Concert Tour

by Kay McAfee

Kay McAfee is professor of organ and music history at Henderson State University, Arkadelphia, Arkansas, and she serves there as organist for First United Methodist Church.

Twenty-four people traveled to the south and middle of England for the British Organ Music seminar, directed by Christina Harmon, the week of June 24, 2001. The great cathedrals of Winchester, Gloucester, and Liverpool formed part of the itinerary with guide John Norman, formerly of the Hill, Norman, and Beard firm, and now a consultant in Great Britain. Mr. Norman provided brochures and valuable commentary on each instrument prior to arriving at each destination. John Norman studied acoustics under Dr. R.W.B. Stephens at Imperial College, London, and organ under H.A. Roberts. At Hill, Norman, and Beard he learned voicing from Robert Lamb and tonal finishing from Mark Fairhead, working on seven cathedral organs before leaving the firm in 1974. An accredited professional organ consultant and a founding member of the Association of Independent Organ Advisers, Norman is a member of the Cathedrals Fabric Commission for England, of the Organs Committee of the Council for the Care of Churches, and the London Diocesan Advisory Committee for the Care of Churches. He is the author of The Organs of Britain, founder and editor of The Organbuilder, and has been a regular columnist for the Organists' Review for over twenty years.

 

Winchester

Traveling through the beautiful British countryside by bus, the first stop was Winchester, the ancient Roman city whose cathedral boasts the longest nave in Europe. Restored by King Alfred after the Dark Ages, two of the city's original gates are found around the perimeter of the 11th-century cathedral. The church sits in a sea of grass, and its massive thick-walled Roman-esque transepts and Gothic nave and apse protect the tombs of the early English kings. Jane Austen's tomb lies in the north aisle. Music historians are aware of the role played in the creative additions to ninth-century plainsong by the church in the preservation of the Winchester Troper, a manuscript which today is kept at Cambridge. The beautiful Winchester Bible, an illuminated manuscript, is preserved here. The twelve men of the choir, conducted by assistant organist Sarah Baldock, re-hearsed service music of Morales, Taverner, and Robert Stone pieces for the approaching Evensong service. Then, assistant organist Philip Scriven discussed the Henry Willis organ which was built for the Crystal Palace exhibition in 1851. Purchased at the urging of then-organist Samuel Sebastian Wesley, rebuilds and additions were made routinely by Willis, Heil & Co., and Harrison.

Most recently (1987), a division for the nave was added to create better support for congregational singing, a widespread practice in large English churches whose organ chambers were placed predominately on either side of the choir. Scriven demonstrated the Great Trumpet and Grand Cornet, reeds of the Pedal to 32', ringing 8' (two) and 4' Tubas on the Solo, Nave Trumpet, Great 16', 8', and 4' Trumpets, and the Swell reeds. The strings of the Swell (16', 8', 4') are particularly beautiful. Two Open Diapasons grace each of the four manual divisions, with a third on the Great. Scriven showed how any four of them sound lovely in playing the solo line of Bach's Orgelbüchlein setting of "Ich ruf zu dir." The Claribel Flute of the Great is like a harmonic flute. Participants observed the distinctly effective British practice of using a series of graduated pistons to produce crescendo and diminuendo. Participants played Elgar, Bridge, Wesley, Hollins, Handel, and Bach.

Bath Abbey

At Bath Abbey, organist and master of choristers Peter King explained the 1997 Klais organ, a rebuild of an 1868 William Hill/1895 Norman and Beard/

1914 Hill organ which sits in the north transept of the church. Few churches in England retain the organ atop the choir screen as is the situation at Westminster Abbey, Exeter, Gloucester, and King's College Chapel, and in many others, the screen has disappeared altogether. Since the late nineteenth century, the prevailing ideal has been to create an unobstructed view to the altar from the west door entrance, and many choir screens have been removed.

King told of the history of the 19th-century English Renaissance in church music and the symphonic organ required for the music of Stanford, Parry, and Elgar. Klais retained about half the pipes from the old organ and preserved the Hill, Norman, and Beard Positive division. Some of the 1895/

1914 tonal changes were reversed to revive the Hill sound ideal. The 1914 Thomas Jackson case was preserved. King played Bruhns, Mozart, Saint-Saëns, Ireland, and the Bach/Reger Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue.

Bristol

In Bristol at Saint Mary Redcliffe, a church constructed over a period of 200 years by merchants of the city, the entrance is through the north door of the porch, which dates from the 14th century. Only a fragment of the original medieval stained glass remains, the rest having been destroyed in the Reformation.

In 1726, the firm of Harris and Byfield built an organ which featured one of the country's first pedalboards with an octave permanently coupled to the Great. The present instrument by Harrison (1911) is considered one of the finest examples of that firm's work and of the Edwardian ideal. It fills three chambers on either side of the choir. Rebuilt in 1990 with few additions other than the upperwork and the console, the organ comprises 71 stops on four manuals. The tonal palette features a Double Open Wood 32' and Open Wood 16' of the Pedal, Corno di Bassetto of the Choir, and Cor Anglais, Orchestral Oboe, and Vox Humana (normally of the Solo division) and a complement of 16', two 8', and 4' reeds on the Swell. The Great Harmonics mixture includes a flat 21st which was peculiar to Arthur Harrison's design. Organist Anthony Pinell played a Ropartz Prelude, a Howells Psalm Prelude, and Fugue on the name Alain by Duruflé. He then assisted participants who played Honegger, Taverner, Howells, and Elgar on this lovely instrument.

Gloucester

Gloucester Cathedral, containing the tomb of King Edward II, was the site of a small Anglo-Saxon monastery until the 11th century, when it became a Benedictine monastery. The present building, ordered by William the Conqueror, dates from 1089. In 1541, the church became the cathedral for Gloucester. The massive Norman pillars of the nave bear red marks from a 13th-century fire. The choir vault is 14th-century perpendicular Gothic style. King Henry II was crowned there as a boy of 9 in 1216, the only monarch ever to be crowned outside of London.

Evensong canticles, Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis, were by Herbert Murrill, with responses by Walsh. The anthem was Herbert Howells' "Like As The Hart." David Briggs, organist of Gloucester Cathedral, improvised the opening voluntary and later chatted about the organ. It is one of a few remaining atop the choir screen and has a long history of adaptations. It has been over the screen since 1715. The 1640 Robert Dallum chair case on the east side of the screen is all that remains of that organ. Thomas Harris built an instrument in 1665 which contained the earliest mixture stop in Britain--200 pipes of that organ remain today. In 1831, J.C. Bishop added pedal pipes, among them a Flute 16' which is possibly the widest scale Pedal Open in Britain. Father Willis contributed to the organ in 1847 and 1888 as did Harrison and Harrison in 1920. Hill, Norman, and Beard restored the organ and electrified the console in 1971 to create one of the most rapid key-responses of any organ anywhere. With the 2000 restoration by the firm of Nicholson, the organ today can be described as neo-Baroque. Briggs mentioned that most English cathedral organs are rebuilt every 20 years or so "in the fashion" of the day. Henry Willis added a pedalboard. The last rebuild made it a Romantic instrument. Harrison & Harrison changed the voicing but kept all of the pipes. The organ has a grand, rolling sound. Briggs demonstrated the seven stops which remain of the Harris organ of 1665: Great Diapasons (one facing east, one west), two 4' Principals, 12th and 15th, and Choir 4' Principal. Briggs described the foundations as "throwing down to the 16'," perhaps because there are many high cut-ups and not much nicking of the pipes. There are nine seconds of reverberation in the nave when it is empty. Briggs played the Symphonie Passion of Dupré, Fantasie and Fugue in G Minor of Bach, and a long, multi-movement improvisation of symphonic scope based upon a hymn tune. One of his generation's most gifted at improvisation, Briggs then delighted his hearers by improvising in the style of other dazzling exponents of this art: Hakim, Latry, Cochereau, Lefebvre.

Hereford

Traveling through the rich Wye valley with its beautiful truck farms and fruit orchards, we arrived at Hereford, the last cathedral town before the Welsh border. The Romanesque cathedral church contains a late-19th-century Henry Willis built at a time when the firm was copying the tonal design of Cavaillé-Coll.

Of 4 manuals and 67 stops, the 1933 Willis rebuild features a console with couplers on tablets which are below the music rack (a copy of the American design). The pedal contains a 32' Double Open Bass, the Great a Double Open Diapason 16' and three 8' Diapasons, and the Swell a Contra Gamba 16'; the powerful reeds are on high wind pressure, and the wide-scale flues have "stringy" tops. With painted pipes which are often described as looking like "rolls of linoleum," the organ is not much altered from the Willis original. John Norman's firm electrified the console in 1978, the rebuild of which was funded by a local cider maker. Peter Dyke, assistant organist and acting principal organist, spoke of former organists John Bull and S.S. Wesley. He then played Purcell, Wesley's "Air and Gavotte," and the theme and two variations of the Brahms/Rogg Variations on a Theme of Haydn.

Every year, the prestigious Three Choirs Festival is held here with performers located at the west entrance and facing the audience which is seated facing the west entrance. Dyke called our attention to an organ which sits on a wheeled platform in the south aisle. For ease of the organist's sightline, the organ is wheeled to the next bay when the festival conductor's position moves eastward as the choral and accompanying ensemble personnel change.

Birmingham

The group then arrived at Birmingham's Symphony Hall which is part of an arts complex built in the late 1980s. The German firm of Klais was installing a large instrument in this beautiful facility. The interior is surely a sister-hall to the Meyerson in Dallas, so alike are the two. At the time the building was constructed, Simon Rattle was artistic director and conductor of Birmingham's famously fine orchestra, and a poster outside the hall featured a large photo of Rattle with two organ pipes, the feet of which extend sideways from his mouth. Wide-eyed, he appealed for donations for the organ. The Klais firm won the contract in 1989. The group enjoyed taking lunch with Philipp Klais, grandson of the firm's founder and a gracious, personable man of great enthusiasm. He considers his firm's "invasion" of England for restoration and new-instrument contracts a great honor. As participants settled into the audience seats of the concert hall, Klais recalled that many "firsts" were achieved by the British: the Swell Box, the modern bellows system, over-blowing flutes, and double-mouthed pipes. As his crew worked behind him, Klais explained that the organ for the Birmingham Hall would be of four manuals and 82 stops with inauguration scheduled for October, 2001. Thomas Trotter and the Birmingham Symphony Orchestra presented three concerts on Friday and Saturday, October 19 and 20. Only the façade was built for the opening of the facility some 11 years ago. Two consoles, one of tracker and the other of electric action, are provided, allowing one of them to be placed within the orchestra. Klais mentioned that he had visited the Meyerson Center in Dallas to study the acoustical properties there. His firm has recently installed a symphony hall instrument in Singapore and will construct another in Madison, Wisconsin.

Lichfield

Next, at Lichfield Cathedral, which sits in a lovely close surrounded by old and new buildings, Andrew Lumsden, organist and master of choristers, talked of the education and appointment of organists for large English churches. Rarely is the number 2 or number 3 organist elevated through the ranks, an exception being John Scott at St. Paul's London. Lumsden was educated at Saint John's College and was number 2 at Westminster Abbey for a time. The duties of Master of Choristers used to include the teaching of Latin and Greek. The choir schools, and the advent of girls' choirs, are enormously expensive.

The original instrument before the present Hill organ of 1884 was on the choir screen and was purchased by Josiah Spode of the pottery-making family. The Hill instrument was placed on the north transept and the pipes of that organ survive into the current one, a 4-manual instrument placed on either side of the choir. A Baroque choir organ was added in 1973-74 and a recently completed 4-million pound refurbishment by Harrison added the nave organ. The Great reeds are on a separate chest under high wind pressure, and there is a wonderful Edwardian Tuba and massive pedal reeds. Lumsden played the Bach "Liebster Jesu" with choir Cornet and Great Open Diapason, Widor Symphonie V "Adagio" with foundations and strings, and Guilmant's March on a Theme of Handel.

Liverpool

The great industrial city of Liverpool was the last stop before returning to London. Ian Tracey, organist for both Saint George's Hall and the Cathedral, treated us to a well-articulated history of both structures and their instruments. Saint George's Hall is a magnificent civic monument to nineteenth-century British pride and opulence. Built in the 1840s for music festivals, the interior was copied after the Baths of Caracalla in Rome and even displays Roman military insignia on its guilded interior doors. A magnificent marble floor is now covered by wood but is revealed on special occasions, increasing the considerable reverberation by two seconds.

S.S. Wesley directed the building of the Henry Willis organ in 1855. Willis was barely 30 at the time and this organ established his reputation. The instrument featured 100 stops, the first radiating concave pedalboard, stop jambs angled towards the player, and thumb pistons. Rebuilds occurred in 1897 and 1931. The organ was dismantled after a bomb damaged the building in 1940. Many pipes were stolen, and in 1957 Henry Willis IV reconstructed the organ. Since 1989 it has been cared for by the David Wells company, with a campaign now on to further restore the organ. Today it has 120 stops, including two percussions. It still retains a classical English Great Mixture and wide scaled Diapasons.

About 200 people will attend organ recitals at any given time. At Christmas, some 1700 people congregate to enjoy dinner parties and carol singing. At other times, Tracey continues the tradition of playing the 1812 Overture while the audience provides the bell and cannon effects. In the 19th century, W.T. Best, notable for his orchestral transcriptions, would play concerts for school children and for adults, who were charged but a farthing to hear the organ. Once, a woman dressed in black appeared in Best's peripheral vision while he played a Spohr overture. He shooed her away. It was Queen Victoria. George Thalben-Ball was organist here for a time. Tracey played a Purcell March to feature the Tuba Mirabilis and double-leathered Diapason, Thalben-Ball's Elegy, and the Bossi Scherzo.

Liverpool Cathedral contains the largest organ in England. Like the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., Liverpool Cathedral took most of the twentieth century to construct. Like Saint Paul's in London, the church became a national symbol of British fortitude during WWII as Churchill ordered the work to continue on the tower even as Liverpool endured saturation bombing by the Germans. Begun in 1904 and completed in the 1980s, the enormity of the structure is magnified because the nave is very wide, there is an unobstructed view from entrance to altar (1/8 mile), there are two sets of transepts, and the arches under the tower soar to 175 feet. 4000 people can congregate here, as they did when the Queen consecrated the Cathedral in 1978. Giles Gilbert Scott, 18 years old at the time, won the competition for the design. He also designed the Bank Side Power Station (now the new Tate Gallery) in London and the University Library at Cambridge. Henry Willis designed the instrument to accommodate the organist, Henry Goss-Custard, and his considerable gifts for orchestral sonorities. There are 147 speaking stops, 47 of which are reeds, including those on 30 and 50 inches of wind pressure. There are 10 ranks of mixtures on each manual, mutations, and clarinet, bassoon, and flutes, all of which are much more subtle than those at Saint George's Hall. The huge organ is mounted on both sides of the choir and faces into the nave, held up by massive load-bearing piers that were designed to hold two 200-foot towers which were never built.

Little of the organ is changed today, but in 1989 a new moveable console was provided. Tracey demonstrated the five beautiful Open Diapasons of the Great, played the Tournemire Te Deum, Joel Martinson's Aria, and his own transcription of two movements of the Respighi Pines of Rome. Participants played Karg-Elert, Widor and Mulet.

