MELTON MOWBRAY, ST MARY S CHURCH THE ORGAN REPORT & RECOMMENDATIONS BY PAUL HALE DECEMBER 2012
INDEX TO REPORT & RECOMMENDATIONS PAGE HISTORICAL INTRODUCTION HISTORY 3 THE CURRENT SPECIFICATION 5 A PRÉCIS OF THE REPORT S RECOMMENDATIONS 10 ASSESSMENT OF THE CONDITION OF THE ORGAN & RECOMMENDATIONS FOR RESTORATIVE WORK 11 RECOMMENDATIONS AS TO: 1. STRUCTURAL REARRANGEMENT TO SUIT THE CHURCH S PLANS FOR INTERIOR REDEVELOPMENT 16 2. TONAL DEVELOPMENT TO MAXIMISE POTENTIAL 17 3. FUTURE USE & MAINTENANCE 20 A VISION 20 1956 LETTER OF CHURCH ORGANIST HAROLD BARNES 21 SPECIFICATION AS PROPOSED, DECEMBER 2012 22 OO0OO 2
PAUL HALE ACCREDITED MEMBER OF THE AIOA The Parish Church of St Mary, Melton Mowbray ORGAN SURVEY AND RECOMMENDATIONS December 2012 This Report begins with a brief historical overview, then considers the condition of the organ and its position in the church before making recommendations of a musical and technical nature. HISTORICAL INTRODUCTION 1832 A new one- manual organ was built on a gallery at the west end of the Nave by John Gray, of London. The singers were doubtless also in the gallery. 1850 The organ was rebuilt by Groves & Mitchell and divided either side of the Chancel, with the addition of a Swell organ (a second manual, windchest and ranks of pipes); the console was built- in on the South side. The Church choir was relocated to the Crossing. 1869 William Hill & Son (London) enlarged the organ, removing it to the North Transept. 1880 William Hill & Son added the Choir Organ (a third manual, windchest and ranks of pipes). 3
1896/7 William Hill & Son (London) completely rebuilt the organ, with a new building frame, soundboards, actions, wind system, most reed stops, several ranks of flue pipes and new blowing mechanism. It became then a 39- stop 3- manual organ. The specification appears in Musical Opinion, June 1897, p.601. The Pedal 32ft Double Open Diapason (wood) was added at this time, and the stop list became: 1910-1927 Great 16.8.8.8.4.4.2 2 / 3.2.III.II.16.8.4 [56 notes] Swell 16.8.8.8.4.2.III.16.8.8.8.4.Trem [56 notes] Choir 8.8.8.8.8.4.4.2.8 [56 notes] Pedal 32.16.16.8.16 [30 notes] Norman & Beard overhauled the instrument, and then maintained it and carried out occasional repairs. These included repairs to the hydraulic blowing machine and to mitigate the effects of water ingress a problem then as now a century later. 1929/30 T. H. Haydn Morton of Oakham revised and rebuilt the organ, whose specification then became: Great 16.8.8.8.4.4. 2 2 / 3.2.III.II.16.8.4 [56 notes] Swell 16.8.8.8.8.4.2.III.16.8.8.4.Trem [56 notes] Choir 8.8.8.4.8.8.8.Trem [56 notes] Pedal 32.16.16.16.8.16 [30 notes] An electric blower replaced the hydraulic engine. The console was removed from the chancel to in front of the west speaking case in the north transept (from where the organ could be heard far better). There were 4 thumb piston to the Great, 4 to the Swell and 4 toe pistons. 1941 War damage caused the Great reeds and the Choir Organ to be put out of action. 1955 J W Walker completely rebuilt the instrument. They electrified the Swell and Great actions, added top- note machines to extend the Great and Swell to 61 notes, built a Choir organ (structurally new but using old ranks of pipes except for new bass octaves) on the south side of the chancel, placed a detached console in the Crossing, created a Pedal organ from existing and additional ranks, on unit chests, sharing some ranks with Great, Swell and Choir, and fitted two large oak cases containing pipes from a new 16ft metal Diapason, and a new oak case to the rear of the Choir organ, with dummy front pipes. Dummy fronts of mute zinc 4
