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Topics - revtonynewnham

#101
Hi
EOCS member Arthur Peel of Keighley, West Yorkshire has recently died.

Arthur's widow needs to dispose of the two organs that he built urgently, as she needs to downsize.

There are two instruments available, both working(to some extent at least), but in need of some TLC.

1.  2mp organ built into the console of a Coventry electronic organ from a local church.  2 61-note manuals & 30 pedal keys - radiating & concave.  Stop tabs - 8+Trem (Swell) 8 pedal, 3 couplers, 8 Great  3 pistons for each manual (signs that 2 have been removed from each key slip).  Great working (1 note ciphering) and Pedal seems to be OK.  Swell not working when tried.

Console is in excellent condition - certainly too good to scrap.  Ideal for either refurbishment or MIDI retro-fit (or both!)

2.  Spinet-style organ - completely built by Mr Peel.  2 4-octave manuals, 13 note pedals.  38 rocker tabs plus 8 slider controls.  Working on a quick test, but some noisy key contacts (this organ appears to have been out of use for a while).  Again, a worthwhile restoration or MIDI project - or even a source of parts.

The person(s) wanting these organs will have to arrange transport.

Pictures attached.

Please contact Rev Tony Newnham in the first instance.

(I have some pix if anyone wants to see them.  Preference will be given to EOCS members - but others are welcome to contact me if interested)
#102
New Pipe Organs / Lancaster Priory
July 04, 2011, 09:53:55 AM
Hi

This was mentioned on another board - it seems that Lancaster Priory are replacing their Makin organ with 2 of the real things!  See http://www.lancasterpriory.org/page43.htm

Every Blessing
Tony
#103
Atheists' Corner / Conversion - event or process?
June 30, 2011, 10:08:33 AM
Hi

This arose from something I said to a friend recently - and we thought it perhaps has a wider application.

There's an underlying assumption among many evangelical Christians that you are "saved" at a definite, identifiable moment in time - like St. Paul's encounter with the risen Christ on the Emmaus road..  I'm finding more and more that that isn't necessarily the case, and is probably much rarer outside of evangelical circles.

Research shows that, for most people, conversion is a gradual process over a period of time, and requiring several "exposures" to the gospel message.  And indeed, the Christian life is (or should be) a process of ever-deepening faith (with the inevitable glitches along the way because we're only human!)

Every Blessing

Tony
#104
Organ registration / Couplers on Pistons
June 12, 2011, 02:48:39 PM
Hi

Having just got in from helping out our local Anglican church playing the organ for a service of Infant Baptism and finding some rather strange piston settings, I thought I'd take a straw poll - when setting pistons do you include couplers or not?

I ask because virtually every piston at St Barnabas had either the Swell Octave, or Swell to Great plus Swell Octave to Great set - and every pedal piston that I tried had both Swell and Great to Pedal set.  No doubt Jim, the organist there, has his reasons for the piston settings, but I found them a nuisance!  I ended up hand registering everything.

My preference - except if I'm setting pistons for a specific piece - is to exclude all couplers (except maybe swell octave & sub-octave if they're needed - and all trmulants (perhaps more significant on Theatre organs).

What do others think?

Every Blessing

Tony
#105
Miscellaneous & Suggestions / Pipedreams
May 22, 2011, 08:02:49 PM
Hi

I guess that many of us have, at one time or another, sat down with a blank piece of paper and tried to come up with our ideal stop list.  Often these efforts end up being rather too large to be practical - at least in the UK.

I've opened this topic as a place to post stop lists of such dream organs and discuss their relevant merits - bearing in mind that the paper specification is never going to be the whole story.

I tend to try and think up minimum-size organs, so here's a stop list to get things under way:-

Great
Open Diapason 8
Stopped Diapason 8
Principal 4

Swell (enclosed)
Gamba 8
Flute 4
Fifteenth 2

Pedal Bourdon  16

What would you do within the confines of 6 manual stops?

Every Blessing

Tony
#106
Hi Peter

I'm planning to play your Fugue on 2 incompatible themes in the Bradford Organists' association member's recital tomorrow (David Pinnegar gave me a copy). - I could do with some biographical info, etc for the programme note.  Please pm or e-mail me.

Thanks

Tony
#107
Atheists' Corner / Easter Greetings
April 24, 2011, 12:51:53 PM
A very happy & Blessed Easter to all board members.

