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The Battle Of The Organs

GoneBaroque

New member
I have lately been rereading William Leslie Sumner’s book The Organ; Its Evolution, Principles of Construction and Use and feel that some information on the history of the Organ might be of interest to lovers of the instrument. The copy I have, which has resided on my bookshelves since the mid 1960’s is the third revised edition published in 1962 by Macdonald & Co. Ltd. of London. The book, now out of print, is an invaluable resource for any serious organ fan which would be worth looking foe on the used book market

Today the focus is on an event which had a duration of four years and has been called “The Battle of the Organs” between two of the most prominent organ builders in England Bernard “Father” Smith and Renatus Harris.

Smith, nee Schmidt had been born about 1630 in Germany and trained there as a Master Organ Builder. When organ building recommenced after the restoration of the Monarchy he moved to England arriving in 1667. His first organ in England was built for the Chapel Royal. In 1681 he was appointed the King's Organ Maker. Smith’s workmanship was sound and while he used the best materials available his workmanship was rough. He did not seem to be interested in a nice finish so much as the quality of the sound from his wooden pipes which were noted for their sweetness and brilliance. The worst feature of his organs was their touch which many organists found difficult to play.

Probably Smith’s only serious rival was Renatus Harris who was born in France in 1652, the son of an English organ builder Thomas Harris who left England, along with many other builders after the execution of King Charles I and the institution of the Puritan Commonwealth. Thus emerged a family of organ builders as Renatus’ Grandfather as well as his two sons were also in the trade. From contemporary reports it would appear that Harris was slightly inferior to Smith in matters of tone but vastly superior in his mechanical action and the quality of his metal pipes.

Towards the end of the reign of Charles II; Smith was contracted to build a new organ in the Temple Church in London but some members of the Society of the Middle Temple who supported Harris objected. Temple Church had been built by and for the medieval monastic and chivalric Order of Knights Templar and was consecrated in 1185 in a ceremony by conducted by the Patriarch of Jerusalem. Following the dissolution of the Knights Templar around 1314 Temple Church was made a Peculiar, a status which allies the church to the Monarch rather than placing it under the jurisdiction of a Bishop. In 1608 James I granted to the two Inns of Court the use of the church in perpetuity, to use as their chapel, on condition that they supported and maintained the church. Regular services are held and open to the public, but only members of the two Houses of the court may me married in the church. As an aside, John Stanley was organist the the church for a time.

A decision was reached by the Middle Court who supported Smith and the Inner court, who supported Harris that both men be allowed to erect an organ in different portions of the church and a decision would be made on which one would be used. This naturally caused dissension among both the builders and their respective supporters. It was thus decided to set up an impartial panel of Judges to decide the matter. After a competition which lasted almost a year with John Blow and Henry Purcell playing Smith’s organ and Baptist Draghi (the organist to queen Catherine) playing the Harris instrument; the decision was made in 1867 in favor of Smith who received 1,000 pounds with half paid by each society.. Harris removed his instrument and erected it in his workshop. Later a portion of the organ went to Christ Church Cathedral in Dublin and the rest to St. Andrews, Holborn. Smith died in 1708 and Harris in 1724. Portions of several organs built by both men are still in use in various locations.
 
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