pipes with no casework were also fitted in front of the Choir expression box (facing north across the Chancel) and in front of the organ arch facing south across the Chancel. The organ was Dedicated at Evensong on Sunday May 6 th, 1956, being the tenth anniversary of the Institution of the Vicar, Canon C.M.S.Clarke, M.A., R.D. Before the service was played two hymn- preludes: Blessed Jesus, we are here by J S Bach and Lovely ( Rhosymedre ) by Vaughan Williams. The concluding voluntary was I will praise God with singing, by Karg- Elert. The church organist, Mr H.L.Barnes A.R.C.O. played, also giving demonstration recitals to various groups on 7 th May, 16 th June, 30 th June and 14 th July. Further recitals were played by Dr Francis Jackson (York Minster), Dr George Thalben- Ball (Temple Church, and Birmingham City Organist) and George Gray (Leicester Cathedral). 1955-2012 A cleaning of the Great pipework in latter years is, remarkably, the only work carried out since 1955 other than regular tuning and maintenance. This speaks volumes about the quality of work executed by Hill in 1896 and Walker in 1955. SPECIFICATION AS REBUILT IN 1955, (& CURRENT IN 2012) GREAT ORGAN rank 1 Grave Gedeckt (ten.c) 32 A Walker on unit chest 2 Double Open Diapason 16 B Walker on unit chests 3 Contra Gedeckt 16 A Walker 4 Open Diapason No.1 8 5 Open Diapason No.2 8 6 Open Diapason No.3 8 B Walker 7 Wald Flute 8 Walker 8 Gedeckt 8 A 9 Octave 4 10 Principal 4 B Walker 11 Harmonic Flute 4 12 Twelfth 2 2 / 3 13 Fifteenth 2 14 Mixture 17.19.22 III breaks on G#33, G#45 15 Sharp Mixture 26.29 II breaks on C13, C25, C37, C49 16 Double Trumpet 16 C Hill / Walker on unit chests 17 Tromba 8 D Hill revoiced on H.P. by Walker, unit chest 18 Trumpet 8 C Walker on unit chests 19 Clarion 4 C Hill / Walker on unit chests Swell to Great Choir to Great 5
SWELL ORGAN enclosed (16- stage whiffle- tree engine) 20 Open Diapason 8 21 Stopped Diapason 8 22 Salicional 8 23 Voix Céleste (ten.c) 8 Morton? 24 Principal 4 25 Suabe Flute 4 old Choir 26 Twelfth 2 2 / 3 Walker 27 Fifteenth 2 28 Mixture 22.26.29 III breaks on F#19, F#31, F#43, F#55 29 Oboe 8 Tremulant 30 Double Trumpet 16 Hill, revoiced Walker bass 32 on unit chest 31 Cornopean 8 Hill, revoiced & rescaled Walker 32 Clarion 4 Hill, revoiced Walker Octave Unison Off Sub- Octave CHOIR ORGAN [all on unit chests] (two whiffle- tree Swell engines) (enclosed in a box with shutters in the roof and facing across the Chancel to the North) 33 Contra Gamba 16 E bass 24 Walker, haskelled bass 12 34 Lieblich Bourdon 16 F bass 2 Walker 35 Contra Dulciana (ten.c) 16 G 36 Open Diapason 8 H bass 12 Walker 37 Lieblich Gedeckt 8 F 38 Viola da Gamba 8 E 39 Dulciana 8 G bass 12 Walker 40 Praestant 4 H 41 Lieblich Flute 4 F 42 Gambette 4 E top notes Walker 43 Dulcet 4 G 44 Nazard 2 2 / 3 F top notes Walker 45 Flautino 2 F top notes Walker 46 Dulcet Mixture 12.15 II G top notes Walker 47 Double Clarinet (ten.c) 16 I 48 Clarinet 8 I 8ft bass octave Walker Tremulant 49 Double Trumpet 16 C 50 Tromba 8 D 51 Trumpet 8 C 52 Clarion 4 C Swell to Choir 6
PEDAL ORGAN 53 Double Open Wood 32 J bass haskelled by Walker 54 Open Wood 16 J 55 Open Diapason 16 B Walker, bass in north & west cases 56 Bourdon 16 K 57 Echo Bourdon 16 F 58 Gamba 16 E 59 Octave (wood) 8 J top 12 Walker 60 Principal 8 B 61 Gambette 8 E 62 Bass Flute 8 K 63 Echo Flute 8 F 64 Octave Flute 4 K top 12 Walker 65 Ophicleide 16 Hill, revoiced Walker 66 Trombone 16 C 67 Trumpet 16 from Swell Double Trumpet 68 Tromba 8 D 69 Clarion 4 C Great to Pedal Swell to Pedal Choir to Pedal ACCESSORIES Doubles Off (with red light indicator) Double Touch Cancelling (on stop- knobs) Great and Pedal Combinations Coupled Pedal Combinations to Swell pistons (2 nd touch) Balanced Expression pedals to (L to R) Nave Choir / Chancel Choir / Swell PISTONS 7 Thumb Pistons to Great Organ 6 Thumb Pistons to Swell Organ 7 Thumb Pistons to Choir Organ I Reversible Thumb Piston for Great to Pedal I Reversible Thumb Piston for Swell to Great I Reversible Thumb Piston for Choir to Great I Reversible Thumb Piston for Ophicleide I Reversible Thumb Piston for Doubles Off (now wired as a General Cancel) 7 Toe Pistons to Pedal Organ 6 Toe Pistons to Swell Organ (duplicating) I Reversible Toe Piston for Great to Pedal I Reversible Toe Piston for Swell to Great - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The content of a specification leaflet published by J.W.Walker is printed overleaf. 7
