Grand Organ Opening Concert: Paul Carr plays the refurbished organ at St Bartholomew’s Church, Wolverhampton on Saturday 6th September 2025

Grand Organ Opening Concert

Paul Carr plays the refurbished organ

Add to my Calendar 06-09-2025 19:30 06-09-2025 21:30 36 Grand Organ Opening Concert The organ was installed at St Bartholomew’s in 1872 by J.W. Walker & Sons. It was an instrument of modest size, located in a cramped north-chancel chamber somewhat typical of the Oxford Movement liturgical reforms. The organ’s sixteen stops were distributed over two manuals and pedals, disposed in the chamber with mechanical action in an entirely conventional manner. The organ seems to have survived in this form until 1974, when it was overhauled a modified by Nicholson & Co of Worcester.  Some remedial work may have been carried out by Bishop & Son (date unknown), including the addition of a Swell Fifteenth, but the majority of the alterations were undertaken by Nicholson & Co in 1974. These changes were neatly done and reflected the tonal ideals of the time. The original Walker may have been considered somewhat dull – of course, we can’t know this now, but many of these small Victorian instruments were considered ordinary and lacking in character by the standards of the 1970s. When considering what should be done to the organ in any future refurbishment work, it was agreed that the changes made in 1974 remained useful and that the combination of Walker’s Victorian organ and the later alterations made the organ resourceful and interesting to listen to. William McVicker - Independent Organ Consultant  St Bartholomew’s Church, Wolverhampton DD/MM/YYYY

Details

St Bartholomew’s Church
Church Hill
Penn
Wolverhampton
West Midlands
WV4 5JB
England

Saturday 6th September 2025
7:30 PM

Programme

Samuel Sebastian Wesley – Choral Song & Fugue
William Harris – Four Short Pieces: Prelude in E flat major
Hendrik Andriessen – Thema met Variaties
Johann Sebastian Bach – Toccata, Adagio and Fugue in C major, BWV 564
Joseph Haydn – Three Pieces for Musical Clocks
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – Fantasia in F minor, K.608
Thierry Pallesco – Fantaisie no.6
Ad Wammes – Happiness
Max Reger – Introduction and Passacaglia in D minor

Performers

Paul Carr – pipe organ

Programme Note

The organ was installed at St Bartholomew’s in 1872 by J.W. Walker & Sons. It was an instrument of modest size, located in a cramped north-chancel chamber somewhat typical of the Oxford Movement liturgical reforms. The organ’s sixteen stops were distributed over two manuals and pedals, disposed in the chamber with mechanical action in an entirely conventional manner. The organ seems to have survived in this form until 1974, when it was overhauled a modified by Nicholson & Co of Worcester. Some remedial work may have been carried out by Bishop & Son (date unknown), including the addition of a Swell Fifteenth, but the majority of the alterations were undertaken by Nicholson & Co in 1974. These changes were neatly done and reflected the tonal ideals of the time. The original Walker may have been considered somewhat dull – of course, we can’t know this now, but many of these small Victorian instruments were considered ordinary and lacking in character by the standards of the 1970s. When considering what should be done to the organ in any future refurbishment work, it was agreed that the changes made in 1974 remained useful and that the combination of Walker’s Victorian organ and the later alterations made the organ resourceful and interesting to listen to. William McVicker - Independent Organ Consultant

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