The Recent Revolution in Organ Building / Being an Account of Modern Developments

by George Laing Miller

While still "serving his time" and before he was out of his teens, Henry Willis was appointed organist of Christ Church, Hoxton. In the early fifties he was organist of Hampstead Parish Church, where he had built a new organ, and for nearly thirty years he was organist at Islington, Chapel-of-Ease, which post he only resigned after he had passed the Psalmist's "three score years and ten." In spite of the engrossing claims of his business, Mr. Willis discharged his duties as organist with commendable faithfulness; he would often travel 150 miles on a Saturday in order to be present at the Sunday services. In his younger days he also played the double-bass and played at the provincial Musical Festivals of 1871 and 1874.

After his apprenticeship expired he lived in Cheltenham for three years, where he assisted an organ-builder named Evans, who afterwards became known as a manufacturer of free reed instruments. They produced a model of a two-manual free reed instrument with two octaves and a half of pedals which was exhibited at Novello's, in London. Here Willis met the celebrated organist, Samuel Sebastian Wesley.

Henry Willis

About the year 1847 Henry Willis started in business for himself as an organ-builder, and his first great success was in rebuilding the organ in Gloucester Cathedral. "It was my stepping-stone to fame," he says. "The Swell, down to double C, had twelve stops and a double Venetian front. The pianissimo was simply astounding. I received 400 pounds for the job, and I was presumptuous enough to marry."

For the Great Exhibition of 1851 in the Crystal Palace (then in Hyde Park), Mr. Willis erected a magnificent organ which attracted extraordinary attention and was visited by the Queen and Prince Consort. It had three manuals and pedals, seventy sounding stops and seven couplers. There were twenty-two stops on the Swell, and the Swell bellows was placed inside the Swell box. The manual compass extended to G in altissimo and the pedals from CCC to G—32 notes. There were other important features in this remarkable instrument which went a long way towards revolutionizing the art of organ-building. First, the introduction of pistons, inserted between the key-slips, which replaced the clumsy composition pedals then in vogue. Again, to use Mr. Willis' own words, "that Exhibition organ was the great pioneer of the improved pneumatic movement. A child could play the keys with all the stops drawn. It never went wrong."

This organ was afterwards re-erected in Winchester Cathedral in 1852, and was in constant use for forty years before being renovated. It was also the means of procuring Willis the order for the organ in St. George's Hall, Liverpool. "The Town Clerk of Liverpool wrote to me," said Mr. Willis, "to the effect that a committee of the Corporation would visit the Exhibition on a certain day at 6 A. M., their object being to test the various organs with a view to selecting a builder for the proposed new instrument in St. George's Hall. He asked me if I could be there. I was there—all there! The other two competing builders, X and Z, in anticipation of the visit, tuned their organs in the afternoon of the previous day, with the result that, owing to the abnormal heat of the sun through the glass roof, the reeds were not fit to be heard! I said nothing. At five o'clock on the following morning my men and I were there to tune the reeds of my organ in the cool of the morning of that lovely summer's day. At six o'clock the Liverpool committee, which included the Mayor and the Town Clerk in addition to S. S. Wesley and T. A. Walmisley, their musical advisers, duly appeared. Messrs. X and Z had specially engaged two eminent organists to play for them. I retained nobody. But I had previously said to Best, who had given several recitals on my organ at the Exhibition, 'It would not be half a bad plan if you would attend to-morrow morning at six o'clock, as you usually do for practice.' Best was there. After the two other organs had been tried, the Town Clerk came up and said: 'We have come to hear your organ, Mr. Willis. Are you going to play it yourself?' I said, 'There's one of your own townsmen standing there (that was Best); ask him.' He did ask him. 'Mr. Best has no objection to play,' said the Town Clerk, 'but he wants five guineas!' 'Well, give it to him; the Corporation can well afford it.' The matter was arranged. Best played the overture to 'Jessonda' by Spohr, and it was a splendid performance." The organ was quite a revelation to the Liverpudlians, and after talking it over in private for twenty minutes the committee decided to recommend Willis to the Council to build the organ in St. George's Hall. He had, however, serious differences with Dr. S. S. Wesley, who wanted both the manuals and pedals to begin at GG. "I gave in to him in regard to the manuals," said Mr. Willis, "but I said, 'unless you have the pedal compass to C, I shall absolutely decline to build your organ.'" And so the matter was compromised. But Willis lived to see the manual compass of his magnificent Liverpool organ changed to CC (in 1898). When the organ was finished he recommended that Best should be appointed organist, although Dr. Wesley officiated at the opening ceremony in 1855. Not only did Willis practically get Best appointed to Liverpool, but he had previously coached him up in his playing of overtures and other arrangements for the organ. "I egged him on," said the veteran organ-builder, and we all know with what results. Notwithstanding all that Best owed to Willis, he quarreled with him violently towards the close of his career over the care of the St. George's Hall organ. As Best told the writer, "not because Willis could not, but because he would not" do certain things in the way of repairs, that he claimed did not come under his contract. This led to the care of the organ being transferred to T. C. Lewis & Sons, but it was given back to Willis after Best's death.

Mr. Willis gained a wide and deservedly high reputation as the builder of many Cathedral organs—upwards of sixteen. His largest instrument is that in the Royal Albert Hall, London. He designed it entirely himself; he had not to compete for the building of it, but had carte blanche in regard to every detail.

There was an amusing incident in connection with deciding upon the pitch of the instrument. The authorities arranged that Sir Michael Costa, Mr. R. K. Bowley, then general manager of the Crystal Palace, and some of the leading wind-instrument players of the day, including Lazarus (a famous clarinetist), should attend at the factory to settle the question of the pitch of the organ. "They also brought a violinist," said Mr. Willis; "but I couldn't see what a fiddler, who is a very useful man in his way, had to do with settling the pitch. (I should tell you," added Mr. Willis, sotto voce, "that I had formulated some idea of the proper pitch before these gentlemen arrived.) However, we duly proceeded, Costa presiding over the conclave. When they began to blow into their different instruments each man had a different pitch! It was a regular pandemonium! By and by we settled upon something which was considered satisfactory, and we bade each other good morning." The sequel need not be told. We leave it to our readers to draw their own conclusions as to whether the Royal Albert Hall organ was actually tuned to the pitch of Messrs. Costa, Bowley, Lazarus & Co., or to that previously decided upon by Mr. Willis.