Musician pulls out all the stops to save organ from climate change
Cracks were found during last summer’s record-breaking heatwaves
Friday, 24th November 2023 — By Charlotte Chambers
Claire Singer at Henry, the Union Chapel organ: ‘We need to protect these buildings that are being put under extreme temperature and dry conditions’
A RARE 146-year-old church organ has become the latest victim of climate change after a part of it cracked during last summer’s record-breaking heatwaves.
Musician Claire M Singer, who has worked at Union Chapel in Upper Street for 11 years, said she first noticed an odd sound coming from Henry – her name for the organ, in tribute to the man who built it – last summer.
She described how she was preparing for a big concert when the organ started playing up. “I got the tuners in and they were like we can see there’s a large crack and because there was a crack, the air was escaping through the crack and creating different notes around it,” she said.
Once the organ is fixed, the long-term plan is to install a humidifier to protect it from the impact of further climate activity.
Some £130,000 is needed for restorations to Henry
The organ, which was made by pre-eminent Victorian builder Father Henry Willis who was also the man behind instruments made for St Paul’s Cathedral and the Royal Albert Hall, is thought to be one of just a few in the country to still use water hydraulics to power the sound.
Ms Singer says she hopes to hear back later this month about a number of applications she has made to help pay for the roughly £130,000 worth of restoration but is also asking anyone – who may have a love of organs or a fondness for the chapel – to consider chipping in.
An organ refurbishment programme, which is due to start at the Grade I-listed building in January and finish by late spring, will have to be postponed by at least a year if the money is not found in time.
Ms Singer warned the threat of heat to listed buildings should be taken seriously.
“Our head of conservation, Barbara Basini, is in touch with many people in listed buildings and they’re all facing the same thing,” she said. “We need to protect these buildings that are being put under extreme temperature and dry conditions, because climate change is not going away.”
For more information go to unionchapel.org.uk/organ-at-risk
