July / August 2019Number 73

Derby & District Organists' AssociationRegistered Charity No. 510567

Newsletter

obliged to use cast-iron columns,much lighter than stone, and headopted a north-Italian Lombardicdesign. Scott’s chapel had a tallinclined roof, but in 1931 a newfloor was inserted to create a newlecture theatre. The chapel haslong had a tradition of fine choralmusic and, during term-time,Evensong is sung every Tuesdayat 17.30 and there is a ChoralEucharist at 13.10 onWednesdays, both open to thepublic.

In May, The Organ Club invitedmembers, which includedLaurence Rogers, to thepenultimate Evensong before theonset of examinations. Thesuperb choir of young choralscholars was directed by DrJoseph Fort, and accompanied bythe Organ Scholar, MichaelButterfield, undertaking organstudies at the Royal Academy ofMusic. The music for the servicestarted with Purcell’s Hear myprayer; responses by ThomasTomkins; canticles sung toTomkin’s Second Service and theanthem was Bach’s motet Komm,Jesu, Komm – a veritable feast.

Concerts & Recitals

Wednesday Lunchtime Recitals12.30 - 1.10pmat St Modwen’s, Burton-upon-Trent3rd July Ben Mills (Oxford)10th July Hans Hielscher (Wiesbaden)

Derby Cathedral Summer RecitalsWednesdays 7.45pm Admission £9.24th July Alex Binns (Derby)31st July Sachin Gunga (Portsmouth)7th August Nicholas Freestone (Worcester)14th August Simon Russell (Nantwich)21st August Roger Sayer (Temple Church)28th August Edward Turner (Derby)

VacancyDue to the retirement of MichaelAnthony, St Mary’s, Bulwell, seeks toappoint an organist. Most servicesare eucharistic with a robed choir.Music is varied, ranging fromtraditional hymns to more modernworship songs, and music from Taizéand Iona. The church is a popularvenue for weddings, funerals andbaptisms. The well maintained organhas three manuals with pedals and37 speaking stops. Please contactthe Vicar, Fr Andrew Fisher ata.j.fisher@outlook.com or on 0115975 5358.

Photo: 1866 organ case designed by GilbertScott at King’s College Chapel, London

There had been no new universitiesin England for over 600 years until1826 when University College,London was founded by a group ofCongregationalists. The‘Establishment’ was shocked that theChurch of England had been pippedat the post by Nonconformists so thePrime Minister, the Duke ofWellington, immediately set plans inmotion for a specifically Anglicanfoundation, obtaining the support ofGeorge IV to achieve that. King’sCollege was established in 1829 anda site was obtained on the unfinishedeast half of Somerset House, whichhad been started some 50 yearsearlier. The college did not have afrontage on to Strand until the 1960swhen the present rather restlessconcrete façade was built in theBrutalist style. Passing through thisentrance, it is not long before one istransported back to the classicalarchitecture of the original buildings.In particular, ascending a grandstaircase to the first floor, oneencounters the chapel, an 1861addition designed by Sir GilbertScott. His normal style would havebeen a Gothic building with pointedstone arches, but the weightrestrictions of constructing above thelarge existing hall meant that he was

DDOA Events 2019

13th July (Saturday)Visit to organs in Oxford (St Johns, Queensand Magdalen Colleges). See page 8.

September (TBA)Visit to organs in Lincolnshire.

15th October (Tuesday)Organs in Denmark - Audio-visualpresentation by Denis Littleton andLaurence Rogers recalling the NDSO 2016tour of organs in Denmark.

11th November (Monday)AGM followed by a talk by Stephen Allissreflecting on his experiences tuning organsin many prestigious locations.St John’s Methodist Church, Allestree.

The Other King’s College Chapel

The organ, a Father Willis, datingfrom 1866 sits in its own gallery inthe liturgical west. The metalworkof the case is very typical ofScott’s thinking at the time, as isthe decoration of the pipework.The original instrument lastedvirtually unaltered for almost sixtyyears, but the insertion of the newceiling above the chapel in 1931meant that the organ had to belowered by 10 feet. There was nolonger space for the console in theloft, so Henry Willis III providednew electro-pneumatic action anda new console at floor level.

In 1977 there was a furtherrebuild, this time by Bishop andSon who undertook further quitesignificant changes, introducingneo-baroque ranks and movingthe console to the east end of thenorth aisle. Both theseintroductions proved less thansuccessful and a further Bishoprebuild in 2000 saw the console

moved to roughly its presentposition further west in the northaisle.

