Skip to content

Cathedral organ's 'hybrid' sound during £3m refurb

Steve Knibbs
Gloucestershire Reporter, BBC West
The 17th Century organ uses "sampled sound from Hereford Cathedral" while the pipes are being repaired

An organ that had its 3,600 pipes removed after a technical failure can be heard thanks to speakers playing the sound from a different organ when the organist plays the keys.

The 17th Century organ at Gloucester Cathedral can be heard via "a sort of hybrid virtual sound using sampled sound from Hereford Cathedral", said Jonathan Hope, assistant director of music.

Mr Hope said it is "probably the only time that will ever happen", adding that new pipes are being fitted, with the organ expected to be ready for Easter service next year.

The replacement is part of a £3m project called In Tune which will also see a singing and organ academy set up.

Mr Hope said: "Half of the campaign is to fund the new cathedral organ and get new pipes into this historic case which dates from 1666.

"It's been changed four or five times [in 360 years], so this is the latest incarnation and sort of like changing your car engine."

A man in a suit plays a large pipe organ console inside a cathedral. The console includes multiple keyboards, numerous stops, and various controls. Open sheet music rests on the stand, flanked by two computer monitors displaying digital scores. Behind him, the cathedral’s ornate stone architecture and arched columns are visible.
Jonathan Hope playing the organ console at Gloucester Cathedral
An ornate 17th Century organ stands prominently within a historic cathedral, framed by soaring stone arches and vaulted ceilings. The intricate carvings and craftsmanship are illuminated by soft lighting.
The original organ case at Gloucester Cathedral was built in 1666
A man sits at a wooden workbench in a workshop, holding a long metal organ pipe with both hands while wearing black gloves. The bench is cluttered with books, papers, and tools, with a mirror propped up on it. Shelves in the background are filled with CDs and miscellaneous items. The man, who has tattooed arms, is dressed in a light blue patterned shirt and beige trousers.
James Atherton, head voicer at Nicholson and Co, works on one of the new pipes

The pipes are made at a specialist company in Leeds and then sent to Nicholson and Co in Malvern, who are making the new organ.

James Atherton, head voicer at Nicholson and Co, who has worked on more than 3,000 of the pipes by hand and used to be a Lay Clerk at Gloucester Cathedral.

"It takes a lot of love, a lot of time and a lot of effort to do this. Some of these pipes haven't spoken for 200 years," he said.

He said the cathedral is one of the most beautiful liturgical buildings in the world, with the most beautiful acoustics, but actually having sung with the organ, it is a "privilege and massive honour" to build a new one.

"This will be one of the projects that will be a sort of career-making one for me," he added.

The interior of a grand cathedral with high vaulted ceilings, detailed woodwork, and stained glass windows. A person in clerical attire stands in the foreground. Behind them, an ornate organ is visible, flanked by rows of wooden pews lining a patterned tile floor.
The Dean of Gloucester said he hopes the academy will also help bridge and build communities

Speaking on the new academy, the Dean of Gloucester, The Very Reverend Andrew Zihni, said he hopes it will give an opportunity for young people of all sorts of different traditions and backgrounds to have "access to the wonderful music that is here".

Work to install the new organ starts later this year.

Follow BBC Gloucestershire on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to us on email or via WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630.

More on this story
Related Internet Links