As part of a series of live performances, the University of Westminster is set to bring the organ into the modern day by blending unexpected genres at the Organ+ Festival.
Held across spaces at and surrounding the University between 4 October and 6 December, the programme will revolve around the organ in dialogue with others. Mixing it with instruments, voice, words or films, the festival will serve as a celebration of this evocative, versatile and powerful instrument, showing how it can interweave across genres and art forms.
The autumn series is part of the University’s Quintin Hogg Trust-funded live performance project, which offers Westminster students the opportunity to enrich their university experience through organising and taking part in live performance events. The series opens on 4 October at St George’s Hanover Square, Mayfair, with Handel and Beyond. The free event will consist of a vibrant programme designed to showcase the organ's versatility across different genres. Beginning with the timeless elegance of Handel, the concert will journey through to gospel and jazz, seamlessly blending a variety of musical styles. The programme is led by organist and composer Bel Comeau, accompanied by a University of Westminster vocal ensemble and the Trinity Laban Chapel Choir.
On 25 October the festival continues with a ticketed event at the Regent Street Cinema, featuring a screening of the silent horror movie classic Nosferatu accompanied by live organ music, just before Halloween. The evening will begin with a 20-minute introduction by Dr Lucy Ann Harrison, Assistant Head of School of Arts at the University of Westminster, discussing the link between the organ and horror films, and the pivotal role organists played in the silent film era. Following this, the screening of Nosferatu will provide 90 minutes of spine-tingling entertainment, showcasing the organ's dramatic and atmospheric capabilities.
This will be followed by Organ + New Works concert, which will take place on 29 November in Westminster’s historic Fyvie Hall and will showcase the work of Music Production, Performance and Business BA Honours students from the University of Westminster. Their work will be composed for the organ, and they will perform music alongside established composers in a variety of contemporary genres with the aim to demystify the organ and celebrate its versatility in a mix of musical styles.
The final concert in the series will be a multi-disciplinary event on 6 December which will merge music and the spoken word. Hosted at Fyvie Hall, students from Creative Writing and Poetry modules will showcase their work in a live performance in dialogue with the organ, exploring themes of nature and the environment. This event plays an important role in raising awareness around environmental issues through art, as students will engage with the community and express their perspectives. The organ, as in every event in the series, will be the central element of the evening, with programming inspired by the relationship between nature and sound, creating a space for connection and reflection.
Professor Andrew Linn, Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Research and Knowledge Exchange at the University of Westminster, said: "Last year an organ with over 7000 pipes was installed in the new concert hall in Katowice, Poland at a cost of over £4 million. Why in the 21st century would investing so much in such a large musical instrument, played by a small community of musicians, be a priority? Whether they have been in churches, town halls or concert halls, organs have been symbols of celebration for half a millennium. They are heard at life events like weddings and funerals and graduations. Many of the greatest composers from Bach to Mendelssohn to Elgar have written music for them. And they are amazing works of art in themselves, combining carpentry, metalwork and increasingly the latest computer technology in the name of music.
“We are very lucky in our corner of Fitzrovia to have a number of organs in our buildings past and present (in the 1920s the great French organist Marcel Dupré recorded on the organ in the now-demolished Queen's Hall on Langham Place). But these wonderful instruments are not always accessible. Our Organ+ series is not only about enabling more people to enjoy the pipe organs at the University of Westminster but also to interact creatively with them in new artistic partnerships. Thank you to the Quintin Hogg Trust and all our fantastic artists for making this possible."
This series directly contributes to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 3: Good Health and Wellbeing and 4: Reducing Inequalities. Since 2019, the University of Westminster has used the SDGs holistically to frame strategic decisions to help students and colleagues fulfil their potential and contribute to a more sustainable, equitable and healthier society.
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