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Defending The Pipe Organ


Colin Harvey

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Apologies for resurrecting an old thread, but am I right in thinking that there has been a reconsideration of this matter recently and pipe organs that contain lead pipes are again facing censure from our European Union masters?

 

Spare us, Good Lord, from a re-run of all this nonsense. I really don't fancy writing to my MP all over again.

 

The problem, I suspect, isn't really with Brussels. Last time round it was largely down to one cretinous jobsworth in the DTI in Whitehall who refused to budge from the supposed line set by Brussels. (Other governments seemed happy enough to ignore such directives). What needed now is to identify that same person (or his/her successor) and make sure he/she uses a bit of common sense.

 

JS

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Spare us, Good Lord, from a re-run of all this nonsense. I really don't fancy writing to my MP all over again.

 

The problem, I suspect, isn't really with Brussels. Last time round it was largely down to one cretinous jobsworth in the DTI in Whitehall who refused to budge from the supposed line set by Brussels. (Other governments seemed happy enough to ignore such directives). What needed now is to identify that same person (or his/her successor) and make sure he/she uses a bit of common sense.

 

JS

 

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I think John, with all respect, the problem was more to do with the London EU office rather than the DTI. I received a quite synpathetic reply from the Minister for trade and industry at the time.

 

However, we have good fortune on our side, because just as the EU were considering the legislation as it applied to "organs," (presumably thinking that all NEW organs were electronic), the same body was busily funding the building of at least two new organs; one being in the music school at Posnan, Poland, and the other being the new organ at Magdeburg Cathedral, Germany, presided at by our good friend and board-member, Barry Jordan.

 

As the EU couldn't really prosecute itself and remain credible, I don't think there's much to worry about. It is the classic legal "double-bind"...he who prosecutes would first have to prosecute himself.

 

MM

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As the EU couldn't really prosecute itself and remain credible, I don't think there's much to worry about. It is the classic legal "double-bind"...he who prosecutes would first have to prosecute himself.

 

MM

 

I hope you're right.

 

I think I'm right in saying both instruments mentioned were products of German builders, who, as a body, have taken little notice, historically, of EU bureaucracy.

 

I got the impression from an article by our host in a recent IBO Newsletter, that UK organ builders were rather less sanguine about the whole thing and were keen to persuade German builders to take the matter more seriously.

 

JS

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Well, if the EU thingy ever does come into effect it wil do wonders for the lead trade - just think of all those miles of lead tubes that will need to be used to convert electric action organs to tubular pneumatic (with gas, water of hand blowing of course) which would circumvent the ban!

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  • 2 weeks later...

Well, if the EU thingy ever does come into effect it wil do wonders for the lead trade - just think of all those miles of lead tubes that will need to be used to convert electric action organs to tubular pneumatic (with gas, water of hand blowing of course) which would circumvent the ban!

 

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Herein lies a joke, because it would be perfectly legal to replace an EP organ with an historic fair-organ powered by a smoke-belching, non-taxable, unregulated pollution traction engine, but one would have to worry about those decorative carbon-filament light-bulbs, which would probably contravene the regulations for electrical appartus. As for the lead-based paint used for the elaborate decoration and semi-naked figurines of such instruments......keep smiling.

 

MM

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