Every Blessing

Tony
#108
Hi

I've just uploaded these - one is digital piano, but the other is recorded using "my Organ" software.

http://www.youtube.com/user/revtonynewnham?feature=mhum#p/a/u/1/hqNsUIRib0E

Every Blessing

Tony
#109
Hi

From another list -
"It is with much sadness to announce the following details regarding the final concert at Eston.

Sadly, the James Finegan Hall at Eston is to close at the end of May. The final concert featuring the ex Granada, Bedford Wurlitzer will take place on Sunday 24th April (Easter Sunday) at 2.30pm.

The concert will feature Kevin Grunill, Matthew Bason & Richard Openshaw.

Door admission is £6.50

It would be wonderful if we could give the Wurlitzer a good send-off, after providing more than three decades of Theatre Organ entertainment in the area."

The ongoing problem of secure venues for theatre organs raises it's head again.

Every Blessing

Tony
#110
Organs in danger / Water Damage - a major problem
March 25, 2011, 03:31:07 PM
In dealing with a batch of NPOR updates, I've come across information that lists no less than 11 pipe organs repaired following water damage in 2009 - no doubt there are more which aren't included for various reasons.  The majority of these it seems are due to the theft of lead from church roofs.  This seems to be a growing problem - and I don't know what the answer is!  At least we can resolve to report any suspicious activity that we see.

Every Blessing

Tony
#111
Hi

Hi

For those in reach of Saltaire, near Bradford, UK.  Next Saturday (19th March) sees my President's Meeting for the BOA.  This is at the Reed Organ Museum at Saltaire and I will be demonstrating some of the organs (hopefully including one or two of the rarer organs)  All BOA meetings are open to the public, so I hope that some of you may be able to come.  The event starts at 2:30, and there will be light refreshments and an opportunity to play some of the reed organs following the presentation.

Every Blessing

Tony
#112
Hi

Yesterday, the bradford Organists' association meeting took the form of an organ recital by Martin Baker, organist of the host church, St Oswald, Guiseley.  The organ is by Harrison - sse http://www.npor.org.uk/cgi-bin/Rsearch.cgi?Fn=Rsearch&rec_index=E01229  There was an "open console" session following the recital.

Despite an apparent lack of stops, this is one of those rare organs where drawing virtually any 2 stops makes a musical - and useable - sound.  Also, with a little lateral thinking, it's even more versatile than at first glance.  One example - I played the Bach Chorale Prelude "O Mensch bewien die Sunde Gross) (apologies for my non-existent German!)  The Swell Cornopean, with box closed right down, makes a substitute for an Oboe - and was balanced by Choir flutes 8&4 or the Gt 8ft flute.  Not many organs have such effective swells.  In another Bach CP I used the choir flutes again, plus the swell Octave Gamba to give the effect of quiet upperwork.  As always, the stop list doesn't give the whole story.

Every Blessing

Tony
#113
Hi

I have a batch of back numbers of "the Organ" for sale on behalf of the Bradford Organists' Association.

These are all single issues and appear to be complete and in good condition. £2:50 each.

There's an almostcomplete run from no. 119 (Jan 1951) through to no. 152 (Apr 1959), plus nos. 27 (Jan 1928) and 104 (Apr 1947)

Can be collected from Bradford, or postage at cost. PM me for the full list, etc.

Every Blessing

Tony
#114
Miscellaneous & Suggestions / Organ Plus
January 24, 2011, 06:07:28 PM
Maybe this should be a seperate catagory for organ used with other instruments.  This came to my notice this morning - great fun:-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0VQHewtgdA

Every Blessing

Tony
#115
Miscellaneous & Suggestions / My New CD
January 22, 2011, 05:39:47 PM
Hi

Slightly (but not completely) off-topic!  Please excuse the blatant advert!

Hi

At the end of last year I released a new CD - Sankey Revisited.

This was inspired by the 1950's & '60's instrumental arrangements of hymns by Jack Ward and others.  I have taken a selection of favourite hymns from "Sacred Songs and Solos" and play them in instrumental arrangements on Digital piano or a virtual theatre or classical organ.

Sample tracks are on my "MY Space" page - http://uk.myspace.com/560715659  Enjoy.

Copies of the CD can be purchased from me - price is £10 (10 UKP) plus post & packing.

