Barry Oakley Posted June 23, 2022 Share Posted June 23, 2022 Congratulations to Nicholson's, Malvern, who have been awarded the contract to rebuild the Gloucester Cathedral "Grand Organ." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sotto Posted June 23, 2022 Share Posted June 23, 2022 I think Organ is a sufficient description, this recent penchant for "Grand Organ" seems pretentious and unnecessary to me. I can't see any details as yet on Nicholson's web site and the new Gloucester Cathedral website (as a professional website developer) both baffles and horrifies me! Bring back the old! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barry Oakley Posted June 23, 2022 Author Share Posted June 23, 2022 Apologies if the semantics are not to your liking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Newnham Posted June 24, 2022 Share Posted June 24, 2022 Presumably it's "Grand Organ" to differentiate it from other organs in the building! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Pykett Posted June 24, 2022 Share Posted June 24, 2022 12 hours ago, sotto said: I think Organ is a sufficient description, this recent penchant for "Grand Organ" seems pretentious and unnecessary to me. I can't see any details as yet on Nicholson's web site and the new Gloucester Cathedral website (as a professional website developer) both baffles and horrifies me! Bring back the old! I agree the website is dreadful for the internet visitor. Not even a search box into which one could insert "organ", as far as I could make out. At least you don't have to click on an "enter" button to access the other pages, a lesson learnt painfully by web designers who hadn't heard of SEO. But beyond that, it has nothing to recommend it at all. A very old fashioned and irritating initial exposure to the way their operations manager (or whoever) presumably thinks things should be done. Not the sort of site I want to waste more than a few seconds of my time on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Choir Man Posted June 24, 2022 Share Posted June 24, 2022 I agree, Gloucester's website isn't the easiest to find information from. The best info is actually on a page of an organ recital given earlier this week: https://gloucestercathedral.org.uk/whats-on/evening-organ-recital-with-james-mitchell In his introduction on the video, Jonathan Hope references that Nicholson's wont be starting for a few years and that the cathedral also need to do fundraising to pay for the work. As a result the organ, which is now unplayable, will be of action until 2025. They are currently using a digital instrument with a local sample set from down the road in Hereford. If anyone wants a reminder of what a fine instrument this is, here is an recital given by Jonathan Hope in October last year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adnosad Posted June 26, 2022 Share Posted June 26, 2022 Am quite sure that the Nicholson restoration work will equal that previously carried out by HNB. Be interesting to see what" tweaks" they include. Have to say though that I can hear distant cries from down a long dusty tunnel of " it`s not like it used to be". Re` the cathedral website; seems perfectly adequate to me ,perhaps they have revamped it Watched part of the YT recital. Very good. Must exhume the Priory cd for an airing , that contains some interesting pieces if my failing memory serves me correctly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stewartt Posted August 15, 2022 Share Posted August 15, 2022 I've played for a few visiting choir weekends at Gloucester. I would say: for 'fine instrument' read 'fine acoustic'. Watch this space! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michaelwilson Posted December 18, 2023 Share Posted December 18, 2023 The full specification has now been published, see the download link on the following page to a PDF file containing the details: http://www.nicholsonorgans.co.uk/pf/gloucestercathedral/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rowland Wateridge Posted December 18, 2023 Share Posted December 18, 2023 This, surely, is a spoof in spite of appearing on Nicholson’s website? It’s signed off by James Atherton in the same month as he asked whether he might put up a suggested specification on the ‘other’ thread “Gloucester Armchair Game”. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjf1967 Posted December 18, 2023 Share Posted December 18, 2023 No, it's the real specification. Why wouldn't it be? Have you read the detailed rationale for the design? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
contraviolone Posted December 18, 2023 Share Posted December 18, 2023 1 hour ago, Rowland Wateridge said: This, surely, is a spoof in spite of appearing on Nicholson’s website? It’s signed off by James Atherton in the same month as he asked whether he might put up a suggested specification on the ‘other’ thread “Gloucester Armchair Game”. Quite honestly i don't know what to make of it. I've always been a firm believer in an independent Pedal organ as much as possible (space permitting of course), but the derivations and borrowings on this one defy belief. I'm not keen on reed chorus extensions either. I would imagine Ralph Downes will be spinning in his grave at least 24,000 rpm, which is about as much as a modern powerful turbo on a Ferrari. Seriously though, have we come full circle? Is this the reincarnation of John Compton and Robert Hope Jones? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
