Organ Web Pages Home

Pipe Organ Builder Links

Updated February 25th 2004

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Quick Links

Harrison and Harrison (Durham)
are the largest builder in the UK, with a well-deserved  reputation for excellence. They have built or rebuilt  some of the most prestigious instruments in the UK including Durham Cathedral and Westminster Abbey.
Mander Organs (London)
are also quite a large company, who like H&H have recently built a number of major organs overseas.  They have been responsible for building and rebuilding some very large instruments including St. Paul's Cathedral in London.
Henry Willis &Sons Ltd
perhaps the most famous name in UK organ building.  The old firm is under-going a revival under new management (and ownership).
J.W. Walker & Sons
another well established builder in the UK with some interesting jobs overseas as well as at home.
Nicholson & Company (Worcester)
have done some very interesting work in recent years including the rebuilding of the  Gloucester Cathedral organ and a new organ for Christchurch Priory. (Page on a county web site)
David Wells
the company first established to maintain the organ in the Anglican Cathedral in Liverpool (I understand) that is now a significant player in the UK. (Place-holder web site)
Hele & Company
a long established west-country firm.
Peter Conacher & Company
an old established north country firm now run by John Sinclair Willis.

The smaller companies listed below have been established by their owners and are responsible for some fine new organs and rebuilding jobs.
Bower & Company
has both build and restored some fine instruments.
Peter Collins Organs
has build some very fine classical instruments and builds a fine range of home practice instruments.
Martin Goetze and Dominic Gwynn
make new organs in the classical British style using traditional materials and undertake historic restorations.  The firm was found in 1980 and has an impressive portfolio on their excellent web site.
A.J. Carter
activities include looking after the Doncaster Schulze.
William Drake
has carried out some fine restoration work including the ballroom organ at Buckingham Palace.
Kenneth Tickell
has build some excellent new organs including  large instruments at Eton College and St Barnabus Dulwich.
Wood of Hudersfield
their work includes the rebuilding organ in St Asaph Cathedral's (North Wales) and more recently the Blackburn Cathedral 1969 Walker organ.
The Wells-Kennedy Partnership are probably the major pipe organ builder in Northern Ireland.
David R. Leach makes mechanical street and fairground organs.

Pipe Organ Builders in USA
A few organ builders from over the pond...
Austin
founded in the 1880s is one of the major organ builders in the US; large opus list included on their web site.  Built theatre and church instruments.
C.B.Fisk
founded in the early 1960s and their web site includes a number of papers written by their founder Charles Fisk.  They have built a large number of instruments and are active internationally.
Wicks
a company that has built a large number of instruments (small and large) within the USA.  The firm has a reputation for small, direct electric action instruments (the web site describes some standard unit extension organs) but they also build mechanical action instruments.   American style organs were their forte but they now embrace classical style instruments too.
Taylor and Boody
a "small company" (about 17 staff) building and restoring some very fine looking mechanical action  instruments.
Pasi
Martin Pasi's small company builds mechanical action instruments.
Nichols and Simpson
small company in the State of Arkansas.
Hendrickson (MN)
founded by Charles Hendrickson in 1964 seems to be a large builder with a good web site.
Dobson (IW)
a fine web site setting out a good view of the work of this company founded in the 1960s.  They appear to be a fairly significant USA organ builder.
Schantz Organ Company (OH)
started business in 1873 and is still under the management of the founding family.  From the web site the majority of the work seems like traditional American style organs.
Ontko (NC)
small comapany working in the southeast of the USA.
Redman  (TX)
build and restore instruments within the US.  The new organs include mechanical and electric action instruments with stop lists from the classical as well as the American organ traditions.
Oberlinger (US Portal)
this is a portal for Americans into the Oberlinger web site. 

Pipe Organ Builders elsewhere in Europe

This section is a bit thin - I'm sure there are many more builders to add in here and it is probably a very UK biased view.

From Germany
Klais Orgelbau
have build some excellent organs in the UK including the new organ in Symphony Hall (Birmingham) as well as being a major international builder.
Glatter-Götz
have built some fine organs in Germany  and undertaken some significant work in the USA. Current work includes the organ for the Disney Concert Hall.
Oberlinger Bros
have worked in Germany and in the USA and produced some fine instruments. Their work includes some very nice house organs.  The web site is excellent and there is a US portal to the site too.

From France
Manufacture Provençale d'Orgues
run by Yves Cabourdin seems to be a good solid firm in France.  They have built numerous new instruments and rebuilt / restored a large number of instruments.  One of their most recent projects is the restoration of the 1775 organ in the church of  Saint Maximin  (Var, Provence).  Most of this web site is in French.

From Holland
J.L. van den Heuvel
have an interesting international portfolio of work (and a good web site).  The company was established 35 years ago by Jan van den Heuvel who still directs its activities.

From Scandinavia
Marcussen (Denmark)
their work in the UK includes the new organ for Bridgewater Hall (Manchester) and the much recorded organ in Tonbridge School. (Alternative sites 1 and 2)
Frobenius (Demark) have built a number of fine organs for the UK including Kingston Parish Church and Robinson College Cambridge.

Pipe Organ Builders elsewhere
Jubal Ltd (Japan)
Click here to go straight to the English version of this very interesting site.

Suppliers to organ builders
A.J. & L. Taylor electrical and other action parts.
State Logic electronic control..
Otto Heuss GmbH & Co. - mechanical and electrical parts including cymbelstern.Syndyne  Corporation electronic control gear.
Artisan control and electronic voices.
Musicom control and electronic voices
Klann general supplies (including consoles and chests).
A.R.Schopp's Sons pipe maker and voicer.
F. Booth & Son pipe makers, voicers and pipe restorers.
F.J. Rogers pipe makers, voicers and restorers.
Kimber Allen mechanical, pneumatic, electrical actions, console parts and general supplies.
Classic Organworks - Organ design software with a free trial down-load.  I found this is really very helpful for preparing my console layout.
Renatus  fine consoles, cases and other parts for the trade (electronic and pipe). They are have completed some fine casework for a number of recently completed instruments and are to build the case for the new organ in St Mary's Cathedral, Edinburgh.

© Iain Stinson, 2002,2003,2004; Disclaimer and copyright statement.