Next weekend (11th/12th April) sees the opening concerts featuring the newly installed Wurlitzer theatre pipe organ in the Victoria Hall, Saltaire near Bradford.

J and I are going on Sunday 11th to see Jelani Eddington from the USA.

Anyone else from the forums going?

We'll come along when you play there

Seriously might have thought about it but we are on holiday.

Chance would be a fine thing

But thanks

J and I went to Saltaire yesterday (12th) to hear Jelani Eddington (USA) play the newly installed Wurlitzer theatre pipe organ. Alas, we couldn't go to the offical opening concert on Saturday, but never mind.

The instrument has been installed after discussion with the Victoria Hall, Saltaire management who were, we are told, so enthusiastic to have such an instrument that work was able to proceed at great speed.

What an instrument,what an installation - the organ has never sounded better, probably not even in its original home, the Gaumont Cinema, Oldham in the '30's - 60's. Three other locations later and this has to be the best. Three cheers for the installation team.

For organ enthusiasts, Saltaire is now a bit of a venue, for just round the corner is the Reed Organ Museum housing an amazing collection of, well.........REED organs.........from tiddly little Bontempi and Magnus organs that you could by from Woolies (thereby hangs a tale ) to three manual gothic monstrosities straight out of a Hammer Horror film set.

Information about the Saltaire Wurlitzer and future events can be found by looking at the Cinema Organ Society website - Northern district (sorr, not very clever at putting "links" on)

As for Jelani Eddington, as I have just said on a previous post in "Teachers Forum" - bad back - I (and many other organists in the audience wonder whether to start practising (at MY age boo hoo) or commit musical suicide and take up shelf stacking in Sainsburys.

(See him, hear him on You Tube)

Your ever loving theatre organ fan

d