Celebrating the gift of music – the blessing of the new pipe organ

On Friday 7 November, the blessing and dedication of the pipe organ finally gave witness to the completion of the St Joseph’s College Chapel .

The original gift of the Norman and Beard organ – the instrument at the heart of the new pipe organ – was offered to the college in 2002 by Ian and Barbara Summerville and members of their family. The cost of restoring and breathing new life into the organ was borne by the Friel family in honour of their deceased parents, Manus and Hannah Friel. There were also a number of additional donors whose generous contributions helped complete the project, including the installation of a second console that allowed the organ to be played from the Sanctuary.

The liturgy to bless and dedicate the pipe organ was celebrated by His Eminence George Cardinal Pell, Archbishop of Sydney. Benefactors  Ian and Barbara Summerville and members of their family, and Friel family members, May English, Brother Kevin Friel (pictured below) and the grandchildren and great grandchildren of Magnus and Hannah Friel, were special guests at the ceremony.  Also in attendance were boys, Brothers and staff from the college, the Marist Provincial, organ builders Robert Heatley and Phil Mierisch of Australian Pipe Organs in Melbourne and members of the wider Joeys community.

During the ceremony guests were treated to the full beauty and power of the new pipe organ by special guest organist, Mr Peter Kneeshaw, who is the principal organist at St Mary’s Cathedral in Sydney.

Headmaster Mr Ross Tarlinton said the installation of the new pipe organ finally marked the completion of the St Joseph’s College Chapel, 68 years after its official opening.

“St Joseph’s  is now blessed with an instrument that will be as lasting as the other great facilities at the college, made available to us through the vision of those who have gone before us,” he said. Mr Tarlinton said the history and heritage of the chapel was significant for the college, and he honoured the many people who have contributed to its construction over the years.

“As a Catholic school St Joseph’s sees the Chapel as being at the centre of things. Even architecturally it is the case in this college. In 1938, the then Headmaster, Brother Louis Hughes, began construction of the Chapel and the Assistant-General, Brother Clement Murray, a former Headmaster of SJC, turned the first sod.  The arches – which had been carefully left in the masonry in the back wall of the main building until finances were available for construction – were uncovered in preparation for the new Chapel.  Nothing was to be spared to make a fitting home for the Blessed Sacrament and for the worthy – even splendid – celebration of the Church’s liturgy, especially for the Mass.  An eminent church architect, Clement Glancey, was engaged and the best materials – stone and slate – were used. The glorious stained glass windows were ordered from Germany, and the most intricate ceiling in Australia at the time (modelled from the Roman basilicas but without the gilding) was installed. When it could be afforded, the sanctuary was completely fitted out in marble. The end result was this most beautiful and devotional Chapel, one of the finest you would see anywhere and always the heart of the St Joseph’s College.”

“The single major item that had to be left for the future was the pipe organ, the traditional instrument used by the Church to enhance the liturgy and to help us raise our hearts, minds and voices to the Lord.  It is therefore with great joy and gratitude that we celebrate the blessing and dedication of the pipe organ today.”

Mr Tarlinton also thanked Brother Chris Wade, for his extraordinary work in managing the project, and the Marist Brothers and staff of the college.

“Our Marist Brothers are always welcome here at their home – the old grey mother as the college is sometimes familiarly known among them – an institution into which they have poured their hearts and souls for almost 130 years.  Our lay staff carry on the traditions they established, and some of them, free from other duties, are welcome as always.”

The history of the organ

The St Joseph’s College organ was built by the famous British organ builders Norman and Beard of Norwich who had an order for twelve of these instruments. Ours was built probably in 1907/8 though the date also 1911 has been mentioned. The Norman and Beard job number is 1196 and as originally built it was a two manual and pedal instrument of 12 speaking stops (plus one additionally prepared for), five couplers and an exhaust tubular-pneumatic action. There was also provision for hand-pumping.

It was installed in St George’s Church of England Hurstville, most likely by John Holroyd, though internal evidence suggests the involvement of Charles Edwards, a local Sydney organ builder. The organ remained in that church, albeit in different locations, until 1969. It was then sold to Mr Ian Somerville who, as an organ enthusiast, built it in his house at Fairfield Heights (and later Mt Colah) where he enjoyed playing it for the next thirty years or so. Eventually Ian and his wife decided to move and downsize, and this is where St Joseph’s comes in.

Ian had heard that St Joseph’s was possibly interested in an organ for the Chapel, so early in 2002 he phoned Brother Chris Wade and very kindly and generously offered the instrument to the college if it could be made use of there. The offer was accepted, though lack of funds meant the instrument had to go into storage until a donor could be identified.

In 2007 that donor materialised in the form of the Friel family, originally from Ireland via North Queensland, and with strong links with St Joseph’s College and the Marist Brothers given that a son, Kevin, is himself a Brother. After an initial approach the family enthusiastically agreed to fund the total organ project as a memorial to their deceased parents, Manus and Hannah Friel.

The order for the construction of the restored and augmented Norman and Beard instrument was placed with Robert Heatley of Australian Pipe Organs in Melbourne.

In due course, after some modification to the Chapel gallery, the organ was completed on Thursday 19 June 2008 and played publicly for the first time on the following Sunday 23 June, the occasion of the celebration of jubilees of the Marist Brothers of the Sydney and Melbourne provinces.

When the organ was originally sold its casework was retained at Hurstville; the case in SJC Chapel is by Norman and Beard, dating from 1909 and formerly found in St Andrew’s Uniting Church at Parramatta.