Shires Organ Pipes
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Spotted metal facade pipes made by Terry Doyle for church in Washington

16/1/2020

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Pipe maker Terry Doyle with the spotted metal facade pipes for Washington.
Pipes ready for their zinc liners.
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Spotted metal facade organ pipe under construction
These are spotted metal facade pipes made in our workshops by Terry Doyle for the Ortloff Organ Company in Massachusetts, US.

The pipes are destined for their Opus 2 instrument to be delivered this spring to St Dunstan's Episcopal Church in Shoreline, Washington State.

The pictures also show how zinc liners are fitted in the feet and  tin toes soldered in place.
Part of the foot of an organ pipe.
Tin toe about to eb soldered on to pipe.

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Facade pipes shine in lovely case of new Rathke organ in Kentucky

31/10/2019

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Facade organ pipes by Shires on the new organ in First United Methodist Church, Henderson, Kentucky
The two-manual, 28-stop organ in the First United Methodist Church in Henderson, Kentucky, is nearing completion and Shires was pleased to supply the facade pipes.

The intricate gilded pipe shades, carved by Morgan Faulds Pike, add the crowning touch to this beautiful case.

The instrument has been designed by the American organ builder, Michael Rathke, who spent two years of his early career with Mander Organs in London.

​It is catalogued as Opus 10 in the Cincinnati company's expanding output.

​It is also pleasing to record that Michael is among our growing number of clients in the United States.

Picture by Nikolai Peek, music director and organist.



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A touch of heavy metal as Chris casts reed blocks

11/9/2019

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Pipe maker Chris Shires casting metal blocks
Metal blocks cast in our workshop
Chris Shires hand casting reed blocks from molten lead, a centuries-old skill still practised in our workshop.

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Positive feedback on reed pipes made for American organ builder, Ortloff

19/7/2019

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Trumpet organ stop made for an American customer
Zinc trumpet stop made by Shires for Ortloff Organ Company
Terry Shires with the new trumpet made for Ortloff Organ Builders of America
It was a great pleasure to receive positive feedback on our work from one of our customers in America.

Among the reed pipes we have made for the Ortloff Organ Company of Massachusetts is this 8' Trumpet stop of zinc with spotted metal bells.

It is to be installed in a new organ being built by Ortloff for St Dunstan's Episcopal Church, Shoreline in Washington State.

Jonathan Ortloff kindly wrote on Facebook: 'We are lucky to be able to work with some of the best suppliers in the pipe organ business, including Shires Organ Pipes of Leeds, England.

'They have completed the two reed stops for our Opus 2 in Shoreline WA. The next pipes will be shipped here for racking next week and then to Chris Broome for voicing.'

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'The touch of the Master's hand' in George's brilliant repair of damaged pipes

19/5/2019

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Damaged organ pipes sent for repair to our workshop in Leeds
Damaged pipes, seemingly beyond repair, arrive in our workshop in Leeds.
Badly damaged organ pipes brought for repair to our workshop.
Work begins on separating the sections.
George Fowler smooths out a part of a damaged organ pipe.
George Fowler's experienced hand smooths the once buckled metal.
The difficult we do at once, the impossible takes a little longer. Or so some may imagine when they see the state of these damaged organ pipes brought to our workshop.

They looked as though an army had marched over them.

​But bent, buckled or flattened metal is just another challenge for George Fowler who has been repairing seemingly ruined pipes for more than 50 years.

Within a few days, these sorry looking flutes had been lovingly restored using skill, care and special tools handed down from one craftsman to another.

It was gratifying to receive many kind comments about George's work on our Facebook page. They included these remarks:

'Wow, that's some amazing skill! Well done George.'

'Beautiful work! They look good as new!'

'Absolutely brilliant work!'

'Incredible craftsmanship! Bravo, George!'

'There is something spiritual in the feel for the job, the co-ordination between hand and eye. The touch of the Master’s Hand.'
Damaged pipes repaired by George Fowler.
Repaired and polished, the pipes look as good as new.