The most recent refurbishment ofthe chapel included a completerebuild of the organ. Theconsultant, David Titterington,encouraged the College to widenthe scope of the work, producingthe organ completed in 2018 byMander Organs. It was notintended to be a restoration of theoriginal Father Willis scheme (notmuch of whose pipework hadsurvived in restorable condition)but rather a modern organconceived with Willis’s ideas inmind; the Great and Swell reedssurvive largely untouched, butmore than 60% of the pipework isnew, including the entire Greatchorus; the console and action arealso new. The pipe decorationshave been carefully restored.

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After Evensong, Michael Butterfield,performed a wonderful sequence ofimprovisations demonstrating theimpressive tonal range of theinstrument. Special favourites for mewere on the Choir division: incombination with other harmonics,the beautifully voiced Tierceproduced a rich Cornet sound with astrong French flavour; anotherbeautifully voiced rank was the Cornodi Bassetto, very smooth and, dare Isay, ‘creamy’. Altogether, a mostimpressive instrument, well worthstopping off to hear if you happen tobe in London on a Tuesday orWednesday during term time. Forother Organ Club visits do look uporganclub.org.

Laurence Rogers.

Most of this article is taken from thenotes supplied by Colin Menzies OBE.I am very grateful to Colin forpermission to use his text.

King’s College Chapel, London

GreatDouble Diapason 16Open Diapason 8Claribel Flute 8Principal 4Stopped Flute 4Fifteenth 2Sesquialtera 12.17 IIMixture 19.22.26 IIIPosaune 8Clarion 4

Swell to GreatChoir to Great

SwellOpen Diapason 8Flute à Cheminée 8Salicional 8Voix Angelica 8Principal 4Harmonic Flute 4Fifteenth 2Mixture 17.19.22 IIIContra Hautboy 16Hautbois 8Vox Humana 8

TremulantSuper OctaveSub OctaveUnison off

King’s College Chapel, London

Organ rebuilt by Mander Organs 2018

PedalOpen Diapason 16Bourdon 16Principal 8Bass Flute 8Fifteenth 4Mixture 17.19.22 IIIOphicleide 16Trumpet 8

Great to PedalSwell to PedalChoir to Pedal

ChoirStopped Diapason 8Dulciana 8Principal 4Flauto traverso 4Nazard 22/3Piccolo 2Tierce 13/5Corno di Bassetto 8

TremulantSwell to Choir

Improvising interlude by Michael Butterfield

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Recent EventsAnnual Dinner 14th May

Always a friendly occasion, theAnnual Dinner was once again amost enjoyable event in thelovely surroundings of theHorsley countryside. As ever,members caught up on localorgan news, but our Guest ofHonour, Colin Walsh, OrganistLaureate at Lincoln Cathedral,took the prize for fascinating andoften mirthful anecdotes. Hisshort resumé of his formativeyears revealed a veritable 'Who'sWho?' of characters in the organworld; Colin has met them all!For example, we heard about theamazing imagination of psalmaccompaniments by John Birch atChichester, the infectiouspersonality and commitment toperfection of Simon Preston atChrist Church, Oxford, and theextraordinary character of SidneyCampbell at St George's,Windsor. Campbell's favouritetrick in the organ loft was to takeout a cigarette from a pocket,put it in his mouth, and then putit back into his pocket, all whilstplaying a hymn accompaniment! Apparently Louis Vierne wasfond of a cigarette in the organloft of Notre Dame, a practicewhich mercifully did not result incatastrophic effects, exceptperhaps to his health. Colinspent some time studying withJean Langlais in Paris andrecalled that his lessons were

always peppered with stories offamous French organists; Langlaisappeared to know personally allthe great organists of hisgeneration. Colin himself hadplayed for Messiaen and had metthe famous improviser PierreCochereau.

Dipping into history, it appearsthat controversy has been afeature of cathedral life at Lincolnfor centuries. Back in 1540 aprecentor, whose tippling turnedto toppling, regularly had difficultywalking in a straight line, wasdetained in 'le Wind', a smallprison in the west front of thecathedral used by the Dean to

Guest Speaker, Colin Walsh

discipline errant staff. At the timeof the Reformation, when floridpolyphony was banned, WilliamByrd was castigated for"exhibitionist organ playing" andhis salary was withheld for aperiod. Worst of all, organistThomas Mudd (c.1660) seemed tobe incessantly drunk with aconsequent collapse of choirdiscipline and singing standards.After his dismissal he went toExeter Cathedral for eight monthsbefore he was dismissed again.

