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32-524: Henry Willis (27 April 1821 – 11 February 1901), also known as "Father" Willis , was an English organ player and builder, who is regarded as the foremost organ builder of the Victorian era . His company Henry Willis & Sons remains in business. Willis was born in London , the son of a North London builder, and with George Cooper , later sub-organist of St Paul's Cathedral , he learned to play

64-583: A 17th-century fireplace. This was from the 'Quest Room' for the 'below Bars' part of the parish, i.e. that lies outside the city boundary, sited as part of a block of buildings in the middle of the main street. This block was removed as part of the Holborn Viaduct improvements and explains why Holborn is so wide at this point. In Charles Dickens 's Oliver Twist Bill Sykes looks up at this church's tower (an episode referenced by Iris Murdoch in Under

96-697: A builder still further. In a long career stretching to the end of the 19th century, Willis subsequently built the organs at the Alexandra Palace , the Royal Albert Hall , and St Paul's Cathedral. Among the approximately 1,000 other organs that he built or re-built were the cathedral instruments at Canterbury , Carlisle , Coventry , Durham , Edinburgh ( St Mary's Episcopal Cathedral ), Exeter , Glasgow (The High Kirk of Glasgow ), Gloucester, Hereford , Lincoln , St David's , Salisbury , Truro , Wells and Winchester . In addition there were

128-551: A chapel of ease for the parish. It became a parish church in its own right in 1723. On November 1, 1799, Marc Isambard Brunel married Sophia Kingdom at the church. In 1808, writer William Hazlitt married Sarah Stoddart, with Charles Lamb as his best man , and Mary Lamb as a bridesmaid . The twelve-year-old Benjamin Disraeli , the future Prime Minister , was received into the Christian Church in 1817. It

160-471: A charter of Westminster Abbey , referring to it as the "old wooden church", on top of the hill above the river Fleet . The Charter's authenticity has been called into question because the date is not within the reign of the King Edgar of England who is granting it. It may be that this is simply a scribal error and that the date should be '959' (DCCCCLIX). A 'Master Gladwin', i.e. a priest, held it after

192-404: A design to best respond to spatial, technical and acoustic considerations, and then constructs the instrument. The profession requires specific knowledge of such matters as the scaling of organ pipes and also familiarity with the various materials used (including woods, metals, felt, and leather) and an understanding of statics, aerodynamics, mechanics and electronics. However, although in theory

224-438: A large number of concert and parish church organs of note, including the organ at St George's Hall Windsor Castle , destroyed by fire in 1992. The last major instrument which he personally supervised was at St Bees Priory in 1899, which he voiced himself, although approaching his 80th year. Willis had a series of organist posts. In 1835 he became organist of Christ Church, Hoxton , and then St John-at-Hampstead from before

256-516: A regulated handwork profession. St Andrew Holborn (church) The Church of St Andrew, Holborn , is a Church of England church on the northwestern edge of the City of London , on Holborn within the Ward of Farringdon Without . Roman pottery was found on the site during 2001/02 excavations in the crypt . However, the first written record of the church itself is dated as 951 (DCCCCLI) in

288-476: A significant effect on organ design. Piston buttons were inserted between the manuals to allow automatic selection of blocks of "stops", and Barker lever servo action was used on the manuals to overcome the constraints of tracker action connecting rods for an instrument of such size and complexity. After the exhibition ended, the instrument was erected in reduced form at Winchester Cathedral where in 1854 it now had 49 speaking stops over four manuals and pedals, and

320-464: Is then usually partly or wholly assembled in the workshop, dismantled, and reassembled on-site, after which the pipes receive a final tuning and voicing. Organ builders also provide regular maintenance, which includes adjustment of pipes and maintenance of the action, and repairs necessitated by wear and tear, unforeseen problems or rough treatment (including inappropriate temperature and humidity). A complete overhaul of an organ consists of disassembly of

