Pipe Organs of England - Pipedreams - American Public Media

SUNDAY, 20 MAY PAGE 83Westminster CathedralThe Organist: Peter StevensThe Organ: 1922-32 Henry Willis & Sons– 1984 & 1996 Harrison & Harrison,IV/78The Grand Organ of Westminster Cathedral (Henry Willis& Sons, 1932) is considered by many to be the greatestachievement and crowning glory of Henry Willis III. JohnCourage (a former apprentice at Lewis & Co. and an acquaintanceof Louis Vierne, Guy Weitz and Marcel Dupré) was appointedthe consultant. Dupré spent part of 1920 with Courageand had a great deal of influence on his ideas aboutthe new organ. In particular, it was Dupré who insisted thatthe instrument should be at the west end as is common inmainland Europe, rather than where Bentley, the CathedralArchitect, had intended it to be, in a position more typical ofthe English Cathedrals.The first stage of the Grand Organ (only 33 stops) was inauguratedby Dupré in 1922. In 1924 Louis Vierne gave a recitalduring which Henry Willis brought him a theme to improviseon. Willis was rather taken aback to discover that Viernewas practically blind, and his nervousness as he hummedwhat he had written - the chimes of the clock at the Housesof Parliament - caused him to put the tune the wrong wayround! Vierne used this improvisation as the basis for hisfamous Carillon de Westminster, dedicating it ‘à mon amiHenri Willis, facteur d’orgues à Londres’. In the same year,Marcel Dupré gave the première of his own Symphonie-Passion, for which the Pedal 32-foot Contra Bombarde wasadded.By 1932, work was completed, the specification now 11 stops larger than had originally been intended. Recitals were well attended,particularly those of Dupré, and continued until the outbreak of war in 1939. They resumed in 1946 with various internationallyrenowned players.The organ was restored in 1985 by Harrison and Harrison. The pipework was cleaned having lain for years under a thick blanket ofdust and soot from candles and incense, and extensive revoicing was carried out where necessary. Additional action overhaulingand the installation of a 256-level capture system followed in 1996, enabling much more comprehensive use of the Grand Organfrom the Apse console.