.
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Duh! Sorry, didn't see the original notes, because I looked after the sale and didn't see the link. Apologies.
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To go on a slightly different tack, the instrument that used to be in Selwyn College Chapel before the Létourneau organ is still redundant after 10 years. What is/was it like? It says on NPOR that it was a rebuild of an organ by Holdich.
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Other pointless stops - why would you have say a twelth and a sesquialtera when you could have a twelth and a seventeenth and just draw them both if you wanted a cornet? And why would you have a twelth and a fifteenth in addition to a III rank mixture that starts 12, 15.....?
I was going to mention the Seventeenth as a stop that should perhaps more often be included on the Great - as long as there's an accompanying Twelfth. I've seen a few Sesquialteras 12.17 starting at Tenor C, such as in the organ at the Prichard-Jones Hall in Bangor University. I had thought that Sesquialteras were an optional chorus stop as well as to be used for solos (with suitable foundations), so does not having one from Tenor C up only defeat the point a bit?
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Do tell, Colin!
On another note, is there a stop that people would like to see much more often on organs than they normally do?
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Today, as I was practising for a performance of this work on Good Friday, I realised how such oft-derided stops such as the Dulciana could come into their own in certain passages, or even other quiet narrow-scaled flue stops like the Keraulophon. Any thoughts on this?
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I once accompanied Stainer's The Crucifixion on this chamber organ! The only little trick that I used was to wedge the bottom F with a biro for the pedal point at the end of King Ever Glorious (the big tenor aria, I've forgotten its name!). This means that you can play the chords with two hands, giving it plenty of oomph! It was a huge advantage that this organ is enclosed.
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This may be of interest.
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Most bizarre specifications?
in General discussion
Posted
I came across this organ recently - it strikes me as an eccentric specification.