352-687: The Norman Conquest and he assigned it to St Paul's Cathedral , but with the proviso that the advowson be granted at 12 pence a year to the Cluniac Order 's, St Saviour's foundation of what was to become Bermondsey Abbey . This assignment dates between 1086 and 1089. In about 1200 a deed was witnessed by James, the Parson, Roger, his chaplain, Andrew, the Deacon and also Alexander his clerk. In 1280 one Simon de Gardino bequeathed funds towards

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384-726: The baptismal font . The church re-opened in 1961 as a non-parochial Guild Church intended for serving the local working rather than resident community which had declined as had the City's population as a whole. In January 2005 a new large icon was installed, made for the site by the Monastic Family Fraternity of Jesus in Vallechiara . The church runs a selection of recitals and lectures, as well as weekly services and evening concerts. In August 2010, St Andrew Holborn's Icon Cross became motorised, allowing

416-401: The 1666 Great Fire of London , saved by a last minute change in wind direction, but was already in a bad state of repair and so was rebuilt by Christopher Wren anyway. In what is his largest parish church, he rebuilt from the foundations (creating the present crypt) and gave the existing medieval stone tower (the only medieval part to survive) a marble cladding. Its rector from 1713 to 1724

448-536: The Net , though from where her character stands such a view is almost impossible). In Dickens' Bleak House , Mr Snagsby's deceased partner, Peffer, is buried in the churchyard of St Andrew's. During the London Blitz , on the night of 7 May 1941, the church was bombed and gutted by German bombs, leaving only the exterior walls and tower. However, instead of demolition which sometimes occurred in similar cases, it

480-428: The builder is responsible for all facets of construction, in practice organ-building workshops include specialists in pipes, actions, and cabinets; tasks such as the manufacture of pipes, metal casting , and making rarely-used components are often delegated to outside firms. After manufacture of all parts of a new organ, the pipes must be pre-tuned and voiced to the desired pitch and sound characteristics. The instrument

512-544: The building of a belfry, it is assumed this would be stone and that there were due to be bells to be cast for it. In the Early Middle Ages the church is referred to as St Andrew Holburnestrate and later simply as St Andrew de Holeburn. In 1348, John Thavie, a local armourer, "left a considerable Estate towards the support of the fabric forever", a legacy which survived the English Reformation ,

544-533: The church received compensation to replace its assets, and the Gothic architect Samuel Sanders Teulon was commissioned to build a new rectory and courthouse on the south side of the church – this now operates as the offices for the foundation, the associated charities and the Archdeaconry of Hackney, as well as the rectory and the conference rooms. Teulon incorporated into the courtroom, the building's main room,

576-415: The first concave and radiating pedalboard. The pedalboard was the joint idea of Willis and Samuel Sebastian Wesley with whom Willis collaborated on his next large organ of 100 speaking stops at St George's Hall, Liverpool in 1855. The Exhibition organ had led to the contract for St George's Hall, Liverpool, where the virtuosic playing of W.T. Best drew large crowds, and also spread the fame of Willis as

608-508: The first non-family Managing Director was appointed. On 28 November 1998 the total shareholding of the Willis family was acquired. The company, founded in 1845, Henry Willis & Sons , Ltd. still makes organs in Liverpool . Organ builder The organ builder usually receives a commission to design an organ with a particular disposition of stops , manuals , and actions , creates

640-634: The following children Esther died in 1893 and on 7 August 1894 he married her younger sister, Rosetta Chatterton (1830–1912), at St Thomas' Church, Camden Town . As this was before the enactment of the Deceased Wife's Sister's Marriage Act 1907 , it was in breach of the prohibition in the Marriage Act 1835. Willis died in London on the 11th February 1901, and is buried on the west side of Highgate Cemetery . His instruments can be found across

672-520: The large icon of Jesus on the Cross to be raised and lowered for services. In September 2017 controversy occurred when a London Fashion Week show which took place at the church included runway models sporting satanic images and symbols. † Rector died in post The organ in St Andrew's is a 20th-century instrument in an 18th-century casing. It was built by Mander Organs in 1989 and is mounted in

