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The English Dulciana


Pierre Lauwers

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A typical dulciana (with the exception of some of the earlier Samuel Green style ones), seems pretty useless it has the Unda Maris to go with it.

 

Best stop for holding the handbag.

 

Quite interesting!

 

Do you know Green's scales and halving rates?

 

Best wishes,

Pierre

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My questions are:

-Do we still have intact Dulciana stops by Samuel Green?

-Would this stop make sense in a modern organ?

-Would any Dulciana mixture do as a secondary Diapason chorus or would it be a mere fancy?

 

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Answers to the questions:-

 

1. Heaton Hall, Manchester, Lancashire, Samuel Green 1790

 

2. It would certainly have uses in a very small room

 

3. As no.2, but otherwise a mere fancy

 

MM

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Guest Roffensis

I find Dulcianas very uselful indeed, not least for choral work. They often have a darkness, and are a very useful soft stop on any organ. something as little as a Dulcianas are also very useful for old English music, and provide a foil for celestes.

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It would certainly have uses in a very small room

(Quote)

 

Well, round 1910, nearly all british Cathedral organ

had its Dulciana chorus, and even, later, mighty Liverpool!

(halas this was "corrected" before I visited...)

Are our ears different?

Maybe those electric guitars did spoil them?

 

Leathered lips, those scales?

 

Best wishes,

Pierre

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Guest Leathered-Lips
Hi folks

 

If you're ever in Wiltshire, go to Westbury and see Stephen Cooke's rebuild of the Bevington - it got assed around with in the 1960's (and had pedal stops operated by light switches!!!) but he has retrackered it and done lots of very sound things, including tuning the Choir Dulciana sharp which makes a terrific celeste when coupled to the swell.  (Actually, the whole thing is wonderful beyond what words can say so you should definitely try and see it - the individual ranks of the Sesquialtera are selectable by very clever switches.)

 

There are lots of people who militantly hate Dulcianas and I can see the logic of that, but isn't it such an integral part of English organ tone that it should be kept?

 

I think somebody else made the point that in a small English organ the slide may be put to better use. Maybe as a 4' flute, I think was the suggestion, but whatever really. But really I only ever use it once or twice in a blue moon. In many cases the swell string will do basically the same thing if a quiet stop is required. I have no problems with dulcianas in a sizeable organ where space and money are not an issue, very nice to have I suppose. But in the general run of the mill, average parish church organ, I think in the majority of cases the slide could be put to better use.

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