The Historic Organ Sound Archive[HOSA]
This unique and ground-breaking project in East Anglia is now completed under the auspices of the British Institute of Organ Studies, aided by a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund. The aim has been to capture, through live recordings, the sounds of some 40 of the area’s most historic organs and to make the recordings available via the internet to the general public. The task has involved recording music appropriate for the instrument in question, familiar to composers and players of the time, and (using high quality methods and equipment) to achieve as high a standard of outcome as is possible given the locations and the age and condition of some of the organs. Playing for the recordings has been undertaken by professional organists under the leadership of Anne Page (Playing Co-ordinator). As part of the funding package, public educational events were organised at many of the recording venues, as a means of demonstrating the worth of the instruments to the local community. These have proved popular and enjoyable, stimulating interest of young and old alike in the organ at the venue and in general, otherwise an often neglected part of the UK heritage. Details of the project, the organs, and the recordings themselves can
be found on the NPOR website . José
Hopkins ***************************** *****************************
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Original Press Release (July 2004)
PULLING OUT THE STOPS FOR EAST ANGLIA’S HISTORIC ORGANS
The British Institute of Organ Studies has secured a grant of £50,000 from the Heritage Lottery
Fund (Eastern Region) and is recording the sounds of some of East Anglia’s historic organs and
promoting events to make them more widely appreciated.This country possesses a rich heritage of pipe organs which are often tucked away in remote
country churches, and under-appreciated by local congregations and communities. East Anglia,
because of its large number of churches, is rich in examples of early nineteenth century organs
which are still in working order and deserve to be more widely known. The project (Historic
Organ Sound Archive) will enable a selected number to be recorded by experienced players, and
the resulting recordings to be incorporated into the National Pipe Organ Register, the existing
national database for pipe organs.An important part of the project will also be the organisation and promotion of events in various
locations to explain what an organ is and does, to demonstrate its sounds and to hear it played, and
generally to raise awareness of this neglected area of our musical heritage.As one local organist has said: “The English tradition of organs and their music, especially of the
early nineteenth century, is a unique one, and we must do all we can to preserve and promote it.”
A leading promoter of concerts in Cambridge has said: “Like a time capsule, this preservation will
capture the essence of the instruments, already over two hundred years old, at this moment in time.
This project aims to give people a chance to learn more about these special instruments and the
people who built them - an initiative which therefore can appeal on a very local level as well as
being of national importance.”To hear and learn about organs recorded to date visit the National Pipe Organ Register website
<http://www.bios.org.uk/npor.html>, and click the HOSA link button on the bar.
NOTE TO EDITORS:
The British Institute of Organ Studies (BIOS) <http://www.bios.org.uk> has as its main aims the
study of the organ and its music, and the preservation of historic organs in Britain. It has a wide
range of expertise amongst its members, and serves as the amenity society for the pipe organ in Britain.For further information please consult the BIOS website.