A musical instrument that's almost two centuries old can be heard again after decades of disrepair, in its home at a repurposed church in Chichester.
In 2022, the former church of St. Bartholomew in Mount Lane became the Chichester City Arts Centre, a community arts venue for hire with users including the Rosemary Bell Academy of Dance Ballet School.
But in previous years, when in use as a parish church and, later, for a theological college, music would have come from a pipe organ, installed in 1832.
Until recently, the instrument, with one keyboard and pedals, had not been serviced since 1975.
Among other faults, its electric wind blower, installed in the 1940s, no longer worked, and parts of the mechanism connecting the keys to the air supply to the pipes had failed.
However, upon the building's re-opening, co-owner Rosemary along with Ian Jackson and Jenny Jackson helped launch a crowdfunding campaign to get the once-neglected instrument making music again.
After £2,000 was raised, the organ can be played, and will be heard in a special invitation recital this Saturday (August 12) at 2pm.
Rosemary said:
"The organ has recently undergone repairs and cleaning.
"This involved refurbishment of the 1940s electric blower and repairs to the original 1832 internal mechanism to enable the full range of pipes to be operated by both the keyboard and pedals and using all the stops to proper effect.
"Throughout this process, Alan Thurlow, former Master of Choristers and organist at Chichester cathedral has been our mentor."
Alan Thurlow plays the repaired instrument in this short video:
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