My monthly inspection visit of progress on the new Gloucester Cathedral organ at Nicholsons always takes place in the last week of the month. The first photo shows some beautiful 17th century front pipes, their previously hacked-about backs skilfully filled with matching medal and then slotted and tuned.
The ranks not placed on slider soundboards will go on unit chests. Smaller pipes will be on Roosevelt chests (a small pneumatic motor with disc pallet attached, exhausted by a chest magnet), the larger ones on pouch chests (or ‘purse’ chests), the leather purse/pouch being exhausted by a compound magnet and then drawing down a disc pallet at the head of a phosphor-bronze stem running through a register and held off with a coil spring. Both are fast and reliable actions, giving good speech.
The new Great Organ has two divisions, one facing east into the Quire, the other – the Grand Great – facing West down the Nave. The generous scale of this Grand Open Diapason is evident in the photo; it, and the chorus it supports, will have no difficulty in singing boldly all the way to the West door.