I happened to run into Naomi Hallett at St. Barnabas Chapel while
touring two journalists around Norfolk.
Naomi wears several hats on the Island, including being one of the
Church of England organists who play the magnificent 380-pipe Henry Willis
organ. The walls of the Chapel are
constructed of big blocks of local limestone which create excellent acoustics
for the organ’s soulful, resonate tones.
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| The Henry Willis Organ: two views |
I always enjoy the look on visitors’ faces when they first enter St.
Barnabas and behold its elegant beauty.
Jaws drop and eyes widen. The
stained-glass windows are by the well-known pre-Raphaelite artists, William
Morris and Edward Byrne-Jones. The pews
are hand-carved from New Zealand kauri, the ends of each inlaid with intricate
patterns of mother-of-pearl. The
extensive marble mosaic of the floors and chancel come from Torquay,
England. It’s a truly exquisite example
of an English country chapel, made wholly the more surprising by finding it a
small Pacific island. It’s another
reason why Norfolk’s history is so colourful.
But if they can also hear the Willis played, that moment becomes
one of the unexpected highlights of their trip.
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| Interior, looking towards the altar. |
The organ arrived on Norfolk in 1875, about the time the Chapel’s
construction began, and was installed by the Chapel’s consecration on December
7, 1880. Until the 1950s, some young boy
was charged with hand-pumping air through its bellows. Albert Buffett was one of those former kids
and recalls if the organist wanted more volume, he had to pump faster. I guess it was suppose to be an act of
devotional duty, but I imagine for an 11 year old it would have been like inflating
a house.
Something as prominent as the Willis, and as central to a service, would
naturally hold a significance on a Sunday that only the most confident musician
could match. And their names still
resound in the community. To this day, I
cannot see the Willis without imagining Tim Lloyd at the keyboard, a place for
decades you would have found her on most Sundays. It was Tim who installed a rear-view mirror
above the keyboard to better monitor wedding ceremonies behind her. Others mention Aunt Daisy Buffett and Anne
Swift, before her. And there are a
number of organists alternating Sundays today.
Naomi is one of them.
One of the things I love about Norfolk is its hospitality and
informality, and it’s shared with everyone.
Naomi and I meet at the Chapel once a week, she to play and I to
sing. We do it solely for our pleasure
and don’t take for granted at all how privileged we are to be able to enter
such a historical space and fire-up the organ’s bellows, for fun. However, when I mentioned to the journalists
that visitors were welcome to play it, as well (as long as they knew how), and
from whom to get the keyboard key, they simply couldn’t believe the community’s
benevolence and trust. But these acts of
good will almost never go unrewarded in some fashion. Twice I’ve had a visitor on a tour so
proficient on a pipe organ they’ve ended-up giving a free concert during their
holiday. No one was more delighted than
they to fit a recital into their itinerary.
You say you don’t play a pipe organ, but, perhaps, only a ukulele? No problem.
Naomi’s brother, Donald, has a group of ukulele players meet at his
house every Saturday. Come join.
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| My two favourites. |
- Rick
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