Following a £70,000 restoration, one of the world’s oldest working church 
organs has been restored to its former glory.
The Hastings Observer reports that the 250-year-old instrument has undergone a major refurbishment.
Indeed, the organ, which is believed to have been built in 1760 by Swiss master organ maker John Snetzler, was originally sent in for repair in January of this year.
It took specialists three days to reassemble the organ, with restorers using detailed descriptions by Alexander Buckingham to help restore the instrument – the writer toured the country in 1824 seeking out some of the most interesting church organs around.
The instrument has only just returned to Hastings this month, the news provider said, and an official unveiling is due to take place this weekend (October 2nd).
Dr Brian Hick, an organ expert, said it was “fantastic” that the organ had
been restored to its former glory.
“Back in January the keyboard was virtually falling to pieces and notes would literally come off into your hands. The sound was also very noisy. We never had problems with the pipe work but all 550 pipes were removed and re tuned,” he said.
“I acted as advisor to the company so we could go back to the original specifications from 1760. The pipes now sound exactly as they did in that time.”
Meanwhile, another organ hoping to benefit from extensive renovation is the Royal Festival Hall organ. The 7,866-pipe instrument is in need of a £2.3 million refurbishment in time for its 60th anniversary celebrations in 2014.
organs has been restored to its former glory.The Hastings Observer reports that the 250-year-old instrument has undergone a major refurbishment.
Indeed, the organ, which is believed to have been built in 1760 by Swiss master organ maker John Snetzler, was originally sent in for repair in January of this year.
It took specialists three days to reassemble the organ, with restorers using detailed descriptions by Alexander Buckingham to help restore the instrument – the writer toured the country in 1824 seeking out some of the most interesting church organs around.
The instrument has only just returned to Hastings this month, the news provider said, and an official unveiling is due to take place this weekend (October 2nd).
Dr Brian Hick, an organ expert, said it was “fantastic” that the organ had
been restored to its former glory.“Back in January the keyboard was virtually falling to pieces and notes would literally come off into your hands. The sound was also very noisy. We never had problems with the pipe work but all 550 pipes were removed and re tuned,” he said.
“I acted as advisor to the company so we could go back to the original specifications from 1760. The pipes now sound exactly as they did in that time.”
Meanwhile, another organ hoping to benefit from extensive renovation is the Royal Festival Hall organ. The 7,866-pipe instrument is in need of a £2.3 million refurbishment in time for its 60th anniversary celebrations in 2014.