Organs

Your church organ needs regular maintenance, and every twenty to thirty years it might also need a few repairs.

We can help you make good choices when the time comes to repair or replace it.

Our guidance, which covers the types of organs, repair work, conservation, organ builder reports, and the necessary legal permission, can be downloaded as a single guidance note 

Download our guidance: Organs Guidance

Your organ needs to be regularly maintained and tuned by a professional organ builder.

We strongly encourage you to use an accredited organ builder whose work is regularly assessed for its quality.

Find an organ builder now

Are you making changes to the use of your building, your style of worship, or simply need to do some repairs? Then, you may have to discuss the future of your organ.

Before you take any decisions, you need to understand your current instrument. Contact your Diocesan Advisory Committee for help. Ask yourself:

• Who built the organ? And when?
• Has it been restored or rebuilt? If so, by whom and when?
• Does it contain earlier material which may be of historic value (e.g. pipes or casework)?
• Is the organ of any musical distinction?
• Is it mechanically well-made?
• How suitable is it for the liturgical and wider uses of your church?
• How much will it cost to repair?

Natural acoustics means that your organ will sound louder in some parts of the church than in others. Often, this is not a problem.

But if your organ doesn’t speak well to any part of the building, then you may want to look into subtle amplification.

Use a microphone and set it up to amplify only the organ. You will need to use a different sound system intended for speech, singing, or band music.

And don’t forget about loop system users.

Your church’s heating system will affect the performance of your organ. It can make the organ:

• Shrink and crack if the air is too dry
• Swell if the air is too damp
• Sound “out of tune”
• And more

Choosing the right heating system is about keeping people comfortable and the organ in good order to avoid expensive damage.

The same system will not work for every church, so you should talk to your heating specialist and your organ builder for advice.

Find out more about heating through our national guidance. 

Further information can also be found in the Building Conservation Directory through Tobit Curteis & William McVicker's article on Pipe Organs and the Building Environment

If your organ has no future use where it is, you may want to see if another church will take it.

1. Step one: Contact your diocese

They can help you evaluate the possibility of relocating the organ and will give you advice about your faculty application.

2. Step two: Advertise on the Institute of British Organ Building website

When it is agreed that relocating the organ is the best way forward, send the administrator of the IBO:

• A completed online form
• The organ’s dimensions
• Photographs

Avoid online auctions or only use them as a last resort. You will need a faculty before putting the organ up for auction.

3. Step three: Make a full report of the organ before dismantling it

Most churches have pipe organs, but there are other options: using electronic sounds and a mix of pipe and electronic.

What are the benefits and drawbacks of each?

Pipe Organs

Appearance

A pipe organ can be designed to fit the architectural setting of your church.

For new organs, the organ builder will work with you to design something for your space.

If you are re-using an existing organ, make sure it’s suitable for your church. Some organs adapt more easily than others.

Cost and reliability

The bigger the organ, the more expensive it will be.

But, there are plenty of examples of well-built pipe organs that have been in regular use for many years. The cost of installation and maintenance is modest compared to the use made of them.

A pipe organ is an investment for many generations.

Long-term costs

Most pipe organs need tuning once or twice a year.

Those with mechanical action need cleaning and minor repairs at intervals of 25-40 years. The cost is about 5% that of a new instrument.

In the long run, your pipes and casework will last almost indefinitely.

Electronic Organs

Appearance

An electronic organ can be designed to fit the architectural setting of your church.

The loudspeakers are larger than those used for speech.

They should be positioned to musical and visual advantage. And they should be designed to fit your church, not the inside of an existing pipe organ.

Cost and reliability

A good, well-designed electronic organ is not inexpensive. But it will normally be less than an adequate new pipe organ.

The cost largely depends on the type and quality of the basic equipment and the time spent setting it up in your church. The number of stops will make little difference, so be disciplined about the number you choose.

A good rule of thumb: If the organ is too big to fit inside the building because it was made as pipe organ… then it is simply too big!

Long-term Costs

Experience has shown us that you can expect your organ to last an average of 20 years.

Sometimes, you can extend that by fitting in new components within the console.

Hybrid organs

A hybrid organ combines pipe and electronic technology to produce sound.

This has been around for many years, but is not common in our churches.

Just as with pipe and electronic organs:

• Consider how you will use the instrument
• Make sure its design fits the architectural setting of your church
• And don’t buy something that is too big for your building

If your church is closing, you should try and find a future home for your organ before it is removed.

Your diocese will be asked to submit a report about the organ to:

• The Church Commissioners
• The Statutory Advisory Committee on Closed and Closing Churches

Find out more about furnishings no longer needed for worship

Keeping an organ in regular use is good for it and the development of future organists.

Find out if your diocese has an organists training programme or visit your local branch:

• The Royals School of Church Music
• Incorporated Association of Organists