Every Blessing

Tony
#117
Reed organs and harmoniums / Combined organ & Harmonium
January 05, 2011, 10:29:41 PM
Hi

A relatively recent example of this rare breed of instruments - http://www.harmoniumnet.nl/Lenter-Orgelharmonium.html

I know of around half-a-dozen others, but have only seen an amateur-built (and currently unplayable) example in the reed organ museum at Saltaire.

The biggest problem that I can see is the shift of pitch of the pipes with temperature changes (electronic/pipe hybrids suffer from the same problem).  The sound clip mentioned on the web page is also worth listening to.  I think the CD is one for my "wish list!".  Every Blessing

Tony
#118
Atheists' Corner / Was Jesus Born in a Stable?
December 15, 2010, 10:28:18 PM
Hi

As an offshoot to the discussion on Christmas Trees, etc. I thought this might be of some interest.  It's the basic text of my Christmas sermon in 2008.

Much of the Christmas story as we know it is embroidered with additional bits and pieces which are often more relevant to our culture and thought patterns than those of Matthew and Luke who wrote it in the first place.  I've heard a comment that the carol "In the Bleak Midwinter" has more to do with North Yorkshire in December than with the real situation in Israel 2,000 or so years ago.  To use the technical term, the story has become "encultured".  In some ways, that's not a bad thing, because it can help us understand – but it can enculturation can mask some of the real truths – and that's what's happened here.  As we imagine the story there are shepherds out in snow-covered fields – and they bring a lamb to the infant Jesus.  The baby is born in a stable, and the 3 kings follow a star all the way from their homeland to Bethlehem – and turn up at the stable.  We're so used to hearing the story, that we don't question it – but there are in fact a number of issues – for example, if the wise men followed the star all the way, why did they make a mistake and go to Jerusalem?  But that's something for another time.  This morning I want to look at Luke's account in Ch.2.

During this year I came across a fascinating book.  It's Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes, by Kenneth Bailey, who lived most of his life in the area of the Bible stories.  He raises some interesting questions.  In his chapter on this passage, for example:-
1.   Joseph was returning to the village of his origins.  We don't know if he was actually born there, but we can be pretty certain that some of his extended family still lived there – and reading between the lines of Matthew's account, it seems that he stayed on in Bethlehem for a while after Jesus was born, before having to make a rapid exit to Egypt.  So, he may well have known people who lived in Bethlehem – and even if he didn't, bearing in mind the Jewish reputation for hospitality – and even the Jewish law's demands for hospitality to strangers, he would only have to say who he was – Joseph, son of Heli, son of Mathat to find a warm welcome.

2.   The royal connection – Bethlehem was the birthplace of King David – a major figure in Jewish history.  Matthew was one of his descendants.  Would you turn away someone who has connections in high places?

3.   What about Mary – in virtually every culture, special care is taken of women at the time of giving birth.  Even today, if a child is born in a strange place – even a hospital car park or an ambulance – it makes the news.  Are we really to believe that Bethlehem was an exception?  Would the inhabitants really turn away the heavily pregnant wife of a descendant of the town's most famous son – and possible someone who was a relative?

4.   Even if there was an issue in Bethlehem, Mary herself had relatives in the area – we know for certain of Elizabeth & Zechariah, who she had visited just a few months earlier.  If Bethlehem was no good, why didn't they go there?

5.   Apart for all of this, Joseph had time to make arrangements.  Luke 2:6 says "while they were there" – NOT "as they arrived!"  And are we really to believe that he was such a dawk that he embarked on a long, difficult journey with a heavily pregnant wife without at least thinking through what he would do if the baby decided to put in an appearance?

6.   Finally, what about the shepherds?  If they turned up and saw that the townsfolk had failed in the provision of hospitality and facilities for the birth, wouldn't they take Mary & Joseph off to one of their homes and get their wives and family to help?

Maybe the story of an imminent birth as the couple arrived in Bethlehem is a bit of a myth!  So, where did these ideas come from?  The first known account of the birth of Jesus with various "frills" added is what we can only call a novel, "The Protaevangelium of James" – written not by James, but by someone who is anonymous using James' name to give his writings credibility – something that was fairly common at the time. 

The writer appears to know the gospel accounts, to doesn't have much knowledge of the geography or the culture of the Jewish society – for instance, he says that the road from Nazareth to Bethlehem goes through a desert – it doesn't, it's farmland virtually all the way!  He has the birth of Jesus in a cave just outside Bethlehem – with some rather dubious supernatural goings-on attached to it.

