Giving
St Giles Organ Appeal
The organ John Milton heard when his daughter
Mary was baptised at St Giles in 1647 was destroyed
during the Civil War. A replacement was built
in 1678 by George Dallam and 'repaired' in 1699
by Christian Smith, a nephew of the great organ
builder 'Father' Smith.
This organ was rebuilt in the present church
in 1734 by Gerard Smith the younger, possibly
assisted by Johann Knopple. Much pipework from
1699, and perhaps some from 1678, survives today
in the handsome new case made in 1734.
The new church of 1734 was designed by Henry
Flitcroft, Lord Burlington's assistant in building
Burlington House in Piccadilly (now the Royal
Academy) and Chiswick House. The church is the
first English example of a church in the elegant
and restrained Palladian style.The model Flitcroft
made so that parishioners could see what they
were commissioning, can still be seen in the church
(see
picture).
Minor alterations were subsequently made to the
organ, but it has only once been rebuilt, in 1856,
when it was restored and up-dated by the distinguished
London organ builders Gray and Davison, then at
the height of their fame. Apart from replacing
the the mechanical key and stop actions with an
electro-pneumatic action in 1960, which is now
defective, the organ is much as it was in the
mid-nineteenth century. It is one of the few historic
organs in central London to have escaped twentieth
century 'modernisation'.
At St Giles we hear sounds from the organ that
our predecessors, including Byron, Shelley, John
Soane, the architect, have heard for more than
three hundred years.
Our Challenge
This historic organ urgently needed sympathetic
restoration. One hundred and fifty years had
passed since the last major work, the rebuild
of 1856.
The Parochial Church Council appointed organ
historian and consultant Stephen Bicknell to advise
on the best way forward. After considering various
proposals the Parish appointed the organ builder
William Drake of Buckfastleigh. Drake's restorations
include the historic organs in Lulworth Castle
Chapel and Buckingham Palace Ballroom.
All material from 1699 and earlier was kept,
together with the oak case and other material
from 1734 and additions made in 1856. New mechanical
key and stop actions were made, replacing the
poor actions of 1960.
Now the organ has been restored listeners are
able to enjoy, for at least another one hundred
and fifty years, sounds that have been heard on
this site since 1699 or before. The restored organ
takes pride of place in the developing programme
of recitals and concerts at St. Giles' as well
as in the many services attended by those who
live and work in the area. It benefits not
only the local community, but also the many visitors
and tourists who come to this historic church.
The cost of this complex restoration, requiring
much highly skilled work, has been approximately £387,000.
We would like to thank all those who contributed generously to
the Organ Appeal Fund enabling us to achieve this restoration.
You can contibute towards the future maintenance of the organ
by donating
here (PDF 61K)
The Church and the Area
St Giles has been a poor area of London since
the late seventeenth century. Peter Ackroyd in
London: a biography describes the poverty, disease
and squalor of the area in the later seventeenth
century, when the Great Plague began in the parish
in 1665, in the eighteenth century, as depicted
by Hogarth, and in the nineteenth century as described
by Dickens.
In the twentieth century, the whole area including
Denmark Street, known as 'Tin Pan Alley' became
a centre of the music industry. St Giles as the
parish church provides, with its churchyard, a
sacred and serene space in the bustle of this
much frequented area of Central London.
Now in the twenty-first century the area around
the church is about to undergo major redevelopment,
which will bring more people to live and work
in the area. The church, which is open daily,
is well used by people for private prayer, and
is a venue for memorial services, recitals and
concerts, and hosts lectures and debates, as well
as providing a daily and weekly round of services.
The eighteenth-century Vestry House, is regularly
used by community groups. St Giles, as the parish
church, plays a significant part at the centre
of this multifarious local community.
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