© Maggie Kilbey & Marcel Glover 2024
St Mary, Stanstead St Margaret (Hertfordshire)
Barrel Organs in English Parish Churches
Barrel & finger organ, originally a chamber organ. A brass nameplate reads: ‘Guliemus Allen Fecit London’. In 1837 the chaplain Canon Joseph Stephen Pratt restored the church and paid John Gray to convert the instrument to a barrel & finger organ. The organ is located in the west gallery, which has folding seats. The barrel mechanism is operated from the rear, with the crank handle on the right-hand side. The mahogany case has four flats of gold painted dummy pipes (3-7-7-3) backed with blue cloth. An electric blower was installed in 1956. Stop list: Open Diapason 8’, Stopped Diapason Treble 8’, Stopped Diapason Bass 8’, Dulciana 8’, Principal 4’, Fifteenth 2’. Restored in 1989 by Saxon Aldred of Redbourn; barrels restored by Donald Simmonds in 1990-1. Tunes recorded in 1997. BIOS Historic Organ Certificate awarded 2022 (Grade I). Four green carriage-mounted barrels x 8 tunes. There are no tunelists. The knife mechanism is not operational, so the keyframe has to be lifted off the barrel manually.
References: Cadbury Research Library, Gray & Davison Ledger 1 (1837) p.141; Boston & Langwill (1967); Kilbey Music-making in the Hertfordshire parish 1760 to 1870 (Hatfield, 2020) p.168; NPOR, N14170.
BARREL 1 GREEN
Tune
Metre
1.1
[unplayable]
1.2
LM
1.3
CM
1.4
LM
1.5
104th
1.6
LM
1.7
CM
1.8
87.87.47.
BARREL 2 GREEN
Tune
Metre
2.1
[unplayable]
2.2
LM
2.3
77.77.
2.4
CM
2.5
CM
2.6
LM
2.7
77.77.77.
2.8
CM
BARREL 4 GREEN
Tune
Metre
3.1
[unplayable]
3.2
LM
3.3
CM
3.4
CM
3.5
LM
3.6
SM
3.7
87.87.D
3.8
CM
BARREL 3 GREEN
Tune
Metre
4.1
[unplayable]
4.2
SM
4.3
CM
4.4
CM
4.5
LM
4.6
CM
4.7
886.D
4.8
PM
Stanstead St Margaret (Hertfordshire) Stanstead St Margaret (Hertfordshire)
© Maggie Kilbey & Marcel Glover 2024
Barrel Organs in English Parish Churches
St Mary, Stanstead St Margaret (Hertfordshire)
Barrel & finger organ, originally a chamber organ. A brass nameplate reads: ‘Guliemus Allen Fecit London’. In 1837 the chaplain Canon Joseph Stephen Pratt restored the church and paid John Gray to convert the instrument to a barrel & finger organ. The organ is located in the west gallery, which has folding seats. The barrel mechanism is operated from the rear, with the crank handle on the right-hand side. The mahogany case has four flats of gold painted dummy pipes (3-7-7-3) backed with blue cloth. An electric blower was installed in 1956. Stop list: Open Diapason 8’, Stopped Diapason Treble 8’, Stopped Diapason Bass 8’, Dulciana 8’, Principal 4’, Fifteenth 2’. Restored in 1989 by Saxon Aldred of Redbourn; barrels restored by Donald Simmonds in 1990-1. Tunes recorded in 1997. BIOS Historic Organ Certificate awarded 2022 (Grade I). Four green carriage-mounted barrels x 8 tunes. There are no tunelists. The knife mechanism is not operational, so the keyframe has to be lifted off the barrel manually.
References: Cadbury Research Library, Gray & Davison Ledger 1 (1837) p.141; Boston & Langwill (1967); Kilbey Music-making in the Hertfordshire parish 1760 to 1870 (Hatfield, 2020) p.168; NPOR, N14170.
BARREL 1 GREEN
Tune
Metre
1.1
[unplayable]
1.2
LM
1.3
CM
1.4
LM
1.5
104th
1.6
LM
1.7
CM
1.8
87.87.47.
BARREL 2 GREEN
Tune
Metre
2.1
[unplayable]
2.2
LM
2.3
77.77.
2.4
CM
2.5
CM
2.6
LM
2.7
77.77.77.
2.8
CM
BARREL 3 GREEN
Tune
Metre
4.1
[unplayable]
4.2
SM
4.3
CM
4.4
CM
4.5
LM
4.6
CM
4.7
886.D
4.8
PM
BARREL 4 GREEN
Tune
Metre
3.1
[unplayable]
3.2
LM
3.3
CM
3.4
CM
3.5
LM
3.6
SM
3.7
87.87.D
3.8
CM
Stanstead St Margaret (Hertfordshire)