Sounds of Australian Theatre
Organists
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All files are in WMA (Windows Media Audio file) format. Duration
and size in KB of each file is shown after the title to assist you in gauging
download times.
Most of the files are derived from acetate discs recorded off-air
of broadcasts between 1948 and the early 1950s. We owe a huge debt of
gratitude to the late Roy Preston for recording (and preserving) them and to
Maurice Austin for making them available. They present a broad coverage
of the Australian theatre organ scene some 50 years ago, when the organs were
a regular part of cinema shows. Announcements and organists' sign on/off signature
tunes have been retained to enhance the listening experience.
The recording quality is variable, so these recordings should
be appreciated for their archive interest, rather than their audio fidelity.
Some of the playing styles may seem a little dated after fifty to seventy-five
years, but this is reality - how things were in the Golden Age of the Theatre
Organ in Australia.
Manny Aarons - State Theatre, Sydney
Wurlitzer 4/21 Style 270
Newell Alton - Capitol Theatre, Melbourne
Wurlitzer 3/15 Style 260 - 78 rpm recordings made
in October, 1929
Newell Alton was an American organist, known in the USA as
Newman Alton, who opened the Style 240 Wurlitzer at the Orpheum, Los Angeles
The full history of the Capitol and its organ can be studied
here
Lionel Corrick - Regent Theatre, Melbourne
Wurlitzer 4/21 Style 270 - extracts from broadcasts aired in
1938
The organ and theatre were destroyed by fire in 1945. The
theatre was rebuilt and reopened in 1947 with a 4/19 Wurlitzer that can be heard
played by other organists elsewhere on this web page. View the history of the
Regent and its organs here.
Arthur Esgate - Seventh Day Adventist Church, Wahroonga,
NSW
Christie 3/10 ex-Palatial Theatre, Burwood (originally installed
1928 in Clou Conzert Haus, Berlin, Germany)
Eddie Fitch - Regent Theatre, Mebourne
Wurlitzer 4/21 Style 270 - 78 rpm recording - 29 November 1929.
The 78s featuring Fitch and O'Hagan were long said to have been made at
the Plaza Theatre (directly below the Regent, with a 2/12 Wurlitzer), but were
clearly made upstairs in the Regent.
View the history of the Regent and its organs here.
Reubert Hayes - Capitol Theatre, Sydney
Wurlitzer 3/15 Style 260. This organ is now owned by TOSA(NSW)
and is installed in Campsie Town Hall.
Reubert Hayes - Plaza Theatre, Sydney
Wurlitzer 2/8 - Style 185 + added Tibia.
The organ was originally (as 2/7) in the Wintergarden,
Brisbane. It was moved to Sydney in 1938, where it replaced the 2/8 Christie
installed in the Plaza when it opened in 1930. The Wurlitzer now forms
the core of the 4/29 instrument at TOSA(SA)'s Capri
Theatre, Adelaide
Noreen Hennessy - Prince Edward Theatre, Sydney
Wurlitzer 2/10 - Style H. This organ is now owned by
TOSA(NSW) and installed in Marrickville Town Hall
1953 Broadcast extracts
Owen Holland - Savoy Theatre, Hurstville, NSW
Wurlitzer 2/10 Style H
Owen Holland - Roxy Theatre, Parramatta, NSW
Christie 3/10 Style E special
Medley 1:
Come Back to Sorrento / When Day is Done / Road to Mandalay / Musetta's
Waltz Song / Stepping Out with My Baby / For You - 12:35 1551KB
Medley 2:
Drink to Me Only / Hits of the Day: Blue Room / So Tired / There's No Sweeter
Word / Slow Boat to China / sign off (Say it with Music) -
10:43 - 1322KB
Stanfield Holliday - Capitol Theatre, Melbourne
Wurlitzer 3/15 Style 260
The full history of the Capitol and its organ can be studied
here.
Stanfield Holliday - Plaza Theatre, Melbourne
Wurlitzer 2/12 - Style F enlarged
The full history of the Plaza Theatre and its organ can be
studied here.
The organ is now owned by TOSA(SA) and is installed in Pulteney
Grammar School, Adelaide - details here.
Stanfield Holliday - Regent Theatre, Melbourne
Wurlitzer 4/19 - Style 260 enlarged. This organ was installed
in 1947 after the fire had destroyed the original 4/21
View the history of the Regent and its organs here.
Penn Hughes - Victory Theatre, Kogarah, NSW
Christie 2/7 - an early (1928) model with only the Tibia rank
extended, all other ranks 8ft only, with sub and super couplers on the manuals
Les Richmond - Regent Theatre, Brisbane
Wurlitzer 3/15 Style 260 - for details see here
Geoff Robertson - Regent Theatre, Adelaide
Wurlitzer 3/15 Style 260 - for details see here
Geoff Robertson - Regent Theatre, Melbourne
Wurlitzer 4/19 - Style 260 enlarged. This organ was installed
in 1947 after the fire had destroyed the original 4/21
View the history of the Regent and its organs here.
Charles Tuckwell - Arcadia Theatre, Chatswood, NSW
Wurlitzer 2/10 - Style H. This organ is now in Chatswood/Willoughby
Town Hall
Charles Tuckwell, father of French Horn virtuoso Barry Tuckwell,
was one of few Australian theatre organists to broadcast in England (Barry Brettoner
was another) - recordings of his broadcast on the BBC Theatre OranMoller will
be added shortly to the UK page of the Virtual Radiogram.
Horace Weber - Capitol Theatre, Melbourne
Wurlitzer 3/15 Style 260
The full history of the Capitol and its organ can be studied
here.
Aubrey Whelan - State Theatre, Melbourne
Wurlitzer 4/21 Style 270 - full details here