John Robinson
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Posts posted by John Robinson
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13 hours ago, sbarber49 said:
See Andrew Butler's post in this thread on 4th March. He gives the specification of the 4 rank extension organ as it was in the church where it came from.
This link might get you to the Facebook page:
Thanks. I assume all four ranks as listed were set up in the house as and where they could be fitted!
A principal, a flute, a string and a reed. What more could one ask for?
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8 hours ago, Martin Cooke said:
I have seen the organ given its NPOR identification somewhere on line. I can't find it now but am reasonably confident that if you were to have a quick trawl through this site - https://www.facebook.com/groups/355269498442029/?fref=mentions - I think you'd find it... and lots of other interesting stuff besides - a great and very busy site.
Thanks. I've had a quick look through the site (and have visited several times before), but nothing yet apart from a different house organ which has been recently removed. I'm pretty sure it's a different one anyway. I may have a better look again later.
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53 minutes ago, sbarber49 said:
Now sold - but sadly the organ is probably going to be removed.
'Eccentric' Bristol house with built-in pipe organ is sold - BBC News
A strange layout and, looking at it, rather difficult to reach at least some of the pipes for tuning.
A shame that the new owner wants to ditch the organ. It would be nice to hear that it's up for sale, though. I wonder what the specification might be.
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2 hours ago, robertsharpe said:
We then will move to an inaugural series of recitals where everything will be shown off in its full magnificence.
I'm looking forward to this.
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15 hours ago, S_L said:
I'm sure you are being funny John but, if you're not - I wouldn't bother - because you will be desperately disappointed - musically anyway! And I speak as one who did leave the Church of England and succeeded to Rome! It was a long time ago and, before anyone makes assumptions, it, most certainly, wasn't over the Ordination of women!!!!
I was indeed being funny, as I am an atheist and highly unlikely to join either the RC church or the CofE!
Strange, I suppose, that someone so interested in organs is not in the least bit religious. -
What immediately grated with me was the phrase "comprises of", which estate agents seem to use in preference to the correct alternatives of "comprises" or "is comprised of".
Sorry! Just my hobby horse! -
6 hours ago, Choir Man said:
H&H have added Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral to their extensive worklist.
"The organ’s primary role, however, has been to enhance the daily services of the cathedral, fulfilling the mandate of Vatican II, which stated that ‘[the] pipe organ is to be held in high esteem, for it is the traditional musical instrument which adds a wonderful splendour to the Church’s ceremonies and powerfully lifts up man’s mind to God and to higher things’. Capable of providing gentle aid to prayer or a brassy fanfare for a civic procession, it can accompany anything from a solo chorister to an orchestra and a congregation of thousands."
That's the first time I have heard of that. Bearing in mind how many CofE churches are now going all 'happy clappy', I may decide to become a Roman Catholic! -
Thank you! I hope it all goes smoothly.
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Any more news about the LTH organ rebuild, please?
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Pencils, weights, rubbers?
I believe that Keith Emerson often made use of a knife! 🤨
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I'd go for one of my favourites: Flor Peeters, Lied to the Flowers.
A particularly peaceful and pleasant piece to keep people awaiting the jab nice and calm. (Although if it's like the flu jab it's nothing to worry about.)
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5 hours ago, Vox Humana said:
The honours system has long been utterly devalued by cronyism, such that it is impossible without inside knowledge to distinguish the genuinely deserving (of which I'm happy to count Wayne Marshall as one) from the rest. I have personally known civil servants who were recommend for, and given, gongs for doing nothing more than their routine jobs, simply out of favouritism. These were only minor gongs, to be sure, but that simply reflects the circles in which I revolved, ever decreasingly. I have absolutely no doubt that, at least where political service is concerned, the same principles apply right to the top of the tree.
I have heard it claimed that the process of devaluation began when Harold Wilson gave gongs to the Beatles and that it was a deliberate Socialist policy. I have no idea about that, but it does rather seem that, outside the mutual back-rubbing cliques, gongs are very much weighted towards those held in high, popular esteem. Indeed, we now have a system for public nomination. Sadly, the talent in our organ lofts is of no interest to most of the public and not regarded as of national importance, so they no longer get a look-in. Perhaps you can't have it both ways. The more you give gongs to those who are not well known publicly, the more you may be accused of cronyism.
I would happily abolish the whole system. It wouldn't damage my lifestyle.Excellent post!
I don't really take much interest in who has been awarded this and who has been awarded that, but I'd hazard a guess that if examined closely it would demonstrate more than just an element of Londoncentricism!
