Rowland Wateridge Posted February 10, 2022 Share Posted February 10, 2022 Sad news today. Steve Smith has announced the closing of organrecitals.com and his own retirement. This has been an invaluable platform for both recital promoters and organ enthusiasts and concertgoers alike. Our thanks to Steve for the past 20 years, and best wishes for his retirement. http://www.organrecitals.com/thatsall.php Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OwenTurner Posted February 11, 2022 Share Posted February 11, 2022 It has been a fantastic service. I never wondered who was behind it nor considered whether it was a single person. Sad that it doesn't continue as a going concern, but such is life. Big thanks from me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
handsoff Posted February 12, 2022 Share Posted February 12, 2022 I echo these sentiments. The site has been hugely valuable in identifying the recitals I wish to hear, especially those where the programme details were included. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adnosad Posted February 12, 2022 Share Posted February 12, 2022 That is bad news but happy , long healthy retirement faithful and willing servant. OR has been a font of information on several levels for a long time. Another nail in the coffin of live music it would appear, unless the ubiquitous " Some One " else is prepared to inherit the mantle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rowland Wateridge Posted February 12, 2022 Author Share Posted February 12, 2022 Organrecitals.com was owned and designed by Steve Smith, and its technical adviser was Stephen Walmsley, a member and regular contributor to this board. For me, in my retirement years it supplied details of venues as far apart as Exeter and Edinburgh, and introduced me to the town hall organs of the Midlands and the North (Roffensis and John Robinson will be pleased to note) as well as many distant cathedrals around the country which I could not have possibly visited in my working years. Nor would I have otherwise known about special events like the inauguration of the Kenneth Tickell organ at Manchester Cathedral - a place I had not been to for more than 60 years! I’m not sure whether they are still available, but Steve Smith also wrote valuable and authoritative articles, notably about St Paul’s Cathedral organ; also Westminster and Southwark (Anglican) Cathedrals, correcting some popular misconceptions about both. Steve Smith also has a major role in the Atlantic City Convention Hall (Boardwalk) organ - a founder member and president of its preservation society, I believe, and has written a substantial book about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swalmsley Posted February 12, 2022 Share Posted February 12, 2022 It was a superb resource, and one I myself used regularly. It was largely so because of the thousands of hours Stephen spent clarifying, editing, and sanitising the submissions to a very high standard. His perfectionist streak would permit nothing less. This was a constant - and unpaid - drain on his time. The hosting fees were paid out of his personal pocket. I remember him telling me - at some time around 2002 - how later that evening he was going to have to manually edit about 18 separate pages to remove postings which were now in the past. "There is a better way...." I responded, and the now-familiar database-driven organrecitals.com was born, enabling a much greater return on Stephen's time, and the expansion to the remarkable level of comprehensiveness of its heyday. I doubt we will ever see its like again. Not because of the tech, which, whilst effective, is straightforward and easily reproduced. But because there won't be a person or organisation willing and able to invest so much unpaid editorial time in maintaining such a comprehensive database to such a high standard. It was good - great, even - while it lasted. Stephen's long service to the community should be saluted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Robinson Posted February 12, 2022 Share Posted February 12, 2022 9 hours ago, Rowland Wateridge said: I’m not sure whether they are still available, but Steve Smith also wrote valuable and authoritative articles, notably about St Paul’s Cathedral organ; also Westminster and Southwark (Anglican) Cathedrals, correcting some popular misconceptions about both. Steve Smith also has a major role in the Atlantic City Convention Hall (Boardwalk) organ - a founder member and president of its preservation society, I believe, and has written a substantial book about it. Thank you, and I agree! Do you have any idea where any of those publications may be found? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swalmsley Posted February 12, 2022 Share Posted February 12, 2022 Courtesy of a web archive; Southwark, Westminster, and St. Paul's: https://web.archive.org/web/20090408071425/http://www.organrecitals.com/siteguide.php Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adnosad Posted February 13, 2022 Share Posted February 13, 2022 In reply to swalmsley, a very good summary of Steves dedication and contribution to the promotion of " live" organ music, and a whole lot more. The loss of this site will further prove the point that one only really appreciates something to its full extent - when it`s gone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Please sign in to comment
You will be able to leave a comment after signing in
Sign In Now