London: Temple Church

Returning to London, participants were greeted by James Vivian, organist at Temple Church, where George Thalben-Ball was organist for over 60 years.  The present organ, a 1927 Harrison & Harrison, was a gift of Lord Glentanner, in whose Scottish castle ballroom it was originally placed. Moved to the church in 1954, a Double Ophicleide was added. In 1989, Harrison revised the Great Mixture and lowered the Great reeds from 15 to 7 inches of wind pressure. The original instrument, a 1684 instrument of 23 stops, was the first 3-manual organ in England. The Echo division (a forerunner of the Swell) had a short compass to Middle C. This and subsequent instruments and their restorations were destroyed in 1941.

Saint Paul's Cathedral

At Saint Paul's Cathedral, the 5 p.m. Eucharist was sung by the choir, with service music by Harold Darke and Introit by Palestrina (Tu es petra). Andrew Reed, the number 2 organist, played for the service. After the church emptied, Huw Williams, assistant organist, led us to the choir loft to demonstrate the 1872 Father Willis organ. Today it is of 108 stops in three parts: the main organ on either side of the choir, the west entrance Trumpet en Chamade and Diapason chorus, and the Quarter Dome Northeast division of 3 tubas and a Tuba Militaire. Willis had split the original Bernard Smith organ of 1697 (a double-sided instrument located on the choir screen) and moved it to its present location on either side of the choir. The case was designed by the architect of the church, Christopher Wren. Willis claimed first use of tubular pneumatic action in this organ. From 1897 to 1900, Willis expanded the Pedal, the pipes of which lie horizontally on the north side of the choir. From 1925 to 1930 the organ was moved to the Wellington monument bay as it was feared that the dome was unstable. Restored in 1960, 1972, and 1977, windchests and other parts of the organ received major overhauls. The Mander company added Diapasons to the quarter dome division. The Swell is particularly fine, an example of an early Willis classic Swell, not deep in the case, and equal to the Great. Williams played Stanford, Howells, and Bossi to demonstrate the colors and families of stops. The finale was Grand Choeur Dialogué by Gigout in which the Royal Trumpets sounded antiphonally with the main organ.

Afterwards, the group proceeded to Saint Helen Bishopgate, near Saint Paul's, where John Norman was the consultant for a new organ. The original instrument was destroyed by an IRA bomb in the 1980s.

Saint Margaret Lothbury

Saint Margaret Lothbury, a small church nestled next to the Bank of England, was our next stop. We were greeted by Richard Townend, who is resident recitalist at Saint Margaret Lothbury and music director for Holy Trinity Church at Sloane Square. Townend was a choirboy at Westminster Abbey and sang for the funeral of Ralph Vaughan Williams in 1958. He studied at the Royal College of Music with Harold Darke and Herbert Howells, and in Switzerland with Lionel Rogg and Guy Bovet. He is also director of music for the Hill House school, which Prince Charles attended.

Saint Margaret Lothbury was designed by Christopher Wren and built after the great fire of 1666. In danger of collapse, it was rebuilt in the 1970s. An organ of two manuals was placed in the west gallery in 1801 by G.P. England and a Choir division was added in 1845 by James Butler. In 1881 Bryceson moved the whole organ to the gallery and added the treble case from the church of St. Mildred Poultry. In 1938, Hill, Norman and Beard added a large Great Open Diapason and discarded the Great Mixture. The console was electrified and detached from the case. In 1983-84, J.C. Bishop and Son, under the direction of John Budgen and Richard Townend, completely reconstructed the organ, restoring the case to its original form. The remaining stops by England and James Butler have been incorporated in a new instrument built in the style of the original. Both Felix Mendelssohn and S.S. Wesley played here.

In 1830, the organ at St. Margaret Lothbury featured the first addition of the bottom 12 notes of pedals in England. It contains warm Open and quiet Stopped Diapasons. According to Townend, the instrument is a quintessential British organ, of "polite" sound and singing quality, but not built for playing polyphony. The Great 4' Flute "bubbles up." In English music whenever a flute is called for, it means a 4' Flute. There is an "elderly" Trumpet. The classic English chorus is 8' Open Diapason, 4' Principal, Twelfth, Fifteenth, and Mixture. The English Cornet is of 3 ranks: 8', 4', 22/3'. The Swell is soft--the Great louder. Adding the Trumpet to the Cornet gives a "Frenchy Grand Jeu." The Cremona with metal resonators, fatter than the French Cromorne, is for solo melodies.

Westminster Abbey

The group attended Evensong at Westminster Abbey to hear responses by Aylesbury, Magnificat and Nunc dimittis by Howells, and an anthem by Stanford. Afterwards, Stephen LePrevost, assistant organist, spoke briefly of the organ as playing time was limited. The organ is a 1937 rebuild by Harrison & Harrison of a William Hill instrument from 1848 and 1884. The first instrument was by the firm of Schrider & Jordan in 1727. The choir Stopped Flute and 4' Flute are reputedly from the Jordan instrument. The Bombarde division was added by Simon Preston and features the borrowing of reeds from the Great and Solo manuals. Participants played Howells, Tournemire, Handel, and Walton.

Westminster Cathedral

The imposing Roman Cathedral of Westminster, loosely based on the design of St. Mark's in Venice, was built in 1901. Past the nave with its three domes, the group gathered in the choir loft which is behind the high altar. Martin Baker, organist of Westminster Cathedral, explained that it costs around $400,000 per year to maintain the choir school. The sound of the famous choir is more "continental," rather than that of the British "hooty" sound. 95% of the music is in Latin, and the boys actually have trouble singing in English after learning the Italianate Latin vowel sounds. The Apse Organ of two manuals accompanies the choir. The large Willis Grand Organ in the west gallery is playable from the Apse Organ through setting pistons from the Grand Organ, but the two-second delay takes some getting used to.

Walking down the south triforium gallery towards the west gallery, we stopped at a bay close to the Great Organ. Comparable to the Liverpool instrument, it was built by Henry Willis III and rebuilt by Harrison in 1984. It features a Double Diapason 16' and three Open Diapasons on the Great. There is a Double Open Bass 32' and Open Bass and Open Diapason 16' in the Pedal. The Swell and Solo both contain beautiful orchestral reeds: Waldhorn, Cor Anglais, French horn, and Corno di Bassetto. The Cor de nuit celestes on the Choir are velvety and beautiful. In 1976, Stephen Cleobury directed the raising of the Apse Organ and part of the Great Organ to concert pitch. In 1985, David Hill, who began the Grand Organ Festival, had all of the Great Organ raised to concert pitch. Baker improvised on "Adoro te devote," and participants played Stanford, Parry, and Mulet.

London options

On July 1, with several Sunday service choices in London, one group of participants returned to Westminster Cathedral for a Festival Mass in celebration of the centennial anniversary year of the church. Kyrie, Gloria, and Agnus Dei, sung by the choir, were by Widor. The anthem was Parry's "I Was Glad," accompanied by both the Great Organ and the Apse Organ. The congregation sang the rest of the Latin Mass from printed plainsong. The 1700 seats of the nave were full. At Richard Townend's church, Holy Trinity at Sloane Square, an orchestra accompanied a Mozart Mass and a youth choir from Alaska participated.

Afternoon choices included hearing recitals at Saint Paul's (John Scott), Westminster Cathedral (Martin Baker), and Westminster Abbey. Participants practiced for and played a recital at Holy Trinity church at 7:00 p.m. Open to the parishioners and public, the program featured music by Walond, Lang, Howells, Rutter, Thalben-Ball, and Vierne. The interior of the church, an arts-and-crafts-Gothic design, features a breathtaking window above the altar which was the largest window ever built by the William Morris Company. Its beautiful stained-glass images were designed by pre-Raphaelite painter Edward Burne-Jones. J.W. Walker & Sons built an organ here in 1891 which was almost totally destroyed during WWII. It was rebuilt in 1966 by Walker, and Simon Preston inaugurated the instrument in 1967.

The British Organ Music Seminar provides participants access to great instruments and their artist-curators. For those unfamiliar with the vast repertoire of British organ music, especially that of the 19th and early 20th century, playing these works on the instruments for which they were conceived is a revelation. The reverberation of the environment, the velvety Diapasons, the exquisite Swell divisions with their strings and orchestral reeds, and the fire of the British tubas resonates long after the experience is past. The hospitality of our hosts was among the finest. At many venues, the church's staff provided a meal, either in the undercroft, or a parlor, or in a great hall. Such is what creates memories surrounding the experience of beautiful music and instruments.           

July 13–25, 2004

William Callaway

William Callaway is an organist and travel agent in Atlanta, Georgia.

“When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life, for London holds all that life affords.” So wrote Samuel Johnson in the eighteenth century, words that still hold true today. To paraphrase, it could also be said that “When an organist is tired of England, he is tired of life, for England holds all that an organist desires.” Indeed, the fabled island country is an organist’s dream, home to hundreds of noble and majestic instruments--many from the mid-nineteenth to mid-twentieth centuries--that survive to this day for the enjoyment of organ lovers everywhere. Imagine being able to not only see and hear, but play nearly two dozen of the great cathedral, church and concert hall organs of England.

The sixteenth annual Organ Tour of England got underway in London on July 13, 2004. Created and escorted by Leslie Peart, these tours begin and end in London, and focus on a particular region of the country each year. For this tour of eastern and northern England, a very congenial group of organists and organ enthusiasts from New York, Massachusetts, Illinois, Georgia, Texas, Oregon and Canada gathered for a get-acquainted lunch at the modern Holiday Inn Forum Hotel, the largest Holiday Inn in the world. Located in the fashionable borough of Kensington, within walking distance of Harrods, the Royal Albert Hall, parks and museums, the hotel was a comfortable and convenient base from which to explore England’s vibrant capital city. Meals in the quiet and private Forum Room were wonderful.

London

After a hearty pub lunch of traditional roast beef and Yorkshire pudding, our group’s first stop was Southwark Cathedral on London’s revitalized South Bank. Here we were warmly welcomed by Peter Wright, who briefly demonstrated the splendid 1897 4-manual Lewis, then turned the instrument over to us. Everyone who wished to got an opportunity to play on each and every organ we visited, which is a major feature of these tours. Our first evening in London got off to a fine start with James O’Donnell’s recital at Westminster Abbey, which included a complete performance of Widor’s Sixth Symphony. This was the first of five recitals that we heard on the tour, and we had choice reserved seats in the choir stalls to fully enjoy seeing and hearing this celebrated instrument.

Our second day in London began with a visit to Immaculate Conception Church Farm Street, a beautiful French Gothic style building designed by Pugin, with a richly-detailed interior. David Graham briefed us on the history of the church and organ, and played a comprehensive mini-recital to fully demonstrate the fine 1926 3-manual Willis. After we all had a chance to play, the tour continued via double-decker bus to the large Temple complex on the Strand. Paul Derret presented a lunchtime recital in the ancient Temple Church, after which we were free to try the marvelous 1926 4-manual Harrison & Harrison.

After dinner, we returned to Westminster Abbey for a private, after-hours session on the organ with assistant organist Andrew Reid. This was a highlight of the trip, as Mr. Reid gave a thorough demonstration of the 1937 5-manual Harrison & Harrison. He concluded with Walton’s “Orb and Sceptre,” an especially appropriate choice in this site of English coronations. After basking in the splendor of full organ, we were all able to play this famed instrument, a thrill I’m sure none of us will ever forget.

North of Londonn

The next day we met our very competent coach driver, David Attfield, himself an organist, and began our journey north. David describes these annual organ tours as the highlight of his year. First stop was Chelmsford Cathedral, home to two recent Mander tracker-action instruments. Since both organists were away, head verger Michael Rivers, another organ fan, acted as our host. Michael and his assistants first served us coffee and refreshments, and then turned the instruments over to us. The 3-manual in the chancel and the 4-manual in the rear gallery were both distinguished by beauty of tone and ease of action. It is possible to play both organs from each of the two consoles.

A short drive later, we arrived in the quaint small village of Long Melford, seemingly straight out of an Agatha Christie novel, with an imposing manor house, ivy-covered cottages and the Holy Trinity Church, deemed one of the most beautiful in England. This visit was intended more for the beauty of the church than the organ, but we enjoyed a leisurely time playing the 1887 Walker tracker organ and strolling through the grounds surrounding the church, full of interesting old tombstones, yew trees and rose bushes.

The final destination of the day was the university town of Cambridge, where we settled into the comfortable Gonville Hotel overlooking a large park (Parkers Piece) on the edge of the city center. There was time to explore this fascinating city on our own before a delicious dinner at our hotel.

Cambridge

On Friday we first visited Girton College Chapel in Cambridge to see the recently installed 4-manual tracker by the Swiss firm of St.-Martin, a rarity in England. As expected, the tone was very clean and bright, and the action easy and responsive. We then had several free hours for lunch on our own, shopping, sightseeing or punting on the Cam River. Several made an excursion to the beautiful American Cemetery on the outskirts of town, where nearly 4,000 U.S. servicemen from World War II are buried. At 3 pm, we walked half a block from our hotel to the Church of Our Lady of English Martyrs (R.C.) to experience the 1881 3-manual Abbot & Smith organ, recently restored by Nicholson. The organ sounded marvelous in this spacious and resonant French Gothic building, and our host Nigel Kerry was most helpful. After another excellent dinner in our hotel, we retired to a hospitality suite, with coffee and dessert, to watch the opening night concert of the Proms, which featured Martin Neary on the newly restored Royal Albert Hall organ, playing the Bach D-minor Toccata alone, and then the Fugue with the orchestra.

Ely

On Saturday, July 17, we drove the short distance from Cambridge to the spectacular Ely Cathedral, one of the glories of English architecture. We were among the first visitors of the day, and had this vast building pretty much to ourselves. After being greeted and briefed on the 1908 4-manual Harrison & Harrison by the assistant organist, we each climbed the narrow spiral staircase to the organ loft to play this majestic instrument. Our own Bob McDonald regaled us with the Widor Toccata as we wandered around the spacious nave, absorbing the history and beauty of this fantastic place.

After a scenic ride through the tranquil Fen country, we made a lunch stop in the old market town of Boston, where we briefly visited St. Botolf’s Church. We admired the spacious, light-filled interior and marveled at the spire--at 272 feet, the tallest of any parish church in England. Being Saturday, the city center was filled with market booths, providing the group with a very interesting experience.

In the afternoon we continued on to the large town of Kingston-upon-Hull to experience the magnificent 100-rank 1911 Foster & Hill organ in City Hall. The auditorium featured a wonderful frieze of classical mythological figures on the walls surrounding the organ façade, and the curator unlocked the pipe chamber, allowing us to explore the interior of this large instrument. We had a leisurely, enjoyable visit here, with ample time to fully familiarize ourselves with this fine concert instrument. Our group would be the last to play the organ for quite some time, as the auditorium was being shut down the next day for extensive redecorating. Final stop of the day was the fashionable resort town of Harrogate, where we settled into the Victorian Yorkshire Hotel, facing a green park filled with beautiful floral displays. This would be our base for a total of five nights from which we would explore the north of England.