As for the peerage and the House of Lords, I see it these days as nothing more than a free and comfortable retirement home for politicians and their cronies. -
15 hours ago, Vox Humana said:
It reminds me of the time one of our local Methodist churches was having a make-over. The builders advised ditching the speakers of the antiquated II/P Allen boopbox, assuring one of the stewards that the church's sound system could cope with the organ perfectly well. Needless to say the steward didn't seek the organist's advice, but agreed on the spot. The church has been regretting it ever since. (I appreciate that Contrebombarde's situation was an emergency.)
Yes. Two completely different types of speaker system of course.
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On 09/01/2021 at 22:07, Contrabombarde said:
The"box" is at its simplest merely a MIDI to USB converter cable such as Roland/Edirol UM1 costing around £20. A cheap laptop should allow you to play Grand Orgue or j-organ freeware or Hauptwerk if you want to pay for better sound. Plug keyboard into laptop via MIDI to USB adaptor, configure the software and away you go. For a multikeyboard professional setup you would want something fancier though.
I once literally had to do it on the fly when our church's electronic organ conked out in the afternoon of the Nine Lessons and Carols, installing HW onto a spare laptop and plugging the church's sound system into the laptop headphone socket.. Everyone commented on how much better the organ sounded tgan usual!
That reminds me of the lady sitting next to me at the first recital on the new Manchester Cathedral organ, who asked me where the speakers were.
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Relieved and grateful to see the forum back up today after having disappeared at the beginning of 2021.
Thank you to whomever was responsible for getting it back up and running.
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6 hours ago, SlowOrg said:
There are also cheaper, similar options which I would consider, especially if I didn't have a proper organ console. First there is Organteq, but of course one shouldn't forget about GrandOrgue which is totally free! I would probably try one of these first.
M
Thank you SlowOrg.
Can I assume that these (once uploaded on to a computer) can be used with any keyboard having a MIDI function?I'll pass these suggestions on.
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Thank you David. That is very helpful.
Only MIDI in and out, no through I'm afraid, but the encouraging thing is that Hauptwerk appears to be usable. Pedal board and swell pedal might come later.
I'll pass on the information. Thanks again.
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A friend of ours is thinking about buying a Yamaha CP88 with a view to him 'relearning the piano'. He is also interested in possibly looking at learning to play the pipe organ.
I see that the unit he is thinking about includes MIDI in and out, and I am wondering whether I should mention Hauptwerk as a possible add-on.
I know little about Hauptwerk other than the fact that some organists use it in their homes as a practice instrument.
I assume that it is a matter of buying a 'box' of some sort and that this can be connected, via MIDI, to any electric keyboard. Is this true? Assuming this is a viable option, can anyone offer any further advice, please?
Of course, there are limitations: a single 88 note keyboard, no pedal board, no swell pedal, etc. -
Good idea.
Perhaps an alternative game would be to ask for participants to choose one church or concert hall and get to keep the instrument (and the building it is housed in, of course)!
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13 hours ago, Choir Man said:
If building works are taking place, then it's sensible to wrap the organ to prevent the ingress of building dust. I believe that there are some organ builders that specialise in this, and that it is also possible to wrap the organ in a way that leaves it playable
Yes. They did that at York Minster some years ago.
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11 hours ago, john carter said:
Forum members may not be aware that, without a TV licence, you cannot legally watch any live television online, including Now TV, Amazon Prime or YouTube live streams of broadcasts. The restriction is not limited to BBC i-player.
A licence is not required to listen to BBC Radio or BBC Sounds which are, of course, paid for by those of us who spend less than 50p per day on the cost of the licence. For comparison, the cost of the Times newspaper is £2 per day (£1.10 for subscribers).
Plenty on catch-up (not live!), Prime and Netflix. In fact, a great deal more than on live TV these days.
Of course, the Nine Lessons and Carols will be available on Radio 3 which, as you say, does not need a TV licence. -
10 minutes ago, John Robinson said:
Posted in error.
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13 hours ago, MikeK said:
I would be interested to know how you managed to record the King's Service if you don't have a licence?
I cancelled my BBC Tax earlier this year. I have recorded Nine Lessons and Carols several times over the past years. I particularly like certain carols which crop up now and again. To be perfectly honest, I don't really listen to the lessons (or readings!).
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21 hours ago, wolsey said:
Apologies for being pedantic, but the recorded televised service (Carols from King's) does not have nine readings, nor are they all from scripture.
True, but the recordings I have are of what I have always referred to as the Nine Lessons and Carols. I'm really not sure whether the 'lessons' are actually lessons or readings, as they are of little interest to me. It's the music I like.
Organ for sale (with terraced house attached)
in General discussion
Posted
Looking at the picture, the only things visible seem to be the pipes from the stopped wood rank 'B'
If anything was enclosed (in the house) I imagine it might have been the 'C' rank (strings) or the reeds, though I can't see any sign of a swell pedal in the photo.