Above: We get a chance to play the Willis, supervised by Roger Carter, surrounded by caretaker’s paraphernalia
To have one organ at your school would seem like luxury – to have two is near self-indulgence, especially when they are two such good examples of their kind. Roger Carter, who teaches at Haberdashers Aske’s School for Boys, in Hertfordshire, England, invited our Organists’ Association to try them both out last week.
A bright, neo-classical 1965 2-manual Walcker moved to the school in 2012. Modest in specification, with 4 stops per manual and only a 16′ sub-bass in the pedal, the sound still carries nicely to the back of the hall. It’s got mechanical action and lots of character, ideal for 17th and 18th century music naturally, but not necessarily an easy instrument to play, once coupled.
Over in the main hall, a decadent 4-manual 1897 Father Willis is the complete antithesis – smooth strings, powerful reeds, a delightful Vox Humana, two enclosed divisions. You sit under the pipes, so the full orchestral effect can only really be appreciated when listening to someone else playing. A historically important instrument, it’s not in great shape at the moment – on quieter stops the sound of the winding is almost as loud as the pipes: but restoration is being discussed. This instrument once graced Hove Town Hall*, and its sale to Haberdashers Aske’s school in 1961 was a cause of much local controversy. The protests, with hindsight, were misplaced, as Hove Town Hall burned to the ground five years later. At the moment the pipework lurks behind a screen of dubious 60s design, but as some of the pipework is gilded, we can assume it was originally on display.
We ended the morning back on the Walcker, with Roger giving a brief Masterclass. Widor opined that an organist should have “…a bearing of sovereign dignity, noble gesture. Grandeur is calm.” Roger put it better. “Look like a cat, not like a dog” he said, to one of us given to slightly over-energetic playing.
*For non-UK readers I should say that Hove is a genteel English South Coast resort, always slightly irritated by the presence of its more raffish (and better-known) neighbour, Brighton