York

For our first Sunday of the tour, we took a short coach ride to the walled medieval city of York to attend the main service in York Minster. We enjoyed the choral and organ music in the rolling acoustics of this imposing space, the largest gothic cathedral north of the Alps. The cathedral is in excellent shape, after the recent rebuilding of portions due to a tragic fire. Following the second service, John Scott Whiteley gave us a warm welcome, demonstrated the 1872 4-manual Willis, and then graciously allowed us to try our hand at the moveable chancel console. He also showed us the original console in the organ loft before excusing himself to play for a special service with Prince Philip and veterans of World War II, who entered the cathedral as we were leaving. We had some free time for lunch and exploring this fascinating town, winding through the crowded streets with the other Sunday visitors, taking advantage of a fine English summer afternoon.

Later in the day we drove to Armley, a suburb of Leeds, to visit St. Bartholomew’s Church and attend a recital by German organist Joachim Walter on the 1869 4-manual Schulze. He presented a fine program of works by romantic composers such as Mendelssohn, Beethoven, Reubke and others that worked very well on this instrument. During the interval the ladies of the church had set up tea and refreshments, and we all savored homemade cakes and trifles before getting to play this marvelous organ for ourselves.

Beverley

On Monday July 19, our first visit of the day was to the small town of Beverley to visit the famed Minster, another one of the architectural gems of England. We were welcomed by Alan Spedding, who presented a fine demonstration on the 1916 4-manual Arthur Hill instrument. The layout was similar to York Minster, with the main case on a center loft in the chancel and the towering 32-foot pipes in the side gallery. As in Ely, we were the first visitors of the day, and had this remarkable building pretty much to ourselves to enjoy as we all took turns playing and admiring the ornate interior.

Another short ride through the rolling northern English countryside brought us to the gates of Castle Howard, the stately home made famous as the setting for television’s “Brideshead Revisited.” We enjoyed a leisurely visit, made even more delightful by the fine summer weather. After lunch in the café on the lake, we had a private session in the chapel to play the 1872 smallish 3-manual Harrison tracker. There was then time to explore the house and extensive grounds, which included formal gardens, fountains and lakes. Back in Harrogate, our final visit of the day was at St. Peter’s Church, conveniently located next door to our hotel. Here we experienced another 4-manual Schulze, recently renovated by David Wood of Huddersfield. After dinner at the hotel, we were treated to the piano-playing talents of our own Bob MacDonald, to the delight of tour participants and hotel guests alike.

The Yorkshire area

On Tuesday July 20, we first headed south to Doncaster to see St. George’s Parish Church and its large 5-manual Schulze. Organist Andrew Wilson is an attorney in Sheffield, and could not be there. So we were again hosted by another head verger/organ fan, Chris Clay. After everyone had played here, we headed north again, driving through the picturesque Yorkshire moors and dales, and arrived in Durham after lunch. After checking into our comfortable and luxurious hotel, Leslie Peart led us up the twisting medieval streets to the massive Norman cathedral, which crowned the highest hill in the city, majestically overlooking the River Wear. We were graciously welcomed by James Lancelot, who demonstrated the superb 4-manual Willis, later rebuilt by Harrison & Harrison. After we had all taken turns playing, Mr. Lancelot ended our session with a brief fanfare on the commanding Tuba Mirabilis, sending us forth with the sound of this magnificent instrument still resounding throughout the cathedral.

The following day began with a private tour of the Harrison & Harrison organ building factory, a short ride from our hotel on the outskirts of town. We were warmly greeted by our charming hosts, Mark and Catherine Venning, who now own this venerable firm. It was fascinating to see the amount of painstakingly detailed work that goes into the building and restoration of fine pipe organs, and we left with a renewed appreciation of the technical complexities of the instrument. Harrison’s largest project at the time was the rebuilding of the organ of Peterborough Cathedral, which had suffered from a recent fire.

After free time in Durham for lunch and exploring, we rode to the large city of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, the northernmost point of our tour, for a visit to the cathedral. Our jovial and enthusiastic host, Scott Farrell, showed us the 1881 4-manual Lewis, housed in a beautiful Renatus Harris case from 1676. After we had all enjoyed playing, we returned to Durham to prepare for dinner and a recital at the cathedral by our friend John Scott Whiteley. Most of us sat in the choir stalls to fully experience the awesome power of this instrument with its thundering 32-foot stops and powerful reeds. Mr. Whiteley presented a stunning program, concluding with his own transcription of a Cochereau improvisation.

On Thursday July 22, we reluctantly checked out of Durham and headed south to the Leeds Parish Church to see an unusual 4-manual instrument of various builders, with some of the pipework dating back to 1771. Our host, Simon Lindley, welcomed us and gave an introduction to the organ, installed behind a large wooden Gothic screen. Sitting at the console, one can almost imagine being in a jail cell! After we had all played and enjoyed the church’s coffeehouse, we rode to the large town of Huddersfield to visit the splendid 1881 4-manual Father Willis organ in the town hall. We were enthusiastically greeted by Scottish organist Gordon Stewart, who offered us tea and refreshments, then played a superb mini-recital to show off this wonderful instrument. David Wood of Huddersfield was also there--he and his firm did the last rebuilding of this instrument. It was very satisfying to then be able to play this grand Victorian concert organ.

After lunch at a local pub, we boarded our coach for a short ride back to Harrogate and the Yorkshire Hotel, our base for northern England. Our final visit of the day was to nearby St. Wilfrid’s Church, home to another fine 1928 Harrison & Harrison of surprisingly robust tone. We all took turns playing before returning to our hotel for the evening.

Our first stop on Friday was the Rochdale Town Hall, an impressive Victorian Gothic style building completed in 1871. Organ curator Edward Riggs greeted us and led us up the regal grand staircase to the fantastic Great Hall richly decorated with stained glass, painting and woodcarving. Here we had a delightful time on the 1913 4-manual Binns organ, housed in alcoves behind a raised stage area. The console sits on a high platform, so one actually climbs aboard! Our group played mostly lighter popular selections here, including “The Lost Chord,” “Phantom of the Opera,” and “Londonderry Air,” which all worked well on this full-bodied Edwardian instrument.

We moved on to Blackburn to visit the cathedral and the newly rebuilt and enlarged 1969 Walker. This was the third organ we visited that had been rebuilt by David Wood, including the addition of a new console and Solo division. The pipes were mounted high up on the chancel walls in “swallows’ nest” chambers, and the elegant movable 4-manual console had been placed in the middle of the sanctuary for us. We all enjoyed playing this wonderful instrument in surprisingly resonant acoustics, giving the Imperial Trumpet a good workout as several of the group played trumpet tunes, fanfares and big toccatas.

Then it was back on the coach for a short ride to Whitefield, a suburb of Manchester, for our final visit of the day to All Saints Stand Church, where our friend Gordon Stewart was organist. The 1926 3-manual Harrison & Harrison impressed us with its full, robust tone. We also admired the finely carved woodwork on the altar, choir stalls and organ case before returning to Harrogate through the scenic Yorkshire countryside--the backbone of England, according to our driver David Attfield.

On Saturday July 24, we checked out of the Yorkshire Hotel and had a short ride south to Wakefield. Arriving in the late morning, we were glad to discover an open-air farmer’s market had been set up in the streets surrounding the cathedral. The vendors were mainly French, and the air was heavy with the aromas of fresh baguettes, sausages, cheeses and spices. Several of our group purchased bags of cookies and pastries to enjoy with their coffee break before we entered the cathedral for the fifth and final recital of the tour. David Holder played an interesting and varied program on the 5-manual unified instrument containing pipework by various builders, again most recently by David Wood. After the recital we had time to play the organ ourselves before leaving on the final leg of our journey back to London. We arrived in the capital in the late afternoon and returned to the Holiday Inn Forum Hotel. After an excellent farewell dinner together, we were free to attend a Proms concert at the nearby Albert Hall, or partake of one of the many other cultural opportunities of this exciting city.

The tour officially concluded after breakfast on Sunday July 25, although many participants opted to stay an extra day or two to more fully explore London. Leslie Peart escorted a group of us to reserved seats under the dome of St. Paul’s Cathedral for the main service, followed by lunch in the historic Albert Pub near the houses of Parliament. The afternoon was free to enjoy evensong and organ recitals at the major churches of London, and some of our group attended a Proms concert that evening.

Each year the England Organ Tour focuses on a particular region of England. This year’s tour will take place July 12-25, 2005, and will feature the cathedrals and organs of southwestern England and Wales, concluding with three days at the Southern Cathedrals Festival at Winchester Cathedral. For more information, contact Leslie Peart at 2129 Fairway Drive, Springfield, IL 62704; phone 217/546-2562; e-mail <[email protected]>.

Joel H. Kuznik

Joel H. Kuznik, NYC, has been writing published articles for 50 years. A native of Jack Benny’s hometown, Waukegan, his childhood idol nevertheless was Rubenstein, whom he eventually heard in Paris in 1975. But by 14, he became fascinated with the organ and Biggs, whom he heard twice in the mid 1950s. He studied organ with Austin Lovelace, David Craighead, Mme. Duruflé, Jean Langlais, and Anton Heiller, and conducting with Richard Westenburg and Michael Cherry, who was assistant to Georg Szell. Highlights of 70 years have included hearing Glenn Gould, Giulini in Brahms’ Fourth at Chicago, Carlos Kleiber’s “Der Rosenkavalier” at the Met, Herreweghe’s unmatchable “Mass in B Minor” at the Leipzig Bachfest, “Tosca” at La Scala, a one-on-one with Bernstein after the Mahler 2nd, and, finally, a birthday toast from Horowitz.

One advantage of retirement is having the luxury of hearing colleagues and ensembles here and abroad. Of course you don’t have to be retired, but the freedom to plan your own time helps. I have taken a number of European musical tours: Italian opera, Paris organs, Bach and Luther, and the Leipzig Bach Festival.
I have also taken two Holy Week-Easter pilgrimages. In the late 1990s I observed Holy Week in London and celebrated Easter in both the Western and Eastern Orthodox rites, first in Naples and then a week later in the Oia, Santorini, Greece. This year I decided to take my pilgrimage in London. These are the options I discovered on the Internet, and from which I made a spreadsheet for daily reference. Choices had to be made, and not everything made the list, such as “Götterdämmerung” at the Royal Opera House, which would have consumed one of my six days.

Maundy Thursday

13:10: Eucharist with music, St. Anne & St. Agnes, Bach chorales
17:00: Sung Eucharist, Westminster Abbey, Byrd Mass & Duruflé
18:00: Mass, Westminster Cathedral, Monteverdi & Duruflé
19:30: Mozart Requiem, St. Martin-in-the-Fields, New London Singers

Good Friday

11:15: Matins & Litany, Temple Church, Lotti & Tallis
14:30: Bach’s St. John Passion, St. John’s Smith Square, Academy of Ancient Music
15:00: Lord’s Passion, Westminster Cathedral, Bruckner, Victoria

Holy Saturday

15:00: Evensong, Westminster Abbey, Victoria
19:00: Easter Vigil, St. Paul’s, Langlais Messe Solennelle
20:30: Easter Vigil, Westminster Cathedral, Vierne Messe solennelle

Easter Sunday

10:15: Matins, St. Paul’s, Britten Festival Te Deum
10:30: Eucharist, Westminster Abbey, Langlais Messe Solennelle
16:00: Early & baroque music, Wigmore Hall, Florilegium, Bach & Telemann
16:45: Organ recital, Westminster Cathedral
18:00: Easter music & Eucharist, St. Anne & St. Agnes, Handel & Telemann

Monday

19:30: Handel’s Messiah, St. Martin-in-the-Fields, Belmont Ensemble

Maundy Thursday

A few blocks behind St. Paul’s Cathedral is St. Anne’s Lutheran Church, an international congregation founded in 1951, worshiping at the church of St. Anne and St. Agnes designed by Sir Christopher Wren after the Great Fire of London (1666) and consecrated in 1680. Built in the form of a Greek cross, this small church was bombed in WWII, but was restored and reconsecrated in 1966 as a Lutheran parish. In addition to its architectural history, famous residents of the parish have included John Milton, John Bunyan, and John Wesley.
St. Anne’s is known for its music, “particularly in the Lutheran tradition of J. S. Bach, Schütz, and Buxtehude.” There are over 100 performances a year, including lunchtime concerts on Monday and Fridays. The core musical group is the Sweelinck Ensemble, a professional quartet under the direction of Cantor Martin Knizia. The St. Anne’s Choir had recently sung Bach’s St. John Passion, and last December their Bach Advent Vespers was featured in a live broadcast on BBC Radio 3; .

Eucharist with Music

Chorale: O Mensch bereit das Herze dein, Melchior Franck
Chorale: Im Garten leidet Christus Not, Joachim a Burgk
Chorale: Durch dein Gefängnis, Gottes Sohn, J. S. Bach
Chorale: Jesu Kreuz, Leiden und Pein, Adam Gumpelzhaimer
Ehre sei dir Christe (Matthäus Passion), Heinrich Schütz
The chorales were interspersed throughout this service and were sung handsomely by the Sweelinck Ensemble accompanied by the cantor on a continuo organ. The concluding Schütz St. Matthew Passion was particularly stirring. Definitely worth a detour from the large churches to hear baroque music with this degree of authentic intimacy.

Westminster Abbey

Westminster Abbey, as glorious inside as it is dramatic outside, had a late afternoon Eucharist that moved the soul. So much can be said about the extraordinary history and presence of this church dating back to a Benedictine monastery in 960. It was later enlarged under King Edward the Confessor and consecrated in 1065 in honor of St. Peter, known as the “west minster” (Old English for monastery) in distinction from the east minster, St. Paul’s Cathedral. This magnificent gothic building is the result of work begun in the 13th century under Henry III and was not completed until 16th century.
Information, including details on the Harrison & Harrison organ (1937, four manuals, 78 stops), can be found at .

Sung Eucharist with the Washing of Feet

Mass for Four Voices, William Byrd
Organ prelude: Schmücke dich, o meine Seele, Bach
Improvisation leading to processional hymn: “Praise to the Holiest in the height” (Gerontius)
Gradual during Gospel procession: “Drop, drop, slow tears” (Song 46, Orlando Gibbons)
During the washing of the feet: Ubi caritas et amor, Maurice Duruflé
St. John 13:12–13, 15, plainsong mode II
Offertory hymn: “O thou, who at thy Eucharist didst pray” (Song 1, Orlando Gibbons)
After the Communion: Dominus Jesus in qua nocte tradebatur, Palestrina
While sacrament is carried to altar at St. Margaret’s: Pange lingua, plainsong mode II
During the stripping of the altar: Psalm 22:1–21, plainsong mode II

Westminster Abbey has an aura resonant with an awe of the divine. The service was without sermon, but so rich in ceremony and ritual that the preaching was in the actions, music, and language of the liturgy—in themselves a powerful message. Here everything seemed so right, from the dignified helpfulness of the ushers to the purposeful solemnity of the clergy—all enhanced by music done so well that it doesn’t call attention to itself because it is transparently integral to the worship and sung in a spirit reflective of the day’s liturgy. One did not just watch, but was drawn into the moment and left with an inner tranquility that spoke the essence of Maundy Thursday.

Good Friday

The weather was London: wet, dank, chilly and bleak—so fitting for the day. The Temple Church was recommended, not because of its recent attention due to the “The Da Vinci Code,” but primarily for its most traditional liturgy and excellence in music. The “Round Church” dates from 1185 and was the London headquarters of the Knights Templar. Their churches were “built to a circular design to remind them of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre at Jerusalem, a round, domed building raised over the site of the sepulchre where Jesus was buried.” The elongated choir was added by Henry III and consecrated on Ascension Day, 1240. The website provides an intriguing history of this unique church with directions and a much-needed map; .