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704-676: The mid-19th century, the Holborn Valley Improvement Scheme bought up the church's North Churchyard. Many of the bodies were re-interred: some in the crypt, and others at the City of London Cemetery in Ilford (the latter also being the destination for the bodies from the crypt when it was cleared in 2002–2003) to make way for the Holborn Viaduct , linking Holborn with Newgate , which was opened by Queen Victoria in 1869. As part of this improvement scheme

736-549: The middle of 1852, then at Christ Church, Hampstead from 1852 to 1859, where he had built the organ, and then the Chapel-of-Ease, Islington (now St Mary Magdalene Church ) for nearly thirty years until 1895. He was born to Henry Willis (1792–1872) and Elizabeth. He married Esther Maria Chatterton (1817–1893), the daughter of Randall Chatterton, a silversmith, on 7 April 1847 in St Andrew's Church, Holborn and they had

768-639: The organ with some help from Thomas Attwood , St Paul's organist. In 1835, Willis was articled to organ builder John Gray (later of Gray and Davison ) for seven years. During this time, he invented the manual and pedal couplers which he used throughout his later career. Following his apprenticeship he worked for three years in Cheltenham , assisting an instrument maker, Wardle Evans, who specialised in free reed instruments. Willis later attributed his personal skill in reed voicing to this experience. Willis met Samuel Sebastian Wesley at Cheltenham, and this led to

800-401: The pipes and thorough cleaning of all components and maintenance where needed; changes and additions may also be made to the instrument at the same time. Older organs may also be restored to a previous state, including re-creation of damaged and missing parts using historically accurate materials and techniques. In some countries, including Germany, Switzerland , and Norway, organ building is

832-542: The re-building of the Gloucester Cathedral organ in 1847. Willis had become an independent organ builder and commented, "It was my stepping stone to fame... I received £400 for the job, and was presumptuous enough to marry." For the Great Exhibition of 1851, Willis erected the largest of the organs exhibited with an unprecedented 70 speaking stops. He introduced several novel features, which had

864-525: The world, particularly in the former British Empire, and his superb reed voicing and excellent mechanical craftmanship can still be experienced on many instruments today. The last organ built by Willis was at St Nicholas' Chapel, King's Lynn which is now under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust . Four generations of the Willis family continued the family tradition of organ building until 1997, when Henry Willis IV retired and

896-656: Was Henry Sacheverell , who is buried beneath the church's altar . In 1741, the philanthropic sea captain Thomas Coram set up the Foundling Hospital for abandoned children in a house in nearby Hatton Garden . The following year, the charity moved to new premises in Bloomsbury and remained there until 1935. The church of St George the Martyr Holborn was built between 1703 and 1706, as

928-659: Was decided after a long delay that it would be restored "stone for stone and brick for brick" to Wren's original designs. The church was designated a Grade I listed building on 4 January 1950. The church contains stained glass and a mural – depicting the Holy Spirit as a dove – by Brian Thomas . In 1955, the Foundling Hospital, which had originally been founded in St Andrew's parish, sold its premises at Ashlyns School in Berkhamsted , Hertfordshire . It

960-529: Was decided to transfer a number of items from the Hospital chapel in Berkhamsted back to London, including the mortal remains of Thomas Coram, the Hospital founder, which were exhumed and placed in a tomb in St Andrew's. The casing of the organ , which had originally been given to the Foundling Hospital by George Frideric Handel , was also dismantled and installed in St Andrew's, along with the pulpit and

992-522: Was invested carefully through the centuries, and still provides for the church's current upkeep. In the 15th century, the wooden church was replaced by a medieval stone one. On 8 July 1563, during a severe storm, the steeple of the church was struck and badly damaged by lightning. After being executed by hanging for the crime of serving at a Catholic Mass, St. Swithin Wells was buried in the churchyard on 10 December 1591. The medieval St Andrew's survived

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1024-581: Was on the church's steps in 1828 that the surgeon William Marsden found a homeless girl suffering from hypothermia, and sought help for her from one of the nearby hospitals. However, none would take her in, and she died in Marsden's arms; the horror of the experience inspired him to establish the Royal Free Hospital for the poor and destitute. Today the hospital is located in Hampstead. In

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