Large Organs And Huge Weapons

[lupestripe]

The Gavioli company of Paris set the benchmark for outdoor organs in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Their ability to combine a full range of instruments into one beautifully decorated unit is an engineering marvel. A common sight at steam fairs up and down the country, they add a nice atmosphere to stage shows and events. This was certainly the case yesterday.

The Veterans Fair at East Park in Hull was a celebration of the armed forces. We arrived just as they were closing up after walking the three miles from the city centre. We were off to see Widor who was manning the organ by loading the pre-punched cards into the machine when required. This particularly organ was a restored 1920s version and accompanied a very Yorkshire man doing very Yorkshire things. There was to be a stage show with dancers in the evening which we unfortunately missed due to train times. The organ itself must have been 20m across and 3m deep. It had drums across the top and a myriad of different pipes and tubas through which all the intricate sounds were played. The instruments were often covered with water colour pictures of a twee Victorian setting.

Widor was looking very dapper in his suit and he also took us to see a white organ which would have been used in the music halls. This one was a modern equivalent, like a giant Casio keyboard, with a myriad of different sounds and combinations of instruments. One foot keyboard, three regular ones plus gradated key presses meant this was one versatile instrument. And Widor played it most excellently.

We also walked around the fair, observing an American Civil War reenactment which seemed to entail eating food and playing a drum. The WWII reenactment was interesting but it would have been better if they had performed old episodes of 'Allo 'Allo. Sadly there was not a Rene in sight. The women who dug for victory were doing more sitting and less digging whilst the Wild West section seemed a bit misplaced.

It was a modest affair, with a few steam engines and a delightful carousel. Old Victorian fairground attractions were there aplenty and the whole event reeked of Britishness. It was even sunny!

After the park closed, we chatted to Widor for a bit before heading back to the City Centre to see Aremay the politics bunny.

Hull, like Middlesbrough, is very unfairly maligned I feel, despite the smell of stale sea which pervaded the air. The atmosphere was almost European and I feel a little investment could make the city one of the best in the country. We saw the remarkably impressive Guildhall and the wonderful bridges over the river, with a ratchet system which displayed some excellent engineering. We also walked by the quay and soaked up the convivial atmosphere of the market area. It was Polish day so we grabbed a snausage from a German who told us his whole life story in 90 seconds.

Aremay was in good form - I always love talking to him as I am interested in politics and learn so much from him. It was another excellent debate inside a Wetherspoons that was trying too hard to be a nightclub. The waitress who served me was quite useless too. We locked ourselves in the Manager's room out of the way (and in the quiet) and when we left, we noticed someone had blocked our exit with a table. All very sad. And after this we had to get our train home. Hopefully we will have more than two hours together next time.

It was an excellent day spent with two good friends and Wolfie too. Hopefully we can have many more days like these as it was so relaxed and it was great catching up with some brilliant friends.

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Comments

[lupestripe.livejournal.com]

Not unless your Wang has a keyboard strapped to the top :p

[silent-o.livejournal.com]

An American Civil War reenactment in Britain?

Sorry. You have to come over here for a real one.

[lupestripe.livejournal.com]

The reenactment here involved drums and people sitting around. It was a shame there wasn't an English Civil War reenactment.

[gepardipoju.livejournal.com]

Widor is indeed a great organist, don't let him tell you otherwise :P

Glad you had a good day, I wanted to go to it but alas it clashed with the LF party :(

[lupestripe.livejournal.com]

Shame you couldn't make it hun, it was a good day. Hope you enjoyed LFM party and hope to see you soon. Widor is indeed a whizz on the organ.

[rma-reborn.livejournal.com]

It wasn't stale sea air, was it? :P

Glad you had a nice time, was lovely to see you both :)

[lupestripe.livejournal.com]

It was the stale sea air, yes. Great seeing you too - hope to see you soon :)