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FULL SIZE FAIRGROUNDORGAN FOR SALEC -19 Lockdown may seem a rather odd time to be advertisinga large and powerful (but easily mobile) Fairground Organ! But the extra time has made me realise that withthe passing years there are some things that we ourselves will not be using againin the foreseeable future, and this is one of them.
If you think you might be interested why not have a listen by opening a new window on your browser and going to: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOQXXKrETAk and after the introduction please switch tominute 4.54 seconds when you can hear the organ for the rest of the youtube clipwhilst continuing to read this description!
This is a replica Paris Street organ built some years ago byDavid Leach of Huddersfield. I never met him, but I know that Mr Leach has a greatreputation as a specialist in restoration and repair of fairground organs, aswell as building some new ones too!
I bought the Fairground organ second-hand thirteen years agoto help raise money for charities at various open air events, but more recentlyit has been little used and it is now time someone else had the fun of owningand using this fabulous organ!
As purchased it was mounted in its self-contained and reallywell-built hardwood and metal house (length 11 feet 7 inches and width6 feet 3 inches), on the back of a pre-war Citroen 1.5 tonne lorry. Suchmedium weight delivery lorries were low-powered and typically ran at 20-30mph. Itlooked wonderful but was completely impractical – because the organ is jolly heavy, and the Citroen lorry was barelyable to move with it on the road except on the level or downhill! There is no pleasure in causing huge traffichold-ups when cars cannot pass you, and when you can do nothing about it.
So I bought a 3.5 tonne four wheel trailer and had theFairground organ and its house moved professionally (by engineers) onto thetrailer with proper and permanent attachment and it is now manoeuvrable andeasy to tow with a suitably powered vehicle. When on the Citroen lorry and since, it hasalways been properly garaged in a dry environment.
I apologise that due to lockdown, some of the pictures Ihave used show the organ still mounted on the lorry. But they give a very good ideaof the separate wooden house in which it is mounted and how the large flatpanel (with Livraisons quotidiennes painted on the outside) closes and opensup to provide protection and lighting and show the inside. The rear door (visible in one picture) allows accessbehind the organ, for operating and inserting the large folding punch card setswhich make it play.
It is a genuine Fairground organ delivering masses of soundwhich will easily cover a field or large area. Indeed when its former ownerdelivered it to our house one summer evening we had a demonstration play ofsome tunes and people from streets around came to see what was going on,because they had heard its cheerful noise. There was a kind of impromptu streetparty with some dancing and all very happy to hear the music!
I have described it as full-size to contrast it with someof the much smaller street or event organs that are sometimes offered forsale. That said I can remember as achild seeing quite simply enormous Fairground organs which must have been evenlarger. (Or perhaps as a child they just seemed so!) But by giving thedimensions above I hope you will have an idea of the size. It really is big andthe sound it makes is big too!
You can hear and see another clip of this organ perfumingon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GD50dF1u0c please see the introduction and then moveto about 9.50 and listen to the end. Thesetwo clips will give you the chance to hear some of its repertoire. You can alsosee some of the moving bits when it is playing and it has a drum with a mechanicaldrumsticks too. Please keep in mind that both youtube videos show the organ whenit was mounted on the Citroen lorry, not on the 3.5 tonne trailer as now,but it is exactly the same and in the same purpose-built housing.
It has the traditional punch card system passing over a conventionalvacuum operated sensor, and an electronic system too. There a huge number of folding punched cards setsfor playing many different turns, and the electronic system has 50 more tunes. The bellows are operated by an electricmotor (240v). There is electric lightingtoo. If required I have a Honda generator which is well up to producing the powerit needs.
The organ also has an electronic control system with about 50separate tunes. They play from two diskettes and with the passing years the playerhas become faulty. I am not an electrician and so bought a couple of replacementplayers of the same type but do not have the electrical skills to fit them. Obviously it would be ideal for the purchaserto get that working again, but even if you lack skills to do this (like me) thepunched card system works fine anyway.
Please ring me on 01372 720853 or more information or email me at nigel.macdonald@ntlworld.com.The organ is kept in a secure dry facility near our home at Epsom, Surrey andif needed I may be able to offer help with delivery by negotiation, as we havea suitable towing vehicle.
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Category: Musical Instruments:Keyboards and Pianos:Organs
Location: Epsom