Music
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The Organ at St Ann’s is a fine instrument of four manuals and pedals, with 54 speaking stops. It has a history that dates back to the first instrument installed here in 1730 by the Salford firm, Glyn and Parker. We are lucky enough to have two stops remaining and in full working order from this first organ. In 1839, the famous Manchester builder Samuel Renn enlarged and rebuilt the organ, adding many new stops and incorporating the original Glyn and Parker pipework. After the reordering of the church by Alfred Waterhouse in 1887, the organ was in need of extensive repairs and Mr Waterhouse suggested it’s removal to the North East Gallery (It was originally on the West Gallery). The tender from Alexander Young and Bro. was accepted and then work was completed in December 1891.  During the early twentieth century the organ gradually expanded in size and scope through work completed by Jardine & Co. in 1934 and 1946. These alterations necessitated the removal of the east side of the 1730 case and the re-siting of the console into the east side of the organ, with the front of the case fitted with matching panels to cover the gap left by the repositioned console.A major rebuild of the organ took place in 1954, when the interior of the instrument was redesigned and a new ‘Discus’ blowing plant installed inside the organ. In addition, the console was placed at ground level on the south side of the church (in it’s current position), thus enabling the player to hear the organ, congregation and choir in their correct perspective. In 1970 a new Positif department was added as a memorial to William Hardwick (organist of St Ann’s from 1936) who died in 1969. In 1981, as part of the restoration and re-decoration of the church, a beautiful case was added to cover pipework visible to the east of the organ.  In 1996, George Sixsmith & Co. of Mossley was given the contract to completely rebuild the organ to a design by Ronald Frost. Thankfully, the organ had been removed before the IRA Bomb that devastated the city centre and caused severe damage to the windows on the North Side (where the organ would have been) of the church.The instrument has received high acclaim from recitalists and organ builders for the imaginative tonal scheme and for the quality of its construction and design. Click here to download the specification of the current organ. A more detailed History of the Organ is available, with specifications, from the back of church. Please contact the church for details. |
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