organ167

Organs

organ 167

May 2016

2 manuals
11 speaking stops

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St George

Colegate

Norwich

Builders:

G P England, 1802

M Noble, 1872

W & A Boggis, 1945

R Ince, 1991

Weblinks:

St George,

Colegate, Norwich

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The medieval building (begun in 1459) has a distinctly Georgian atmosphere, although the old box-pews have been cut down to provide open benches. The furnishings reflect the wealth of its leading parishoners of that time, who were cloth merchants.

A west gallery was erected in 1802 to accommodate the organ (one of the earliest in a Norwich parish church) by George Pike England of London. The instrument was blessed by the Bishop of Norwich during Easter Week at an opening that included a performance of Handel's Messiah. At this stage, it comprised a single manual.

The Swell Organ was added in 1872 by the Norwich-based builder Mark Noble. The instrument was moved to the North chancel aisle in 1880 and received attention from Norman & Beard in 1885. There it remained until the Diss firm of Boggis restored it to its original position in 1945 and added a short-compass Pedal Organ comprising a single Bourdon rank, completed by the addition of 12 extra pipes in 1991.

The Great Organ retains the old-style downward extension to GG (but with no GG#) that was a common feature of English organs before Pedal Organs became the norm.

You can listen to this historic organ, played by Anne Page, as May16's Music of the Month.