A warm welcome to our Association

Whether you love listening to this fabulous instrument or enjoy playing it, we welcome you to join us, the Suffolk Organists' Association. Each year we publish a Journal. We offer opportunities to visit churches throughout the county and further afield, recitals and lectures.

We offer bursaries and advice to those of any age who would like to advance their abilities with the instrument. Please note that the deadline has been extended for this year from 30 April so we will welcome applications from you for funds that would aid you in advancing your expertise.

Our Association reached its 90th Anniversary on 10 February 2025 this year.

This is a milestone of which all members past and present can be most proud.

Reminder of the event on Saturday 12 April 2025 from 10am.

This is the concluding visit of our President Robert Waller's excellent programme before the AGM in May.

It is a visit to Dennington and Framlingham. The morning starts at Dennington parish church from 10am to midday. In the afternoon we will play the Thamar organ of the parish church in Framlingham and then move on to the Unitarian Meeting House where refreshments will be available. Read more in Recent Events and see what you missed!

The Scott Brothers will be at Woodbridge St. Mary's Sunday 11 May. They are very talented musicians.

Roger Pulham, our Treasurer, has recently learned of the death of John Norman, a frequent contributor to Organists' Review.

He writes: "I have just been informed of the death of John Norman aged 93. He was the organ specialist who had written many articles for various journals and magazines and whose family was the Norman of Norman & Beard the well-known organ builders of Norwich one of whose organs is in St. Bartholomew’s Church Ipswich. He gave several talks to the SOA on organ matters and was involved with the restoration of the Norman & Beard organ in Colchester Town hall. We heard him speak at the Royal Hospital School Holbrook and more recently at Christchurch Ipswich."

Thursday 13 February 2025 Visit to Bury St Edmunds Cathedral at the invitation of Claudia Grinnell, Director of Music and the Assistant Director of Music. Richard Cook.

Following Evensong at 5.30pm a number of members took the opportunity to play the magnificent Harrison and Harrison cathedral organ. The anthem for Evensong was 'I will lift up mine eyes' by Ernest Walker and the service concluded with an organ piece, Vexilla Regis by Everett Titcomb (1884-1968) played by the Organ Scholar, Matthew McVey. Read more in Recent Events

Dates for your diary:

The Yorkshire trip. This will start on Monday 10 March 2025 to Thursday 13 March 2025.

A travelogue of a trip to the USA by our member Barry Palmer Easter 2024

At the SOA Annual lunch at The Fox in Newbourne, I sat next to Barry Palmer and he had told me about an amazing trip that he had taken with his wife to America. I was fascinated by the extent of his travels and his experiences whilst he was there. I asked him if he would be willing to share it with other members of the Association and the result was that he sent me this email and I hope you will enjoy learning about his excursion to the USA as much as I did. Read about it in News of Members

Andrew Garfath-Cox Hon. Web Administrator and a Past President

NEWS..news...

MASTERCLASS... MASTERCLASS...

Coming up on the 19th October 2024 will be another Masterclass given by Peter Crompton on the Grand Organ of Royal Hospital School. This follows on in the tradition of the last two years, the first at St. Mary the Elms with Colin Walsh, Organist Emeritus of Lincoln Cathedral, and last year at St. Matthew's Church, Ipswich with Daniel Moult. All of these well renowned organists have a passion for inspiring future generations of players with their tremendous enthusiasm for and talented performance on the instrument. This is a marvellous opportunity to learn more whether you have come to the earlier masterclasses or would like to join in for your first time. Please click target="_blank" >MASTERCLASS for further details.

Journal 122 published

We are most grateful to James Crowe for his production of this Journal which should now be in your hands. It records the life of the Association in the year 2016 when Andrew Garfath-Cox handed the baton on to Ann Little on 21 May 2016. You will enjoy reading this most comprehensive and well researched volume!

Journal 126 published

We are most grateful to Nicholas Jardine, President of SOA for producing this Journal which records this rather problematic period where all the events of 2020/2021 in his year of office had to be cancelled but fortunately Nicholas revived many of his planned activities and organised still more in his second year of tenure. We are most grateful to him for this valuable record.

Journal 127 published

Another excellent resumé of the last year's events has been prepared by immediate Past-President William Baldry. We thank him and his contributors for news of the vibrant life of the Association.

Journal 128 published

Immediate Past President Alan Loader has created a most interesting and informative summary of the many excellent events he organised during last year's events. We thank him and his contributors very much for these valuable insights into the activities of our Association.