This article is about the numerous notable

pipe organ The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air (called ''wind'') through the organ pipes selected from a keyboard. Because each pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ''ranks' ...

s of the city of

Brighton and Hove Brighton and Hove () is a city and unitary authority in East Sussex, England. It consists primarily of the settlements of Brighton and Hove, alongside neighbouring villages. Often referred to synonymously as Brighton, the City of Brighton and H ...

, from the small early 19th-century organs to the large 20th-century instruments in the large churches.

Brighton

Churches

The Chapel Royal

The organ of the Chapel Royal was built in 1883 by the famous London firm of

Henry Willis & Sons Henry Willis & Sons is a British firm of pipe organ builders founded in 1845. Although most of their installations have been in the UK, examples can be found in other countries. Five generations of the Willis family served as principals of th ...

to a specification of twenty stops on two manuals and pedals: a Choir organ of six or seven stops was also prepared for. It is an interesting example of a small Willis organ, of which there are relatively few.

St Peter's

The organ of St Peter's was built in 1888 by the famous London firm of

for the Hampstead Conservatoire of Music with forty-three stops spread over four manuals and pedals. The same firm brought it to Brighton in 1910: the instrument it replaced, built in the 1820s by W. A. A. Nicholls and enlarged in 1877 by W. M. Hedgeland, was moved in 1910 to the church of St Paul,

St Albans St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major town on the old Roman ...

. As of February 2022 the organ has been removed, parts of it to be reused at St John's College Chapel, Cambridge.

St Martin's, Lewes Rd

The organ of St. Martin's was installed in 1876 by

William Hill & Sons William Hill & Son was one of the main organ builders in England during the 19th century. The founder William Hill was born in Spilsby, Lincolnshire in 1789. He married Mary, the daughter of organ-builder Thomas Elliot, on 30 October 1818 i ...

of London, to a specification of 29 stops over 3 manuals and pedals. The instrument was completed in 1888, having been built as funds permitted. It is an historically important instrument, being tonally unaltered from its original state, and known for its fine, clear sound, an influence of Hill's experiences in Germany, and the firm's early association with

Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include sym ...

. It has a rather heavy mechanical action, and an intricate, albeit incomplete case.

St. Mary the Virgin, Kemp Town

The first organ at St Mary the Virgin Church was a small organ built by Henry Lincoln of eleven stops on two manuals with 13 notes of pulldown pedals. This was replaced in 1855 by a new organ by Henry Bevington, which was enlarged to three manuals and 24 stops in 1878: four stops were added in 1904. A further four were added in 1965 and two digital stops were added in 1980. Pictures and a recording may be hear
here

St.Bartholomew, Ann Street

The current instrument, in two matching cases either side of the west gallery, , url=http://www.npor.org.uk/NPORView.html?RI=A00294 is an enlargement of the 1906 instrument by Morgan & Smith. The organ has 37 stops over three manuals and pedals and benefits well from the cavernous acoustic in this immense building, the highest nave interior of any church or cathedral building in the British Isles, at 135 feet, and the organ makes a far better impression than its stoplist might at first lead one to expect.

St. Paul, West Street

An incomplete but nonetheless impressive organ , url=http://www.npor.org.uk/NPORView.html?RI=N15513 intended as a four-manual design with 48 stops, mostly by Alfred Hunter rebuilt in 1968 by Hill, Norman and Beard.

Brighthelm Church and Community Centre

A Walker instrument 1921 rebuilt in 1985 by Hill, Norman and Beard with 57 speaking stops. , url=http://www.npor.org.uk/NPORView.html?RI=A00537

Public buildings

The Dome Pavilion

The first pipe organ in the Dome's Concert Hall was built in 1870 by the famous London firm of

to a specification of forty-four stops spread over four manuals and pedals. Unfortunately, this modestly sized but nonetheless splendid instrument was removed in 1935 for the great rebuilding of the theatre and was never returned, but broken up for parts. The instrument which replaced it, a large 'Christie' organ of fifty extended ranks, built in 1935 by the firm of

Hill, Norman and Beard William Hill & Son & Norman & Beard Limited (commonly known as Hill, Norman and Beard) were a major pipe organ manufacturer originally based in Norfolk. History They were founded in 1916 by the merger of Norman and Beard and William Hill & Sons ...

, incorporating a string division from the short-lived organ at

Glyndebourne Glyndebourne () is an English country house, the site of an opera house that, since 1934, has been the venue for the annual Glyndebourne Festival Opera. The house, located near Lewes in East Sussex, England, is thought to be about six hun ...

, is effective in both classical and theatre styles. This large instrument has four manuals and one hundred and seventy-eight stops obtained by extension and unification of numerous ranks, plus numerous percussion effects. It has recently been restored by David Wells of Liverpool.

Hove

Churches

All Saints

All Saints Church All Saints Church, or All Saints' Church or variations on the name may refer to: Albania * All Saints' Church, Himarë Australia * All Saints Church, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory * All Saints Anglican Church, Henley Brook, Western Aus ...

, a large and fine building designed by Pearson, is fortunate to have a suitably fine organ, built by the London firm of

William Hill & Son William Hill & Son was one of the main organ builders in England during the 19th century. The founder William Hill was born in Spilsby, Lincolnshire in 1789. He married Mary, the daughter of organ-builder Thomas Elliot, on 30 October 1818 i ...

in 1894 to a specification of fourteen stops on two manuals and pedals at a cost of £882. It was enlarged in 1905 to forty-eight stops on three manuals and pedals at a further cost of £1908. It was provided with an ornate case in 1915 to a design by Pearson's son, Frank: the instrument was restored in 1987 by Mander Organs.

Public buildings

The Town Hall

The Town Hall was designed by

Alfred Waterhouse Alfred Waterhouse (19 July 1830 – 22 August 1905) was an English architect, particularly associated with the Victorian Gothic Revival architecture, although he designed using other architectural styles as well. He is perhaps best known ...

and built in 1882. In 1897, a new pipe organ of thirty-six stops on four manuals and pedals, designed by

John Stainer Sir John Stainer (6 June 1840 – 31 March 1901) was an English composer and organist whose music, though seldom performed today (with the exception of ''The Crucifixion'', still heard at Passiontide in some churches of the Anglican Communi ...

and built by the famous London firm of

, was provided: it was closely similar to the Willis in the

Brighton Dome The Brighton Dome is an arts venue in Brighton, England, that contains the Concert Hall, the Corn Exchange and the Studio Theatre (formerly the Pavilion Theatre). All three venues are linked to the rest of the Royal Pavilion Estate by a tunnel t ...

. The instrument was sold in 1961, amidst much local controversy, to

Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School Haberdashers' Boys' School (also known as Haberdashers', Habs, or Habs Boys), until September 2021 known as Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School, is a Independent school (United Kingdom), public school for pupils age 4 to 18 in Elstree, Hertfo ...

Elstree Elstree is a large village in the Hertsmere borough of Hertfordshire, England. It is about northwest of central London on the former A5 road, that follows the course of Watling Street. In 2011, its population was 5,110. It forms part of t ...

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For gov ...

: however, without this move, the organ would no longer exist, as the hall was completely destroyed by fire in 1966.

References

{{Brighton and Hove Brighton and Hove, Pipe organs of Brighton and Hove Music in Brighton and Hove