Category Archives: News and Views

Professor David Baker will be performing at Pontefract Parish Church on Friday 6 December at 1.00pm – the programme for this recital is available here. This promises to be an enjoyable recital with a touch of Christmas included!

TOSE-in-a-Day returns to the easily accessible city of York. Teenage organists of grade 5 level and above will receive tuition from renowned players and teachers Cathy Lamb and Tom Bell.

Click here to view further information on the RCO website.

You are invited to a workshop and masterclass on the organ music of Johann Sebastian Bach around the relaxed environment of a house organ. Daniel Moult, Head of Organ Studies, The Royal Birmingham Conservatoire will be leading the talk and demonstration, Dan is both an inspiring teacher and a wonderful musician. The organ is the beautiful mechanical action 1994 William Drake house organ which is now in Tring, Hertfordshire. Please click here for further details and the booking form

This will be a special day to celebrate the wonderful Wood Wordsworth organ on Sunday 13th October 2024, from 11am to 4pm at St James’, Church Lane, Hebden Bridge, HX7 6DS (Wheelchair Access. Free Entry)
Full details of all the workshops that will be available can be found here.

Saturday 6 July, 10:30-15:30, City of London 

Further information and booking details can be found here

The Organs:
St Botolph without Aldgate, London EC3N 1AB—with pipework dating from earlier than 1704 and restored to its 1744 state by Goetze and Gwynn in 2006, this instrument can lay claim to being England’s oldest surviving church organ. Click here for the history and specification. 

St George’s German Lutheran Church, 55 Alie Street, London E1 8EB—built by Walcker in 1886 and subsequently twice restored. This organ gives invaluable insight into the opportunities and restrictions which such instruments imposed on the performer. Click here for the specification.

Schedule:
10:30–12:30 St Botolph’s
12:30 lunch break (food not provided) and short walk to St George’s
13:15–15:15 St George’s

What to prepare:
One piece for each instrument by a composer from the time and country of each organ. Here are some examples:
St Botolph’s: John Blow, Henry Purcell, William Croft, John Reading, Maurice Greene, John James, Handel, John Stanley, Thomas Roseingrave, William Boyce, John Keeble, Henry Heron, William Walond, Thomas Arne, William Russell, Samuel Wesley
St George’s: Rheinberger, Reger, Karg-Elert  

What the class will cover

• Technique: pedalling, touch, fingering, adapting to the dimensions of the keys and pedalboard, maintaining a good posture at an awkward console
• Registration: choosing stops ‘in the style’, and blending different registers to imitate alternative styles (i.e. romantic sounds on a baroque organ)
• Performance: incorporating the acoustic of the room into your performance, dealing with performance anxiety at an instrument foreign to one’s own.

To celebrate the above festival there will be four 7.30pm recitals on Tuesdays in June , held in the crossing of the cathedral and followed by a drinks reception in the south transept. 

• 4^th June: Dr Ronny Krippner Director of Music
• 11^th June: Tim Harper Assistant Director of Music
• 18^th June: Alastair Stone Assistant Organist
• 25^th June: Katherine Dienes-Williams Director of Music, Guildford Cathedral & President of the COA

Click here to see further information and to book tickets.

This course is suitable for all ages and all stages – under 18s must be accompanied by an adult. Full details can be found here.

Here is an insight into the programme:

Daily tuition pattern (Tuesday – Friday)

09:15–11:15 Organ Studios – tuition in graded groups from the same teacher in the same venue (as far as possible) each day. 

Fundamentals of Technique (complete beginners up to ABRSM grade 3 level) with Anne Marsden Thomas

ABRSM grades 4 and 5 with William Dore

ABRSM grade 6 with Claire Hobbs

ABRSM grades 6–8/CRCO with Drew Cantrill-Fenwick

Towards ARCO with Frederick Stocken

ARCO and FRCO with Jeffrey Makinson

11:45–13:00 Skills Classes – choose from keyboard musicianship, improvisation, or church music skills, with tuition in graded groups for each. Here is the 2024 Skills programme.

14:00–16:00 Workshops – teacher-led sessions with a different topic each day – or individual lessons and practice. 

16:30-18:00 Daily service played and sung by course participants, or individual lessons and practice, or further lessons and practice.

20:00-21:00 Student concerts – your chance to perform to fellow course members, if you wish.

There are special programmes for Monday afternoon and Saturday morning.