Me playing the organ at St Olave's Church in London located very near to Fenchurch Street Railway Station and the Tower of London.
The organ was built in 1954 by the John Compton Organ Company Ltd to replace a 3 manual Walker instrument which had been destroyed on 29th December 1940 during a world war two bombing raid. The organ is enclosed in two chambers at the rear of the church concealed by an ornamental grille and played from a 3 manual drawstop console located in the rear gallery underneath the chambers. Typical of Compton, the organ is built using the extension principal with all pipework fully enclosed. There is also the patent 32ft Polyphonic Bass. When first built, the organ consisted of six ranks of pipes but in 1957, following a bequest from Miss Irene van Raalte, the following ranks were added by Compton: Hautboy, Stopped Flute, Vox Angelica. The original action was replaced in 1991 by a solid state system but otherwise the organ remains as it did in 1957 and is a superb illustration of a small-medium instrument by the John Compton Organ Company Ltd. The specification reads:
PEDAL
Subbass 32'
Open Bass 16'
Subbass 16'
Echo Bass 16'
Salicional 8'
Flute 8'
Flute 4'
Trombone 16'
Trumpet 8'
Choir to Pedal
Great to Pedal
Swell to Pedal
CHOIR
Contra Salicional 16'
Second Diapason 8'
Viola 8'
Harmonic Flute 8'
Salicional 8'
Vox Angelica 8'
Harmonic Flute 4'
Salicet 4'
Acuta II
Trumpet 8'
Clarion 4'
Swell to Choir
GREAT
Sub Diapason 16'
First Diapason 8'
Second Diapason 8'
Stopped Flute 8'
Salicional 8'
Principal 4'
Stopped Flute 4'
Twelfth 2.2/3'
Fifteenth 2'
Mixture III
Swell to Great
SWELL
Contra Viola 16'
Viola 8'
Harmonic Flute 8'
Octave Viola 4'
Harmonic Flute 4'
Nazard 2.2/3'
Piccolo 2'
Cymbale III
Contra Hautboy 16'
Trumpet 8'
Hautboy 8'
Clarion 4'
Tremulant
ACCESSORIES
6 double touch thumb pistons to Choir and Pedal
6 double touch thumb pistons to Great and Pedal
6 double touch thumb pistons to Swell and Pedal
4 reversible thumb pistons
1 reversible toe piston - Great to Pedal
1 balanced expression pedal with indicator - great chamber
1 balanced expression pedal with indicator - swell chamber
1 balanced expression pedal with indicator - crescendo
1 general cancel thumb piston
Ventil switches
Voltmeter
For this first video im playing the hymn 'Ye holy angels bright' to the tune 'Darwall's 148th' which shows off the main sounds on the organ used for accompanying congregational hymn singing.
Many thanks to the church officials for allowing me access to this fine Compton organ.
For more information on the John Compton Organ Company Ltd and to see me play other Compton organs, please click on the following link for my site dedicated to the John Compton Organ Company Ltd:
http://comptonorgans.yolasite.com/
REQUEST: I am always on the lookout for Compton organs to play - particularly electrones - so if you know of any churches which still have these then please do let me know. I will happily give a donation or pay any charge.