Choral Matins, Book of Common Prayer (1662)
Introit: Crux fidelis, inter omnes, King John IV of Portugal
The Responses, plainsong
Venite, Exultemus, Anglican chant, Edward John Hopkins
Psalm 22, plainsong
The Lamentations of Jeremiah 1:1–2, Thomas Tallis
Benedictus, plainsong
Anthem: Crucifixus etiam pro nobis, Antonio Lotti
Litany, Thomas Tallis

Stephen Layton, director of music, directs a refined choir of men and boys, who were most telling in the Lotti Crucifixus, accompanied on a portative by the organist, James Vivian. The remainder of the service was played on the imposing and very British Romantic organ built by Harrison & Harrison (1924 and 2001, four manuals, 62 stops). The history of The Temple’s organs, including one by Father Smith, can be found on the website.

Back on Fleet Street I hopped on a bus to Westminster, hoping to hear Bach’s St. John Passion at St. John’s, Smith Square, just blocks from Westminster Abbey. A deconsecrated church dating from 1728, it now serves as a popular concert venue. In the crypt is a handy, economical restaurant “The Footstool,” where lunch was being served; .

St. John Passion, Johann Sebastian Bach, sung by Polyphony with the Academy of Ancient Music, Stephen Layton, conductor
Andrew Kennedy, Evangelist, tenor; James Rutherford, Christus; Thomas Guthrie, Pilatus; Emma Kirkby, soprano; James Bowman, countertenor; and Roderick Williams, bass.

This was a superb, masterful performance by a mature choir of 26 and professional soloists. The chorales were sung with care and the arias with sensitivity. The conductor’s tempos were quite sprightly and his approach dramatic, sometimes so much so that the next recitative intruded on the end of a chorale. This was, nevertheless, a fitting and most inspiring way to observe Good Friday.

Holy Saturday—Easter Eve

The Easter Vigil with its roots going back to earliest Christianity is the epitome of the Christian message and worship. It combines a rehearsal of salvation history with the rites of passage for the candidates (Latin, “those dressed in white”) through Baptism and Confirmation, and culminating in a celebration of the “Breaking of Bread” as Jesus did with his disciples after the Resurrection. The Vigil is an extended service with power-laden symbolism—the passage from utter darkness to brilliant light, the anointing with oil in the sign of the cross, the drowning of the self in baptismal waters, “putting on Christ,” and the sharing of the bread and wine in union with the community of faithful.
In London there could be no more fitting place to celebrate the Vigil than the regal diocesan St. Paul’s Cathedral, founded some 1500 years ago in 604 by Mellitus, a follower of St. Augustine who was sent to convert the Anglo-Saxons. It has been rebuilt a number of times with the most recent version begun in 1633 with a neo-classical portico or façade. The current design by Christopher Wren received royal approval in 1675, but was not finished until 1710. Later came the woodwork by Grinling Gibbons for the huge Quire and Great Organ, and in the 19th–20th century the glittering mosaics in the dome, envisioned by Wren. Most will remember St. Paul’s as the site of Prince Charles’s wedding to Diana. It has just undergone a complete renovation at a cost of £40 million in anticipation of its 300th anniversary in 2008; .
The organ was built by Henry Willis (1872) with an extensive renovation and enlargement completed by Mander (1977, five manuals, 108 stops). Not many organs deliver the overpowering experience that this organ can, especially when stops in the dome are added with a sound that not only surrounds, but also envelops worshippers.
The liturgy took place, not in the grand Quire, but “in the round” under the dome with a free-standing altar at one axis and the choir (with a small organ) to the left on risers, surrounded by the congregation.
Upon entry one received an impressive 28-page service booklet. One could only wonder “O Lord, how long?” But the service moved right along in two hours, including baptisms and confirmations. The service began in darkness; only with the procession to the dome by the participants did light begin to dawn as candles were shared. The Vigil had only one lesson instead of the usual nine readings. Then—the dramatic Easter Greeting by the bishop, “Alleluia! Christ is risen,” followed by bells and a thunderous fanfare from the organ—with a sudden blaze of almost blinding light as all the cathedral and the dome with its glittering mosaics lit up.

The Vigil Liturgy of Easter Eve

Setting: Messe solennelle, Jean Langlais
Exsultet sung responsively with the congregation
Song of Moses, Exodus 15, Huw Williams
Gloria in Excelsis, Langlais
Hymn: “The strife is o’er, the battle done ” (Gelobt sei Gott)
Hymn: “Awake, awake: fling off the night!” (Deus Tuorum Militum)
Motet: Sicut cervus, Palestrina
Hymn: “Here, risen Christ, we gather at your word” (Woodlands)
Sanctus, Langlais
Agnus Dei, Langlais
Surrexit Christus hodie, alleluia!, Samuel Scheidt (arr. Rutter)
Hymn: “Shine, Jesus, Shine”
Hymn: “Christ is risen, Alleluia!” (Battle Hymn of the Republic)
Toccata, Symphonie No. 5, Widor

The impact of this service was profound and intensely extraordinary, not as formal as Westminster Abbey, but with no less sincerity. The Langlais setting with the punctuating fortissimo chords from organ was overwhelming. The hymn singing, fueled by the organ’s energy, was similarly dynamic and enthusiastic, and the final hymn sung to the “Battle Hymn of the Republic” went at such an exuberant clip that one had to conduct beats to keep up. How could one divorce one’s mind from the text, “Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord”?
After this high-spirited hymn, the people, with their pace set by an energized Widor Toccata, exited up the center aisle toward the west end, facing the huge open cathedral doors with a gleaming light streaming in from the floodlit street, and walked past the bishop and the font into the light—they were ready for the Resurrection.

Easter Sunday

Sunday was another day, and, thankfully, the sun shone. I arrived at 9:15 am for Westminster Abbey’s 10:30 service to an already long queue. Had I arrived fifteen minutes earlier, I might have sat in the desirable rectangle framed by the choir screen and the chancel. But sitting just a few rows into the transept the sound was less immediate and gripping, and the hymn singing less compelling.

Sung Eucharist

Pre-service: Toccata in F Major, Bach

Setting: Messe solennelle [with brass quartet], Langlais Hymn: “Jesus Christ is risen today, Alleluia,” Lyra Davidica
Gloria in excelsis, Langlais
Gospel Procession: Victimae paschali, plainsong, arr. Andrew Reid
Hymn: “At the Lamb’s high feast” (Salzburg)
Sanctus, Langlais
During the Communion: Agnus Dei, Langlais; Christus resurgens ex mortuis, Peter Philips
Hymn: “Thine be the glory” (Maccabaeus)
Postlude: Finale, Symphonie II, Vierne
This was a straightforward Eucharistic service with fine music well performed. The Abbey Choir was conducted by James O’Donnell, Organist and Master of the Choristers, and accompanied by the London Brass quartet. The organist was Robert Quinney, Sub-Organist. The choir sang with their usual distinction, and in comparing this version of the Langlais, even with brass, to the Vigil the night before, clearly St. Paul’s was the more persuasive and affecting.

In the afternoon I headed to Westminster Cathedral, which according to the Internet performed some impressive music during Holy Week and on Easter that included Monteverdi, Duruflé, Byrd, Bruckner, Victoria, and Vierne’s Messe solennelle. But I regret to say that this Vespers, largely a chanted service and because of that, was an unexpected disappointment, especially since I had read such admiring CD reviews.
The cathedral, its striking architectural style from “Byzantine style of the eastern Roman Empire,” was designed by the Victorian architect John Francis Bentley on a site originally owned by the Abbey, but sold to the Catholics in 1884. The foundation was laid in 1895, and the structure of the building was completed eight years later. The interior with its impressive mosaics and marbles is said to be incomplete, but the cathedral is certainly a visual tableau .

Solemn Vespers and Benediction sung in Latin

Office Hymn: Ad cenam Agni provide
Psalms 109 and 113A (114)
Canticle: Salus et gloria et virtus Deo nostro (Revelation 19:1–7)
Magnificat primi toni, Bevan
Motet: Ecce vincit, Leo Philips
O sacrum convivium, Gregorian chant
Organ voluntary: Fête, Langlais

Unfortunately the printed order of service provided the Latin-English text, but without information on composers or musicians—facts only available on the Internet. The service seemed austere both in its solemnity from the entrance of the choir with many clergy and in its liturgical style.
There is obvious musical talent with a large professional choir of men and boys, but the musicians work with disadvantages. The choir is on an elevated shelf behind the baldaquin and high altar, which distances the sound and at times makes the singing seemed forced, especially by the men. The most disappointing, regrettable aspect was chanting “the old-fashioned way” with “schmaltzy” organ accompaniments on voix celeste or flutes. Solesmes is, by all counts, the gold standard, and after that all else pales. One would have thought the reform of chant in the Catholic Church and after Vatican II would have had greater impact and changed practice.
Martin Baker is the master of music and the assistant organist is Thomas Wilson. The Grand Organ is hidden by a nondescript screen in a chamber above the narthex and was only revealed in the Langlais Fête at the end—like an anomaly, but played with fire and aplomb. The organ was built by Henry Willis III (1922–1932, four manuals, 78 stops) and was restored by Harrison & Harrison in 1984.

Did I have one more service in me? I bravely headed to Trafalgar Square and St. Martin-in-the-Fields for Evensong. This church has a full schedule of services plus over 350 concerts a year. It may date back as far as 1222, and it can lay claim to the fact that both Handel and Mozart played the organ here in 1727. Today one immediately thinks of the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields founded in the 1950s with Sir Neville Marriner.
The church’s activities are amazing, but it is not resting on its laurels. It is the midst of a £34 million campaign (already £24 million in hand) to expand its facilities inside and out to include an outdoor courtyard, a rehearsal space, a Chinese community center, and space for social services. It will also mean a much-needed restoration to the interior of the church to bring it closer to its historic 18th-century conception. In the crypt there is a shop and a café that serves nutritious meals all day.

Choral Evensong

Introit: This Joyful Eastertide, arr. Wood
Responses, Martin Neary
Canticles: Collegium Regale, Herbert Howells
Anthem: Rise heart, thy Lord has risen, Vaughan Williams
Postlude: Victimae Paschali, Tournemire

What a joy! Familiar music well done by a superb, effective choir with first-rate organ playing. A great, satisfying way to complete my Easter celebration. Alleluia! The talented and youthful director of music, Nicholas Danks, is full of enthusiasm. The assistant organist, David Hirst, played the Tournemire with particular verve and drama on the fine organ by J. W. Walker and Sons (1990, three manuals, 47 stops) with its battery of fiery French reeds. I didn’t think I was up for another Messiah this season, but these musicians felt the choir presenting the next night at St. Martin’s was one of London’s finest.

Monday

Messiah, George Friedrich Handel
English Chamber Choir, Belmont Ensemble of London, Peter G. Dyson, conductor
Philippa Hyde, soprano; David Clegg, countertenor; Andrew Staples, tenor; and Jacques Imbrailo, baritone.
Things are moving along in London, and sprightly tempos are in. I found that to be the case with the Bach St. John Passion and here in the quick-paced Messiah, which came in at under two hours performance time—something of a record, I think.
The crackerjack orchestra and youthful soloists were on board, but the talented choir, perhaps under-rehearsed and lacking experience with this lively conductor, struggled to keep up, especially in Part I. “For unto us a child is born” proved that at these tempos “His yoke is easy” was not easy at all! The soloists all did fine work, but the tenor and baritone in particular distinguished themselves with eloquent declamations. In many respects this was a laudable performance brought to a rousing conclusion with “Worthy is the Lamb.”
Continuing in the spirit of Handel, I decided the next day to visit the Handel House Museum at 25 Brook Street where Handel lived in a multi-story house from 1723 to 1759. Here he composed famous works such Messiah, Zadok the Priest, and Music for the Royal Fireworks. It is a modest museum compared to the Händel-Haus Halle in Germany , but certainly worth a visit.
One is treated to an introductory film plus interesting prints of Handel’s contemporaries, two reconstructed period harpsichords (one with a zealous player dashing up and down double-keyboards), the Handel bed recently refurbished, and a current exhibit on “Handel and the Castrati,” with photo-bios of the leading castrati. Handel lived quite well indeed, paying a modest rent of £50 a year and with three servants to dote over him—every musician’s dream!
London is a six-hour flight from the East Coast and offers a plethora of musical possibilities, especially at Christmas and Easter. Others would have made different choices tailored to their interests. For me this was a full, rewarding week, something every musician needs from time to time to refresh the spirit—to capture the energy, vitality, and imagination of others. Europe may not be the bargain it once was. You can’t take it with you anyway, but these can be empowering moments you take to the bank that last forever.

 

by Mark Buxton

Returning to the land of one's birth is a peculiar business for the expatriate. Will things have changed beyond recognition? Will those favorite places still be there? Will one still feel at home? Or uncomfortably out of step with current tastes and fashions?

In my own case, happy to tell, things seem pretty much the same since I left England. The great choirs are still great; the great hotels still serve the most wonderful afternoon tea (although, for my money, the Peninsula Hotel in Hong Kong tops them all); and the sense of history is ever pervasive.

Yes: business as usual. "Air Conditioned" still means that the management will, if required, open a door or the odd window to provide a little fresh air (not possible in some hotels, of course, where windows are painted shut); "Hot and Cold Food Served" is just as likely to be an exact description of one's entrée as a proclamation of culinary versatility; customer service, as North Americans know it, is as common a commodity as a three-dollar bill; and the coffee, English protestations notwithstanding, is the worst on planet Earth.

This article, penned at the end of a trip to England, seeks to explore some of the paths less travelled by visiting church musicians. Often, North American friends will chide me for seeing only the most popular spots when in such-and-such a city, thus missing a particularly fine choir or a notable instrument. The same might be said about England, too. There is a fascinating world beyond the horizons, however magnificent, of the famous cathedrals, choirs and organs.

 

Highgate: Dead Hens, Karl Marx and an Historic Restoration

 

Highgate lies a couple of miles north of London's city centre, yet retains much of its eighteenth-century village charm. It is a place redolent with history. Here, Sir Francis Bacon died in 1626, attempting to prove his theory that refrigeration was a better means of preserving food than salting (He caught his death of cold in the winter air while stuffing a dead fowl with snow.) The poet Coleridge lies buried in the churchyard of the elegant yet unprepossessing parish church, St. Mary's. And Highgate's famous cemetery is the last resting place for luminaries such as Michael Faraday, George Eliot, Christina Rossetti and Karl Marx. Marx's tomb, while no longer a Mecca for tourists from the former Soviet Union, still attracts a goodly number of Western visitors; his ideology, while no longer common currency in the former Soviet Union, still attracts a goodly number of Western politicians.

The United Reformed Church in Highgate's picturesque Pond Square dates from 1859, and houses an organ of especial interest. It started an eventful life around 1840 as a two-manual of some five speaking stops and, perhaps, an octave of pedals. In the early 1880s, it was enlarged to its present form of 10 speaking stops over two manuals and pedals by J.W. Walker & Sons, who also altered the manual GG compass, taking it from CC to c5.