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'Thanks to the Shires team for making such exquisite pipes'

11/5/2019

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Organ pipes in a wooden box supplied by Shires
'The strings are made of spotted metal from 8’ G'
Zinc bass organ pipes opened by Bart at Ortloff
'Bart couldn’t be happier about unwrapping zinc basses'
The string organ pipes sent by Shires
'Many thanks to the Shires team for making such exquisite pipes'
We enjoy sending organ pipes across the Atlantic to our growing band of organ builder friends in the United States.

The latest batch was ordered by Jonathan Ortloff, founder of the Ortloff Organ Company based in Greater Boston, Massachusetts.

Jonathan is a musician with degrees in organ performance and engineering.

Our pipes are for a new two-manual, 16-stop instrument in St. Dunstan's Episcopal Church, Shoreline, Washington.
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​The picture captions were supplied by Ortloff.
The unopened box of organ pipes arrives at the Ortloff Organ Company
'The first sets of pipes, the Swell 8’ Viola and Viola Celeste have arrived from Shires Organ Pipes'

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This Gamba for Nicholson's features a zinc body with spotted ends

8/5/2019

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A Gamba 8ft made by Chris Shires for organbuilder Nicholson and Co.
The Gamba organ pipes made for Nicholson's in Malvern.
Here's a Gamba 8ft made by Chris Shires for our organbuilder friends in Malvern, Nicholson and Co. Many thanks to James Atherton for asking us to make this stop which features a zinc body section with spotted ends. Scale: C= 96mm. We recently made a smaller scale Gamba in spotted metal for a private client in Yorkshire who wrote: "Thank you for making such a lovely stop. It blends beautifully with the flutes 8' and 4' and brings added colour to the instrument."
A detail of the Gamba organ pipes made in our Leeds workshop.

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Pipe-maker Chris Shires is called to the bar

6/5/2019

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Picture
Languid with a brass centre cast by Chris Shires
Languid with a brass centre cast by Chris Shires
Chris Shires spent a day casting these languids to be fitted into some large-scale Open pipes we are making for a leading organ builder. The brass bar is placed inside to prevent sagging. The diameter of the bar is 3mm Didier, the languid will get three pipes in the higher end of the 16ft octave.

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How our pipes found eastern promise with a Japanese organ builder

6/3/2019

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George works on a pipe for Japanese organ builder
Organ pipes made for a Japanese organ builder
Shires organ pipes made for a Japanese organ builder
Steve Dieck, formerly of the American organ builder C B Fisk, contacted us to ask if we could make a two-foot stop for Kusakari san, an organ builder he works with in Japan.

Kusakari san's company, Kusakari Organs, is located in Kobuchizawa,

George Fowler made a sample pipe to the specification of the stop. Mr Kusakari and Steve were delighted with it, as we were asked to make five stops in total!

​They are:
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  • Nasat 3
  • Flute 4
  • Gedackt 8
  • Terz 1 3/5
  • Octave 2

​It has been a pleasure to make these stops and we are looking forward to working with this company again.
Organ pipes made for an organ builder in Japan.

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George Fowler, craftsman of the first rank, making mixtures for over 50 years

30/1/2019

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Organ pipes on the bench of George Fowler
Making mixtures for over 50 years - George Fowler
Pipes from a VI rank mixture stop destined for America
George Fowler has been making mixtures for over 50 years – and as these pictures show, he’s rather good at it.

He began making separate ranks when he was an apprentice at FJ Rogers in Bramley, Leeds, and progressed to making multiple ranks for an entire stop 40 or so years ago.
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At present he is making a VI rank mixture, above, for an organ builder in America – that’s 335 pipes in total (and 670 pieces to solder) – made from 80 per cent tin.

Shortly before starting work on the VI rank mixture, George completed a IV rank mixture. He reckons the total time from cutting out the metal to completion of 560 pipes for both stops is about 240 hours. 

A meticulous worker who takes pride in each pipe, he says the secrets of good pipe making are patience and dedication. “The important thing is to set it off right, to get the job right from the beginning. Preparation is key.”

And at 71, there are plenty more pipes to make and seams to solder. “I still enjoy my work, it keeps me going,” he says.

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Praise for diapason facade pipes in polished zinc made for American builder

25/1/2019

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Diapason facade pipes in polished zinc made for the American organ builder David E Wallace.
We are grateful for the kind comments about this set of polished zinc facade pipes made for an organ by the American builder, David E Wallace. The diapason rank has been described as 'lovely' and 'very aesthetic with the dark housing'.

