St John on the Wall, part II

Manually pumping the bellows

An organ bellows operator is called a calcant

I arranged with the organist who plays at St John on the Wall to return to the church and interview him one afternoon. His name is Kacper, and he knows a great deal about Bristol's church organs. It was a pleasure to talk to him and hear him expound on so many different aspects of the instrument, from its history, to its construction and the way it sounds. The demonstration of the sounds produced by the different stops starts at about 19 minutes.

He had spent the afternoon working on the bellows, and my favourite moment was playing the instrument while the bellows were worked by hand. Most church organs these days are electrically pumped. It was a priviledge to play this wonderful organ through the bellows!

I also enclose links to Kacper playing Bach and Pachelbel. I think it is a magnificent performance!