DouglasCorr
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Posts posted by DouglasCorr
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There is also a new Hyperion CD of Peeter’s organ music due out in January - D'Arcy Trinkwon playing the organ of Tonbridge School Chapel.
I wonder if this comes with a health warning? Last year the IAO Congress visited Tonbridge School - Simon Preston gave an excellent recital - but the volume of the organ was almost unbearable - I can't imagine why anyone would want an organ as loud as this one! It goes on my list of organs not to hear again...
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There is, of course, a direct influence on classical organs which came from the Fairground organ, so far as I know. It is the use of the "Freine Harmonique" or "Harmonic Bridge", which I understand to have been introduced by Gavioli.
MM
According to Wikipedia the Gavioli firm started in Italy in 1806 and had offices in Paris from 1850s. I wonder what interaction there may have been with Paris based church organ builders of this era, for example Cavaille Coll.
As fairground organs are out in the open and in a noisy environment, quite a lot of power is required to be heard, did Gavioli have any unique ways to produce the volume of sound necessary in the reeds and flue pipes and did this migrate into church organ building?
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With the massive insurance payout that the University will get for the disastrous situation, the organ may well go back into the hall. At the moment an electronic instrument will come to the rescue for the Graduations and various carol services etc.
This seems to me not so much of a disaster, but a foreseeable eventuality, particularly in light of the previous flood. It's shocking that there were apparently no procedures in place to check that the pumping equipment was always operating correctly.
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for those that have only lived in the post transistor age my message of April 15 2008 will provide additional explanation....
"My late toaster really was a toaster!
I think it was 1960s vintage and it came from St Marks Middleton Square London. Unlike many electronic organs that derived most of their notes from a single oscillator - it had a separate oscillator for each note. From 16 ft to 2ft for a 56 note range, I think it was, resulting in around 80+ vacuum tubes. These all glowed and generated much heat - as good as any toaster! Appropriately I kept it in my kitchen... 
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When I was young I practiced mostly on the organ in the Royal Free Hospital Chapel (then at Gray's Inn Road) - this was at pyjama temperature throughout the year; no cold fingers there!
Another nice thing was that the patients said how much they liked the music. I wonder if nowadays, with the rapid in-out style treatment that is available, the only people in hospital are those that are far too ill to be able to attend a chapel on Sundays, and that consequently hospital chapels are a thing of the past?
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You can get a copy from John Sebolt's website - click on 2010 etc and there it is.
I didn't really like it - Stanford so slow that it lost any sense of joy & wonder
WOW! What a web site!!
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Through a combination of flu and incompetence, I've missed the chance to listen again to the Hereford evensong broadcast from Hereford on the 17th. Has anyone grabbed a recording off iPlayer? Very grateful for any help!
Out of nostalgia for services I played at a long time ago I recorded the Ireland "Greater Love hath no man..." 61 Mbyte - I can send you it on CD if you would like it and can't get the whole service. Send me an e mail through the system. Unfortunatley I didn't have time to copy the Stanford.
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Cheeky; I think you may find that Peter Collins and Walker (when at Ruislip), were doing this years ago and I don't think they copied Manders. Organists' Associations have been welcomed at many an organbuilders over my liftime, here and abroad and I have been grateful for the invitations.
PJW
Visits to organ builders workshops were not unusual 50 years ago. My school had a Norman and Beard organ and I remember visiting Hill, Norman and Beard in North London (Hornsey?) one very memorable Saturday afternoon. Very generous of them to do this.
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I know this comment is off topic, but your post brought back so many memories of the factory power house where my grandfather worked. They also had mercury arc rectifiers, large generators driven off a weir on the river, big copper bus bars (which they dusted by hand, with the other hand firmly in their pocket), and of course all the equipment out in the factory. What a cool place to visit as a young boy! For anyone interested,of a mercury arc rectifier in operation on the Isle of Man.
And with that detour over, back to organs!
--Justin
You can see some operating
at the Kempton Steam museum if you go when the engine is in steam (there is a little more to life than just organs and 17th ranks..!) -
I have in my possession some spotted metal diapasons for the facade of my practice organ that I'm putting together. They are not speaking, and rather filthy, and I'd like to brighten them up if possible. What suggestions do people have for cleaning off years of grime from metal pipes and bringing out a nice shine that can be done in the warmth of my own home?
Thanks very much!
Contrabombarde
I once used a cream cleaner for car metal work (not a cheap one) - nice lasting shine!
But try on the back of a pipe first and wait a few weeks in case of unforseen problem. -
St Augustine Queen's Gate are also options for making bookings, and have solo reeds, but the latter seems to have two Sunday services.
I used to practice here 40 years ago, but I'm sorry to say I thought the organ sounded dreadful... maybe it's better now? Try before you book.
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No one has mentioned Atlantic City yet? Looks really steep!!
