Organ cases may broadly be divided into four classes. Firstly, those which stand at the end of the nave or transept of a Church, or the end of a Concert Room. Secondly, organs which are pendent from the side of the nave or choir of a large Church. Thirdly, organs which stand on Choir Screens; and Fourthly, organs standing on the ground. Of these classes many sub-divisions may be made. Of the organs in these four classes, those in No. 1 are in general the most imposing, those in No. 2 the most picturesque, those in No. 3 the best for sound, and those in No. 4 require some skill to make them rival their compeers. Class 1 may be sub-divided into—
A. Those which fill the entire end, or nearly so, of the building in which they stand;
B. Those which have a window, or “Rose” over them; and,
C. Divided Organs, and those with exceptionally designed cases.
A. This sub-class (a very ordinary one in England and Holland) has the finest cases in the world, for I suppose that the grandest and most elaborate case in Europe is that in St. Jan’s Church, Hertogenbosch (Bois-le-Duc), rich in sculptured oak, and bright with burnished tin pipes and gilding. Externally, although it has not got so many stops, it is as large as its well-known neighbour at Haarlem, which has till lately been considered the type of a “Great Organ.” Haarlem has a noble case, with excellent pipe-work within, but its effect is injured by paint. The organ in the Hof Kirche, Lucerne, also has quaint oak carving in its thirty-two feet front, and for pretty cases, that at St. Jacques, Liége, by some considered the best of its kind, and the Organs in St. Lawrence, Jewry, and St. Stephen’s, Walbrook, the last looking somewhat like a miniature of that at Troyes, may be cited as good examples.
B. A sub-class to which very many of the large French organs may be referred. In general, these are more picturesque than those in Sub-class A, not that the absolute design is so, but that the architectural effect of the window above the case makes a most effective combination. In France, the usual window is a Rose, a form I think the best for the termination of a nave or transept, and when this is filled with stained glass, as is often the case, the effect is all that can be desired. The organs in Amiens, Rheims, Troyes, and Rouen Cathedrals, and also in Rouen in the Churches of St. Ouen and St. Maclou, are first-class examples. This sub-class is rare in England, few of our churches being sufficiently lofty to allow an organ to stand in such a position.
Sub-class C. is employed to show the west window. Fair examples are to be seen at St. Gudule, Bruxelles, and in Gray’s Inn Chapel. Among the exceptional cases, that in the Cathedral Church of St. Vitus at Prague, is one of the most curious, being cut up into four divisions, and scattered about the west galleries; and for an ugly style of exceptional case, there is one in a church in Ghent, about as ugly as can well be wished.
Class II. This class, as I have mentioned before, is highly picturesque, but is not very common. Good examples are to be seen in Strasburg and Chartres Cathedrals, and in the Minster at Freiburg, in Bresgau, all pendent in the nave; and there is a grand modern example hanging in the north side of the Choir at Ely. Organs which may be placed in this class are not uncommonly built against the east wall of the Transept in large Belgian churches: one in the cathedral church of St. Bavon, Ghent, is a good example. There must be some difficulty in building a large instrument in this position, and a lofty church is required to contain it.
Class III. may likewise be subdivided into two divisions: A. Single Cases, often with a Choir Organ in front; and B. Divided Cases. Of the former sub-class, the old organ in St. Paul’s was in every way a fine example. The old organ in Durham Cathedral was the best of Father Smith’s usual design, all his cases having a strong family likeness, that at St Paul’s being almost the only exception. The case on the Grand Screen in York Minster, although perhaps not in the best taste, is effective; and of the latter sub-class, the organ in St. Jacques, Antwerp, is excellent, and is worth the study of any one who may have to erect a divided “Screen Organ.” The much-divided organ case in Westminster Abbey I am Goth enough to call bad.
Class IV. The divisions of this class are numerous, and often occur in modern churches. A. those standing on the floor against the wall of the nave or chancel. St Mary’s, Nottingham, has a first-class modern specimen, an amplification of the organ case in Strasburg Cathedral. B. Those standing in the nave, aisle, or some corner. A good example of an old case in the first position, is in St. Clement’s, East Cheap; and the organ in All Hallows, Lombard Street, is a good specimen of one in the second position. Both these instruments, not so many years ago, stood in galleries at the west end of their respective churches. C. Those in Organ Chambers, examples of which, I am sorry to say, are common in new and restored Churches. D. Those in Organ Chapels, which are rather better for effect than those in Sub-class C. St. George’s, Doncaster, is an example of an organ of the largest size in this position. E. Those standing free under the arches of the Choir of a Cathedral or large church. In the Cathedral at Hereford is a large modern organ in this position. F. Organs with Divided cases. St. Paul’s and Durham Cathedral have good examples of this form, which I fancy is modern and peculiar to England.