But there's still another problem – what about the manger and the inn?  They are clearly mentioned in Luke's account.  I'll come back to the manger in a moment – let's take a look first at Luke's statement "because there was no room at the inn."  Superficially, it seems to support the traditional ideas of the Christmas story – but in fact it appears that the translators of the English Bible – going right back to Tyndale – were influenced by the traditional story.  Luke, as you know, wrote in Greek, and the word that has been translated "inn" is kataluma.  This word appears 3 times in the New Testament – twice in Luke's gospel.  The other two appearances are translated as "guest chamber" – in both Mark's and Luke's account of the preparations for the last supper.  Why would Luke change the meaning of a word in the course of the same document – that doesn't make sense – and the case is even more obvious when we see that, in the story of the Good Samaritan, the Greek word for inn is "pandocheion".  So it appears that Luke isn't writing about an inn at all, but a guest room in a private house. 

With that in mind, let's turn our attention to the phrase "she laid Him in a manger" which is at the root of the confusion.  In English thought, a manger is an animal feeding trough – and animals are kept either in fields or in barns or stables – hence if Jesus was put in a manger to sleep immediately after His birth, then He must have been born in a stable.  Q.E.D.  But that's not the case – it was only the wealthy who had separate stables and barns – for the ordinary people, the "working class" if you like – of which Mary & Joseph were a part despite the connections with royalty, things were somewhat more basic!  The average home consisted of one, or maybe two rooms.  If there were 2, then the second room, either attached to the end of the house, or built on the flat roof, was the "guest chamber" – that's how the upper room of the last supper is described. 

So Mary & Joseph turned up – probably by pre-arrangement – at a relative's house, only to find that the guest room was already occupied.  Now the main room – the family room – was the ultimate in open-plan living.  The same room served for living, eating & sleeping – and at one end, usually next to the door, was a slightly lower area with a barrier between it and the main part of the room, which was where the family's few animals – a few sheep, maybe a cow and a donkey were penned overnight – being tied up outside during the daytime.  The animals were kept indoors overnight both to provide warmth, and to keep them safe from thieves – much the same considerations as in English medieval farmhouses.  So, when Mary is about to give birth, the men would be cleared out, leaving the women – and probably a local midwife – to deal with the birth of the baby.  And given that the house was obviously crowded, the manger – often a hollow cut into the floor by the barrier, or a wooden manger for sheep, was an obvious safe place to put the baby.  Personally, I think the use of the wooden manger is more likely – it could be moved into the main room.


Whatever you think of all this, there's one thing that is unchangeable in the Christmas story, and that is that God became man – Immanuel, God with us, and the Jesus went on to die on the cross on Calvary to sort out man's sin and to open a way for each and every one of us to have a relationship with Him.  Will you accept His free gift of salvation this Christmas?

Every Blessing

Tony
#119
Hi

I got to the monthly Cinema Organ Society concert at Victoria Hall, Saltaire yesterday.  Very good.  3 organists and a brass band!  Excellent value for money!  The concert was a tribute to the late Arnold Loxam (at one time organist at the Gaumont, Bradford) and a well-known player in the area.  Organists were David Lowe, Joe Marsh, and a youngster, Mary Ann Wootton - who if her spot yesterday is anything to go by, will be a well known theatre organist before too much longer.

The presentation was slightly marred by poor follow-spot work (hopefully down to lack of rehearsal) and a few late lighting cues, and more seriously, a sound operator who left the hand-held radio mic faded up when it was being retrieved and replaced on the console - with assorted clunks & bangs!

Next event (which I can't get to as we have our church Christmas lunch) is 12th Dec. at 2:30, featuring Richard Hills and the choir of Bradford Cathedral, conducted by Andrew Teaugue.  Should be well worth the visit if at all possible.

Every Blessing

Tony
#120
Organ Builders / Willis open day
October 29, 2010, 02:43:05 PM
Hi

For UK board members, Willis have an open day at their factory in Liverpool (the former Rushworth & Dreaper works) on 20th November.  See http://www.willis-organs.com/

Should be well worth a visit if you're not too far away.  The works are within walking distance of the railyway stations - or there is on-street parking in the area.

Every Blessing

Tony