And how would you fancy your turning pages, let alone look at a score!! 
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It's in A maj. Dupre has fully marked in the fingering and pedals, so you have a flying start. The notes are basically easy enough but the rhythm might prove problematic though, particularly between hands and feet until you get used to it. Possibly you might not quite have enough time, but it would be ready for next year!
(Dupre gives a difficulty grading for each of the chorales according to the number of voices; for the ones in 5 voices it is the easiest.)
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Can anyone shed a light on this please?
A
I think you meant to say "Can anyone shed a kindly light on this please"
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Can anyone point me in the direction of a stoplist of this organ please - 'Googling' and the usual sites have drawn a blank so far.
Thanks
A
Search Tip: switch to the French Google Google.fr and type in French. You can do similar things with google.it and google.de
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Isn't it like riding a bike, ie that when you have learnt you never ever forget ?
Gosh!...
I only wish it were so .......
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hoodies with perfect pitch will steal people's PINs.....
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It is precisely for this reason that those infamous Polish Cymbals work so well; adding a gritty, en-harmonic tinkle which the ear does not recognise as anything other than harmonics. A similar, but not exactly similar effect can be heard in the Czech Republc, at St Jame's, Prague, where a large number of very high-pitched Mixtures create a not unattractive shrillness of tone in a vast acoustic.
MM
A well thought out scheme for the breaks in the mixture composition must surely be essential to acheive this type of wonderful effect?
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I have hear it stated that the single pedal reed balancing the chorus-work, was to save wind in the days when people-power provided it.
Apparently, it was either pedal flues OR reeds, and not both together according to some. I personally have my doubts, because it makes a bit of a nonsense of all the pedal upperwork, and of course, many organs did not have the manual to pedal coupler.
However, there is scientific evidence to back the idea that reeds take a loss less wind than flues, so there may be some truth in it.
MM
On page 33 of Organ Building 2004 a wind usage graph shows that a 16 ft Bombarde uses approximately 13 times less air than a 16 ft sub bass. So adding the reed to the sub bass doesn't increase air demand significantly. However I wonder if unsteadiness of wind rather than wind volume was a more important consideration when higher pitches were added; to reduce unsteadiness it would be better (I suggest) to use pedal reeds alone with the pedal upper work?
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The Harmonics IV (17-19-21-22) with only one break at F#43 to 8-10-12-15
Do you mean 8-10-12-15 -that's a different set of harmonics to before the break. 8-10-12-13 ?? Just asking
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I have also found the Dulciana to be most useful in this respect. There are some beautiful examples to be found. What a pity that they have become unfashionable to some people. I think that an unenclosed Dulciana provides a wonderful alternative to the enclosed Salicional /Celeste effect in the Swell.
I have also played some wonderful organs in Stockholm with a wide variety of strings, some mild, some big and French. The 3 - manual romantic organ in the St Maria Magdelena Church has no less than 5 strings on manual III, including a Salicet at 4' pitch. One could sit and improvise all day!
What do Boarders think about the solo string chorus at Ely??
Contra Viola 16
Viole d'Orchestre 8
Viole Celeste 8
Viole Octaviante 4
Cornet de Violes III
When I was younger I thought it was rather a luxurious waste- but I haven't heard it since.....
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....bit of a strange selection....
quickly weed out the robot players..
First 3 ,
second 6
third place not awarded...
PS there used to be a voting button gizmo, which I can't find now, that was last used ? concerning the type of organ shoes you prefer and the type of pedal board
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:angry:Sweelinck "Mein Junges Leben" - especially poignient for someone who dies before their time.Hmm ...it sounds more like a sad but light heartedsong/dance to me. Does anyone know how these words came to be associated with the variations? I vaguely remember some suggestion that Mein Junges Lieben (my young love..) might be the intended title.
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Another nice thing was that the patients said how much they liked the music. 
Flor Peeters
in The Organ
Posted
Message Boarders have recently been recalling how important the Flor Peeters organ compositions are, although not frequently played nowadays. He was a towering organ virtuoso, in the era of Langlais, Dupre, and Germani. His 3 volume organ tutor Ars Organi was unrivalled in the literature for students of the organ.
David Morgan, a friend of mine, who died earlier this year, had lessons with Flor Peeters in August 1965. Flor Peeters gave David several sets of notes, which I now have, these relate to Peeters' organ works up to 1965 (that is works up to opus 114); the notes are-
• "The composer and his compositions"
• List of organ works
• List of recordings
• List of organ publications
I think these will be of interest to some members of the Discussion Board and I would be happy to e mail anyone a copy of all of these documents if you contact me through the Discussion Board messages.
I would say however that "The composer and his compositions" is very interesting but not, shall we say, earth shattering in what it reveals. The list of organ works includes a difficulty grading.