BIOS lunch 2025
29th November 12:00 for 12:30 at the Grosvenor Chapel, 24 South Audley Street, London W1K 2PA. As we look forward towards marking the first fifty years of BIOS in 2026 all members, wives, husbands, partners and friends are invited to gather and begin the celebrations! Cost will be £50 for a three course lunch, including drinks, aperitif and canapés. To… read more
Organ Heritage Open Day
BIOS, the RCO, the Society of Women Organists, the IBO, the IAO, and others will be supporting the Heritage Open Day at Reading Town Hall on Saturday 13th September. William McVicker, Andrew Scott, Bruce Buchanan, Nicholas Thistlethwaite and Tom Bell will all make varied contributions. There will be a masterclass, and also an opportunity for newcomers to play the Willis… read more
New Historic Organ Listings – June 2025
The June meeting of the BIOS Council approved five new Historic Organ Listings. Morville, St Gregory, c 1855 Holdich [N04753]: Grade II An organ by Holdich from c 1855 that contains historic pipework and includes a rare, intact example of a Holdich Diaocton. Grade, Cornwall, St Grada & Holy Cross, 1885 Brewer & Co [D00797]: Grade I A very rare surviving… read more
A G.P. England organ reconstructed
St John’s Church, 12 St John’s Street, Chichester PO19 1UU Saturday 7th June: Opened in 1813, St John’s Chapel is a rare surviving example of a Georgian proprietary chapel retaining most of its original early nineteenth century features. Proprietary chapels were a solution to the problem of insufficient capacity within existing parish churches to meet the spiritual needs of a… read more
Day Conference & Annual General Meeting 2025
Saturday April 12th 2025 – 10.30 for 11.00 The morning featured talks entitled ‘Wills, Willis and St Monica’s Care Home, Westbury-on-Trym’ with William McVicker and Owen Woods charting the history and technical detail of what was the Wills family house organ. In addition Ds Bertjan van de Lagemaat, Minister of the Dutch Church, provided a guided tour of rare books… read more
New to the HOSA YouTube channel
The BIOS Historic Organ Sound Archive (HOSA) continues to grow. The latest addition to the YouTube collection is the 1755 Snetzler organ now at Clare College in Cambridge and restored by the William Drake company. (NPOR A01068). Dr Anna Steppler plays music by Eliza Turner, Maurice Greene, Ignatius Sancho, Elisabetta de Gambarini and G F Handel. (Play video)Articles about the… read more
Richard Hird
Richard D. Hird MA MRTPI LTCL had a number of roles in the UK organ world and died a few days ago. He was active in several organisations as well as BIOS. For many years he was the BIOS Honorary Treasurer and also built and managed the website BIOS used until 2012. By profession he was a chartered town planner,… read more
New listings of Historic Organs
The January meeting of the BIOS Council approved three new Historic Organ Listings. Upper Slaughter, St Peter, 1855 J Walker [D01288]: Grade II A surviving, characteristic example of an organ from 1855 by a prominent builder at a period of transition in British organ building. Harby, St Mary 1808 Elliot, 1874 Lloyd [K01581]: Grade II A rare survivor from 1808,… read more
RIP John Norman
BIOS is very sorry to notify the death of John Norman, for many years a trustee and Council Member of BIOS, and for several years also its chairman and until quite recently, its webmaster. That he held Honorary Life Membership of BIOS is an indication of the huge amount we owe to him. All of us in BIOS extend our… read more
Bernard Edmonds Research Conference 2025
Saturday February 22nd 2025 – 10.30 for 11.00 The Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, 200, Jennens Road, Birmingham B3 7XR The Bernard Edmonds Research Conference took place in February at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire. We were most grateful to Daniel Moult, Head of Organ Studies (and BIOS member) for arranging this. Our meeting was in a seminar room as there was another… read more