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A PRÉCIS OF THE REPORT WHICH FOLLOWS 1. The electrical systems of the organ have worn out and need replacing, along with all the wiring. 2. In some ways it is a child of its time (the 1955 rebuild) and needs some minor modifications to make it fit for the needs of the church in the 21 st century. 3. Most of the organ is in good order, needing relatively little work. 4. Regular water ingress into the Choir organ from the leaking south roof means that: a. more work needs doing to this section than would otherwise have been necessary. b. a better system above the Choir organ for ensuring no water reaches the instrument should be devised. c. the roof should be repaired. 5. Maintenance costs will considerably reduce when water damage has no longer to be repaired regularly, and a constant stream of electrical faults traced and fixed. 6. With the church s development plans in mind it needs to be noted that: a. the organ cannot be removed to the west end it is far too large. b. the space either side of the west window is too small for a divided organ of adequate size for this spacious church, even if a gallery were built, without blocking much of the west window. c. in any case, a west end organ would be too far from the choir unless the choir shared a gallery with the organ. This would reduce floor space for the organ so even more of the west window would be blocked. d. the case facing into the vestries can be turned through 90 degrees to stand side by side with the existing west- facing case. Within it and behind it can stands the tallest 16ft pipes, with a mezzanine floor above the new vestry taking some ranks of smaller pipes along with a wind regulator or two. e. the vestry can be extended almost to the original organ building frame some four feet behind the north case. f. maintenance access to the main organ and to the back of the repositioned case would be needed. g. if the organ remains where it is (and I cannot find anywhere else in the church where it can be located) then placing an area for children near it, as I believe is planned, would be a serious error of judgement, as nothing could be made soundproof enough to eliminate the very considerable output of this powerful organ at close quarters. The area would better be used for lavatories and a kitchen, if the drainage system can be arranged to allow for that. 7. The nature of the restorative work needed to the whole instrument is fairly straightforward organ- building which could thus be given to a local / provincial company costing less than one of the largest four UK organ- builders. 10
ASSESSMENT OF THE CONDITION OF THE ORGAN & RECOMMENDATIONS FOR RESTORATIVE WORK Electrical systems and wiring All the 1955 low- voltage wiring, relays, switchgear, solenoids, pistons, Swell pedal actions and stop- selector switches are living on borrowed time. The cotton covered wiring should really be condemned. ACTION: rewire the entire organ and console and fit a modern processor- based transmission system, new stop solenoids, pistons, Swell pedal mechanisms, lever / chest magnets, plus new power supplies for console and organ. Console Very solidly made, and in fair condition. Electrically worn- out, with manual and pedal keys needing refurbishment and piston system replacing with one of modern design and facilities. ACTION: The keys need refurbishing, with worn ivories in the centre of the Great manual exchanged with those which have seen little use. Alternatively, the ivories could be re- used on new, longer keys, which would improve the touch of the instrument considerably. The pedalboard needs refurbishing with new contacts or possibly replacing with a new pedalboard with capped sharps. The toe piston sweep needs remaking to accept more pistons and the boxing either side removing. New piston slips with new, closer- spaced pistons including generals and a stepper and sequencer. Swell pedals recovered and repositioned with the Swell in the middle. Stop knobs: ten will need re- engraving for the revised specification. All electrics and wiring need replacing and the console woodwork making good when the switches are removed. A MIDI device can be fitted, allowing the console to be used in conjunction with other digital musical instruments, thus greatly augmenting the uses to which the organ can be put. Console oak casework refinished, bench restored and a solid, oak / oak faced platform installed beneath the console with strong lockable wheels. The console can then be plugged in at various places using simply a mains cable and a Category 5 (or similar) small link connecting cable. 11
