Author Archives: Goetze and Gwynn

  • Dominic is on the mend!

    Posted on Friday June 29th, 2018

    Dominic had an operation for bladder cancer four weeks ago. It all happened suddenly and since I have not felt unwell it has all been a bit surreal. The operation itself was undignified and painful, and the recovery has felt slow, but the important thing is that the growths were ‘non-invasive’ and there are not likely to be long term effects. Treatment will stop at the end of July with the last dose of chemotherapy, in time for the dismantling of the 1867 Hill organ at St Michael’s Cockerham, our next restoration project.

  • John Harper playing the St Teilo organ

    Posted on Friday June 29th, 2018

    On May 23rd John Harper organized a study day for his doctoral students about sacred music and instruments in the first half of the seventeenth century in the early music centre at Birmingham University. John Harper is playing the St Teilo organ, with Bill Hunt an treble viol and Helen Roberts on Cornett. The picture was taken by Sally Wadsworth.

  • Edward visiting the organ at Ponsonby, new Zealand

    Posted on Friday June 29th, 2018

    Edward with Graham Davison and Gordon Binnie, at Ponsonby, New Zealand visiting the 1779 Avery Chamber organ he restored back in 2004, on his recent trip to New Zealand in April this year.

  • Pipe front and keyboard

    Posted on Thursday June 21st, 2018

    The pipe front of the consort organ. It is an oak frame and carvings, with ripple sycamore dummy pipes. The keyboard is oak, with boxwood naturals and ebony sharps.

  • The Finchcocks crew

    Posted on Monday May 21st, 2018

    Dick Burnett talking to Derek Adlam, Lawrence Peskett and Katrina Burnett. Lawrence is an architectural designer who spent many years working at Finchcocks and has designed the new music room for the Burnetts in Tunbridge Wells.

  • Derek Adlam and Katrina Burnett

    Posted on Monday May 21st, 2018

    Derek talking to Katrina, who was also celebrating her 80th birthday. The celebration included the achievements making new and restoring historic keyboard instruments of Adlam Burnett in their workshop at Finchcocks near Goudhurst in Kent. Chris Nobbs and Bruce Luckhurst were present from that time. The occasion also looked to the future, launching the Finchcocks Charity, which supports musical events using historic keyboard instruments. There is a website with information about the Richard Burnett Heritage Collection and the Charity at http://www.finchcocks.co.uk/index.html

  • Derek’s 80th birthday celebration

    Posted on Monday May 21st, 2018

    On Sunday May 20th Dominic took Derek Adlam to an 80th birthday celebration at Dick and Katrina Burnett’s house in Tunbridge Wells. Derek is the doyen of early piano and harpsichord makers in the UK, who used to occupy the workshop next to ours at Welbeck.

  • Nick fixing the new red silk

    Posted on Monday May 21st, 2018

    Nick fixing the red silk to the spandrels of the pipe front, between the frame and the oval pipe front.

  • Samuel Green chamber organ at Edith Weston

    Posted on Monday May 21st, 2018

    In 1981 Martin and Dominic carried out their first restoration project on the 1786 Samuel Green chamber organ in the church at Edith Weston. The main concern then was to reverse the effects of damp and corrosion, and much was left unrestored, including the finish of the case. Now the pipe front has been restored by Nick Hagen with brass chicken wire and red silk, paid for by 2 Medical Regiment who are leaving MOD North Luffenham, which is closing.

  • Wingfield organ at St Cuthbert’s, Wells

    Posted on Tuesday May 8th, 2018

    David Cheetham Tudor organist, and members of the congregation gathering for a service at St Cuthbert’s in Wells, devised by our vicar the Revd. Sam Denyer to mark the stations of the Resurrection in the Easter season. David played the Wingfield organ, including a piece of Frescobaldi to mark the end of the service.

  • Chris leathering pallets

    Posted on Tuesday May 8th, 2018

    Chris cutting the new leather for the pallets of the Horniman Museums ca1790 chamber organ

  • Edward hinging ribs

    Posted on Tuesday May 8th, 2018

    Edward hinging ribs to make the bellows folds for the 17th century style consort organ

  • Heritage Lottery Fund

    Posted on Monday April 30th, 2018

    The restoration of the chamber organ is part of a Heritage Lottery Fund project including a 1668 Neopolitan virginals and a 1777 London square piano. The HLF have made a crucial contribution to the revival of the historic British organ in the last 20 years, especially to the revival of the Georgian church organ. Thank you HLF.

    Follow the link : https://www.hlf.org.uk/about-us/news-features/finchcocks-keyboards-enhance-horniman’s-collection

  • Anon ca1790 English Chamber organ

    Posted on Monday April 30th, 2018

    This is the organ that used to belong to Finchcocks keyboard and instrument collection and is now at the Horniman museum. It would not have been made by an important organ builder, but a little maker working for a shop like Longman and Broderip, or Henry Holland.

  • The HLF and the Horniman Museum

    Posted on Monday April 30th, 2018

    Mimi Waitzman addressing a meeting in the workshop around the restoration of the anon ca 1790 chamber organ once at Finchcocks keyboard instrument museum and now at the Horniman Museum. Mimi is Deputy Keeper of Musical Instruments at the Horniman museum – she is talking about the role of the curator in looking after the instruments and introducing them to the public.

  • Paper glued on the pallet box cover

    Posted on Wednesday April 25th, 2018

    Paper used for writing exercises glued to the pallet box cover of the Horniman museum organ windchest

  • Erddigs new organ stool

    Posted on Wednesday April 25th, 2018

    Nick has made a copy of the original 1865 organ stool for general use at Erddig (National Trust).