THE largest new church organ to be built for a British cathedral for more than 40 years is in the process of being built by the Malvern-based organ makers, Nicholson and Co.

Nicholson, which has been building pipe organ’s since Queen Victoria was on the throne, is working on the £1.5m organ in situ at Llandaff Cathedral in Cardiff and the project is due for completion next year when it will be played for the first time at the Easter Service.

The brand new organ, a feat of skilled craftsmanship and engineering, contains more than 4,800 pipes ranging from 26 feet to just half an inch in length and its installation will take around 12 months to complete.

The organ began life at the company’s 1,200sq metre workshop at Lower Interfields in Malvern where skilled craftsmen, including woodworkers, a metal pipe maker and an electrical specialist, work together with a the company’s “voicer” to create these unique and special musical instruments.

The new cathedral organ for Llandaff is the company’s largest contract to date and a wonderful example of Nicholson’s successful combination of traditional workmanship with the latest technological innovations - the new organ was designed using CAD and like other modern organs the instrument has to perform reliably whatever the changes in temperature and humidity.

“It has been a wonderful project for Nicholson’s creating this brand new organ,” said Andrew Moyes, the company’s managing director.

“The cathedral was badly damaged by a German land mine in 1941 and after all the repairs, rebuilding and restoration it was a case of make do and mend as far as the organ was concerned,” he explained.

When this historic cathedral was finally ready to replace its old organ it chose Nicholson of Malvern, perhaps because the company is world-renowned with its organ’s gracing Worcester, Gloucester, Portsmouth and Birmingham cathedrals as well as Malvern Priory, St George’s Hall in Liverpool and churches as far afield as Hong Kong and the United States of America.

Work on the organ at Llandaff began in September 2008 with the cutting of the first timbers and local craftsmen from the workshop take it in turns to work on the installation on site.

“That way no-one is away from their families for too long,” explained Mr Moyes.

After the organ is officially handed over next year there will be a special opening recital by organist Thomas Trotter to which the firm’s staff have been invited.

The name of Nicholson has been associated with organ building since the original company was founded by John Nicholson in 1841 with a workshop at the Palace Yard in Worcester. it moved to its new modern premises at Lower Interfields in 2003.

The company and its 19 employees work on organ restorations, rebuilds and repairs in addition to building new church organs and major rebuilds planned for next year include Belmont Abbey in Hereford, St Mary’s in Tottenham and the London City church, St Michael’s at Cornhill. It’s next overseas project will be for a church in Stockholm. The company’s next completely new organ will be an organ for a church in Boxmore near Hemel Hempsted.

Its organ builders are specially trained. Some learn from scratch joining as school leavers. other join as skilled woodworkers and adapt their skills to the specialised skills of organ making. With the distinctive organ sound made by air being blown through pipes helped by electrical valves the job of the voicer is very important.

“The voicer gives the pipes their voice. Makes them give just the right sound,” explained Mr Moyes.

With complex restorations and completely new organs to build the new modern workshops have been a big asset.

“A big advantage of the new premises is the space. We can pre-assemble an organ and test it before shipping and that’s a real benefit,” explained Mr Moyes.