Soundboards Slider soundboards all date from 1896. They are in fair condition, with minimal runnings. ACTION: The soundboards do not need a full workshop restor- ation but an in situ overhaul of tables, sliders, bearers and upper- boards. The trebles of the Swell 16ft reed are falling over new stays need making for those, to be fitted to the reed soundboard. Stop- action The slider machines work efficiently, despite being on both low and heavier wind pressures. ACTION: The slider machines should be fitted with new magnets, opened up and releathered if less than 20 years life can be expected to remain in the 1955 leather on the pans. Under- actions The Hill soundboards were converted by Walker in 1955 using their typical electro- pneumatic under- actions slung under the Hill bottom- boards and connected to the pallet pull- downs. These are a well tried and tested design which, though space consuming and bulky, do the job well. ACTIONS: releather primary and secondary motors and replace all electromagnets. Unit chests Other than the individual Hill chests for the bulky Open Wood pipes (converted to electro- pneumatic action by Walker), these are all by Walker and number about fifteen chests of various sizes. Most are of the Roosevelt pattern, with a magnet and a single leathered motor with attached disc pallet; those in the Choir are direct- electric, employing lever magnets rather than a chest magnet primary and pneumatic motor. The bass chests in the Choir employ chest magnets and pneumatic motors. ACTION: releather and re- magnet all retained chests. Replace the four- rank Choir chest for the treble pipework with a new chest to incorporate tonal revisions and a built- in wind regulator (see Wind System and Tonal Revisions, below). Wind System There are numerous wind reservoirs and regulators, mostly by Walker but incorporating perhaps two Hill reservoirs. The 12
Walker reservoirs are still all perfectly serviceable. Wind trunking is mainly zinc (Walker) with some flexible trunking. ACTION: The Hill reservoir for the Swell flues needs the corners patching; any other non- Walker reservoir should be checked for similar need by a tendering organ- builder. The wind- trunking should be checked for complete soundness; the wind within the organ is quiet, which suggests that little work needs carrying out. COMMENT: The Choir Organ is fitted with two small wind regulators, the lower (inverted) one being for the bass chests, the upper one being for the main treble chest. There is a small blower alongside them and a Tremulant. For some reason the wind is nervous and has evidently been so since 1955 since both a concussion (with cut out for the Tremulant) and a second wind trunk to produce circular winding (a Walker speciality) have been introduced at some stage; in addition the springing / weighting of the upper regulator has been altered, with two springs removed and two weights substituted. I recommend that with the new chest which my tonal revisions suggest is needed, an internal wind regulator is built in to the bottom board, so eliminating the upper regulator, extra wind- trunk, and concussion. Blower (main) This was not inspected. However, if it was installed in 1955 it will be a high- quality machine by Watkins & Watson ( Discus ) or B.O.B. (British Organ Blowers). ACTION: have the main blower and the Choir blower checked by a specialist (I can make a recommendation) in case any work to the motors or to the fan bearings is need. Pipework (condition) The pipes are generally in good condition, those in the Swell being quite clean, having been enclosed in a box since 1955, those in the Choir being nearly as clean, and those in the Great having been cleaned recently. The large Pedal pipes are somewhat dirtier. ACTION: my recommendation would be to lightly clean all the pipes when they have to be removed for work to the 13
