News / Bristol cathedral
Cathedral’s largest ever donation helps fund renovation of historic organ
Bristol Cathedral has received its largest philanthropic gift since the rebuilding of the nave in the 1860s.
The cathedral will use the one million pound donation from the Harry Crook Foundation for the restoration and rebuilding of its historic organ.
The organ consists of a historic Renatus Harris case from 1685 and a 1907 Walker instrument that sits inside. It has a depth of several feet and contains more than 5,000 pipes.
is needed now More than ever
Since the Edwardian era, there have been various phases of repair and restoration. But due to its increasing fragility, the organ is beginning to disrupt services and concerts, and is becoming much harder for organists and visiting recitalists to play.
Cathedral organist Mark Lee said that the best analogy is that of a vintage car, “which instead of being driven on occasional Sunday afternoons in the countryside, is driven every single day, usually for over 20 hours each week and even more in the run up to Easter and Christmas”.
The cathedral will now work with some of the UK’s leading experts and hope that the fully operational organ will be able to accompany the Christmas carol singing of 2020.
Former Bristol lord mayor Harry Crook set up his foundation in 1962, endowing it with shares from his Kleen-E-Zee Brush Co, famed for its door-to-door brush salesmen.
During his lifetime he supported a large number of charities in the city, particularly youth organisations, and the policy of the foundation’s trustees is to follow in the founder’s footsteps and support charities which serve Bristol.
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