Organists are clearly delighted by the new instrument, the firm's Op 78, which stands in a church in Ontario, Canada.
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David W Wallace says: "One of the organists who plays our Opus 78 wrote to us this past week and had this to say: 'Words cannot describe how thankful we are for the organ you built for us. Last night was a clear indication of how one can effectively lead God-centered singing with the King of instruments, and to do so with as beautiful an instrument makes doing it an absolute delight.'

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Reeds for Noack Organ Builders' project in Washington are completed.

14/11/2018

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A reed organ stop made for Noack Organ Builders in America.
A close detail of an organ pipe destined for the United States.
Reed pipes made for a customer in America.
NEWS UPDATE: All of the reeds for our friends at Noack Organ builders are completed. They will be installed in a new organ for St Peter's on Capitol Hill, Washington DC. We are delighted to have worked on this project!

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Closed Willis-scale English shallots for sample Tuba pipes for customer

29/9/2018

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Shallots from the tuba organ pipes.
Picture
Sample tuba pipes made in our workshop.
On the left are sample pipes of a Tuba which will be sent to a customer to voice. On the right are the spotted metal resonators to hood the pipes perfectly. In making the pipes, we have used a Willis C scale closed English shallot, a replica of those in use in the organ in Canterbury Cathedral .

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Reeds made by Shires chosen for large new organ by Noak in Washington DC

14/8/2018

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The Noak organ in St Peter's Catholic Church, Capitol Hill.
A CGI of the Noak organ destined for St Peter's, Capitol Hill.
The exterior of St Peter's, Capitol Hill, Washington.
The reeds for a large, new mechanical action organ in the United States are being made in Leeds by Shires Organ Pipes.

The three-manual instrument is due for installation next year in St Peter's Catholic Church, right, on Capitol Hill.

It is under construction in the Noak Organ Company's workshop in Georgetown, Massachusetts.

Our team is making a trumpet 8' for the Great; a chamade 8' for the Choir; a bassoon16', harmonic trumpet 8', oboe 8' and harmonic clarion 4 for the swell; and a trombone 16' and trumpet 8' for the pedal.



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Pipe making demonstration at the Three Choirs Festival

10/8/2018

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A pipe making demonstration at the Three Choirs Festival by Terry Shires.
Terry Shires with a visitor to the organ pipe making demonstration.
The Three Choirs Festival is a major event in the British musical calendar, so it was an honour to take part in this year's festival in Hereford.

Our managing director, Terry Shires, talked about about his career in pipe making and the history of the trade in All Saints' Church, High Street, Hereford, on August 3.

During the well-received session, he also gave a demonstration of pipe making by creating a replica of the middle C Great Principal pipe in the organ at Worcester Cathedral.

He says: "I have done many demonstrations like this over the years, and I always ask for a volunteer to have a go at soldering. Kris Johnston made a great job and I presented her with the pipe I finished and voiced."

In other news, we are delighted to be working with the distinguished American reed voicer, Chris Broome, who specialises in voicing reeds made by Skinner. Broome & Co was established in East Granby, Connecticut, in 1998 by Chris and David Broome to satisfy a need in the pipe organ industry for quality voicing and organ pipe reconditioning and repair services.

Their company is recognised as a specialist in the restoration of reed stops in pipe organs by major 20th century North American organ builders. We look forward to helping them in any way we can.


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Shires Organ Pipes Ltd
​
Unit 7a -7c, Spence Mills, Mill Lane,
Bramley, 
Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS13 3HE.
Phone: 0113 219 0221
​

​Registered No: 05601081.
Institute or Organ Builders' logo
Supplier member
We manufacture, repair and restore metal organ pipes to a high standard from our workshop in West Yorkshire, UK.
​Please contact us to see how our team can assist your organ building or restoration project, no matter how large or small.

TESTIMONIALS: Read what our customers have to say about us
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  • Home
  • About
    • All our Yesterdays
    • Privacy
  • Services
    • How an organ pipe is made >
      • Tools of our trade
    • Flue pipes
    • Reed Pipes
    • Display pipes
    • Restoration and Repair
  • News
    • Archive of news stories
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  • Gifts
  • Testimonials
  • Contact