Display of enthusiasm for the organ from an unusual source...

[AnOrganCornucopia]

Tribute is paid to the magnificence of the organ (and a Rolls-Royce) in the following video by none other than a young (well, 38 or so) Jeremy Clarkson... and yes, that little two-manual (that of Milton Abbey) really does have a proper 32ft reed!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gonJuXovIE8
http://www.npor.org.uk/cgi-bin/Rsearch.cgi?Fn=Rsearch&rec_index=N10177 - the spec of the Milton Abbey organ

OK, so the inevitable strains of BWV565 (I actually had to correct myself from saying BMW 565 there!) are a bit of a tired cliché these days (couldn't they have picked a larger building with a larger organ and something by Howells or Elgar?) but I think the tall Doncastrian makes his point well... and doesn't that Gray & Davison sound magnificent! Amazing what a difference a couple of additions (and a good acoustic) can make to an otherwise nice but mundane two-manual organ...

[pcnd5584]

Tribute is paid to the magnificence of the organ (and a Rolls-Royce) in the following video by none other than a young (well, 38 or so) Jeremy Clarkson... and yes, that little two-manual (that of Milton Abbey) really does have a proper 32ft reed!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gonJuXovIE8
http://www.npor.org.uk/cgi-bin/Rsearch.cgi?Fn=Rsearch&rec_index=N10177 - the spec of the Milton Abbey organ

OK, so the inevitable strains of BWV565 (I actually had to correct myself from saying BMW 565 there!) are a bit of a tired cliché these days (couldn't they have picked a larger building with a larger organ and something by Howells or Elgar?) but I think the tall Doncastrian makes his point well... and doesn't that Gray & Davison sound magnificent! Amazing what a difference a couple of additions (and a good acoustic) can make to an otherwise nice but mundane two-manual organ...

Indeed. Although the key phrase is 'a good acoustic'. In fact, the best in the area.

I have played the Milton Abbey organ on several occasions (often as part of the Milton Abbey Festival), including 'being the orchestra' for a performance of Bach's The Passion According to Saint John. It is a surprisingly versatile instrument, with a most unusual 32ft. reed - a Contra Reim, which was named after the Swell double reed in the organ of the church of Saint John the Baptist, Glastonbury, built by Rest. Cartwright & Sons, in 1926-27.

It has to be said that it is only the superb acoustic ambience of this beautiful church which allows this reed to sound acceptable. The scale is necessarily small (and I believe that it is manufactured from marine-ply). In order to use it, one needs to be known by (and have the approval of) Trevor Doar, the Abbey Organist - or at least, that was the case a few years ago. However, I suspect that he might have retired by now. It was also necessary for him to unlock the electronic 'ventil' to the stop action - otherwise this stop would not sound.

[AnOrganCornucopia]

The organ looks, on paper, to be absurdly small, even though the building is no longer complete. I'd have said that 50 stops would not be too big at all. Is the stop action not mechanical? How does the ventil work? I assume it is either hidden or key-operated? A wise idea, anyway - can't have everyone bashing away with big reeds!

Marine ply is an intriguing material - though I cannot comment on its suitability for use in organ pipes!

[makemoreandmore]

Marine ply is an intriguing material - though I cannot comment on its suitability for use in organ pipes!

The 4 largest 32' pipes on Sydney Opera House are made of marine ply, and whilst people may cringe at it, it would be excellent for Trombone resonators.

[pcnd5584]

The organ looks, on paper, to be absurdly small, even though the building is no longer complete. I'd have said that 50 stops would not be too big at all. Is the stop action not mechanical? How does the ventil work? I assume it is either hidden or key-operated? A wise idea, anyway - can't have everyone bashing away with big reeds!

Marine ply is an intriguing material - though I cannot comment on its suitability for use in organ pipes!

In what way is the building no longer complete? All that was lost at the Dissolution were the eastern chapels.

The stop action is mechanical. The 'ventil' is indeed key-operated.

[pcnd5584]

Marine ply is an intriguing material - though I cannot comment on its suitability for use in organ pipes!

The 4 largest 32' pipes on Sydney Opera House are made of marine ply, and whilst people may cringe at it, it would be excellent for Trombone resonators.

Whilst I have not played this organ, those who have (and whose opinions I have read) do not speak particularly kindly of it. If these pipes sound anything like those at Milton Abbey (where only the sensitive acoustic ambience lends any substance to the tone) or even those at Budleigh Salterton Church, I should sooner manage without them.

[AnOrganCornucopia]

I was under the impression that the Nave had either never been constructed or had been destroyed.

[pcnd5584]

I was under the impression that the Nave had either never been constructed or had been destroyed.

The first - in which case, it cannot be said to be no longer complete (at least with regard to a Nave). One cannot lose something which one never possessed.

Pedant mode off.