Perhaps the most bizarrehistorical anecdote that Colinentertained us with was a reportof a choral service in the Guardianof 1848 describing the boys’singing as “sluggishness andtorpor personified”! It continued:“Its excessive feebleness was suchthat it seemed every moment onthe point of stopping from want ofbreath....At no point in the servicedid the organ rise to the substanceor dignity of a street barrel.” Mostcertainly, times have changed!

As an organist who has played inmost of the great organ lofts inEurope, Colin reflected upon whata wonderful and privilegedlearning experience it has all been.The evening was emphatically agreat privilege for us as he sharedso many of his candid insights intothe world of organists.

Tony Westerman gave the voteof thanks, thanking Colin for all hisamusing stories conveyed withwarmth and friendliness.

Laurence Rogers

A Taste of Oxford - Forthcoming DDOA Visit on 13th JulySee Page 8 for details.

The Queen’s College - Organ by Frobenius 1965

Your AssociationChildren and the Organ (CATO)The 2019 season has continued in full swing

during recent months with workshops forprimary schools in Mickleover, Bramcote,Duffield and Holbrook.

CATO for Senior Citizens!Having engaged successfully with children

for over 10 years the CATO group is spreadingits wings thanks to an imaginative suggestionfrom Richard Brice. He has spotted a gap inthe market and has approached the Universityof the Third Age in Belper to arrange a sessionin September at St Peter’s when we canenthuse and engage with an older age group,adapting our CATO programme for a possiblymore sophisticated audience?

If that goes well then perhaps we could workwith other adult groups. Any suggestions tothe Editor please.

Sometimes I claim to have been aCathedral Organist, perhapsDirector of Music would be morecorrect. This was in Ndola, Zambia,where I spent ten happy yearsteaching Mechanical EngineeringDrawing in a secondary school. TheCathedral of the Holy Nativity wasthe first Anglican Cathedral inNorthern Rhodesia; when builtearly in the twentieth century itwas a small thatched building. Inthe 1950s it was considerablyenlarged and the old buildingbecame the chancel, forming thetop of a letter "T".

When I arrived at work, I wasintroduced to the bursar (MrsMargaret Smith (née Barkaway,sister of John Barkaway, formerChairman of the DDOA) and sheimmediately asked if I would playfor the 9am service. There weretwo main services on a Sunday,both in English and it was the earlyone that the ex-pats generallyattended. As well as playing, I hadto choose the hymns. The onlytime I slipped up was on "God bewith you till we meet again". Thishymn was always sung when a

member of the congregation leftand the first time I played it I usedthe Vaughan Williams tune. "That'sthe wrong tune" the Wardenshouted out. The correct tune wasan old mission one and I was dulypresented with a book containingthe correct tune.

Organist? There was an uprightpiano which needed quite a bit ofresuscitation but eventually workedquite well. Do not everunderestimate the power of apiano; this was only a domesticinstrument but at Bishop ClementShaba's funeral not only was theCathedral full but there was acrowd outside and I succeeded inleading the hymns with the piano -needless to say the singing wasvery different from what I havebecome used to at funerals inEngland. There was a magnificentHammond theatre organ which thecathedral had got from the theatrewhen it closed but an examinationof it showed that someone hadstolen the loudspeakers from thecabinets and all the valves hadbeen taken out and stored in theorgan bench, without any details ofwhere they went.

There were a couple of organs inthe city, one at the FranciscanCentre and one at the UnitedChurch of Zambia (UCZ - a post-independence church based on theBritish free churches - that in Ndolawas St Andrews and I suspect wasChurch of Scotland in Colonialtimes). Both organs were SouthAfrican extension organs withdetached consoles. The formerhadn't worked for years but withthe St Andrews one I did quite a lotof repair work, re-leathering the

bellows, sorting out the wiring andtuning it. It was in a gallery andthe back wall of the gallery was agentle curve. It was obvious thatthe dimensions given to the organ-builder had ignored the curve soalthough there was enough depthat the centre of the organ, at theends it had obviously required agiant shoehorn to get the organ in.When I arrived in Ndola, theMinister was Valerie Ogden, sisterof Nigel Ogden, the theatreorganist. As I was mending theorgan it was suggested that Imight like to play it for services butafter Valerie had left, the sermonstended to be rather lengthy, andthey also had a Praise Group . . .so I declined. Unfortunately, I leftbefore the organ was completelyrepaired, one of the magnets onthe reed rank had a habit ofsticking.