soundboards. At the same time, wooden pipes should be checked for soundness and screwed at the tops where necessary. Reed wedges and tongues should all be checked and tightened where necessary. Tuning slots on front pipes should have new pipe metal soldered in if any zinc tuners have snapped off. Swell- box machines The whiffle- tree engines to Solo and Choir are aging and bulky, and are not operating fully, probably in part owing to the poor contacting and wiring at the console end. ACTION: replace with powerful new stepless electrical machines which take up far less room, use no wind, and are silent. Swell- boxes Both boxes are effective. ACTION: Check for soundness of closure. Deal with any loose centres in the cock- rods / traces. Replace worn felt. Organ Cases These are fine oak constructions dating from the 1955 rebuild. ACTION: A simple cleaning is all that is required. Access & safety Access into and within the organ is a fair way from conforming with reasonable safety precautions. When any work is carried out to the organ this should be addressed. ACTION: a revised system of ladders, grab- handles and wider passage boards should be installed, with improved lighting. Internal layout The Great, Swell, and Pedal Open Wood sections remain where Hill installed them. All else dates from the 1955 Walker rebuild, which, though excellently carried out in terms of bench- work, is very much a child of its times in the placing of unit chests containing sections of ranks of pipes wherever they could be fitted- in. Some of these are in suitable positions but some are not e.g. the treble of the Ophicleide, Great Trumpet rank and Tromba, which stand on a chest elevated above the Great, blocking tonal egress from the Swell and remote from the lower 14
portions of the Ophicleide and Great Trombone, which are situated behind the north- facing case at two levels. The same applies to the Open Diapason rank shared between the Pedal and the Great, and the top notes of the Octave (wood) and Bass Flute / Octave Flute, which are beneath the Great, in a separate environment from their bass portions. The Pedal Bourdon basses and tenors are mounted horizontally on the roof of the Swell box and on a chest along once side, joined by the tenor pipes of the Open Wood rank. In itself this is not too bad a thing, for in the church their tone reaches out well enough and is evenly balanced, but it makes access for their maintenance and tuning difficult, and access to the Great particularly tight. ACTION: see next section of this Report, where I consider ways in which the layout can be improved if the organ is reconfigured to help the church develop the area adjacent to it. 15
Structural Rearrangement Re- ordering the church: how this affects the organ and how the organ can help a. the organ cannot be removed to the west end it is far too large. b. the space either side of the west window is too small for a divided organ of adequate size for this spacious church, even if a gallery were built, without blocking much of the west window. c. in any case, a west end organ would be too far from the choir unless the choir shared a gallery with the organ. This would reduce floor space for the organ so even more of the west window would be blocked. d. the case facing into the vestries can be turned through 90 degrees to stand side by side with the existing west- facing case. Within it and behind it can stands the tallest 16ft pipes, with a mezzanine floor above the new vestry taking some ranks of smaller pipes along with a wind regulator or two. e. this would enable some of the badly- placed ranks (the reed stops mentioned above, for example) to be moved to this new position near their basses. f. it would also mean that the Pedal could gain in this new mezzanine section an independent 42- note Pedal Principal & Fifteenth rank, so that the Open Diapason can be kept as the Great No.3, the new Pedal rank being louder and sharing only the 16ft bass with the Great Open No.3. g. in this space also can be mounted a Cornet V ranks, for use on the Great Organ. The organ currently lacks any stops of this traditional and useful tonality (see Tonal Scheme below). h. the vestry can be extended almost to the original organ building frame some four feet behind the north case. This will need panelling from floor to ceiling allowing for a passage board above head level to the side of the Swell box. i. maintenance access to the main organ and to the back of the repositioned case would be needed. j. if the organ remains where it is (and I cannot find anywhere else in the church where it can be located) then placing an area for children near it, as I believe is planned, would be a serious error of judgement, as nothing could be made soundproof enough to eliminate the very considerable output of this powerful organ at close quarters. The area would better be used for lavatories and a kitchen, if the drainage system can be arranged to allow for that. 16