It is possible that this instrument was built for a private residence, a far cry from its pre-Highgate location: a barn in Tamworth, some 100 miles north of London. The organ was acquired for the Pond Square Chapel by Christopher Driver, a member of the church, through the good offices of Lady Susi Jeans, Guy Oldham and William Waterhouse. Driver and Oldham removed the organ from the barn and erected it at Highgate, where it replaced an earlier instrument (Bishop 1890/Hill, Norman & Beard 1933) which had been dismantled to allow structural work in the church during the 1980s. This latter was never replaced, presumably on grounds of cost; part of the 16' Open Wood was used to fashion the large and intriguing cross which now stands at the east end of the chapel.

As may be expected after such peregrinations, the organ was in far from perfect condition when installed at Highgate. Although makeshift repairs to rectify action breakages were made at this time, an overeager heating system in the chapel did little to improve matters.

The firm of B.C. Shepherd & Son was asked to restore the organ in 1992. This company, established by B.C. Shepherd in 1927, is now operated by the late founder's two sons, John and Eric. Familiar figures on the London organ scene, they have an extensive portfolio of tuning contracts and a clutch of fine rebuilds/restorations to their credit. To these may be added the Highgate organ.

The instrument was dismantled in 1992, and the action thoroughly re-stored. The pipework was repaired and the keyboards overhauled. This latter work necessitated the making of new keys for the Great, since the old ones were severely warped and damaged. The bellows were releathered, and the organ cleaned throughout. The scrupulous tonal regulation was carried out by John and Eric Shepherd.

The mahogany casework had suffered considerable mutilation in the past, particularly on the left side. Panels from the right side were fitted on the left, thus replacing the unsightly plywood that had been screwed on to fill in the missing panels. This aspect of the work involved extensive remaking of caseframes and expert woodworking; Nick Hillman, who worked with the Shepherd brothers on this project, deserves much credit for his achievements.

The dummy front pipes are wooden, and have been painted gold by the church administrator, Donald Spencer. Unfortunately, funds to replace the case front's missing carvings were not available.

The end result? An exceptionally musical instrument which acquits itself with grace and distinction in many roles. The unforced quality of its tone is a delight, as are the various ensembles and exquisite voices. I was lucky to hear it in solo and accompanimental roles during part of a Sunday afternoon concert for voice and organ. Dr. Robert Manning, a Purcell scholar and Professor at London's Royal College of Music, is the church's Director of Music. Together with soprano Adele Stevenson, he demonstrated the organ's versatility and integrity in an eclectic yet artistically satisfying program of music from Monteverdi to Copland. An immensely civilized and pleasurable way of spending a spring afternoon!

GREAT

                        8'                Open Diapason

                        8'                Stop'd  Treble

                        8'                Stop'd Bass

                        8'                Dulciana

                        4'                Principal

                        2'                Fifteenth

SWELL

                        8'                Keraulophon

                        8'                Wald  Flute  Treb.

                        8'                Stop'd Bass

                        4'                Flute

                        8'                Oboe

PEDAL

                        16'            Bourdon

Swell to Great; Swell to Pedal; Great to Pedal

3 composition pedals to Great

Balanced Swell Pedal

Wind pressure: 23/4"

Compass: Manuals 61 notes; Pedals  29 notes (pedalboard is 30 note)

542 speaking pipes

 

Fleet Street: Newspapers, Bones & Wedding Cakes

 

Fleet Street owes its renown (or ignominy, some would aver--the noted British satirical magazine Private Eye dubbed it the "Street of Shame") to its former position as the epicentre of Britain's newspaper industry. No longer does it hum with daily press activity, since many papers have relocated eastwards to the Docklands area of London, where rents are cheaper. Nevertheless, Fleet Street still is to newspapers what Wall Street is to high finance; and that association is likely to remain for many a year to come.

On the south side of Fleet Street is one of London's great churches, St. Bride's. The present building is, in fact, the eighth to occupy this spot since the sixth century. Vestiges of the previous seven buildings, together with a Roman pavement, can be visited in the church crypts.

Samuel Pepys was baptized in the medieval (sixth) church, and his brother was interred in the crypts. By that time, Pepys recounts, things were a tad crowded down in the burial chambers. Only after bribing the gravedigger to "justle together" some bodies was the famous diarist able to procure a resting place for his late sibling.

That church perished in 1666, a victim of London's Great Fire. Its successor, one of Sir Christopher Wren's most beautiful and costly creations, was capped by the famous steeple that is said to have provided the inspiration for the world's first tiered wedding cake. The church, which witnessed the first performance of Purcell's Te Deum and Jubilate in 1692, was ravaged by a wartime bomb in 1940. The lengthy restoration that followed enabled archaeologists to examine the history of the church, back to its Roman origins. In 1957, seventeen years after that fateful 1940 evening, Wren's church, now restored, was rededicated. Fleet Street once again had its parish church.

Music plays an important part in the life of St. Bride's. In addition to the regular weekday concerts that draw appreciative audiences of tourists, local workers and musical aficionados, the church is blessed with a Director of Music, an Assistant Director of Music, an Organ Scholar and a professional choir. Besides the weekly Sunday Choral Matins and Eucharist (11:00 a.m.), the choir sings Evensong at 6:30 p.m. Twice per month, Choral Evensong features a Sermon in Music. Could not this concept of a "choral Sermon" be popularized in North America, one wonders? In places where a good choir exists (and it has to be good!), it would add an extra dimension to the service.

The Director of Music at St. Bride's is Robert Jones, the noted countertenor. When I attended Evensong, he was away; the choir was directed by his Assistant, Matthew Morley, and accompanied by the Organ Scholar, David Terry.

The mixed choir (twelve singers) provided some of the very best singing I've ever heard in a church, British or otherwise. Repertoire from Pelham Humfrey's Magnificat & Nunc Dimittis in F Minor to John Ireland's "Greater Love" and Matthew Morley's superb set of Responses (difficult, but as good as any other contemporary set in circulation) emphasised the choir's skill. The contrapuntal intricacies and harmonic twists of the Humphrey were delightfully handled, as were the various elements of the Ireland. A better performance of the latter one could not wish to hear, particularly given the occasion: D-Day Sunday. 

The conducting deserves special mention. Observe many conductors of church choirs: judging by their frenetic movements and ferocious expenditure of energy, one might easily believe the task at hand to be Mahler's Eighth, or Schoenberg's Gurrelieder, rather than a simple four-part anthem performed by a smallish  choir. Often, the director does nothing more than beat time, the choir receiving no assistance with tricky entries or dynamic shading. And, although the conductor's score may be regarded as the route map, it is not the road itself. The conductor who buries his or her eyes in the score will achieve the same results as the driver who scrutinizes the map, not the road.

Economy of gesture, allied to a pair of independent hands--the left should not duplicate the right, or vice-versa for southpaws--and a keen sense of musical shape and direction are the order of the day, together with an ability to use the eyes as an invaluable and essential means of non-verbal communication. Matthew Morley's conducting was exemplary in every way, yielding A1 results every time. Classes and courses in conducting a church choir have their uses and merits, but I am convinced that more beneficial by half is the observation of top-notch practitioners. (Much too can be learned from watching bad conducting and the commensurately inadequate results it produces!)

David Terry's accompaniments, particularly of the psalms, were fine models; decorative, colorful, yet unobtrusive, enhancing the singing rather than detracting from it. Both conductor and organist are still in their early twenties (Terry has recently gone up to Oxford on an organ scholarship), yet evince musicianship of such maturity as to belie their years. Natural talent notwithstanding, it is evident that such polished, creative music-making is the result of many, many hours of hard slog.

The organ at St. Bride's is a large 4-manual Compton, and a very fine one at that. Recent work by Michael Mason and Keith Bance (the latter, one of England's most distinguished voicers) has only added to the instrument's capabilities. It has all the necessary ingredients for doing its job well, from subtle strings and evanescent flutes to meat reed choruses and high pressure solo stops of truly industrial strength. Without hesitation, the music program at this historic church recommends itself in the highest terms. It has always been my experience that visitors, whether attending services or not, receive a warm welcome from all who work at St. Bride's. Put it on your "To Do" list for a future London trip.

 

Mozart: A Musical Thief?

 

Last summer, Alison Robertson, then an eighteen-year-old pupil at Harrogate Ladies' College, one of England's leading private schools, captured the attention of the British  press with an  unusual musical discovery.

As part of her 'A' Level music examinations1, she was compiling a comparative study of the several reconstructions of Mozart's Requiem, while simultaneously preparing for a performance of Pergolesi's Stabat Mater. (Alison was Head of Choir at Harrogate Ladies' College.) Having noticed the similarity between the  Mozart's "Amen" theme--Maunder edition2--and the "Amen" theme from Pergolesi's work, she spoke  with her school's Director of Music, David Andrews, who suggested she  write  to the  venerable Musical Times.

As Alison explains,

The "Amen" sketch for Mozart's Requiem was discovered about thirty years ago, and Maunder believes firmly that "the subject is derived by strict inversion from the main Requiem theme." In the recapitulation of his continuation Maunder "re-inverts" the "Amen" theme to stress the affinity.

In my view, this "strict inversion" only involves five bars out of the seven, and the last two bars of the "Amen" theme do not correspond with those of the "Requiem" theme. Could Maunder's assumption be wrong? Could Mozart have deliberately or unconsciously remembered Pergolesi's theme?

Thus the burning question: Did Mozart steal another composer's ideas? Pergolesi's Stabat Mater, like Mozart's Requiem, was written on the composer's deathbed, predating the latter by over half a century. Mozart would undoubtedly have known the Pergolesi, since it was the most frequently printed single work in the eighteenth century. (As a further coincidence, Alison notes, Pergolesi's "Amen' was used in the film Amadeus.)

She believes the most plausible verdict is that Mozart is guilty of unconscious borrowing rather than deliberate plagiarism. The question of copyright and intellectual property was less hotly disputed in the eighteenth century, with many composers feeling at liberty to borrow here and there from the music of others.

It certainly is a refreshing change to see something positive in the newspapers, especially when the person making the news is still in their teens. Furthermore, this story does give the lie to the wacky theories of those pointy-headed "experts" who howl that exposure to classical music (and other such unconscionable, elitist cultural evils) will turn teenagers into wicked, antisocial psychopaths.

By the time you read this, Alison Robertson will have embarked upon her studies towards a music degree. Let's hope she considers the academic life for her career: a good dose of ingenuity, commonsense and sparkling originality would not go amiss in the halls of academe.

(Interested readers should contact Mark Buxton c/o The Diapason; he will be happy to offer further suggestions and advice to those desirous of exploring the highways and byways of England's organ/choral world.)

Notes

                        1.                  Advanced or 'A' Level examinations are taken by English sixth form (Grade 13) pupils. In order to enter university, a certain number of 'A' Levels must be obtained, together with specific grades. The number of 'A' Levels and the grades required vary greatly from university to university, from subject to subject, and from student to student.

                        2.                  Published by Oxford University Press, 1987.

by Charles Beck

During July, 1997, Janice Beck was scheduled to play nine organ recitals in four different European countries, a recital every three days.  In fact, she played eight recitals in three countries.  This account is a detailed description of that tour, its trials, tribulations and joys.

Peterborough, England

On June 26 we left Detroit Metropolitan Airport, two hours late because of a faulty toilet that had to be repaired, arriving at Gatwick Airport, London at 10:00 a.m. the following morning.  After going through Immigration and Customs, we picked up our Britrail passes, and caught a train to Kings Cross Station in London. At 1:10 p.m. we departed for Peterborough, arriving about 2:00. Although we had specific directions to our lodging in the Cathedral Precincts, the taxi driver had no idea how to get there, so he simply dropped us off, in the rain, somewhere in the vicinity of the Cathedral. After inquiring of several helpful pedestrians, we found the bed and breakfast operated by the wife of a canon on the cathedral staff. For the next four nights we enjoyed staying in their lovely old home, part of which dates from the 15th century. Although Janice's first recital, in the Peterborough Cathedral Festival, was not until July 1st, we had arrived early in order to recover from jet-lag prior to the recital.

After a pleasant chat and tea with our hostess, we took a much needed nap followed by a good, but very expensive meal in a nearby hotel. Needless to say, we went to bed early. We awoke to a dreary morning, but feeling somewhat refreshed after a good night's sleep. The weather was, to say the least, miserable with low clouds, rain and wind, and a temperature in the 50s. Unfortunately this weather was predicted to last for a week, and it did. Following breakfast, (and what a breakfast it was: grapefruit, eggs sunny side up, ham, sausage, baked tomato, mushrooms, toast, jams and tea), we walked a few hundred yards and entered the great cathedral for the first time. Although one of the largest and most beautiful of English cathedrals, Peterborough is less well known than some others. Dating from the 14th century, it is famous for the longest painted wooden ceiling in Britain.

Janice had been promised six hours practice time, but we had hoped to arrange additional time. Although it was apparent that the cathedral was vacant each day early in the morning, the festival administrator was unable to arrange additional practice time on the cathedral instrument. He did, however, allow Janice to practice on an ancient two-manual tracker instrument in another church of which he was organist about a mile from the cathedral. So for the next two days we walked in a cold rain to All Saints Church for practice. The All Saints organ, built by Forster and Andrews of Hull in 1908, and apparently in its original state, is characterized by lovely flues and reeds, and strings of remarkably French-sounding tonal qualities. It has, however, two drawbacks: 1) The pedals are very close together, the pedal board being 6 inches narrower than typical modern pedal boards, and 2) as one might expect of a tracker instrument of this vintage, it has a heavy action. But its beautiful tonal qualities in the marvelous acoustical milieu of All Saints Church compensated handsomely for these deficiencies. Whereas the opportunity for Janice to practice in All Saints allowed her, in some ways, to maintain her program in top form, it did nothing to prepare her to use the Cathedral console, and practicing on such an unconventional pedal board may well have been a disadvantage.

On Sunday morning our hostess escorted us to the 10:30 service in the cathedral. We sat in the choir just beneath the organ which we heard for the first time. The service was beautiful. The excellent men and boys choir sang a Schubert Mass with various movements interpsersed throughout the service. The organ, a Hill, Norman and Beard, renovated in the '80s by Harrison and Harrison is an excellent service instrument, but as we knew from the specification, not a very large instrument, and equipped with only 8 generals (not duplicated by toe studs) and a capture-type combination action.

Since the theme of the Cathedral Festival was "The French Connection," Janice had been asked to play a program with an emphasis on French compositions. Whereas she had planned to play the "Communion" and "Sortie" from Messiaen's Pentecost Mass and some short works of Vierne in her tour program, she felt compelled to add another French work to this program, and she chose the Franck Choral No. 3 in A Minor.

Finally on the night before the concert, we gained access to the cathedral instrument with only four hours to register a full-length recital, and to become accustomed to the console in any time that might have been left. With only 8 generals available, registering the program became a nightmare, but by using divisional pistons and assigning me the task of some manual stop-pulling during both the Franck and Messiaen, the job was accomplished. There was no time for practice, however, that being relegated to a brief period the following day.

After the 1:00 p.m. recital we were to catch the 15:37 to London which gave us very little time to retrieve our luggage from the B & B and get to the train station. Consequently, we did not tarry long after the concert. We had expected the festival administrator to present us with the agreed-upon artist's fee, but he was nowhere to be found, much to the consternation of our B & B hosts and the cathedral organist. We received a check two months later.

