Cathedral Piped Organs

      It is thought the first piped organs appeared in European churches in the late 10th century and were common in cathedrals in England by the end of the 13th century.          

     The earliest mention of a cathedral organ in Lichfield is in 1482 when a ‘great organ’ was placed on the choir screen in the cathedral.[1] A fee to an organist and bellows-blower was recorded in the 1580s.[2] Visitors in 1634 noted the organs and voices were deep and sweet, but in 1635 two organs were described as  ‘much defective’ and in need of repair. It was suggested the organs should be combined to make one chair-organ. A new organ with 12 stops was ordered in 1636,[3] but was destroyed soon after in the Civil War. The wooden pipes were burned.[4]

            With the post-war restoration of the cathedral a new organ was installed.[5] An organ was used in 1663 since an inquiry asked what the organist played. It is thought this is the chamber organ that currently resides in the south transept. A restoration showed only the 12 lowest pipes were original. In 1677 a little organ was repaired. 

Chamber Organ known as the ‘wardrobe’.

Chamber organ before restoration

             In 1732, the organ was said to be out of repair. In 1740, the Warwick-based German organ builder Thomas Schwarbrick provided Lichfield with a new or fully restored main organ, which survived until 1789.

            In 1789, James Wyatt removed the stone screen between the choir and the Lady Chapel and used the stone to build a screen between the crossing and the choir. A new organ[6] was placed on top of the stone wall and was first played in November 1790.. It occupied the first choir bay, an estimated area of 9 m x 6 m (30 feet wide and 20 feet long).[7] Access to the loft was by a staircase built into the stone screen. At least 12 canopies from the old high altar reredos were incorporated into the stone screen. A glazed screen was then added in 1801[8] to the back of the organ case which reached upwards to the roof. The organist was now separated from the nave by a window. All this was part of draught-proofing an inner church.

 

Part of a plate showing the stone wall, organ and glass screen. From Britton, 1820.[9]

             With Scott’s restoration of the cathedral the stone wall and organ were taken down in 1858. A new organ[10] was bought by Josiah Spode[11] and it was played in 1861. The new organ, the foundation of the current organ, was innovative for its size and having an independent pedal chorus.[12] The organ was located in St Stephen’s Chapel in the north transept.[13]

Organ in St Stephen's Chapel

    In 1884, the organ[14] was enlarged and rebuilt. It was given tubular pneumatic action, adding a Solo division, much of the pipework was replaced and the console moved into the north choir aisle, thereby improving the siting of the organist.[15]

In 1907–8, the organ was placed in a loft above the north choir aisle and a new console was added.[16] Further rebuilding occurred in 1974 such that it now had 66 speaking stops and 4064 pipes.[17] The instrument’s tonal palette was broadened.

Rebuild in 2000[18] saw the addition of the nave organ (almost 1000 new pipes) so that it now had 82 speaking stops and 5038 pipes. The nave section can be used independently of the choir section. After much debate, the organ was left at its original Old Philharmonic pitch, meaning that it sounds very sharp against modern-day concert pitch. A past organist wrote the organ is not the most famous in the country, but it is one of the most delightful of English organs to play and to hear.[19]

The cathedral also owns an electronic organ with fixed speakers and a moveable console.

Notable organists of Lichfield Cathedral include the 17th-century composer Michael East and the musical educator and choral conductor William Henry Harris who conducted at the coronations of both George VI and Elizabeth II. 

[1] Presented by Dean Haywood. See Lichfield Cathedral Library MS. Lichfield 4, f. 31. Also M. Greenslade, 'Lichfield: The Cathedral'. In: A history of the County of Stafford: Volume 14, Lichfield.. (London: 1990) 47--57, note 129.

[2] M. W. Greenslade and R. B. Pugh (eds.) 'House of secular canons - Lichfield cathedral: From the Reformation to the 20th century’, in A History of the County of Stafford: Volume 3, (London, 1970), 166–199.

[3] Ordered from Robert Dallam.

[4] J. Jackson, History of the City and Cathedral of Lichfield. (London: 1805), 204. There is mention of two organs lost in the Civil War, 83.

[5] It has been written the organ was built by Bernhard Schmidt but restoration showed parts predate his workshop. He probably enlarged the organ in 1680. It has three stops.

[6] Built by Samuel Green. The organ case was designed by James Wyatt in a Gothic style.

[7] R. Prentis, A view from the old organ lofts. Unpub. paper in the cathedral library.

[8] T. Harwood, The history and antiquities of the church and city of Lichfield. (London: 1806), 90, stated this was done in 1801.

[9] J. Britton, The history and antiquities of the See and cathedral church of Lichfield.( London: 1820), Plate 8.

[10] Built by George Holdich. It was called ‘Holdich’s Magnum Opus’.

[11] He also paid for the old organ and placed this in Armitage church, where he was the organist.

[12] M. Rawles, The pipe-organs of Lichfield Cathedral: a very brief history. (2015). From a website at www.cathedralchoir.org.uk no longer accessible, but this article can still be downloaded.

[13] Which meant communication between the organist and the choir was not easy.

[14] Work done by William Hill and Sons.

[15] See note 11.

[16] This necessitated removing a window.

[17] Work done by Hill, Norman and Beard under the direction of Richard Greening.

[18] By Harrison and Harrison of Durham.

[19] R. Greening, The Organs of Lichfield Cathedral. (Lichfield: 1974). A publication of the Dean and Chapter of the Cathedral.