Richard Brice

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How to become a cathedral organist without trying - Richard Brice

Cathedral of the Holy Nativity, Ndola, Zambia

St Andrews UCZ, Ndola, Zambia

LettersHymn Singing

Pamela Taor, of Harrow on the Hill,Middlesex, wrote in The Telegraph(May 10th):

“Sir, It is not only hymns that arefading from our consciousness. Everyweekday at my boarding school wesang a Psalm to Anglican chant fromthe Book of Common Prayer. Sentences such as "The valleys alsoshall stand so thick with corn thatthey shall laugh and sing" (Psalm 65)have remained a pleasure to thisday.”

This prompted a correspondent towrite:

I was reminded of an article inOrganists Review many years ago.It took the form of a conversationbetween John Rutter and the thenBishop of Ely. Perhaps with a viewto being provocative, but maybefrom deep conviction, the Bishopsaid: "I have to tell you, John, thatthe hymn is dead".

Readers will put forward their ownreasons, but was he not correct inclaiming that our goodly heritage ofa thousand hymns and tunes isnow almost lost? Of coursethe ubiquitous group of four'wedding hymns' will continue to do

the rounds for a while longer; 'OldMacdonald Had a Farm' will awaitdiscovery by a new generation ofclerics; and undertakers willcontinue to suggest 'All thingsbright...' when family members canthink of no other, but are we, aschurch musicians, not in somemeasure responsible? I like thestory told by one organistcolleague who, when given a hymnlist, pointed to a particular numberand said: "I don't play that".

(Name and address supplied.)

Members are invited to send theirown thoughts about the hymn; is itin the last throes before death?

Recent EventsJoint BIOS/RCO visit toManchester May 2019

We started on Friday evening atSt Philip's Church in Salford. TheChurch was designed in theClassical style by Sir RobertSmirke. The flat ceiling and grandproportions of the building gave theorgan in the west gallery excellentacoustics. Built by Renn and Bostonin 1829, the organ was restored byNoel Mander in 1963. A delightfulorgan on which Tom Bell andRichard Brasier played the Andantefrom an S.S. Wesley organ duet aswell as their individualcontributions. After the recital thegroup went up to view theinstrument.

Saturday morning found usassembled at the Church of StThomas in Radcliffe, another grandbuilding; how Radcliffe must havebeen then a busy and wealthytown. The organ, now at the endof the north aisle, was originally inYork Minster, built by Hill in 1863and moved to Radcliffe by Hopkinsin 1904. A few alterations weremade over the years but, as withSt Philip’s, but nothing drastic. Thestrangest alteration seems to bethe addition of some painted pipesto the case, non-speaking andfacing down the church. They

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stand in a strange painted boxstructure in mute testimony to anact of vandalism; they are the lastremains of Hill's rebuild of theRenn organ at St Luke's, CheethamHill where they decided to throwaway the organ in 1975.

Tom Bell started by putting theorgan through its paces with theBach Toccata in C BVW564. For allits magnificence, the beast needsto be restored; the display pipeslook very sad and hand-registrationis necessary as the combinationsystem, dating from when Sixsmithelectrified the action, doesn't workat all. Dr Nicholas Thistlethwaitedelivered a fascinating lectureabout Hill and the York Minsterorgans. The Church is busily fund-raising to restore the organ andour visit served to confirm theimportance of the instrument.

Frank Bridge's Adagio in E, beingcontemporary with the re-homingof the organ was an appropriatepiece for Tom to play, allowing theswell stops added by Hopkin to beused. Hopkin, a York builder, wasthe subject of Max Elliott'sillustrated talk, complete with anillustrated booklet about the firm'sproductions. This talk was dividedby a wedding rehearsal duringwhich we took our lunch break. Ido hope the happy couple will be

having the organ at their weddingrather than CDs!

The Church of the Holy Name ofJesus in Oxford Road was our finalvisit. Dr. Thistlethwaite rounded offhis earlier lecture by telling usabout this 1871 Hill organ. It sitsin the gallery of a church whichhas a very French feel to it.Recently restored by David Wells,the organ is a perfect fit for thebuilding.

Gordon Stewart next gave amaster class to two students,during which I had to be carefulnot to blink for fear of missingsome of his advice, delivered in hisown inimitable ebullient style. Oneof the students then page-turnedfor Tom's final recital, whichstarted with Vierne's Carillion deWestminster. An invitation fromthe Priest to us all to come andplay the instrument at some timein the future ended what had beena very instructive and enjoyabletime in Manchester. My thanks toall involved in the organisation andpresentation of it.