Tonal Scheme The organ retains all the strengths of its Victorian Hill origins, combined with its somewhat Edwardian development by Walker. In the early 1950s the earliest manifestations of a revival of knowledge of (and interest in) historically- informed organs were making an impression in the UK. The 1951 organ in the Royal Festival Hall kick- started this major development, one which was over the next few decades destined to revolutionise organ design in this country. Although Walker was to work in a more advanced style as the 1950s/60s progressed, and indeed became a leader in the neo- baroque genre, the Melton organ was rebuilt just before they embraced the new tonalities; interestingly, their similar instrument built in the following year for The City Temple (Holborn, London) already leans slightly more towards this new style. The somewhat dated tonal design of the Melton organ means that certain sounds which all organ traditions (except British Victorian/Edwardian organs) possess are lacking here. Also, despite its quite heroic output, it fails sufficiently to energise the acoustic of the nave, meaning that the organist has to use more stops than [s]he should have to in supporting a congregation. In addition to this, the organ as augmented by Walker uses the extension principle to an uncomfortable extent. The entire 20- stop Choir organ is in reality only six ranks of pipes, some of which are in addition used on the Great and Pedal Organs. Similarly the Pedal Diapason stops at 16ft and 8ft use the same pipes as the Great Diapason 16ft, Diapason No.3 8ft and Principal 4ft; there is also a Gedeckt rank on the Great used at 32/16/8 pitches and one Trumpet rank (instead of Hill s three individual ranks; actually made up out of Hill s 16ft and 4ft ranks) used at 16/8/4 on the Great, 16/8/4 on the Choir, and 16/4 on the Pedal. All this leads to missing notes as notes are played which would normally use several pipes whereas here one pipe is doing more than double- duty. It also leads to poor balances such as the Diapason No.3 being too soft when used on the Pedal at 16/8. With careful planning and disciplined use of space and eschewing the addition of any extra stop- knobs to the console it is possible subtly to develop the tonal scheme of the organ largely to obviate these deficiencies. In addition to re- regulating some key stops this will give more tone throughout the whole pitch spectrum for the nave, will provide certain of the tonalities currently lacking, and will address the inevitable issues of balance and missing notes when ranks are too heavily extended and derived to more than one division. 17
The Great Mixture III (17.19.22) is poorly composed in the treble octaves, making this vital stop all but unusable. The Choir Dulciana rank provided the so- called Dulcet Mixture II (12.15) which is so soft as to be of no use. A 2ft Fifteenth, even if extended from the Diapason/Praestant unit, would be of much more use. A Tierce here (short compass would be fine) along with the other alterations would at last give the Choir Organ some of the colour and projection it lacks, despite its 20 stops. These recommendations, and my others, are set out below: Great 1. Louden 8ft Open Diapason No.1 and Octave 4ft to provide stronger middle range tone in the nave and to support better the upperwork. 2. Replace the useless 32ft Gedeckt extension with a new Cornet V- ranks (1.8.12.15.17; running from middle C to top F [to save space/cost]) and place it on the new chest on the proposed mezzanine floor. 