NOTES AND QUERIES

'My dear sir, I never in my life played on a gridiron!'    This famous riposte to an invitation to try an organ with a pedalboard, was made by Sir George Smart; he who (to borrow a tactful phrase from the Musical World) had 'contrived to have himself appointed' as organist for the Coronation of Queen Victoria.
His father, George, was a music dealer, double bass player, and organiser of concerts. His name appears inlaid on a chamber organ in the possession of the Revd BruceNaylor, of Hawthorn, South Australia, who would like to hear if any other Smart organs are known. 'George Smart, Music Warehouse, No. 551, Oxford Street, London.'    The case, beautifully inlaid mahogany, is of Georgian style, and the stoplettering l8th cent. In those days, and even in modern times, organ builders constructed instruments which bore, not their own name, but that of the agent who sold them, and this is probably what happened here.    I know of no other Smart organs at present.   Henry Smart the organist was his grandson.   
At the beginning of the war, the BBC enlivened us with a programme about the preparations made by a small village. Nether Backwash. The village band played a special composition by their conductor, 'Nether Backwash, Unite.'', a lively and catchy tune with a vague air of familiarity, which has remained in my memory and bathroom repertoire.  It was not until I was listening recently to Francis Jackson that the penny at last dropped. Smart's Postlude!   There's glory for you.*
Grosvenor Chapel (1)  Eduard Bobbins tells me he played it in 1924, *the two manual keyboards were of reverse colour and were set behind the case (i.e., facing East)... the maker's name  was signwritten in gold roman letters  on the lower architrave of the case, and the latter was in line with the gallery'. (2). Abraham Jordan, but not unaltered, the last work previously (3) having been by Ingram.   Mr Robbins enquires about the organ builder Joseph Marnell, fl. 1900.
Other enquiries include 'Hadaway, Builder, Bury St Edmunds' said to have made an organ at Westleton; Smith of Peterborough and London appeared  on an organ at  Yarwell, removed many years ago in favour  of a small  Trustam obtained from a baker's house; Smith, from J.W Walker, London, 1852 appeared  on an  organ frith mahogany case at Hickey's Almshouse Chapel, Richmond, but on my last visit in 1961 I found the inside had been removed in favour of a Walker 'Model'.  I do not know whether he links with the previous Smith,
Others who noted their pedigree on their plates were:
J W Cranch, ... High Street, Camberwell, ... From Gray & David son(sic), l859  at
Culworth;   and,

W Hamlin ... From Hills 8_Brook Street New Road London at Maxstoke;

