Over 100 events have already taken place, attracting 'all ages and stages', including pianists and those with no previous keyboard playing experience. Photo: Shutterstock.
The Play the Organ Year campaign aims to create as many opportunities as possible for people to not just hear, but also play an organ for the first time.
Over 100 events have already taken place, attracting 'all ages and stages', including pianists and those with no previous keyboard playing experience.
The initiative involves organisations including: The Royal College of Organists, Incorporated Association of Organists, Royal School of Church Music, Society of Women Organists, British Institute of Organ Studies, Institute of British Organ Building, The Organ Club, the Cathedral Organists Association, and the Association of Assistant Cathedral Organists.
Organist and broadcaster Anna Lapwood MBE is supporting Play the Organ Year as its patron, alongside a team of leading organists around the UK working as regional ambassadors. Anna says: “The organ is a unique and fabulous instrument, and we want as many people as possible to discover how truly thrilling it is to play one!
“No one knows this better than organists, so I hope that as many of us as possible take up the Play the Organ Year challenge to throw open the doors and make 2025 the year we share this remarkable experience with a record number of people.”
Resource pack and events
To help organists and venues arrange Play the Organ Year events and activities, a free resource pack is now available to download.
The pack includes how-to guides and advice, branded content and templates, and detailed plans and resources for hands-on Play the Organ sessions. These will be suitable for everyone from a complete music novice, to someone with a little experience of piano or other keyboard instruments.
There is also a Play the Organ Year listings page, where organists and venues can upload details of their events, and people can search to find sessions near them throughout the year.
Organists are encouraged to submit the results of their Play the Organ Year activities, with the target of reaching more than 2,000 newcomer sessions on the organ during the year.
Find out more from The Royal College of Organists.