3. Recast the Mixture III thus: C1 17.19.22 [existing] C25 12.15.19 G#45 8.12.15 4. Move the Great Trumpet (trebles) and Tromba to behind the repositioned North case. Swell 1. Re- balance treble and bass of 16ft reed to compensate for their front / back positions in the Swell box. Choir Having replaced the main treble chest with a new chest using vertical pallet magnets carry out the following tonal work: 1. Incorporate on that chest a Tierce 1 3 / 5 (from Tenor C up). 2. Incorporate also a Mixture III (22.26.29) comprised of two octaves, repeating. NB: both these stops were later Walker practice so entirely consonant with their 1955 work here. 3. Delete the 16ft Dulciana and II- rank Dulcet Mixture extensions to provide the stop- knobs for these new registers. 4. Derive the 16ft reed from the Tromba rank rather than the Trumpet rank more use for soloing out hymns as the Tromba is not as loud as a Tuba, being the old Hill Great Trumpet revoiced on heavy pressure. 18
5. Add a 2ft Fifteenth extension of the Diapason/Praestant rank, deleting the 4ft Dulcet to do so. For pipes, the existing 2ft top octave of the Dulciana (notes 74-86) can be used, slightly loudened. 6. Tune the Dulciana rank (notes 1-73) sharp, slightly loudened, to act as a Celeste. The new Choir Octave coupler will provide a 4ft Celeste, using the existing top octave of the 4ft Dulcet. Pedal Structural alterations, which allow tonal improvements: Having moved the North- facing casework through 90 degrees and set it West- facing against the main case, mount behind it at floor level the remaining 16ft basses of the 16ft Open Diapason, but also the existing wooden Ophicleide bass (the old Hill Trombone, revoiced by Walker). Place a mezzanine floor above the ceiling of the new vestry which can be created behind this case front. This allows the following layout and improvements: 1. Continue the 16ft octave of the Pedal Open Diapason with a new 44- note unit on the mezzanine floor, providing a replacement Pedal Principal and new Fifteenth 4ft (in place of the derived Echo Flute 8ft). Louden the 16ft octave. 2. Mount behind the Ophicleide bass, on floor level, twelve similar wooden pipes providing the half- length bass for a 32ft extension of the Great/Pedal Trombone rank (called, Contra Trombone, in place of the derived 8ft Octave [wood]). 3. Place the Great/Pedal Trombone/Trumpet rank trebles on the mezzanine floor. 4. Place the Tromba rank on the mezzanine floor. 5. Derive the Pedal 8ft Tromba from the Ophicleide rank instead of the Tromba; twelve additional top notes will be needed. I am convinced that these spatial and tonal alterations and improvements will develop the Melton organ as far as it can reasonably be developed and should produce the best possible instrument that can be contrived for the needs of current and future liturgical and concert use, without completely starting again. 19
Future Use and Maintenance 1. The rebuilt and modernised console will be able to be placed anywhere in the church and used with other musical ensembles much more readily, including ensembles with any digital instruments. A CCTV system can be installed for flexible co- ordination of organist with any corner of the building. 2. Maintenance will be greatly lessened. 3. Reliability will assured for many decades. 4. The development of the Choir Organ will turn it into both a more colourful Choir division in its own right and also enable it to act as an accompani- mental Swell Organ when the church choir sings in the Chancel. With its four 8ft stops, including undulating strings, and a build- up to a Fifteenth and Mixture it will do all that a Swell is needed for until the chorus reeds are needed. At that point the Swell reeds can be coupled to provide the Full Swell sound so vital in loud choral accompaniment. Listening experiments have been carried out with success to assess the viability of all this. With the new General Pistons, such combinations can be far more readily contrived than with the current 1955 piston system, which has no Generals at all and is unreliable and cumbersome to adjust. 