St John the Evangelist - Upper Norwood
Organ Cleaning and Finishing
Help us restore the organ at St John's by donating to our organ fund
Story
The pipe organ at St Johns is a remarkable instrument which is reported to be one of the finest organs in any Parish Church in London. Now I suspect every parish priest says that about their pipe organ but of the TC Lewis Organ at St Johns Upper Norwood it is especially true. The instrument at is used to accompany worship and choirs, as well as for recitals and as a practice instrument for local children and adults. Music is an important part of helping us not only express ourselves, but sooth our souls. The Pipe Organ is an instrument which captures the entire orchestra in our place, allowing for exciting and calming expressions of music in a setting of St Johns, which I hope is welcoming and inspirational.
The Organ has nearly 2000 glorious pipes, which make a heavenly sound, but as with any trinket at home which gathers dust, 2000 pipes gather a lot of dust and muck! Therefore, every fifty years or so, the organ has to be taken apart pipe by pipe and cleaned, repaired and put back together again. All of this happens at high level and so requires a lot of scaffolding and care to ensure not only the safety of the working technicians, but also of the metal and woodwork to make sure that things arent accidently damaged.
In 1999 the Pipe Organ at St Johns was almost in disrepair. But thanks to the community, the Organ didnt end up being just a decorative item in a church building which no longer worked, as so many instruments do. In 1999 Harrison & Harrison Ltd of Durham brought the instrument back to life and now in 2021, we need to clean, repair and finish a part of the organ which is a once in a 50-year opportunity to add the great 32ft size pedal flutes.
In order to make all this possible, we need to raise £100,000 within the next 7 months. Please support this campaign to keep our Organ going for another 50 years. Become a donor to our Organ Fund and we will together blow away the cobwebs and hear the music play. Any donation, however small, will help us achieve our goal and will be greatly appreciated.
Photo by Andrew Prior