Organ cases, Mean Tone and the BBC
Sir, — I was pleased to receive last
August’s Journal. Yes, page 12 does illustrate the South
organ case at Salisbury Cathedral, over which no one in
particular would enthuse. Father Willis was dead-nuts against
‘em! After all, money expended on a beautiful case (as were
so many prevalent in the 1700s), could be better expended on more
organ pipes, and so, more profit! Did he, I wonder, have Models
A, B and C to proffer, up his sleeve?
When his
“highest in the land” — so just perfect for egress
of sound — namely, Truro, but of only forty-five stops, was
much enhanced tonally, after many a battle, by J. L.
Pearson’s glorious architecture, who also saw that Willis
placed ranks to their best advantage, Pearson having studied
acoustics.
Since Father
Willis’ time, especially so in the 1900s, with Walker and
Mander in particular and more recent organ builders too, an
instruments’ visual aspects have been considered as of equal
importance to the specification and use!
Next time
you’re by Trafalgar Square, pop into St.
Martin-in-the-fields (no apostrophe ‘S’, as with all
those in the City of London, where its forty-seven churches are
such, viz. St. Bride, Fleet St., St. Stephen Walbrook (but it is
Paul’s Cathedral!), and walk up to the chancel, turn about
looking west, and your jaw will drop with a mighty crash — a
superb modern Walker, with a just dazzling ultra-modern case!
There are pros
and cons with Brian Wigglesworth’s letter Sooty delights of
the 1950s. I wonder if he’s read Ralph Downes’ Baroque
Tricks, Positif Press? He should! It gives a more catholic
outlook. When Wolfgang Stockmeier recorded Das Orgelwerk Johann
Sebastian Bach, (20 CDs), he used over a dozen instruments, and
they were all solely by Orgelbau Matthias Kreienbrink of
Osnabrueck, which was founded in 1790, and still extant; was
Stockmeier trying to send a message?
I find them
extraordinarily attractive tonally, save where there’s this
wretched mean temperament, so disliked by J.S.Bach, hence his Das
Wohltemperierte Klavier, the 48 Preludes and Fugues! There’s
a delightful anecdote that has come down to us from J.N. Forkel,
that whenever Bach observed his friend Gottfried Silbermann among
his select circle of auditors, he used to say to him, in perfect
good humour: “You tune the organ in the manner you please,
and I play the organ in the key I please”, and thereupon
used to strike off a Fantasia in A-flat major; the contest
invariably ending in Silbermann’s retiring to avoid his own
wolf.
But I’m not
urging that our organs should emulate continental ones, theirs in
particular, but that we can become, if not careful, as in
Victorian and Edwardian times, far too insular. When The Organ
Club — twenty of us in 1957 — ventured to Holland and
the next year to Denmark and Sweden, our leader Josh Knott, who
had arranged everything of both, had to battle with the
Club’s Committee to go out under their auspices; five now
remain. One of the questions he met with was: Why, aren’t
our organs good enough? Not that any recordings were then were
available in our shops.
We were to hear
and play such famous ones as those in
The BBC is
particularly insular and unhelpful. As a gesture of good will, in
1949, Geraint Jones was dispatched by the British Council to
record works of Bach, Haydn and Liszt on three famous organs, at
Steinkirchen (1686), Ottobeuren (1766), and at Amorbach Abbey
(1783). Over the years any relays to us were rare, minimal, and
very far between! Due to the kindness of Catherine Ennis, pupil
of Geraint Jones before he died in 1998, a CD was made of these
1949 recorded works.
Harry Coles,
Loughton, Essex.
An eye for detail
Sir, — I greatly enjoyed reading the
August 2003 Journal, especially the Notes from a small
observer and, as always, the profile of one of our members.
However, when
Barbara Childs was at The Magdalen College Club was she
not working “unsocial” hours rather than
“anti-social” hours and our January meeting was held on
the 18th January and not the 16th? Also, did one of our members
say to Sir Edward “I voted for you in 1970 and in
1973”, or did the later date get altered somewhere in the
publication process?
I suppose it
could be argued that part of the enjoyment is spotting the errors
— deliberate or otherwise!
David Brock
Editor: We
must thank David for his comments and eagle-eyed observations.
However, we can confirm the “1973” date was accuratly
reported although the General Election was indeed in 1974. Sir
Edward was obviously far too polite to correct our member.
Although David’s letter did contain one spelling mistake
— here corrected — he will certainly be asked to join
our future proof reading team.
At the
President’s Dinner my ears pricked up when William McVicker
said he started his organ playing at Bessie’s O’ Barn.
After I spoke to him, and his delightful wife, it turns out I was
at school with his Mum! Wasn’t it wonderful that his Vicar,
teacher and parents gave him such a good start.
On the 16th
November we had a splendid dedication of the renovated Father
Willis Organ at the Faversham almshouses, all the local
dignitaries came and were impressed. The organ rang out and
showed what a gem it is! St. Mary of Charity Choir led the
Service under their Musical Director Steve Sivyer.
Vicky Shepherd