I played for the decomissioning service of my church many years ago. Having taken care of a church organ for 35 years, it was heart wrenching after that last chord had been played, and knowing that it would never be played again. Despite good intentions of restorers, the fact is that modern high-end digital,organs are indistinguishable in sound, and come in at 1/10 of the cost of their pipe equivalent. Oh, the pipe organs have way more character of course, but this one will likely be demolished and it's pipes sent to an organ builder for reclaiming the metal. That missing pipe worries me. The centre 8ft diapaoson has also been moved. This makes me wonder if the metal thieves have already been inside it and hooked out the useful,stuff?
Either way, I remember that sad night well. Once the Bishop has done his thing and the interior of the church was in darkness, the congregation filed out into the hall. I didn't though. I sat at the instrument and couldn't bring myself to silence the blower that final time.
I dare say some will find this sentimental bollocks, but it's quite something to explore a derelict church, and it's quite something to be there at the start of its journey into dereliction.
(Ok, fess up. I kept a key to my old church. For twenty years, I went back regularly, before I'd heard of Urbexing, and watched it quietly sink into decay. The old organ, unplayable now there is no electricity on the site, is still there, although on my last visit, the metal,thieves had stripped it of its lead action piping and all the metal pipework. I wonder if they care a jot that some of that pipework was manufactured when Bach was alive? Probably not.
Oops. Just realised how long this is.....sorry.
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