Organists' Review

[Colin Pykett]

I was a bit surprised by the latest issue of Organists' Review (June 2022).  If my sums are correct, it informs us that the annual subscription rate will increase by 14.8% compared with what I paid last December.  Then two of the articles plus the editorial are from the pen of the same author, interesting and well written as they are (though I am aware of and fully sympathetic to the difficulties being experienced in handing over to the new editor).  Four articles are by regular contributors, though should any publication wishing to reflect a dynamic image have such things as 'regular contributors' in this day and age?   Another two are essentially obituaries, interesting and timely, but perhaps reflecting the gerontocracy-dominated world of the organ?  As a member of that segment of society myself, I was therefore getting pretty desperate by that point to read the articles by younger authors!  Yet another article was written a decade ago.  I'm being overly grumpy of course, and apologise for it if I offend anyone, but I've been taking OR for over 30 years and I can't recall another issue which made me wonder quite where the magazine is going and what future it might have 'in the competitive market in which it operates' (quote from page 3).

Having said all this, I was taken by the fascinating article about the National Archive of Anglican Chants, and wondered whether the author had come across the triple chants composed by Robert Hope-Jones (and possibly others), so I wrote to enquire.  He replied immediately that he hadn't and would love to include them.  Unfortunately this has put me in the embarrassing situation where I can't lay my hands on any of them, though I've certainly seen them somewhere in the past.  So if any members could assist with this it looks as though their efforts would be appreciated by the curator of the archive.

[Peter Allison]

I just renewed my subscription (and got my 1st copy last week) after  many years mid( 1990's) when I was in the Darlington Organist Ass. Its glossy look intrigued me, its moved with the times.... Will I renew it again?... Will see