We arrived at London Kings Cross station just in time for the afternoon rush hour, took the Underground to Waterloo Station, arriving into a throbbing mass of humanity, all, like us, trying to get to the proper platform for their respective trains for home or, in our case, for Windsor.  With two large suitcases, a large brief case containing scores, and a mid-sized carry-on, we finally made our way to the proper platform, boarded the 17:42 for Windsor, collapsed, exhausted, in our seats, and arrived one hour later. Our "overnight" stay in a B&B turned out to be a half-night's stay, only, since we were required to appear at Heathrow Airport two hours prior to our 6:50 departure for Copenhagen. So we pulled ourselves out of bed at 3:45 a.m., dressed, had some tea and ate a soggy sandwich. The taxi arrived on time at 4:30 for the 20 minute drive to Heathrow.

Poland

The flight to Copenhagen was excellent, with an efficient and very polite crew, and a delicious breakfast. We arrived in Copenhagen at 10:00 a.m., changed planes and left at 11:00 for Szczecin, Poland, a city of about 500,000 population. As we approached the Szczecin airport we were surprised at the lack of activity and any evidence of commercial development in the vicinity. Upon landing it became apparent that our plane was the only one there except for a few derelict World War II fighter planes parked alongside a taxi strip. And no other planes arrived during the time it took to go through customs and immigration. The small, antiquated terminal building, probably dating from the 1940s, had obviously not been improved or expanded since it was built. We had just had our first glimpse of the legacy of communist domination in Poland for over 40 years.

After being frisked with metal detection devices, we were interrogated by an official who spoke only halting English. We were taken aback when he asked, "You go to Santa Monica?" After a pause, Janice replied, "We have been to Santa Monica in California." He seemed as surprised by that reply as we were by his question. But after a few seconds and a quizzical look, he waved us on.

Kamien

We joined our hosts, Bogdan and Laura Marcinkowski, who drove us to Kamien Pomorski, about 60 kilometers away. As we approached a park-like area of the town we drove under an arch that bore in large letters, in English, the name, Santa Monica Institute. We soon learned that our lodging was a hospice where persons, many from Scandinavian countries, went to rest and recuperate from serious illnesses, or to spend their last days! Perhaps, because of our lack of sleep the previous night, we appeared terminally ill to the immigration official at the Szczecin airport. Although our room was immaculately clean, we felt somewhat uncomfortable in the Santa Monica Institute among the many ill inhabitants.

The elegant 12th-century cathedral in Kamien, built by Germans and used for many centuries by Lutherans, is characterized by an acoustical milieu of indescribable beauty. The Michael Berigel organ, of north German style dating from the latter part of the 18th century is characterized by beautiful, brilliant mixtures, glorious flues, several excellent solo stops, and reeds so terribly out of tune that their character could not be accurately assessed. The instrument was, however, very difficult to play because of a very heavy tracker action, and a flat pedal board of unusual dimensions and placement-narrow from side to side as well as from front to back, and set back at least six inches from the front of the console. To play the pedals the bench had to be placed so far from the console that it was almost impossible to reach the top manual without losing one's balance. An even greater hindrance to Janice, however, in playing the program she had planned, was the fact that, unknown to her, the entire Positiv division had been removed for renovation as had about half of the pedal pipes. With some creative registrations, however, the program was successful. And what beautiful, ethereal sounds in that marvelous acoustical environment. One would die for a Koppelflöte like that used as a solo stop in the Vierne Arabesque.

The concert in Kamien Pomorski as well as the following concert in Szczecin were part of the International Festival of Organ and Chamber Music. Each concert consisted of both organ works and works performed by a chamber group. In Kamien, the organ works alternated with works played by an excellent trombone quintet, whereas in Szczecin the organ works comprised the first half of the concert with the second half consisting of choral works by a Swedish choir. In Kamien, as well as in every other venue in Poland and Slovakia, there were large audiences, with most venues filled to capacity.

Szczecin

From Kamien, we traveled by train to Szczecin. Kamien is at the southern end of a spur, about twenty kilometers from the main rail line across northern Poland. The little train arrived about 10 minutes prior to departure time. The metal seats, without cushioning, were painted bright red. To say they were uncomfortable would be a gross understatement. The train departed on time, chugged along slowly for a few minutes and stopped at a country lane to pick up several passengers. During the next half hour the train stopped several more times for passengers who were simply standing by the track in the countryside. Once we joined the main line, however, the train continued on to Szczecin without another stop.

We were met in Szczecin by a guide from the Castle of Pomeranian Princes, driven to the castle, and escorted to our rooms--a very fine guest suite consisting of a bedroom, a sitting room and a marvelous, large and luxurious bathroom. There were no glasses, no bath mats, no telephone, and no television in our suite; and more significantly, no door key. Of these, we considered the absence of a television set an asset, but we were not prepared to leave our possessions, especially Janice's valuable scores, in an unlocked room. The concierge informed us that the last guest had failed to return the key before leaving, but since he could see the door to our suite he would keep watch on it for us. Nevertheless, we insisted, much to his consternation, on having a key. Finally, a locksmith arrived, and replaced the entire lock.

The Castle, dating from the 12th century, was the residence and site of government of the ruling princes of Pomerania until the early 17th century. By 1577 the castle had attained its present form and at that time was one of the most beautiful Renaissance castles in Europe. In 1944 it was severely damaged during air raids. Reconstructed after the second world war, it is today a center of cultural activity in Szczecin.

After lunch we visited the concert hall in the castle with its relatively new instrument built by the Kaminski firm of Warsaw. Finding someone to turn on the instrument proved most difficult, and then we had to decipher the eastern European combination action, essentially an exposed setter board consisting of four rows of different colored pins, each color representing a different division of the organ and each pin representing a stop.

This instrument is characterized by loud, raucous reeds, shrill mixtures, and tight sounding flues. The tonal characteristics of the instrument and the expressed lack of knowledge of the western organ world by the castle organist is, no doubt, a reflection of the isolation imposed on Poland under Communist domination. Other instruments that Janice played in Poland and elsewhere in eastern Europe were quite beautiful although several were in bad condition, but they had been built in the 18th, 19th or early twentieth centuries.

Tired after practicing all afternoon, we had dinner and went to bed early. As we returned from the restaurant we noticed that the courtyard of the castle had been set up with chairs and that people were filing in in great numbers. A stage backed by colorful banners occupied one end of the courtyard, and we guessed that there was to be some sort of entertainment. Shortly the entire courtyard was packed to capacity, and the concert began. From our bedroom adjacent to the courtyard the music was very audible, and we lay in bed enjoying a symphony orchestra, chorus and soloists presenting music from Mozart operas. Dead tired, we dropped off to sleep before the concert ended, and were awakened, suddenly, from a deep sleep by what sounded like a war: the loud booms and flashing lights of a spectacular fireworks display. We were treated to a repeat performance of both the concert and the fireworks the following night.

The organ recital, at twelve noon on Sunday, July 6, actually went very well, but provides examples of the unexpected with which an organist must cope. As Janice walked on stage, I as page turner trailing behind, the house lights were dimmed and very bright flood lights were turned on the organ console. These lights came from only one side of the hall, and because of the angle of the console, Janice's body cast a very dark shadow on the pedal board which, as a result, was hardly visible. Seeing the pedal board was made all the more difficult by the great contrast between the brightly illuminated score and the darkened pedal board. She played the initial work on the program, by J. S. Bach, without any problem. The second work, however, was a new, unpublished composition entitled Kairos, by Pamela Decker which contained some virtuoso pedal passages. Janice had no alternative but to ask in English that the lights be adjusted so she could see the pedal board. Fortunately, some helpful person in the audience understood, made the appropriate request to the stage hands, and the lights were duly adjusted. The performance of Kairos was going well when, unannounced, a television camera crew walked on stage and began videotaping Janice (and me) from various angles. You can imagine how distracting that could be, but Janice, undaunted, maintained her concentration and completed the performance without incident.

A lasting memory of this tour will be of the wonderful people whom we met and who in various ways assisted us. We had tried repeatedly to make several telephone calls to the United States from Kamien Pomorski without success, and in Szezecin we did not have easy access to a telephone. We informed a new Polish friend, a physician and organ buff, who had attended Janice's recitals in both Kamien and Szczecin, of our difficulties, and he most graciously invited us to have dinner in his home from which we were able to make our calls.

Gdansk

The following morning, July 7, we took a taxi to the train station to begin our journey to Gdansk. Understanding no Polish, and with no English or German directions in the railroad station, we were apprehensive about determining the platform from which to board the train. The taxi driver turned out to be another "angel" to whom we will always be in debt. Of Greek descent and speaking some English, he recognized our dilemma. Upon arriving at the station, he insisted on accompanying us into the station and onto the proper platform. Rather than leaving us there, however, he stayed with us until the train arrived, raced to the far end of the train to the correct car with Janice's luggage, took it on board, and found seats for us. Needless to say, he received a large tip from me. He also received a hug from Janice, the only time, to her knowledge, she has ever hugged an angel, or for that matter, a taxi driver.

In the Gdansk suburb of Oliwa we were housed in a seminary for priests associated with the great cathedral there. Upon arrival, a young priest escorted us to our dormitory room which, even by college dormitory standards, was spartan. We had arrived in late afternoon, and soon went to the dining hall for dinner which consisted of thin cold cuts of cheese and salami, bread and tea. We were seated at a table some distance from those occupied by the young priests, not only for this, but for all meals. None of the priests took the initiative to speak to us or to engage us in conversation. We were perplexed by this isolation and still do not know the reason. Perhaps it resulted either from a lack of knowledge of English, or a lack of confidence in speaking it by those who did know some English. We, of course, could speak no Polish, so were in no position to be critical. Furthermore, although free of Russian domination for nearly l0 years, there is still very little opportunity to interact with English-speaking people from the west. Tourism has simply not caught on, at least in Northern Poland, and we saw no evidence of any effort to encourage it. In fact during our entire stay in Poland (6 days), we saw only two or three Americans.

The following morning, breakfast consisted of cold cuts, bread and tea, identical to the previous night's supper. We were becoming discouraged, to say the least, and began to joke about what to expect for the noon meal which, fortunately, turned out to be the main meal of the day with meat, two vegetables, bread, a small dessert, and tea. But for the following supper and breakfast?: you guessed it!

Oliwa cathedral, constructed of red brick, and showing Dutch influence in its exterior architecture, is equally surprising on the interior. The long and very high nave and chancel are painted white, resulting in an unusually bright interior.

The large, 5-manual organ, dating from the last century, is contained in a dramatic case with spectacular carvings of angels holding gilded horns that can move from side to side, and two cymbelsterns. The instrument has been converted from tracker to electro-pneumatic action, and, in recent years, has been fitted with a solid-state combination action and sequencer, the only instrument we saw in eastern Europe so modernized.

The people of Gdansk are very proud of the Oliwa organ which is demonstrated every afternoon to large crowds including many children who are especially fascinated by the moving golden "trumpets" and the rotating cymbelsterns.

Janice had access to the organ only on the evening before the day of the recital and one hour on the day of the recital. Consequently, she had to take good advantage of her one evening for registration and practice time. As we arrived in the organ loft, we smelled an unusual odor. I thought it might be stale incense, but Janice demurred, saying she had never smelled incense with that "fragrance." I sat in the nave to assist with balance. After about two hours in the organ loft, Janice began to play wrong notes, and complained that she was not thinking well and was becoming dizzy. But she had to try to continue registering her program, which became progressively more difficult. We finally found the source of the odor: an unvented toilet near the organ loft from which sewer gas was escaping in large quantities. By closing the door to this lavatory and by stuffing an old, discarded flag under the door, we largely solved the problem. Unfortunately, by this time Janice was feeling quite ill, but continued to work for several more hours. By noon the following day she felt much better, and by recital time that evening she was, fortunately, back to normal.

Olomouc, Czech Republic

At 4:30 the next morning we were taken to the airport for a 6:30 flight to Prague. We arrived at the Prague airport 30 minutes early, and went directly to the train station to catch a train for Olomouc where Janice was to play a recital in St. Michael's Church. Since we had a two-hour wait, we sat in a park just outside the station and enjoyed people-watching on a beautiful, cool, sunny morning. We had purchased rail tickets in the United States. Consequently, we went directly to the platform to board our train just 15 minutes prior to departure time. The train was destined from Prague to Warsaw, via Olomouc, or so we thought. As we were looking for the coach in which we had reserved seats, I asked a member of the train crew to help us. He looked at our tickets and immediately threw up his hands and waved them back and forth excitedly as if to indicate that we could not go on that train, at the same time speaking to us in Czech which we could not understand. A train for Germany was about to depart on an adjacent track. I was literally pulled over to the conductor of the German train who said, "Der Zug fahrt nicht nach Olomouc. Olomouc liegt unter wasser." I understood, but was perplexed and obviously showed that by my puzzled expression, so the conductor repeated what he had just said, even more emphatically: "That train does not travel to Olomouc. Olomouc lies under water!" The German train left, as did the Czech train, with us standing forlornly on the platform wondering what to do.

During the entire time we had been in Poland, we had not had access to a television set, and had not purchased a paper which, of course, we could not have read. We had, therefore, heard nothing of the severe floods in southern Poland and Moravia. We eventually learned that much of Olomouc, centrally located in Moravia, was literally inundated by the flood waters, there was no electric power, and no hotels and restaurants were operating. We learned also that three railroad bridges between Prague and Olomouc had been destroyed, and thus that there was no rail service from Prague to Olomouc, or for that matter into Slovakia, the site of our next concert. If we had gotten on the train as intended, we would have gone back to Warsaw from which we had flown a few hours earlier.

Fortunately, telephones in Olomouc were still operating. We called our host there, and his wife said he had gone to Prague to meet us. Not expecting him there, we had simply walked out of the terminal without seeing him, or he us. He looked for us at the railroad station, but could not find us because we were sitting outside in the park. We found a hotel near the old city, and the following day our host again drove to Prague which required a long, circuitous route to avoid the flood waters. He thought it still possible that electricity would be restored in time for the recital. He explained the use of the Prague Metro (subway), and showed us the best way to gain accesss to the Karlovy Bridge over the Vlatava (formerly the Moldau) which leads to the Mesto (the old, central city). He also made airline reservations for a flight to Kosice, Slovakia, the nearest airport to Bardejov, our next destination. Unfortunately, the flooding became worse, power was not restored in Olomouc for many days, and the recital there had to be cancelled.

Prague

Although disappointed to miss playing in Olomouc, we were pleased to have four days in the beautiful city of Prague. The following day, after breakfast of cold cuts and yogurt, we set out to see the palace (the site of the Czech government) and St. Vitus Cathedral, nestled together on a high hill overlooking the city. The day was very hot, and we proceeded slowly up the long, steep hill to the palace and St. Vitus cathedral. Although very tired, upon entering the magnificent gothic cathedral, we knew it had been worth the climb. We rested in this stunningly beautiful church and marvelled at the golden glow of the choir and the elegant stained glass windows throughout. We bought some CDs in the Palace shop and walked back down the hill to the Malostranska Metro station. Back at the hotel, we collapsed and slept for several hours before supper, washed some clothes and went to bed.

The following day (Saturday, July 12), after finding an ATM and replenishing our funds, we visited Prague's largest music store where Janice purchased organ music by Czech composers.