contraviolone Posted December 18, 2023 Share Posted December 18, 2023 Just now, sjf1967 said: No, it's the real specification. Why wouldn't it be? Have you read the detailed rationale for the design? The rationale is open to individual interpretation and opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rowland Wateridge Posted December 18, 2023 Share Posted December 18, 2023 Has anyone actually analysed the ‘composition’ of the pedal organ? I’m unsure whether sjf1967 is also pulling our legs! It’s now for James Atherton to ‘come clean’. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
contraviolone Posted December 18, 2023 Share Posted December 18, 2023 38 minutes ago, Rowland Wateridge said: Has anyone actually analysed the ‘composition’ of the pedal organ? I’m unsure whether sjf1967 is also pulling our legs! It’s now for James Atherton to ‘come clean’. The composition of the Pedal organ looks straightforward. There are only three fully independent stops: Open Wood 16 (the old Bishop stop), Subbass 16, and Flute 4. The rest are either derived, or extensions/borrowings from elsewhere. The two 32' flues are extensions as a polyphone setup. This was much used by John Compton in his theatre organs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjf1967 Posted December 18, 2023 Share Posted December 18, 2023 No, I'm not joking in any shape or form, it's the real scheme - the firm is hardly likely to publish a comedy version on its own website. I'm going to wait until I've heard/played it before deciding what I think. Only 3 years to wait, it'll fly past. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveHarries Posted December 18, 2023 Share Posted December 18, 2023 I will also wait until I have heard it before I judge: it certainly sounds interesting. Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pwhodges Posted December 18, 2023 Share Posted December 18, 2023 Publishing the spec is a change of the stated intent, though. Back in April, James wrote (in this post) : "We have decided that it would be preferable for the organ to be heard before any details of the specification is revealed". Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajsphead Posted December 19, 2023 Share Posted December 19, 2023 Yes, a change of stated intent, and if this is what the builders and the cathedral were working towards then it's very understandable. There's nothing new here but the melding of different philosophies is certainly new for the UK and well done to all concerned for breaking the mould of the traditional British cathedral organ, much like Downes did in '71. It's extremely enlightened and given the overall brief, very logical. my only query would be where the position of nave division will be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Furse Posted December 19, 2023 Share Posted December 19, 2023 1 hour ago, ajsphead said: my only query would be where the position of nave division will be. "In the 1971 instrument the soundboards were reconfigured so that the organ spoke clearly to the east and west. This effective idea will be perpetuated with a Nave division speaking west." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S_L Posted December 19, 2023 Share Posted December 19, 2023 I, so, wish they hadn't published the proposals!! It would save so much speculation by well intentioned amateur, 'back of fag packet' organ designers. I do understand the reasons behind publishing but I fear that this thread will go on and on until it has been thrashed to death!!! Why can't people just wait until the scheme is realised? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Atherton Posted December 19, 2023 Share Posted December 19, 2023 16 hours ago, Rowland Wateridge said: Has anyone actually analysed the ‘composition’ of the pedal organ? I’m unsure whether sjf1967 is also pulling our legs! It’s now for James Atherton to ‘come clean’. Ask me any questions you like, I'll answer them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Atherton Posted December 19, 2023 Share Posted December 19, 2023 10 minutes ago, S_L said: I, so, wish they hadn't published the proposals!! It would save so much speculation by well intentioned amateur, 'back of fag packet' organ designers. I do understand the reasons behind publishing but I fear that this thread will go on and on until it has been thrashed to death!!! Why can't people just wait until the scheme is realised? I get that some people can't understand the scheme, or have ideas of how they would do things differently. That's all part of our funny little world. I am open to all questions and will chat to anyone about this scheme. At the moment it is a list of stop names. How it sounds and how it plays is what actually matters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Atherton Posted December 19, 2023 Share Posted December 19, 2023 43 minutes ago, John Furse said: "In the 1971 instrument the soundboards were reconfigured so that the organ spoke clearly to the east and west. This effective idea will be perpetuated with a Nave division speaking west." The Nave division will be approximately where the previous West Great was. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Atherton Posted December 19, 2023 Share Posted December 19, 2023 10 hours ago, pwhodges said: Publishing the spec is a change of the stated intent, though. Back in April, James wrote (in this post) : "We have decided that it would be preferable for the organ to be heard before any details of the specification is revealed". Paul On reflection, we decided that enough time had passed since the demise of the 1971 instrument, and that for fund raising purposes it would be helpful for people to know what they are contributing towards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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