Pictures
Top left: Stuart Scrutton at the controversial Marcussen in Brigewater Hall, Manchester.
Top right: David Wood shows off the blower of the Clayton organ.

And what a day. As the temperature raced into the 80s, 16 members welcomed the air-conditioned calm of Manchester's Bridgewater Hall after a sweltering trans-pennine journey.

We were there to hear, play and explore the new £1.3m Marcussen which has provoked keen debate in organ circles and beyond.

It is in the care of Wood of Huddersfield and, through the kind offices of David Wood, we were privileged to be the first association to be granted access to this striking piece of Danish craftsmanship.

The sense of occasion was enhanced by the presence of Gordon Stewart, from Blackburn Cathedral, who generously sacrificed his Saturday morning to demonstrate the largest tracker to be built in this country this century.

An introductory march by Susato showed the virile splendour of the reeds, the Impromptu by Vierne highlighted liquid flutes and the Passacaglia and Fugue by Bach, played with typical poise and purpose, illustrated the breeding of the choruses.

This short recital over, members regrouped around the four-manual console to take turns in appraising the organ's 70 stops. Stuart Scrutton underlined its versatility with some richly registered romantic pieces, and improvisations followed by, among others, Jim Roworth, Jim Cowell and Simon Ball.

After coffee in the foyer - and a chance to watch a wheezing sound-and-vision water sculpture strike noon - the convoy headed to nearby Clayton Parish Church to inspect the two-manual, tracker built by Wood of Huddersfield.

David Wood explained how this fine Butterfield church had been rescued from the brink of closure and how a plan to rebuild its ailing Norman and Beard instrument on a new west gallery finally gave way to a new organ.

The president, after improvising on an Elizabethan faux-burden Hector Ellis: Hys Cruste was followed on to the console by other members who spoke enthusiastically of the character of a versatile instrument which speaks with remarkable clarity and command into this beautiful church.

One of several impressive aspects at Clayton is the aptness of the voicing for the space. The sound grows and ripens as one moves from the console, an attribute denied the 70-stop Marcussen by the sheer size and acoustic properties of the hall. The joy for organists in the north, of course, is that the choice is not between Bridge-water or Clayton. It is our privilege to have both.

St. Mary's is a delightful medieval church in a small village barely one foot above sea level. The building, grounds and contents are being completely restored during 1997 and 1998.

Apart from the romance of bringing the organ back to the place where it was built, there are practical advantages. "We still have many of our original 19th century tools," says John Sinclair Willis, managing director of Conachers. "Repairing the pipework is a dream. We simply put them back onto the mandrels on which they were made and they are back into perfect shape in next to no time!"

The only alteration since the organ was built (apart from the electric blower) is the Swell Box trigger mechanisms has been replaced by a near-central balanced Swell Pedal.

The alteration was carried out to a reasonable standard and this is not being altered. However, the hand blowing mechanism and feeders are being restored as new.

Peter Conacher Organ No. 1087, built 1899 at a cost of £200.
Great: Open Diapason 8, Stopp ed Diapason 8, Dulciana 8 (common bass), Principal 4.
Swell: Rohr Flute 8, Viol di Gamba 8, Voix Celestes 8, Hohl Flute 4.
Pedal: Lieblich Bourdon 16.
Couplers: Swell-great, swell-pedal, great-pedal.
Two composition pedals each to great and swell.
Case: pitch pine, varnished.
Front pipes: treated with aluminium bronze.

Michael Smith, takes over as organist of St Matthew, Lightcliffe, in September. He is now studying for a post graduate certificate in education at Huddersfield University.