News

Welcome to the first Update in September - and although it is three-quarters of the way  through the calendar year, those of us connected to education can't help feeling it's the beginning of a new year. Oxford University, of course, is nowhere near thinking about Week 0, so there are no regular chapel organ recitals to report. However, we can give you some upcoming dates for the ODOA programme, and a few other concerts on the horizon.

1. For those of you willing to travel to London for your organ recitals, the 2026 Grand Organ Festival at Westminster Cathedral offers the following:
   
   Wednesday 9th September - James Orford, a prize-winning Organist of St Paul’s Cathedral, London, praised for his “dashing organ playing”
   
   Wednesday 16th September - Peter Stevens, who "At the helm of Westminster Cathedral's mighty Willis organ delivers interpretations that resonate with both technical brilliance and spiritual depth"
   
   Wednesday 23rd September - Ulrich Walther, an international concert artist and award winning organist, currently Professor of Organ at the University of Graz.
   
   Wednesday 30th September - Simon Johnson, described by Gramophone Magazine as "a brilliant and sensitive musician"
   
   The recitals take place on Wednesdays in September, beginning at 7.30pm. Each performance lasts 75 minutes without an interval. Tickets are £15 on the door, but are reduced to £10 if you present the original email (check your email).

2. On Friday 25 September at 7.00 pm, at Our Lady and St John Church, Goring-on-Thames, the a cappella group Opus Anglicanum present their concert 'Green and Pleasant Land' - described as readings from Dickens, Shakespeare, Betjeman and Austen alongside music from Purcell, Vaughan-Williams, Stanford and Butterworth alongside more light-hearted, charming and downright ridiculous works that extol the virtues and traditions of this fantastic island from across the centuries. Tickets £20 and £10, followed by a reception. Tickets available from Eventbrite.

3. On Tuesday 29 September at 7.00 pm, ODOA will be visiting Trinity College. There are only 9 places available for this, so please let me know if you're interested, as soon as possible.

4. Andrew Chamblin Memorial Concert: Tuesday 29 September, at 8.00 pm, is the twentieth annual Andrew Chamblin Memorial Concert in Christ Church Cathedral. David Halls will play an hour-long programme of organ works by Mendelssohn, Elgar, Bach, Dubois and Boëllmann.
   
   No tickets required for in-person attendance in the Cathedral, and the weblink for the livestream performance is below. https://www.youtube.com/live/iqnyF7naHikIf
   you would like to make a contribution to support the continuation of the Memorial Concerts, this can be done at: https://buy.stripe.com/dRmdR86e45rbbybgBLgA80k

5. On Thursday 15 October from 5.00 pm to 7.00 pm there is an ODOA visit to St Mary's Church, Henley. (Please note the early time.) Sebastian Thompson will meet us at the church and introduce the instrument, after which members may play.

6. Finally, our AGM will be held in November. The date has not yet been finalised, but please consider attending (we hope we will be able to use the Greyfriars hall and church as last year). This is always a convivial occasion, with drinks and nibbles beforehand, a brief business meeting followed by an organ recital in the church, and usually a light supper in the refectory afterwards. 

There are 4 items in the Update this week.

1. Bruce Buchanan will deliver an illustrated talk about 'Father' Henry Willis: We should be delighted to see as many members as possible at our next event which is this coming Saturday 11 April at 2.30 pm, at Wesley Memorial Church, New Inn Hall Street, Oxford.  

Bruce Buchanan will deliver an illustrated talk about 'Father' Henry Willis, the man and the organs he built. Bruce worked at the Willis firm for 25 years followed by 16 years at Walkers before moving to Austin Organs in the USA. His illustrated lectures are most engaging,  entertaining and informative.  Bruce will speak from 2.30pm until 3.30pm including time for questions.  

Thanks to Keith Lambert making arrangements for us there will also be time to play the 1950 Willis III/1993 Bishop organ at Wesley Memorial Church after Bruce’s talk until just before 4.30pm – details of the organ at The NPOR | Survey D00419.  