Richard BriceSt Thomas, Radcliffe

Church of the Holy Name of Jesus

St Philip’s, Salford

The vast majority of us learnt toplay the organ using Bach'smusic. It is so dominant in theorgan repertoire and its demandsso exacting, it has become the defacto benchmark for organplaying. But it hasn't alwaysbeen this way. At the beginningof the 19th century only a selectfew organists in England wouldhave heard of Bach. Why was heand his music so little known atthat time?

Unlike his exact contemporary,Handel, who spent some time inItaly and then settled in England,Bach never travelled outside theGerman-speaking world, so onecan begin to understand whythere was little knowledge of hismusic in England during hislifetime. However, after hisdeath in 1750, even in Germany,much of his music disappearedfrom public performance for halfa century; the name ‘Bach’ wasmore associated in the public eyewith his talented sonsFriedemann and Emmanuel thanwith Johann Sebastian. Todiscover why this became so, thefollowing factors emerge:

The performer: Bach’s fameamongst his contemporaries wasas a performer rather than as acomposer. His skills ofimprovisation were legendary andhe was frequently in demand fortesting and inaugurating new orrestored organs.

Music scores: Only a smallminority of Bach’s organ workswere published during hislifetime. The majority ofmanuscripts existed ashandwritten copies only.Students copying teacher’sscores was a common feature ofmusical apprenticeship at thattime. Bach himself was an avidcopyist, reflecting his broadinterest and knowledge of othercomposers’ works. After hisdeath scores were handed downthrough his family and eventuallydispersed.

Changing Musical Taste: AfterBach’s death, his music soonwent out of fashion. It wasconsidered complicated andserious. Counterpoint was thehallmark of his compositionalstyle, but a simpler ‘galant’ stylebecame popular towards the end

of his lifetime. This placed moreemphasis on the tune than thetexture. Counterpoint took a lessprominent role.

To explore this last factor I wouldlike to examine some works ofBach’s most famous sons. Theirsurviving compositions bear thepedigree of their father’s teaching,but in my observation they alsochart the change of fashion inmusical taste in succeedinggenerations. In my CD collection Ihave symphonies and concertos bythese composers, and all sounddelightfully fresh and distinct fromJohann Sebastian’s orchestralstyle. In particular they employfrequent contrasts in dynamics,and prominent tunes certainly bearout the growing popularity of the‘galant’ taste. For keyboard music,I turn to examples from the scoresthat happen to be on my musicshelf.

Wilhelm Friedemann, JohannSebastian’s eldest son showed

musical talent at an early age andhad intensive musical training fromhis father. There is speculation andsome evidence that many majorkeyboard works were composed forFriedemann’s instruction;Clavierbüchlein (1720), Inventionsand Well-Tempered Clavier Book I(1722), Orgelbüchlein (1723), TheTrio Sonatas (1729) and more.

There is no doubt thatFriedemann acquired a reputationas a renowned organist, improviserand composer. He studied law andmathematics at Leipzig and Halleuniversities. He held organist postsat Dresden (St Sophia) and Halle(Marktkirche). Perhaps driven byhis father’s tutelage, hisharpsichord compositions aretechnically very demanding.Unfortunately very few organcompositions survive, perhaps dueto his chaotic later life marked bydisputes and debts. In the Fugue inF one can detect his father'scontrapuntal style more stronglythan in music of the other sons.

Bach’s Legacy and Changing Fashion - Laurence Rogers

Wilhelm Friedemann Bach (1710 – 1784)

The performer: Johann Sebastian Bach

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Carl Philipp Emanuel had a greatinfluence on the survival of Bach’slegacy. He was an ardent admirerand promoter of his father’s art andinherited many of his father’smanuscripts. He graduated in lawbut gained pre-eminence askeyboard player and prolificcomposer (200 keyboard sonatas,concerti, symphonies, choral works,etc.) His first employment was ascembalist at the court of the flute-playing Frederick the Great ofPrussia. In 1768 he succeededGeorg Philipp Telemann (hisgodfather – hence his second name)as Director of Music at St Michael’sChurch, Hamburg where hecomposed much church music (HisMagnifcat is magnificent.) Heachieved lasting fame with hispublication Essay on the True Art ofKeyboard Playing. This weightyteaching tome, as used by Haydn,Mozart and Beethoven, is one of themost influential of its kind. HisSonata in G minor for organ is abeautiful example of the lightercompositional style that he evolved,still retaining clear traces of hisfather’s contrapuntal skill.