Afterward, we found our way to the Mesto, the center of the old city, and what a magnificent area it is with many beautiful churches. Also thousands of tourists. Walking through the narrow streets and across the several squares, we were frequently charmed to see young people dressed in period costumes and to hear the music of Mozart floating across the area heralding a Mozart Festival. Mozart was a frequent visitor to Prague, and his opera, Don Giovanni, received its premiere here in 1787. Near the famous Tyn Church with its distinctive twin towers we had lunch in a quiet restaurant, after which we visited the beautiful baroque church of St. Nicholas across the square.

Bardejov, Slovakia

After a long day, we packed for our flight to Kosice, Slovakia, watched Bill Cosby (speaking Czech) for a few amusing minutes, and retired for the night. We arrived at the Prague Airport terminal about 9:00 a.m., picked up our tickets and were told to look for our flight number on TV monitors to determine the proper check-in desk. By 10:00 a.m. our flight number had not appeared, so becoming concerned, I enquired about the problem at an information desk. We were told to go immediately to one of the "common" check-in counters of which there were seven. All had very long lines, and we were quite apprehensive about getting to the counter in time to catch our flight. Finally, about 10 minutes before flight departure time, we were checked in and made our way as quickly as possible to the designated gate, arriving with very little time to spare.

Upon arrival in Kosice we were met by our host, grandson of Josef Gresak, the Slovak composer who is honored by the Gresak Organ Festival. A former conductor of the Slovak Symphony Orchestra in Kosice, our host now imports and distributes frozen fish. He drove us the 86 kilometers to Bardejov, located in the southern edge of the Carpathian Mountains, and only about 50 kilometers from the Ukrainian border. We thoroughly enjoyed driving through the beautiful, hilly countryside reminiscent of the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains of western Virginia.

In Bardejov we were deposited in a city-owned apartment consisting of a large living room, dining room, kitchen, three bedrooms and a bathroom. This beautiful, modern facility was made even more appealing by having a high-quality stereo sound system plus a collection of CDs and cassette tapes. Before he left, our host, suggesting that we might not have any Slovakian currency, presented us the entire promised honorarium in cash! This very gracious and thoughtful gesture was most surprising, and nothing like it was repeated elsewhere.

Our apartment was conveniently located directly across the street from St. Egidius (St. Giles) Church in which Janice was to play. This gothic building, dating from the 15th century, has a fine organ installed by the Rieger firm of Budapest in 1909. This two-manual instrument of 35 registers has an eastern European style combination action with two "free" combinations and a flat pedal board of 27 keys. The combination action of this instrument differs from those of more recent instruments in having two rows of tabs instead of colored pins by which to set individual stops. These two combinations could be activated by pistons below the lower manual. Of interest to me was the original blower switch, integrated with a huge rheostat by which the voltage was increased to obtain appropriate wind pressure. The wind supply could also be provided by two men pumping a large bellows with their feet.

As in other cities in eastern Europe, ordering food here was a real problem although the one restaurant we patronized had a menu with English translations. Nevertheless, as we soon discovered, we rarely received what we thought we had ordered! By western standards, the cost of prepared food was remarkably low. We could obtain an adequate meal for two for only about $5.00. Breakfast here was a problem, however. The only place we could find open prior to 9:00 a.m. sold only submarine sandwiches, so for three days our breakfasts consisted of submarine sandwiches.

On our first full day in Bardejov Janice worked out registrations in the morning and practiced for three hours in the afternoon. We then bought a bottle of very good Hungarian red wine, some peanuts and pretzels, had a little party before dinner and went to bed early. The following day, after practice in the morning and a long nap in the afternoon, we arrived for the 8:00 p.m. recital about 7:45. As we approached the open church door we could hear none of the expected sounds of people on the interior, and were thus shocked upon entering to find a packed church, but not a sound from the audience, not even a cough. We tip-toed up to the organ loft and began the recital throughout which there was deathly silence from the audience, almost as if the people could not speak. This eerie quiet was, to say the least, somewhat disconcerting, and I hoped that Janice was not playing to an audience of deaf mutes. At the end of the program, following the Bach St. Anne Fugue, there was still no sound for a few seconds, then enthusiastic applause. As the audience departed there was still no talking in the church. To this remarkable audience in Bardejov, the church was, apparently, a sacred place, one in which to meditate, and to hear great music without the distraction of gossip or chit-chat about mundane secular events.

Bury St. Edmunds

Wednesday, July 16: we arose at 6:30 a.m., ate a submarine sandwich for breakfast, packed and were ready to leave for London at 9:30. We were driven to Kosice where we were hosted by members of the Slovak Symphony Orchestra adminstrative staff, one of whom took us to lunch and showed us beautiful St. Elizabeth's Cathedral. We left Kosice at 4:10 p.m., changed planes in Prague and arrived in London about 8:00. Getting through the immigration maze at Heathrow airport was a nightmare, with thousands of people in long queues. When finally we made it through immigration, found our luggage, and left the terminal building, it was nearly dark. Our taxi arrived 30 minutes later and delivered us, totally exhausted, to our B & B in Windsor about 10:00 p.m.

The next day we were up by 7:00 a.m., had a good English breakfast, and left Windsor on the 9:40 for London, Waterloo Station. We went by taxi to Liverpool Street Station, grabbed some sandwiches for lunch and took the 12:00 noon train to Ipswich, changing there to the 1:55 to Bury St. Edmunds, arriving at 2:30.

In Bury we stayed at the Chantry Hotel, a very nice accommodation with moderate rates that included breakfast. Since Janice had played a recital in St. Edmundsbury Cathedral in 1995, we were familiar with the town, and a lovely town it is. We met our host in the cathedral after choir practice and worked on the instrument until 11:30 p.m. On the following day, we browsed in the cathedral shop and enjoyed perusing their book collection by which we learned something about St. Edmunds and the ancient Abbey, the ruins of which are adjacent to the cathedral. The Abbey dating from the 700s, which was sacked and destroyed in the 1500s, was larger than the present cathedral. We also visited beautiful St. Mary's Church which is the largest Parish Church in the United Kingdom, almost as large as the cathedral. Although somewhat off the beaten path, Bury St. Edmunds is a lovely and interesting town very much worth a visit.

Practice in the evening was interesting, but not entirely productive. The cathedral organist and a priest heard Janice practicing Pamela Decker's piece, Kairos, and were so impressed with the work that they ascended to the organ loft to ask about it. In addition to Kairos, Janice played for them some of Dan Locklair's suite, Rubrics, about which they were also very enthusiastic. We found most interesting their expressions of dismay that they had such difficulty learning about new American compositions for organ. Because of this pleasant "interruption" Janice practiced until 12:30 a.m.

Saturday, July 19: Following the 4:00 p.m. recital, we walked to the nearby Angel Hotel bar to celebrate. We ordered Manhattans, and after carefully explaining to the bartender how to make them, we enjoyed two delicious American-style cocktails made with (very expensive) Kentucky bourbon. Later we were joined for dinner by the cathedral organist and his friend who we learned is one of only two female organ scholars in the English cathedral system.

All Saints Collegiate Church, Maidstone

The following day, Sunday, July 20, we caught a morning train to Cambridge, changing there to a train for London, King's Cross; we then went by Underground to Victoria Station where we arrived just 7 minutes prior to departure at 1:22 for Maidstone. Arriving in Maidstone at 2:25, we were met by a warden of All Saint's Church who took us to the church, showed us how to turn on the organ, took us to tea, and finally deposited us in our very nice B & B. After resting for two hours, we walked back into the center of town, had supper and went to the church for practice from 7:30 until 10:30 p.m.

All Saints Collegiate Church, Maidstone, dating from the 13th century, is very handsome, and provides a wonderful acoustical environment for organ music. Unfortunately, the organ console has only preset divisional pistons, and no generals. Although Janice had planned originally to play "Communion" and "Sortie" from the Messiaen Pentecost Mass she realized that it would be impossible to give them meaningful performances on this instrument, so she decided to replace them with several short works by Vierne.

On July 22, following supper of sandwiches and tea provided by our landlady, we dressed for the recital. The taxi was expected at 7:30. When, by 7:40, it had not arrived we called again, and another taxi finally arrived, about 7:50. By this time we were pretty tense. We arrived at the church at 7:56. The concert started, on time, at 8:00 p.m.!

Since Janice's next recital, in Westminster Abbey, was not until the 27th, we decided to stay in Maidstone until Saturday. This 3-day respite was much needed and most enjoyable. On Wednesday, we found a laundromat, Janice had her hair cut, and we took a short, pleasant cruise on the Medway river. The Medway is navigable through several locks from the English Channel to London by way of the Thames. We passed several Dutch barges on the river and others anchored alongside wharves in Maidstone, all bedecked with flowers in hanging baskets, making a beautiful sight.

On Thursday, we went by train to Canterbury to see the famous cathedral, home of the Archbishop, head of the Anglican Church. Canterbury is a very attractive town, but on this day in July it was overrun by tourists. Like most other British cathedrals the nave and choir of Canterbury are separated by a dense "screen," and at Canterbury the nave, choir and Trinity Chapel are on successively higher levels. The organ console is out of sight on top of the screen, and the Father Willis organ in the triforium is nearly invisible.

Of the many works of art, plaques, and other memorabilia in the cathedral, one plaque was especially meaningful for us. It bore the following message: "Remember the thousands of the combined allied forces who lost their lives during the invasion of western Europe on the 6th of June 1944. The assault on Normandy was launched at Sword, Juno, Gold, Omaha & Utah beaches. Thus began the return of freedom to Europe. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."

One of our most enjoyable days in Britain was spent at Leeds Castle, just a few miles east of Maidstone which we reached by bus on Friday. One of the most famous and certainly one of the most beautiful of all English castles, with magnificent grounds and gardens, Leeds Castle was the home of kings and queens, including Henry the Eighth as well as Lord Culpepper who was governor of Virginia and Lord Fairfax who owned 150,000 acres of land in Virginia prior to the Revolution. It is no surprise that the town of Culpepper, and Fairfax County, Virginia were named for these illustrious early residents of the state. This Virginia connection with Leeds Castle was of particular interest to us since both Janice and I are Virginians by birth.

The castle was an early site of negotiations between Egypt and Israel that led to the Camp David Accords and the beginning of the on-going peace negotiations between Israel and the Arab nations of the Middle East.

Westminster Abbey

Saturday, 26 July: Today we travelled to London for the last recital of the tour, in Westminster Abbey. We left Maidstone by train at 10:00 a.m. and arrived in Victoria Station at 11:00. We took a taxi to Hotel 176 on Old Brompton Road in South Kensington. We were shocked to learn that there was no room reserved for us although the hotel had a record of our credit card number, and we had a fax confirming our reservation. The desk clerk was most apologetic, but re-iterated that there were no rooms available. Fortunately, the Swiss House Hotel, next door, had one double room available which we were delighted to take.

After a long nap in the afternoon, we went by Underground to Westminster Abbey for practice at 5:45. We found the organ scholar without difficulty who escorted us to the organ loft atop the screen separating the nave from the choir and showed us the organ console.

The Harrison and Harrison organ, installed in 1937, includes some re-voiced pipes from an earlier Hill organ. The instrument was restored and enlarged in 1982 and 1987 with the addition of a new console. In 1994 the combination action was expanded with the addition of a sequencer.

The five-manual console by Harrison and Harrison has several unusual features. There is a separate setter button for every general and every divisional piston. Unlike other English organs which Janice had played, the general pistons are not above the top manual, but below the manual for the solo division. Since the setter buttons for the general pistons are above the top manual, Janice had to be very careful not to push a setter button when she intended to push a general piston! We worked for the allotted 21/2 hours and made our way back to our hotel, very tired and went immediately to bed.

After sleeping late on Sunday, and a long nap in the afternoon, at about 4:00 we went to the nearby Gloucester Road Underground station to catch a train for the Abbey. Unfortunately the only reasonable route was not available because of work on the line. After deciding we did not have time to take a round-about route to the Abbey, we hailed a taxi and arrived just 15 minutes prior to recital time. We were relieved to observe that all tourists, except those who were seated for the recital, had been removed from the church; how this was accomplished we do not know. Two minutes prior to recital time, the Organist and Master of the Choristers arrived to greet us--a gracious gesture on his part, but not the most opportune time for the recitalist!

Following the recital, the sub-organist and several other organists in attendance, rushed up to the organ loft to ask about the contemporary American works on the program. As at St. Edmundsbury they were very interested in both Kairos and Rubrics.

After a pleasant dinner with friends who were in the London area on vacation, we packed for our return trip to Ann Arbor. Our flight from Gatwick to Detroit Metropolitan Airport was uneventful, and it was wonderful to be met by our daughters. It is always good to return home after a trip, but after having been away for nearly five weeks, homecoming this time was an unusual pleasure.

Sarah Mahler Hughes

Sarah Mahler Hughes is Professor of Music, Organist of the College, and Chair of the Music Department at Ripon College, where she has taught since 1989. In July 2002 she appeared as a guest recitalist at the XVI Festival Internazionale Storici Organi della Valsesia in Campertogno (Piedmont), Italy. A special scholarly/artistic grant enabled her to examine and play a number of historic organs in Germany, including the 1687 Schnitger organ at the church of St. Peter and Paul in Cappel. In July 2004 she examined and played historic keyboard instruments in the Russell Collection at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland and in other cities.

A recent holiday in Scotland provided many opportunities to see and play organs and other historical instruments in addition to being a tourist in this beautiful country. My children and I spent two weeks visiting friends in St. Madoes. Using this village between Perth and Dundee as our home base, we toured much of the country and experienced Scottish history and hospitality firsthand. The trip was made possible in part by a scholarly/artistic grant from Ripon College.

Our first stop was Edinburgh. En route to the Castle we wandered into St. Giles' Cathedral, where John Knox initiated the Scottish Reformation in 1560. The Chancel Choir of the First United Methodist Church of Lubbock, Texas, was rehearsing in preparation for a lunchtime concert, and I heard Mozart's Ave Verum Corpus accompanied on the beautiful 1992 Rieger. The organ is one of the instruments featured on the 2-CD set, Twelve Organs of Edinburgh.1

The next organ I saw, and the first one I played, was in Old Saint Paul's [Scottish Episcopal] Church in Edinburgh. Built by Henry "Father" Willis in 1888 and subsequently refurbished in 1905, 1936, 1960, 1968 and most recently, by Nicholson's of Worcester in 1977, the specifications are as follows:

Great

16' Dulciana

8' Open Diapason I

8' Open Diapason II

8' Stopped Flute

8' Dulciana

4' Principal

4' Spindle Flute

22/3' Twelfth

2' Fifteenth

III–IV Mixture

8' Trumpet

Swell

8' Open Diapason

8' Lieblich Gedackt

8' Salicional

8' Celeste (TC)

4' Gemshorn

III–IVMixture

16' Contra Oboe

8' Cornopean

Tremulant

Pedal

32' Subbass (derived)

16' Open Diapason (wood)

16' Bourdon

16' Dulciana (Great)

8' Octave (ext)

8' Bass Flute (ext)

8' Dulciana (ext)

4' Super Octave (ext)

4' Octave Flute (ext)

4' Dulcet (ext)

16’            Trombone (ext Trumpet)

8' Trumpet (Great)

The organ has a rich, warm sound eminently suitable for both service accompaniment and solo organ repertoire. A sample of the former may be heard on the CD Hearts & Voices, Hymns sung by the Choir of Old Saint Paul's Church.2

The following day I was privileged to spend several hours playing instruments in the Russell Collection of Early Keyboard Instruments in St. Cecilia's Hall at the University of Edinburgh. John Kitchen, Senior Lecturer and College Organist, was my tour guide as we worked our way through two rooms of virginals, spinets, and harpsichords from the 16th to 19th centuries.3 There were also three organs in the collection, and this seems the most appropriate place to mention them.

