(Photo: Unsplash/Eric Mok)
Pipe Up, a charity devoted to the preservation of organs, has warned that every year over 400 church organs are going unused or even being scrapped every year.
A spokesperson for the group said, “A cultural catastrophe is staring Britain in the face: the imminent loss of its pipe organs,” reports the BBC.
According to the charity, a survey suggested that every week five organs are being dumped in landfill, while four organs fall into disuse every week due to lack of maintenance.
The chairman of the group, George Allan, said that many organs were being needlessly thrown away. It is possible to restore “nearly playable organs” in a few days and at a cost of less than £1,000.
Allan said that, even when his group was able to save organs, they often ended up being shipped abroad.
“There’s a Catholic priest there [in the Philippines] who seems to be populating the whole country with redundant British and American organs,” he said.
The use of organs has massively decline in the last 100 years. In 1915 it is believed there were 40,000 of them in Britain, a figure now believed to be closer to 15,000. Of those 15,000 only around half are playable and among those only half are regularly used.
The decline in organ use is closely related to the decline in churches, many of which are struggling or even face closure due to extensive repair bills. Recent changes to a government funding scheme for historic places of worship has added to concerns that some churches may face insurmountable financial challenges.
Allan said, “If this trend continues by 2070, Britain will have no pipe organs left, outside cathedrals, Oxbridge colleges, a few concert halls and some well-supported churches. We hope to lead a sort of crusade. We can’t do much about church closures, but what we can do is we can revive the motivation to keep organs working.”