Bruce remembers working on the Wesley Mem organ as an employee.  We very much look forward to seeing you at Wesley Memorial Church on Saturday.

2. A reminder that the funeral of our long-standing member Peter Ward Jones will be held  at 2.00 pm on Tuesday 14 April at St Giles Church, Oxford. 

3. Visit New College, Oxford: On Thursday 16 April from 7.00 to 9.00 pm, we will visit New College, Oxford, to play the 1969 Grant, Degens and Bradbeer organ in the chapel. A full account of the instrument, and subsequent work completed in 2014 by Goetze and Gwynn, can be found here: https://www.newcollegechoir.com/organ . Please meet punctually at 6.50 pm at the Porters' Lodge (Holywell Street entrance)

4. We extend a warm welcome to two new members: Edward Horn and Claire Hobbs. We look forward to meeting you soon.

1. Bruce Buchanan will give us a talk about 'Father' Henry Willis: Please note that our next meeting will be on Saturday 11 April at 2.30 pm, at Wesley Memorial Church, New Inn Hall Street, Oxford.  Bruce Buchanan will give us a talk about 'Father' Henry Willis, the man and the organs he built. Bruce worked at the Willis firm for 25 years followed by 16 years at Walkers before moving to Austin Organs in the USA.

There are 6 items in the update this week.

1. On Sunday 22 March at noon in St Giles Church Oxford, Andrew Kong will give a recital. Nicholas Prozzillo writes:
   
   Discover Bach’s craftsmanship through his masterpiece of unfolding variations on Sei gegrüsset, Jesu gütig (or O Jesu du edle Gabe)
   
   There will be a retiring collection.

2. On Wednesday 25 March at noon, there will be an organ recital in Oxford Town Hall given by Ian Hockley. The cost is £7 on the door. You can bring a packed lunch and enjoy free tea and coffee.

3. Paul Hale sent us information about the two organs he is currently working on in Oxford:The Willis organ for St Barnabas Jericho (using the pipes and soundboards selected from two redundant Fr Willis organs from 1875/6) will be installed during the summer. The Fr Willis organ in St Michael & All Angels in Summertown is currently being restored and will have two things added: a rare Fr Willis Violone and a side case and pipes.
   
   I am enjoying both projects.More information about these organs here:
   https://www.sbarnabas.org.uk/organhttps
   //www.stmichaels-summertown.org.uk/worshipmusic/organ

4. Looking further ahead, on Saturday 11 April at 2.30 there will be an ODOA talk in Wesley Memorial Church, New Inn  Hall Street, Oxford, by Bruce Buchanan, on the subject of the Willis organs.

5. On Thursday 16 April at 7.00 pm ODOA will visit New College Chapel to play the organ.

6. On Saturday 25 April at 7.30 pm Thomas Trotter will give an organ recital in Winchester Cathedral as part of the 2026 Organ Festival. Tickets £18, available from the Wonchester Cathedral website: https://www.winchester-cathedral.org.uk/event/organ-concert-by-thomas-trotter/

1. Available only to those who have already booked, our visit to The Weston Library takes place tomorrow, Saturday 7 March at 10.30 am. Our member Martin Holmes, the Alfred Brendel Curator of Music, will show us some of the Bodleian Library treasures which are of particular interest to organists. 

2. Our Treasurer Keith Lambert writes: James Lonsdale, FRCO, will be giving an organ recital at St Nicholas Church, Tackley, on Saturday 7 March at 12 noon: a clash with ODOA's visit to the Bodleian but we hope it may be of interest to some. There is music by McDowall, Sweelinck, Bach, Mendelssohn, Peeters and Widor; the organ was newly built last year by J.W. Walker and Sons, and we hope to arrange an ODOA visit at some point.

3. Committee member Malcolm Pearce writes: I am the organist in the Abingdon and District Music Society orchestra's performance of the Saint-Saens 'Organ' Symphony this coming Saturday 7 March, 7.30 pm at St Helen's Church Abingdon. Also on the programme is the Prelude to 'Lohengrin'—Wagner's radiant vision of the Holy Grail descending to earth, and 'Prague'—a moving portrait of the city by Josef Suk (Dvorak's son-in-law), which also includes a supporting organ part. Flyer attached.

