At the start of the year the organ brochure was finally completed and copies were circulated to all members. Copies are available at the Town Hall and many have been taken up by visitors. We are grateful to Creative Communities (Christchurch) for a grant that made this possible and also to Pope Print for a favourable quote for the printing. The content and design was the work of Jenny Setchell.
There were two concerts in the 2005 International Organ Concert series this year. The first of these was on Sunday, 29 May, when we welcomed back Christopher Herrick for a return visit. Members will remember that he was our Guest Organist at the inaugural festival of the Rieger organ in 1997. On this occasion he attracted a very large audience - over 700 - which taxed the box office resources on a Sunday afternoon. As Martin Setchell was away on sabbatical the responsibility for the organisation fell on his deputy, Russell Kent, with the assistance of the trustees.
The second concert was on Sunday, 2 October, when the soloist was Olivier Eisenmann. In the light of the experience with Christopher Herrick, the box office was better prepared but unfortunately the opposite occurred and there was a disappointing attendance. Various reasons were suggested for this poor response but the mid-European programme without any well-known pieces was probably the most likely.
For some time the Organ Curators have found the arrangement, by which a hardboard screen is put over the organ console when the organ is not being used, to be unsatisfactory. Rieger do not normally provide doors to an organ since the area where the organ is sited is not accessible to the public in most halls. This is not the case in the Town Hall and it is necessary to protect the console from possible damage by an unauthorised member of the public.
The trustees have approached the Christchurch Civic Music Council and obtained the residue of the Town Hall Organ Fund - $5390.77 for the purpose of securing proper doors for the console. That amount resulted from interest that had accrued after the final settlement with the City Council and further donations including a legacy from Ruth Hendry’s estate. A further bequest has been received from the estate of Dr Derek Patterson and this has been added to the accumulated funds, which are now to be devoted to funding the cost of the screen doors. This seemed to be the most appropriate way for using these funds. Submissions were invited from three leading organ builders, two in New Zealand and one from overseas, and in December, after consultation with the Town Hall venue management, the contract was awarded to Rieger. The full-length doors will be made entirely of safety glass to allow a view of all three manuals and stops and will be installed by technicians from the venue management company under the supervision of the organ’s tuner, Kenneth Aplin, and curator Martin Setchell. It is hoped that the doors will be installed in time for the first concert for the year, which is on Sunday 5 March 2006.
I would like to express our appreciation of the work that Russell Kent did while Martin Setchell was overseas and for the ongoing contribution of Martin himself. The Trustees have succeeded in obtaining financial assistance towards the Organ Concerts from Christchurch City Council, Canterbury Community Trust, Christchurch Star, Canterbury Foundation, Copthorne Central Hotel, John Rhind and Pope Print and we extend our thanks to them. We also thank the Town Hall management company for their assistance during the past year. Thanks also to our Auditor, Christopher Stent. Finally, thanks to all members of the Friends of the Town Hall Organ for their continued support.
Peter D Barton
Chairman
