Music at St Mary the Virgin

 

2008 Organ Recitals

Saturdays at 1pm

 

May 17th - Stephen Binnington

                             (Farrington Music School, Dorset)

 

June 14th - Jonathan Harris

                             (St Mary the Virgin, Finedon)

 

July 19th - Paul Derrett

                             (Holy Trinity, Hull)

 

August 23rd - Peter Litman   

                (St Paul’s (without the walls), Canterbury)

 

September 13th - Mark Batten

                             (St James the Greater, Leicester)

 

Admission by donation

 

Concerts last approximately one hour

 

The organ was installed in 1717 and built during the early years of the reign of Queen Anne, possibly by Christopher Shrider.

 

The visiting organists are well known as recitalists throughout the UK.

 
During 2006 and 2007 we held a series of monthly organ recitals. Organists from across the UK have performed: Andrew Reid (Master of Music of Peterborough Cathedral), Dr John Kitchen (City and University Organist of Edinburgh), Sebastian Thomson (Director of Music at St Matthew’s Church, Northampton), Timothy Noon (then Director of Music of St David’s Cathedral, Wales), John Keys (Organist, St Mary the Virgin, Nottingham), Lee Dunleavy (Director of Music, All Saints, Northampton) and Jonathan Harris (Organist of St Mary the Virgin, Finedon).
On Saturday 14th July 2007 at 3pm the Northampton & District Organist Society will be visiting the church for a short talk on the history of the instrument and demonstration by Jonathan Harris; members of the group will have the opportunity to play the organ. If you are interested in joining us for this event please get in touch; you are more than welcome.

 

2008 Vocal & Instrumental concerts

 

Sunday 4th May at 7.30pm

Lyra Vocal Ensemble

A return visit by the singers from St Petersburg featuring music from the Classical Russian tradition

Admission by donation

 

Tuesday 13th May at 7.30pm

Hermitage Choir

6 part male voice Russian choir performing music from the Russian Orthodox Church

Admission by donation

 

Saturday 14th June at 7.30pm

St Cecilia Singers, Rushden

 

Flower Festival weekend

Saturday 13th September at 7.30pm

Choir of Peterborough Cathedral girls & men

directed by Andrew Reid

performing sacred music for choir & organ

Tickets £10

 

Sponsors are sought to support the visit by Peterborough Cathedral Choir.

Please contact us if you can help in any way.

 

 

 

Past Vocal & Instrumental concerts

May 2006 - Valaam Singers from Valaam Monastrey near St Petersburg, 5 part male voice choir performing music from the Russian Orthodox Church and folk music.

March 2007 - the Lyra Vocal Ensemble from St Petersburg, Russia performing traditional Russian Classical and folk music.

July 2007 - the Kyiv Accordion Duo from Ukraine gave a virtuosic concert in aid of Victims of Chernobyl.

October 2007 - Kettering Camerata and a Norwegian choir.

October 2007 - Valaam Singers making a return visit to Finedon

 

The Choir

The church choir sings at the 9.30 am and 6pm Sunday services. Rehearsals take place in the church on Fridays 7-8pm; new members, both children and adults, are always welcome.

The Organ

The organ was installed in St Mary the Virgin, Finedon in 1717. The organ originated from somewhere associated with the Chapel Royal in London; the coat of arms of Queen Anne on the central pipe suggests the instrument was built between 1702-1707. The Revd Sir John Dolben held the position of Sub-Dean of the Chapel Royal until around 1718 but in 1714 had taken up the role of Vicar of Finedon, maintaining both roles for a few years until finally settling in his birthplace of Finedon. His connection with the Chapel Royal was the main influence in bringing this organ to Finedon, a gift to the church. William Croft (1678 - 1727) held several key roles as a musician within the Chapel Royal and would have been well known to Revd Dolben. Croft himself visited Finedon on 17 May 1717 to open the new organ, composing the anthem ‘Praise God in His sanctuary’ for the occasion. There are no direct indications on the organ to attribute it to a particular organ builder but the fact it originated from within the Chapel Royal and the case design suggest it comes from the Father Smith workshop. Attributing the organ to Smith’s son-in-law Christopher Schrider (as several writers have done) is therefore an appropriate ‘educated guess’.

The organ was rebuilt in 1872 by George Maydwell Holdich, a local organ builder born in Maidwell in north Northamptonshire. This rebuild included making a new console which was then relocated to the north side of the organ. The original stop jambs and paper labels still remain at the front of the organ (facing east).

The original 1700s specification was

Great Choir Echo
Open Diapason Stop’d Diapason Open Diapason
Stop’d Diapason Principal Principal
Principal Fifteenth Cornet
Twelfth Cremona Trumpet
Fifteenth    
Sesquialtra    
Cornet    
Trumpet    

The present specification is

Great Choir Swell
Open Diapason* Stop’d Diapason* Open Diapason
Stop’d Diapason* Dulciana Stop’d Diapason*
Gamba Principal* Principal
Principal* Flute Fifteenth*
Twelfth* Fifteenth* Mixture*
Fifteenth*   Horn
Sesquialtra* Pedals Tremulant
Trumpet Open 16ft  
  Bourdon 16ft  
     
Couplers Accessories  
Pedals Great 4 composition pedals  
Pedals Choir Latch-down swell lever  
Pedals Swell    
Swell to Great    
Sub Octave Swell    

*wholly or partly original pipework from 1700s

The compass is CC to f on the 3 manuals and CCC to F on the pedals.

Further details about the organ can be found in

Choirs, Bands and Organs by Hilary Davidson Positif Press, 2003

The Vicar’s Gift by John Bolton - a very detailed 94 page booklet on the history and design of the Finedon organ, written by the late John Bolton, an organist of the church. The booklet is no longer in print but copies are available for viewing on request.

In 1993 a CD recording of the organ was made, played by Paul Parsons on the Mirabilis Records label.

Organists visiting the church are welcome to play the organ but please contact the Organist before visiting to arrange access.

If you require any further information about the concerts, organ or music in the church please contact the Organist, Jonathan Harris.

                    Tel: 01604 881182                     email hjonathan83@aol.com