PRESS RELEASE

James O'Donnell, Organist & Master of the Choristers at Westminster Abbey to play

Inaugural Organ Recital on 28 November 2013

Hampton Court Palace 28/5/ 2013: We are delighted to

announce that James O’Donnell, Organist & Master of the

Choristers at Westminster Abbey will play an Inaugural Organ

Recital on 28 November 2013 at 7:45 PM on the Chapel’s

Shrider-Hill Organ, which is being overhauled by the organ-

building firm Harrison & Harrison of Durham. Tickets are £10

and will be sold on the Historic Royal Palaces website from 1

July.

This instrument was originally built by Christopher Shrider in

1711, and the instrument today still contains eleven ranks of

pipes from that organ. The splendid case may well be by

Grinling Gibbons whose work can be found elsewhere in the

Palace. The organ was enlarged on several occasions between

1840 to 1901 by the firm of William Hill and Son, one of the

most highly rated and experienced British organ builders of

the time. Other firms carried out work in 1957, 1972 and

1993.

The principal work at Hampton Court is mechanical, and

involves the replacement of the action and transmission - the

vital connections between the keys and the pipes. The

construction of the key-action started back in January.

Harrison and Harrison will also improve the layout of the

interior, and undertake minor tonal changes - including the

removal of the electronic stops which can be seen to be an

anachronism in an historic organ. It is anticipated that the

work will be completed by July. After the Inaugural Recital in

November, a series of weekly organ recitals will commence.

Work on the organ was made possible through the support of

The Choral Foundation, registered charity number: 1142075,

company number 7542466.

The Choral Foundation aims to raise funds to provide musical

training for the choristers and to ensure that the 500 year old

musical heritage of The Chapel Royal at Hampton Court

Palace will continue for future generations.

Ends

Contact: Cathy Breeze

cathy.breeze@smf.org.uk

07799 414682