{"id":1189,"date":"2015-05-26T17:31:06","date_gmt":"2015-05-26T17:31:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sslso.org.uk\/?page_id=1189"},"modified":"2024-03-08T22:58:25","modified_gmt":"2024-03-08T22:58:25","slug":"my-church-june-2015","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sslso.org.uk\/?p=1189","title":{"rendered":"04 My Church June 2015"},"content":{"rendered":"

A story of three organs<\/span><\/h1>\n

\"RB<\/a>I am Robert Bowles, Director of Music at the Church of the Holy Spirit, Clapham<\/strong><\/span><\/a>, and <\/span>Chairman, St Paul’s Cathedral Chorus and Guild of the Companions of St Paul. <\/span><\/p>\n

I want to tell you the story of our organ.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/em>So, firstly tell me about the history of the church<\/strong><\/span><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

It was dedicated 102 years ago.\u00a0 There was no church in this part of Clapham because the area was undeveloped.\u00a0 Just a few large houses with vast gardens.\u00a0 From about 1870 they were sold off and the grid of streets with terraced houses took the population from 500 to 8000.\u00a0 The church was designed to accommodate 600!<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0And the organ?<\/span><\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

This was built by Alfred Hunter and Son, whose works were nearby in Clapham High Street, in 1921.\u00a0 When the church was dedicated there were plans to fit out the interior quite quickly, including building an organ.\u00a0\u00a0 The First World War disrupted those plans, and inflation eroded the value of the money that had been collected. Even with a significant grant from Andrew Carnegie, lots of the organ was \u201cprepared for\u201d but not installed.\u00a0 Behind the three manual console was a two manual instrument with space to install what was missing! Our predecessors were wise and realistic.\u00a0 Everything they did was to a high standard of design, materials and workmanship.\u00a0 If there wasn\u2019t enough money to do something properly, they didn\u2019t try and do it on the cheap – they just didn\u2019t do it.\u00a0 We have the original contract for building the organ which describes very clearly what was in the first phase, and what was to happen later.\u00a0 After the first phase was complete further fundraising allowed three of the missing ranks to be installed, but by the mid-1980s the 60-year-old leatherwork was starting to disintegrate, so the focus was on restoring the instrument that we had got, not completing it.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

So how did you deal with that?<\/span><\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s when I was appointed organist.\u00a0 The layout of the organ within the gallery is excellent, and if you know where to crawl you can get to any of the pneumatic machines without dismantling anything.\u00a0 That makes ordinary maintenance quite straightforward, individual components can be removed if they need work in the workshop.\u00a0 I inherited a scheme to re-leather everything gradually whilst never taking the whole instrument out of action.\u00a0\u00a0 Then William McVicker, one of our Diocesan Organ Advisors and a SSLSO member, suggested we should apply to the Heritage Lottery Fund for a grant.\u00a0 He thought that although incomplete, the organ was an excellent example of its age and type, largely because it had not been altered in the 1960s.\u00a0\u00a0 Our bid for grant-aid was successful, and we got further grants from the ON organ Fund and the Council for the Care of Churches. So once we had raised the rest we were able to restore the whole of the original instrument in one go.\u00a0 So it is now in perfect working order.\u00a0 Our organ builder and SSLSO member Vincent Coggin did an amazing job.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>But the instrument looks pretty complete now \u2013 how did that come about?<\/strong><\/span><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Our discussions with the HLF included a proposal to complete the organ.\u00a0 They were supportive of the idea, but funding it fell outside their terms of reference (\u201cWe are able to fund the restoration of existing heritage but not to buy new heritage\u201d).\u00a0 They imposed an interesting but understandable condition, which was that it had to be completed to the original design, using second hand material known to have originated in Hunter\u2019s works, or new material copied from a Hunter original.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"red87\"<\/a>We did some further fundraising and started a Hunter hunt.\u00a0 Paul Joslin of BIOS led me \u00a0on a treasure trail which finished in the loft space of the garage of the Vicarage in Catherington, near Portsmouth.\u00a0 There I found all the Hunter pipes from an organ removed from the church some 10 years previously with the intention of re-installing them in a new action.\u00a0 That scheme had been abandoned as there was no prospect of raising the money.\u00a0 We got consent to buy these pipes. Click the photo or link to see 13 more photos of the Catherinton effort<\/span>.\u00a0http:\/\/slickpic.us\/768866yjOO?play<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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\"P1030980\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Michael Toll led me to the United Congregational Church in Lee-on-Sea, near Southend.\u00a0 They\u00a0had a project to re-develop their church and hall to provide residential accommodation and a smaller worship space into which their two-manual Hunter organ would not fit.\u00a0\u00a0 So we bought the complete instrument. Click the photo or link to see 8 photos of the dismantling of the organ at Leigh-on-Sea<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/span>http:\/\/slickpic.us\/768874mNA1?play<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

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\"P1030989\"<\/a>With the aid of voluntary labour we brought everything back to Clapham and sorted out what was needed for the church organ, disposing of the rest.\u00a0\u00a0 We had almost everything that was missing, including a soundboard, reservoirs and a swell box for the choir organ. \u00a0Click the picture or the link to see 6 photos of the first stage of the work at the Church of the Holy spirit.<\/span>\u00a0http:\/\/slickpic.us\/7688804MkN?play<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Vincent Coggin<\/a><\/strong> re-leathered and restored everything that needed it, and we re-erected it in the \"xVincent<\/a>space prepared for it all those years ago.\u00a0 We used more volunteer labour, mostly graduate structural engineers from my office. \u00a0Click on the photo or link to see 12 photos of the installation of the organ in the Church of the Holy Spirit<\/span>.\u00a0http:\/\/slickpic.us\/768878Q2j1?play<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

All that is missing now are the 16ft Trombone on the pedal and the 16ft Contra Fagotto on the swell.\u00a0 I can\u2019t find them anywhere!\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

The end result is a huge success, and the whole instrument has great integrity despite the\u00a0 various routes that components have taken to get here from the factory only a mile away.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>Can you demonstrate this?<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

There are two video for you to see.<\/p>\n

\"Holy<\/a>The first<\/span> starts with me playing a quiet piece ending with a louder piece. I also give a short\u00a0commentary . Click on the picture or the link to see the video which last just over 4 minutes.\u00a0https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/2CvqPf82nCI<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

The second is a recording of 17 separate stops or stop combinations.\u00a0Click here<\/span><\/a>\u00a0 to hear the individual and combination pipe sound<\/strong>s.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

And how is the organ used now?<\/span><\/em><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Click here<\/span><\/a> to download the full current specification.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>Well, we use it every Sunday for our main service, and we are gradually introducing evening prayer on Sundays.<\/span><\/p>\n

We have three organ students who regularly use it for\u00a0private practice, and three more who come occasionally.<\/span><\/p>\n

The PCC is keen for it to be used, so we\u2019d welcome any approaches from students of any age.\u00a0 We are developing links with the RCO organ academy.\u00a0\u00a0 The organ is also available to any of the other musical groups which are starting to use the church for rehearsal, recording and for concerts.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0Any other\u00a0 thoughts?<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

If anyone knows where I can get a Hunter Trombone and Contra Fagotto \u2013 get in touch!<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00a0Note:<\/strong> Vincent Coggin is a former Chairman of the Society and now lives in Norfolk<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

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Previous My Church’s<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n