5. The development of the Pedal Organ with an independent 16/8/4 Diapason rank and 32ft reed, coupled with the loudening of the Great Open Diapason No.1 and Octave, the redesign of the Great Mixture III, and the reallocation of the Choir 16ft reed, will give the instrument the richness and projection of tone at middle, top and bottom, the better to fulfil its key role as the leader of hearty congregational singing in the nave and transepts. A Vision It is worth noting a letter from Melton s 1956 organist, Harold Barnes, reproduced on the next page. What he wrote about the organ that July could be even better applied to the instrument once it has again been revisited. Indeed, the instrument is known nationally as an organ which is almost in the first- rate category. It has waited nearly sixty years for that final push; now is surely the one opportunity the present generation will have. I hope earnestly that it is grasped. 20
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SPECIFICATION AS PROPOSED, DECEMBER 2012 GREAT ORGAN rank 1 Double Open Diapason 16 B 2 Contra Gedeckt 16 A 3 Open Diapason No.1 8 4 Open Diapason No.2 8 5 Open Diapason No.3 8 B 6 Wald Flute 8 7 Gedeckt 8 A 9 Octave 4 9 Principal 4 B 10 Harmonic Flute 4 11 Twelfth 2 2 / 3 12 Fifteenth 2 13 Mixture 17.19.22 III breaks on C25 [12.15.19], G#45 [8.12.15] 14 Sharp Mixture 26.29 II breaks on C13, C25, C37, C49 15 Cornet (C 25 to F 54 ) 1.8.12.15.17 V A new on mezzanine 16 Double Trumpet 16 C on mezzanine 17 Tromba 8 D on mezzanine 18 Trumpet 8 C on mezzanine 19 Clarion 4 C on mezzanine Swell to Great Choir to Great SWELL ORGAN enclosed (stepless electric swell engine) 20 Open Diapason 8 21 Stopped Diapason 8 22 Salicional 8 23 Vox Angelica (ten.c) 8 still tuned flat; renamed 24 Principal 4 25 Suabe Flute 4 26 Twelfth 2 2 / 3 27 Fifteenth 2 28 Mixture 22.26.29 III breaks on F#19, F#31, F#43, F#55 29 Oboe 8 Tremulant 30 Double Trumpet 16 rank rebalanced so bass and treble match 31 Cornopean 8 32 Clarion 4 treble pipes supported with new stays Octave Unison Off Sub- Octave 22
CHOIR ORGAN [unit chests main one new] enclosed in a box with shutters in the roof and facing across the Chancel to the North. 33 Contra Gamba 16 E 34 Lieblich Bourdon 16 F 35 Open Diapason 8 H 36 Lieblich Gedeckt 8 F 37 Viola da Gamba 8 E 38 Voix Celeste (full compass) 8 G old Dulciana revoiced and tuned sharp 39 Praestant 4 H 40 Lieblich Flute 4 F 41 Gambette 4 E 42 Nazard 2 2 / 3 F 43 Fifteenth 2 H using old Dulciana top octave, loudened 44 Flautino 2 F 45 Tierce (ten. C) 1 3 / 5 new, flute- scale open pipes 46 Mixture 22.26.29 III new, 25- notes repeating 47 Double Clarinet (ten.c) 16 I 48 Clarinet 8 I Tremulant 49 Contra Tromba 16 D/L using Ophicleide bass 12 pipes 50 Tromba 8 D 51 Trumpet 8 C 52 Clarion 4 C Choir Octave in place of Doubles Off Great to Choir in place of Double Touch Cancelling Swell to Choir PEDAL ORGAN 53 Double Open Wood 32 J 54 Open Wood 16 J 55 Open Diapason 16 B/L new from 8ft C, on mezzanine 56 Bourdon 16 K 57 Echo Bourdon 16 F 58 Gamba 16 E 59 Principal 8 L new on mezzanine 60 Gambette 8 E 61 Bass Flute 8 K 62 Fifteenth 4 L new on mezzanine 63 Octave Flute 4 K 64 Contra Trombone 32 C new wooden 1 / 2 - length bass 12 pipes 65 Ophicleide 16 M treble on mezzanine 66 Trombone 16 C on mezzanine 67 Trumpet 16 M new top 12 on mezzanine 68 Tromba 8 M NB: now M on mezzanine, new top 1 69 Clarion 4 C on mezzanine 23
Great to Pedal Swell to Pedal Choir to Pedal ACCESSORIES Great and Pedal Combinations Coupled Generals on Swell toe pistons PISTONS 8 Thumb Pistons to Great Organ 8 Thumb Pistons to Swell Organ 8 Thumb Pistons to Choir Organ 8 General Thumb Pistons I Reversible Thumb Piston for Great to Pedal I Reversible Thumb Piston for Swell to Pedal I Reversible Thumb Piston for Choir to Pedal I Reversible Thumb Piston for Swell to Great I Reversible Thumb Piston for Swell to Choir 6 Stepper/Sequencer advance Thumb Pistons 1 Stepper/Sequencer retard Thumb Piston Balanced Expression pedals to (L to R) Nave Choir / Swell / Chancel Choir [NB revised order] General Cancel Thumb Piston Setter Thumb Piston 8 Toe Pistons to Pedal Organ 8 Toe Pistons to Swell Organ (duplicating) I Reversible Toe Piston for Great to Pedal I Reversible Toe Piston for 32ft flue I Reversible Toe Piston for 32ft reed 1 Stepper/Sequencer advance Toe Piston 1 Stepper/Sequencer retard Toe Piston Note: same number of stop knobs in the same positions. 10 would be re- engraved... PAUL HALE, DECEMBER 2012. 24