The first is an enharmonic chamber organ built by Thomas Parker in 1765. Parker was a pupil of Richard Bridge, a London builder favored by Handel.4 Bridge himself was supposedly trained by Renatus Harris. The  instrument has one manual with the usual short octave at the bottom. The real curiosity is a set of levers, two on each side of the case above the keyboard, that allow the player to select accidentals: Ab or G# and Bb or A# on the left-hand side, Db or C# and Eb or D# on the right. Parker provided a set of pipes for each pitch and the organ case is correspondingly wider than that of the usual chamber organ. What a fascinating way to learn firsthand about mean-tone tuning! It's also interesting to imagine how a player would handle a chromatic piece—assistants might be required to change the levers during a performance. The four registers of the organ include a Stopt [sic] Diapason 8', Open Diapason 8' (which only extends to tenor C, requiring both diapasons to be played together in order to use the full range of the keyboard), Principal 4', and Fifteenth 2'. Dr. Kitchen has recorded Stanley's Voluntary in G, op. 7, no. 9, and Handel's Fugue in A minor, op. 3, on the Parker organ.5 Interestingly, Parker built a second, two-manual enharmonic organ for the Foundling Hospital in 1768.

Another 18th-century chamber organ dates from 1763, the date when St. Cecilia's Hall opened. The organ was used in concerts until the hall closed in 1798. (The hall, having been refurbished in the 1960s, is once again the venue for concerts featuring instruments from the Russell Collection.) The third instrument, located in the Newman Gallery, is a Bernard "Father" Smith chamber organ from c. 1680. The specifications, which consist entirely of divided stops, are:

Bass

8' Diapason Bass

4' Principal Bass

2' Fifteenth

Treble

8' Diapason Treble

4' Principal Treble

2' Octave Treble

[rebuilt by Mander]

Wind is supplied through either a foot bellows or a modern electric blower. All of the above chamber organs reflect the disposition of English organs built after the restoration of the monarchy in 1660; i.e., principal stops at 8', 4', and 2' and, in the case of the Parker, stopped diapasons at 8'. The conventional registrational pattern of the time included solo stops plus accompaniment (hence the usefulness of the divided stops arrangement), diapasons (open plus stopped) for slow introductory movements, and full organ (8', 4', and 2') for faster movements. Stephen Bicknell has suggested that "There was a considerable revival of interest [in chamber organs] in the second half of the 18th century contemporary with (and perhaps because of) the great popularity of Handel, who seems regularly to have used small or even portable organs when playing continuo and for the performance of organ concertos as interludes to larger works."6   Bicknell also states that

By the end of the eighteenth century the chamber organ was firmly established as the instrument of choice for a well-to-do household, challenging both the harpsichord and the emerging fortepiano. The relative stability of tuning compared to a stringed keyboard instrument must have been an advantage, but it should also be noted that a small organ is a good vehicle not just for keyboard music, but also for transcriptions of instrumental works, and could readily be used for the accompaniment of family prayers.

He concludes that the organ's qualities of "reliability, versatility and dignity" must have accounted for its popularity.7

A greater contrast with these historical instruments than the McEwan Hall organ at the University of Edinburgh cannot be imagined. Built by Robert Hope-Jones in 1897, rebuilt by Henry Willis in 1953 and by Rushworth and Dreaper in 1980, the organ has problems because of the disparate placement of its divisions (the hall was designed without provisions for an organ, even though it was common for municipal concert halls at that time to include large instruments). Nonetheless, the organ sounds grand in the reverberant acoustics of the hall, where university graduations are held. The console looks a bit like a Jules Verne creation with its pressure gauges and electric dials, one of which is connected to the swell pedal to show incremental gradation (or "incremental frustration" as it's known to players).

The preceding organ and those described below all date from the second half of the 19th century, living testaments to the phenomenal rate of growth in organ building in England between 1860 and 1900. A few statistics tell the tale: in 1898, Harrison & Harrison of Durham claimed to have built 1,100 organs since 1861. Norman & Beard of Norwich produced even more astonishing numbers: between 1898 when their new factory was built and 1915 the company built over 1,000 new organs. In comparison, Sauer of Germany reached opus 1,000 only after fifty years of activity.8 Reasons for the rapid expansion in English organ building are numerous and include the wholesale replacement of older instruments, particularly those with a limited compass, increased prosperity of the middle class, which paid for new church instruments, and the construction of municipal concert halls in towns of any size.

The next organs I played were in Dundee, the fourth-largest city in Scotland. Three distinguished instruments exist in a three-block area in the heart of the city, which is pleasant and pedestrian-friendly. The first organ is located in St. Mary's Parish Church (Church of Scotland). I had not called ahead—in fact, I was simply being a tourist walking about Dundee and decided to poke my head in since the front door was open. Upon seeing the rich interior and a magnificent display of pipes in the rear balcony, I asked the volunteer guide if I might look at the organ. She very graciously assented, and I was delighted to discover a large three-manual instrument built in 1865 by Forster and Andrew of Hull and subsequently rebuilt by Rothwell (1939) and J. W. Walker (1969 and 1988). The console was open and inviting, so it was only a matter of minutes before I was actually playing. The specifications are:

Great

16' Double Diapason

8' Open Diapason 1

8' Open Diapason 2

8' Stopped Diapason

4' Principal

22/3' Harmonic Flute

2' Twelfth

2' Fifteenth

II Sesquialtera

IV Mixture

16' Double Trumpet

8' Trumpet (ext)

4' Clarion (ext)

Swell

8' Open Diapason

8' Viola da Gamba

8' Voix celeste

4' Principal

4' Lieblich Flute

2' Flageolet

III Mixture

16' Contra Fagotto

8' Cornopean

8' Oboe

4' Clarion

Super Octave

Sub Octave

Choir

8' Rohr Flute

8' Salicional

4' Gedeckt Flute

22/3' Principal

2' Nazard

2' Flautina

13/5' Tierce

11/3' Larigot

III Cymbel

8' Krummhorn

16' Double Trumpet

8' Trumpet (ext)

4' Clarion (ext)

Pedal

16' Open Diapason

16' Sub Bass

8' Flute Bass (ext)

8' Violoncello (ext)

4' Choral Bass (ext)

16’ Trombone

8' Tromba (ext)

A full battery of couplers and pistons plus an 8-channel memory system makes this organ suited for many kinds of repertoire. I only had time to try a voluntary by Stanley and a Buxtehude toccata before my younger daughter came looking for me (I'd left her and her sister parked outside), but I was impressed by the sound and feel of the organ in this parish church that in 1990 celebrated its octocentenary.

My serendipitous sampling of organs in Dundee continued on another day at St. Paul's Episcopal Cathedral. As churches go in Scotland, it is rather new, the cornerstone having been laid in 1853. The organ was built by Hill and Son of London in 1865, the year of the Cathedral's consecration. Hill, Norman and Beard reconstructed the instrument in 1975. Like the organs I saw in other British churches (with the exception of St. Mary's), this instrument is located in the choir with the pipes facing the singers. The organist's back is to the choir. The disposition of this large organ is similar to St. Mary's:

Great

16' Double Diapason

8' Open Diapason

8' Stopped Diapason

8' Gemshorn

8' Viole d'amour

4' Principal

4' Harmonic Flute

22/3' Twelfth

2' Fifteenth

IVMixture

8' Grand Trumpet

Swell

8' Open Diapason

8' Stopped Diapason

8' Viole d'orchestre*

8' Viole Celestes

4' Principal

2' Fifteenth

II Mixture

16' Shalmey

8' Cornopean

8' Oboe

4' Clairon

Suboctave

[Super] Octave

Choir

8' Lieblich Gedeckt

8' Gamba

4' Suabe Flute

2' Flautina

11/3' Larigot

8' Grand Trumpet

8' Clarinet

Sub Octave

[Super] Octave

Tremulant

Pedal

32' Harmonic Bass

16' Bourdon

16' Echo Bourdon**

16' Open Diapason

8' Bass Flute

8' Octave

4' Super Octave

4' Flute

2' Octave

16' Trombone

4' Clairon

Sub Octave

[Super] Octave

Unison Off

Tremulant

Swell & Choir under expression

Sw-Ch, Sw-Gt, Ch-Gt, manual-pedal couplers

General (4) and divisional pistons

* Very stringlike; works especially well with the Viole Celestes

** Enhances the Bourdon 16'

As was the case at St. Mary's, I was allowed access to the organ by helpful parishioners. When I arrived at St. Paul's on a Saturday morning, the only person I could find on the premises (even though the front doors were wide open and a charity hamburger stand was getting ready to open for business on the front steps) was the verger. He led me to the instrument, turning on power switches and lights as we went, saying "We have to show you Scottish hospitality!" I played for an hour, trying out various sounds and combinations and finally let it rip with the Widor Toccata. Feeling self-indulgent but happy with the sonic results, I set about changing my shoes and packing up when I was startled by two members of the flower committee who appeared and thanked me for playing. They told me that people in the street, hearing the music, had stopped to peer inside the church, probably wondering if a wedding were in progress.

A third large organ exists in Dundee within blocks of St. Mary's and St. Paul's. Situated approximately midway between the two churches is Caird Hall, Dundee's civic auditorium. The organ was built in 1922 by Harrison & Harrison to a design by the famous blind organist of Edinburgh, Alfred Hollins. The Caird Hall organ was Harrison & Harrison's first concert hall organ; as such it differs from some of their other instruments in having brighter reeds (on heavier pressure than usual) and more orchestral colors than the average church organ. In 1991 the organ was restored by the original firm with only minor changes to its original sound. No tonal changes were made, but the pitch was raised to make the organ usable with other instruments. Carlo Curley played the rededication recital on this occasion. A stoplist follows:

Great

16' Double Geigen

16' Bourdon (wood and metal)

8' Large Open Diapason

8' Small Open Diapason

8' Geigen

8' Hohlflute

8' Rohrflute

4' Octave

4' Waldflute

22/3' Octave Quint

2' Super Octave

IV Harmonics 17,19,b21,22

16' Contra Tromba

8' Tromba

4' Octave Tromba

Swell

8' Open Diapason

8' Stopped Diapason

8' Echo Salicional

8' Vox Angelica

4' Octave Geigen

4' Stopped flute (metal)

2' Fifteenth

V Mixture 12,19,22,26,29

8' Oboe

8' Vox Humana

Tremulant

16' Double Trumpet

8' Trumpet

8' Horn

4' Clarion

Orchestral Organ

16' Double Salicional (metal)

8' Viole d'Orchestre

8' Violes Celestes (to FF, 2 ranks)

8' Harmonic Flute

4' Concert Flute (harmonic)

2' Harmonic Piccolo

16' Cor Anglais

8' Corno di Bassetto

8' Orchestral Oboe

Tremulant

8' Tuba (unenclosed)

Pedal

32' Double Open Wood (FFFF)

16' Open Wood

16' Open Diapason (metal, leathered)

16' Geigen (Gt)

16' Salicional (Orch organ)

16' Subbass (Gt)

8' Octave (wood)

8' Flute (Gt)

16' Ophicleide (metal)

16' Trombone (Gt)

8' Posaune

The organ's pneumatic action has been fitted with an electronic memory, and the combination pedals removed and replaced with toe pistons. Otherwise, the instrument remains as it was originally. A concert series in the early autumn featured the organ and it was recorded in October 2004. I was unable to play the Caird Hall organ because of a guitar festival in progress, but the staff was most helpful in showing me the console and wind system and providing me with specifications for the instrument.

Some general observations can be made, at this point, about the organs I saw in Scotland. The large instruments are originally from the 19th century and are based on an orchestral tonal design with a preponderance of stops at 8' pitch. The pedal divisions rely heavily on extensions from the manuals. Bicknell identifies the philosophy underlying this esthetic as ‘build-up:' "the gradual crescendo from piano to fortissimo achieved by adding stops one by one, [which] seems to be the dominant characteristic of these Victorian instruments."9 It works in this wise: flue pipes come in many colors, from clear and fluty to reedy with harmonic overtones. As the flues approach the reedy end of the spectrum, mild strings and reeds come into play, creating a smooth blend. Swell-to-Great couplers further increase fullness of sound while masking any addition of single stops, and the Swell pedal also assists in creating a smooth crescendo. As Bicknell points out,

This manner of playing was later to become an idée fixe with English builders and players . . . As a method it was taken so much for granted that it can safely be assumed that Willis's mixtures were not usually intended to be heard unless some reeds were already drawn . . . there is no provision for a chorus of principals and mixtures that can be used extensively on its own: this is . . . in complete contrast to German taste.10

Although the reference is to instruments built by Willis, the description is general enough to be applied to other large late-19th and early 20th-century organs.

Perhaps it seems incongruous that all of the organs I saw and played in Scotland were built by English firms. Were there no Scottish organbuilders in the 19th century and earlier? Regardless of how we might think of Britons as members of a United Kingdom, there are national differences among the English, Scots, Welsh, and Irish. A bit of research was necessary to unearth information about organbuilding in Scotland, from which a clearer picture emerges of the past three centuries.

At the heart of the question is the ban on instruments in church issued by the Church of Scotland from the Reformation (around 1560) until around 1868.11 Organs were allowed for concerts and domestic use, but none were built or installed in this denomination until a very late date. Other denominations—the Episcopal, Roman Catholic, Unitarian, Congregationalist, and Baptist churches—were exempt, and instruments dating from the 18th century are known to have existed in them.12 Early 19th-century Scottish organbuilders, including Small, Bruce & Co of Edinburgh, John Renton, also of Edinburgh, and Robert Mirrlees of Glasgow, specialized in chamber organs, at least two of which are extant.13 I was very surprised to learn that the oldest surviving Glasgow-built organ was made by James Watt in 1762. The renowned engineer and inventor, associated more with the first steam engine than with pipe organs, constructed a single-manual instrument concealed in a table. It was the first of three organs built by Watt.14

In the second half of the 19th century, other firms arose in Dundee, Aberdeen, and Edinburgh, but they found it difficult to compete with the well-established English builders. An admittedly cursory search for information on Scottish builders in the 19th and early 20th centuries produced nothing—but perhaps a written history is in progress.

Today, Lammermuir Pipe Organs (est. 1983) is perhaps the best-known firm in Scotland and the only workshop "north of the border" specializing in new, mechanical-action organs.15 Op. 50 is scheduled for completion in 2005. The other company listed in an Internet link to pipe organ builders in the United Kingdom is Michael Macdonald (est. 1975) of Glasgow.16 Interestingly, besides building new instruments, Macdonald engages in rescuing historic organs from redundant buildings (primarily churches closed due to dwindling congregations).

I would like to think of my visit to Scotland as a prelude to further organ crawls  there and in other parts of the United Kingdom. There are many instruments to be played and much history to be learned in these islands.