organ137
organ 137
November 2013
2 manuals
28 speaking stops
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Exeter
College Chapel
Oxford
Builder:
Walker, 1994
Weblinks:
Exeter College
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Organ of the Month archive
(contains over 100 organs)
This is the third of three organs in the chapels of the colleges of Oxford University that BOA members had the opportunity to hear & play earlier this year. Those of Keble and The Queen's colleges have already featured as Organs of the Month (no.121 and no.136).
There is evidence of pipe-organs at Exeter College from the 16th century, but the present chapel (designed by Gilbert Scott, based on Sainte-Chapelle, Paris) acquired a 2-manual William Hill instrument when it was built in 1860. A Choir Division of five ranks was added by Hill & Son in 1892, and in 1966 Hill, Norman & Beard rebuilt it as a 2-manual with mutation stops and a larger Pedal Division.
The present organ is an entirely new instrument by J W Walker & Son Ltd, completed in 1994, with David Sanger as consultant. It is situated on a west-end gallery. The decorated façade-pipes of the old organ have been retained, although they do not speak, but the tonal scheme and console are in the style of the famous French builder Aristide Cavaillé-Coll.
There is mechanical key-action, electro-magnetic drawstop action and electronic combination action. The latter can be switched to provide either a modern-style multilevel combination system or a 19th century system with adjustable hitch-down pedals. The overall effect is unmistakably French - especially the devastating Pedal Bombarde.
You can listen to the Exeter College organ as November 13's Music of the Month