4. Free organ recitals this week:

• Saturday 7 March at 12.00 pm, Magdalen College: George Balfour (Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford)

• Tuesday  10 March at 1.10 pm, Exeter College: Peter King (Concert Organist)

• Tuesday 10 March at 1.10 pm, Pusey House: Louis Jones (Keble College)

• Wednesday 11 March at 1.10 pm, The Queen's College: Pascal Bachmann (St John's College, Cambridge)

• Wednesday 11 March at 2.10 pm, Lincoln College: Louis Fletcher (Lincoln College)

• Thursday 12 March at 12.30 pm, Brasenose College: Jude Young (St Peter's College)

• Thursday 12 March at 8.30 pm, Keble College: Peter Stevens (Westminster Cathedral)

There are 3 items in the update this week.

1. On Saturday 31 January  at 2.00 pm the annual Oxford Music Festival organ classes will take place at St Andrew's Church, Headington. This event is supported  by a donation from ODOA funds towards the Michael Popkin Memorial Prize. Do go along to hear some excellent performances.

2. On Saturday 7 March we will visit the Bodleian Library, where our member Martin Holmes, the Alfred Brendel Curator of Music, will show us some of its treasures which are of particular interest to organists. The early notice is because booking is essential: space constraints mean that numbers must be limited. We have opened this meeting to the Oxford Organ Scholars (many of whom are members of ODOA) as well, and in order to keep the attendance details all in one location, the booking form is here:  Exploring Musical Treasures at the Bodleian Special Collections . Please book early to secure your place.

3. An organist is required at St Andrew's Church, Church Road,  Sandford on Thames, Oxford OX4 4XZ for a wedding on Sunday 1st February at 12.30 pm. There will be one hymn and music at the beginning and end of the service. Fee negotiable (in the region of £100). Please contact Iain Russell at ihrussell2020@gmail.com for more information.

There are 7 items in this week's Update.

1. Our next ODOA event is on Tuesday 20 January at 8.00 pm: a Zoom presentation by our President, Bryan Almond, about last year's Organ Study Tour to Brittany. The presentation will include an introduction to the Dallam family of organ builders, descriptions of the organs visited and short videos of some of the organs we played on the tour, which also included instruments built by Yves Koenig and Cavaillé-Coll, father and son. Here is your Zoom invitation:
   
   Oxford Organists is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.Topic: Oxford Organists' Zoom MeetingTime: Jan 20, 2026 19:45 London
   Join Zoom Meeting
   https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81199423833?pwd=H4ai4zaDsaxdbMmrQC5bDE9oKlbJSb.1
   Meeting ID: 811 9942 3833
   Passcode: 737611

2. We have an urgent request for an organist for the First Church of Christ, Scientist, Oxford, 36a St Giles. Pam Naden writes: Our Sunday Service begins at 10.30am and lasts an hour. The soloist arrives about 10am for a run through with the organ. The music required is approx. 6 minutes of prelude before the service; 3 hymns; accompaniment to a soloist; offertory interlude (about 1 minute); postlude (about 2 minutes). I can provide the hymns and solo music in advance. The church is open from about 9.30am. Pay is £55. I can supply further details as required. Please contact Pam directly at pam.naden@btinternet.com if you can help.

3. Another request for an organist comes from Colin Thompson: Wheatley United Reformed Church is looking for an occasional or regular organist to accompany its Sunday services at 10am.  It has a congregation of 40-50 people and a medium-sized digital instrument.  Services usually have four hymns, as well as a short prelude and a postlude, the latter played as part of the service.  The Church is offering £50 per service plus travel expenses.  Please contact the Revd Dr Colin Thompson if you are interested or would like further information, at colin.thompson@stcatz.ox.ac.uk.