both are subjects of enquiry, as are J Rarmcent (?) London d820;  Richard Webber of London; Reginald Dalby Welch of Oxford fl. 1867; and T Worboys of Putney; Holtzhammer 8 Sons of London, Klitz of Hanway Street, all three late last  century. Enquiry is also made about Keates of Sheffield; Moses Sagar of Leeds and Penman of York; as to where they respectively received their training.   Numerous others,  but we have a quorum by now.   Let us turn to instruments.
In 1836, the Revd. Gervas Harvey Woodhouse, Rector of Finningley and my greatgrandfather-in-law, gave a second-hand organ to the church.  It has  been attributed to G.P. England, though Green has also been mentioned. It was installed by Brown of York, overhauled by Meacock in 1885 and superseded in 1906,  and there seems  to be no information available.  It being a gift, the usual sources are dumb. 
I am asked about Aldborough Hatch, St Peter, and the design of the case. This rings an irritating bell, but I cannot trace anything.
Christ Chapel, Maida Hill, was built as an  Episcopalian  Proprietary  Chapel  (4). Sperling (5) tells us that Hill supplied an organ in 1834,  and  remarks  that   the Cornopean was 'the first made by Hill', with what authority, one knows not.  Charles Steggall as a young man was organist from l848 to l855  and his  description of the organ as having a tenor c swell and no pedal stop agrees with Sperling (6). Mackeson (7)1876 says Hill; when the chapel was consecrated as Emmanuel, Northwick Terrace. Mackeson again says Hill in 1889. However, when in 1937  the then organ  was rebuilt by Smith and Foskett with some tonal work by Bonavia Hunt,  it was a larger instrument,  said to have been acquired secondhand in l859 and attributed to Gray and Davison (8). (When the church was closed, the organ went to St George, Bloomsbury Way). 1834 would hardly have been worn out by l859; perhaps Hill exchanged it for a larger  one which G & D later rebuilt?  Not of earthshattering import,  perhaps;  but any help  in ministering to cornopean pilgrims would be welcome.
In the Registers of St Albans Abbey, Sunday 26 November l820 ; "The organ which was originally built for the church of St Dunstan the East, London, and by that celebrated artist Father Smydth (sic), and has now undergone many improvements including the addition of some pedal pipes by John Gray, Organ Builder, of 9 Quickset Row, New .Road, London, was opened.  The Musical part of the Service was chaunted by the Boys of the Bluecoat School under the superintendence of Mr Thomas Fowler organist of the Abbey, in a style which would have done honour to any of our cathedrals. Mr John Gray (the Organ Builder) presided at the organ." It would be interesting to find out how many organ builders were competent organists. 10
One John Harris, who sang "''n St Albans Choir up till about l86l, as well as playing the organ on many occasions, waxed very indignant about the statements made by J E West (9) that the services were of a very primitive character, that only 'Tate and Brady' was in use, and that the organ blower in a dirty surplice announced the hymns 'in broad Hertfordshire brogue'. He pointed out (t0) that the Abbey had had since 1820 its own hymnbook, compiled by Thomas Fowler, aformentioned, 'Printed and sold by W Langley, High Street'; that the hymns were announced by the central boy of the row of choristers sitting in front of the organ; and that services and anthems were used on any special occasion.    West seems to have got hold of 'a real bit of Tonypandy'.
While at St Albans, let us consider John Godman, 1826-1908. Born at 'the Noke', now a pub with an old coach in the front, he became Parish Clerk of St Stephen's, kept the Post Office, was Assistant Overseer for nearly 50 years, and erected or rebuilt a number of public clocks.These included the Cathedral, where he rebuilt the tune chimes and added quarter chimes in 1880; St Peter's, where the 22ft 6in. pendulum was said to be the 'largest in the world'; and the City Clock Tower. He was  also an organ builder. His first organ was for St Stephen's in 1860, which went to Redbourn Wesleyan in 188l when a larger instrument had been obtained. In l870 he rebuilt and enlarged Aylesbury Congregational, said to have come from Merton College, adding an 8' stop swell in l8?4; a small organ for Sarratt Baptist; and a large one for the United FreeChurch of Baptists and Congregationalists at High Wycombe, where he also rebuilt the organ in the schoolroom; and additions to the historic instrument at St Peter's. He was considered to be 'especially good with his pedal pipes'. In his spare time he was a good surveyor. He was buried at St Stephen's, with several generations of his ancestors.   I do not know whether any of his organs survive unaltered.

(1) Reporter V 4.
(2) also M.O. 9/64 735.
(3) M.O., 0. 8c C., 6/08.
(4) Explained in Reporter I 2.
(5) I 84.
(6) Musical Times /05.
(?) Guide to London Churches.
(8) M.O. 3/38 558,
(9) Cathedral Organists.
(10) MS notes 1909.

 What they were saying
The urge for electric movements in organs is the result of a fundamental error, viz., the wish of the organist to sit at a considerable distance from his instrument. We shall next hear of a beautiful electric device whereby Herr Joachim can play at a distance of 70 feet from his fiddle.        (Musical News 27/5/l892)       (Arthur G Hill, 1892)

I confess myself in agreement with those who consider that the 8ft. instrument, commonly called an orchestra, possesses sufficient brilliancy, and in disagreement with those who would fain add "chorus work" in the form of a few hundred piccolos playing consecutive fifths, thirds, and octaves with each and all of the individual instruments comprising it.   We all agree, however, in our admiration of the "fancy effects" obtainable from a soft mixture enclosed in a swell box. It is easy to voice an organ consisting entirely of 8ft. stops in such a manner that it shall sound as bright or even brighter than an orchestra.  (Robert Hope-Jones 1896)
( Musical Opinion 11/1896   95)     

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