Going by the look of things . . .
David Bridgeman-Sutton continues his conversations with Harry, recalling halcyon days as cinema organist.
1. The Howard Seat (Radio City USA - PS Harrison collection).
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“When the talkies came along, there were some fears that cinema organs and organists might become redundant - though I don’t think that word was much used in those days. In fact, the reverse happened, with organ interludes becoming increasingly popular, especially after consoles were placed on lifts so that spot-lit players could be seen."
A side benefit was that patrons queuing to buy ice cream and chocolates felt less conspicuous and sales rose accordingly! Managements weren’t slow to note the fact and for some years gave organists every encouragement they could. Their motives may have been commercial rather than musical, but the result was the same. |
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“Providing more elaborate consoles and organs with ever-increasing resources was one way to please the patrons. Methods used didn’t always come off, though. An inexpensive extra was the provision of a dummy manual, thus making a two-manual instrument appear as a three-manual. Of course, patrons soon noticed that only two were in use. Letters of complaint to Theatre managers followed, pointing out that organists at rival cinemas used all three manuals, so that policy had to be thought out again. Dummy keyboards were converted to coupler- manuals and organists instructed to use these, even when there was no performing advantage.
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2. In the pink: the classic cinema recreated.
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3. Pipes in the peaks: This is at the Dovedale Garage, nr. Ashbourne, Derbys - specialists in the restoration and sales of classic Jaguars. The displayed percussion section is also a feature of many organs installed in US pizza parlours
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“A frightful invention was the Howard seat (pic 1). This was a sort of double-bicycle-saddle arrangement, supported on minimalist steel tubing. The idea was to give patrons an uninterrupted view of the organist’s pedal technique. What it gave the player, unquestionably, was a sense of insecurity and backache! I hated the things, yet believe that some people preferred the Howard to an ordinary bench.
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“More spectacular was the illuminated console surround, which was largely confined to Britain. Like many showbiz ideas, this seems to have dated back to the old variety theatres. There were several players with touring organs - often quite large instruments - that were moved from theatre to theatre, being dismantled, moved re-erected and tuned between the last house on Saturday and the first on Monday. Max Erard was, I believe, connected with the famous maker of pianos and harps of that name and he had the idea of surrounding his console with coloured lights to increase the visual impact.
4. Going Green - Christopher Cartwright at the Dovedale organ
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“Visual impact was considerably greater than the musical in Erard’s case. Newspaper critic - and cricket writer - Neville Cardus reviewed one of his programmes, stating correctly that the organ weighed eight tons and then slating the performance. Erard wrote to the newspaper concerned, threatening to horsewhip Cardus. Some time later, Cardus reviewed another performance. This time, his only comment was ”The organ still weighs eight tons.”
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“The glass surrounds were most effective in making the console of even a small organ look impressive. They were filled with coloured electric bulbs - blue, green, yellow, red that could be mixed and brightened or dimmed by rheostats. The only drawback was that they made the player feel warm - especially the lights under the seat!”
6. The streamlined/art-deco type light surround seen at Burtey Fen and Dovedale was the most popular. Many surrounds were designed to reflect the architecture of the theatre. This one, visited by many an organydd emwog, was a Llandudno in North Wales.
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5. Royal occasion?
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At the time this conversation took place, box office takings were falling rapidly as the impact of television was felt. The sacking of organists and boarding up of instruments was part of an immediate response to cut costs, later to be followed by the closing of many theatres. The cinema organ seemed doomed. Fortunately, many have survived into private ownership and may still be heard. The pictures give some idea of how they look now - many of them much as they did in their heyday.
Footnote : A comparable installation to Pipes in the Peaks may be found in New Zealand at the Southward Car Museum at Paraparaumu, Wellington - www.southwardcarmuseum.co.nz/
(I wish anyone e-mailing this institution better luck in getting a reply than I had! DB-S).
(I wish anyone e-mailing this institution better luck in getting a reply than I had! DB-S).
David Bridgeman-Sutton,
August 3, 2006
August 3, 2006
Thanks to:
www.burteyfen.co.uk
For pictures 2 - 5, thanks to Christian Cartwright www.pipesinthepeaks.co.uk
Pic 6: Journal Editor John Leeming www.cinema-organs.org.uk)
www.burteyfen.co.uk
For pictures 2 - 5, thanks to Christian Cartwright www.pipesinthepeaks.co.uk
Pic 6: Journal Editor John Leeming www.cinema-organs.org.uk)