4. A book by our member Peter Ward Jones, British Choral Singing: A History from Medieval Times to the Present Day, has just been published by Boydell & Brewer. It is available both in paperback and as an e-book (there is also a hardback edition, which is priced for institutions). A 35% discount is available if bought online direct from the publisher (boydellandbrewer.com), using the code BB135 in the discount box. The result of some 15 years’ work, off and on, it deals with both sacred and secular choirs and is intended as much for the choral community as scholars.

5. Keith Lambert writes: A reminder that free streaming of 'The English Organ' from RCO Cinema and Fugue State Films continues through January and February at www.rco.org.uk/cinema  This landmark documentary traces five centuries of English organ building and music. It's too late now to watch Part 1, but you still have the following to look forward to:
   Part 2: The Victorian Boom, streaming in January, covers what many see as the great phase of English organ culture
   Part 3: Modernity and Nostalgia, streaming in February, shows how the history of the organ echoes England’s more difficult 20th century history
   
   This is all free to view: you only need to register with an email address (although there is an opportunity to contribute to Fugue State Films's excellent work).

6. Keith also reminds us of the Oxford Pro Musica Concert, on Sunday 22 February at 6.30 pm in the Holywell Music Room, Oxford: If Music Be the Food of Love ... a feast of choral music celebrating food and drink
   
   Full details :https://opms.org.uk/event/if-music-be-the-food-of-love/  
   Tickets :https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/oxfordpromusica
   
   ODOA members can use discount code A440 to get 20% off full-price tickets (ie, £18).  
   
   Tickets for students and under-25s are just £8 (no discounts on those!) 

7. Finally, our member Naomi Bowen informs us that the Cathedral Music Trust will hold its National Gathering in Oxford from Friday 6 to Sunday 8 March.  Visit https://www.cathedralmusictrust.org.uk/events/oxford-gathering/ for details of events. She also informs us that CMT, in partnership with organisations across the choral and cathedral music sector, has launched a campaign to secure UNESCO Living Heritage recognition for English Sacred Choral Music.
   
   Visit https://www.cathedralmusictrust.org.uk/unesco-living-heritage/ to find out more.

Happy New Year! There are 5 items in the Update this week.

1. Our first ODOA event of 2026 will be on Tuesday 20 January at 8.00 pm. This will be an online Zoom meeting hosted by our president, Bryan Almond,  giving an overview of the Thirty-second Annual European Organ Study Tour to Brittany in September 2025, which visited 17th-century instruments built by the English Dallam family of organ builders.The presentation will include an introduction to the Dallam family, their exile to northern France during the English Civil War, descriptions of the organs visited and short videos of some of the organs we played on the tour, which also included instruments built by Yves Koenig and Cavaillé-Coll, father and son.Please do join us for what promises to be a most interesting online meeting. The Zoom invitation will appear in next week's Update (to avoid it getting buried in your Inbox), but please put the date in your diary.

2. On Saturday 31 January  at 2.00 pm the annual Oxford Music Festival organ classes will take place at St Andrew's Church, Headington. This event is supported  by a donation from ODOA funds towards the Michael Popkin Memorial Prize. Do go along to hear some excellent performances.

3. Bloomsbury Organ Day: On the same day, 31st January, if you happen to be in London, the  next Bloomsbury Organ Day will be held in Bloomsbury Central Baptist Church from 12.30  to 7.30 pm. It will be the usual mix of recitals, displays, presentations and refreshments with Loreto Aramendi (Spain) as the celebrity recitalist. For further information, please visit organistsonline.org/bloomsbury

4. ODOA subscriptions: You may recall that 31st January is also the last day of the reduced rate for ODOA subscriptions - if you have not yet paid, please do so as soon as possible, to benefit your wallet and to make life easier for Keith Lambert, our Treasurer. 

5. Finally, our member Richard Goodall writes:
   Due to the expansion of the music team at St Margaret's Church, Oxford, ODOA member Richard Goodall is now less committed than previously. With notice, he is therefore occasionally able and happy to deputise for others in the Oxford area on Sunday mornings and evenings. Please contact him directly at:  richard.organist@hotmail.co.uk