Johann Christian was the 18th

child and youngest son of JohannSebastian. His early musiceducation was from his father, butupon his father’s death hecontinued to study with Carl PhilippEmanuel. He had a spell studyingin Italy. He enjoyed a career, firstas a composer then as a performerplaying alongside Carl FriedrichAbel, the notable player of theviola da gamba. He composedcantatas, chamber music,keyboard and orchestral works,operas and symphonies. In 1762he moved to London, composingoperas and became music masterto Queen Charlotte. Settling inLondon, he was in all senses “Bachin England”. He taughtcomposition to the eight year oldMozart visiting London during1765. The Keyboard Sonata Op.6shows the greatest move towardsthe ‘galant’ style compared withthe music of his elder brothers.Although playable on harpsichordand clavichord, it clearly exploitsthe expressive possibilities of theemerging fortepiano.

For me these examples help toappreciate the changes in populartaste when one reads thatSebastian Bach’s music wasconsidered “out of fashion”.

Amongst the great composers thatfollowed Bach, it appears thatadmiration of his art never faded;Mozart, Haydn and Beethoven andothers were early devotees, but inthe public eye his music had to waituntil the 19th century before it wouldachieve the acclaim that has passeddown to our generation.

In a follow-up article I will look athow Bach’s music first came toEngland and the far-reaching effect ithad on organ building in this country.

Laurence Rogers

Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714 – 1788)

Johann Christian Bach (1735 – 1782)

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www.derbyorganists.co.uk

Items of news or articles for the September/October edition of the should reach the Editor by Monday26th August, either via e-mail: DDOAnews@gmail.com or by post: Dr Laurence Rogers, 24 St.David’s Crescent,Coalville, Leicestershire LE67 4SS. The Secretary, Andy Storer, may be reached via mail@derbyorganists.co.ukPlease visit the DDOA Website www.derbyorganists.co.uk for information about Association activities, past editionsof the newsletter, photo gallery and many special features of local interest.

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Forthcoming DDOA Meeting

Saturday 13th July 2019

Visit to organs in Oxford Colleges

Programme for the day:

10.30 am. Meet by the porters'lodge at St John's College(organ by Aubertin)

12.30 pm. Break for lunch

2.00 pm. The Queen’s College(organ by Frobenius)

4.00 pm. Magdalen College(organ by Mander)

5.30 pm. Finish

We are being left to our owndevices in all three chapels sodo bring plenty of suitablemusic to play.

For those coming by train, the7.49 am from Derby arrives at9.41 am, leaving plenty of timefor the fifteen-minute walk to StJohn's.

Returning in the evening, the6.09 pm arrives at Derby at8.03 pm and the 7.09 pm at9.21 pm. All these trains arestraight through.

For those travelling by car, thePear Tree Park-and-Ride (northOxford) is recommended.

The three-manual organ in St John's College was built in 2008 by Bernard Aubertin. Aubertin, now in his mid-sixties, set up his own firm in 1978 in an old monastery in the east of France, deep in the countryside. He ishighly respected in the organ-building world and has the distinction of being the only organ builder ever toreceive an honorary doctorate from a British university (Aberdeen). The organ at St John's is a three-manualmechanical instrument with a straight pedal board.

The Frobenius organ in the chapel of The Queen's College is an instrument of historical importance, designed in1965 by James Dalton, who was organist there for many years. According to New Grove, ‘along with the 1954organ in the Royal Festival Hall, [this organ] did more than any other instrument to encourage the organ reformmovement in Britain.’ Robert Quinney, who has recently recorded the Bach Trio Sonatas there, comments on theexquisite quality of each individual stop as well as the fine effect of the choruses and the beautifully responsiveaction.

Contrast the organ at Magdalen College, which was built by Mander in 1986 and is of similar dimensions to theFrobenius, but which seems to have fared less well. In fact, the College is hoping to replace it soon. Thecurrent organist comments: 'the instrument is in poor condition, but the case is attractive and the chapel isbeautiful, of course.' Rather poignantly, we will be listening to an organ nearing the end of its rather brief life.

All three organs are classical instruments and that should make for some interesting comparisons. If you are aplayer, you might like to bring music from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries but also something morerecent so we can hear how the instruments cope with a variety of periods and styles.