Updates for June 2026
30 June 2026The Pipe Organ in China Project Updates for June 2026
A new 66/IV organ by Rieger (WXI2026) has been inaugurated at in Wuxi Symphony Hall this month, bringing the Census total to 223. Another large Rieger is currently in its final stages of voicing and regulation in Shenzhen, and Prof. Urrows may have an opportunity to see that in July.
A noted American organist sent us a link to an article by Bálint Karosi on Chinese organ students in the US, “Chinese Organists and the Global Organ Tradition”, which was published in The Boston Music Intellegencer of May this year. https://classical-scene.com/2026/05/22/chinese-organists/ While limited to ‘lived experience’ accounts, it is interesting as an indication of the both the progress and the continuing difficulties in developing a pipe organ culture in Mainland China. Given the official attitudes towards religious experience there, this results in some fairly astounding statements from the people interviewed. All this was predicted and discussed a decade ago in Keys to the Kingdom, especially the split between the conservatory and church organ cultures (and repertoires) in China’s organ world, which are nowhere mentioned here.
Finally, as a former IB (International Baccalaureate) teacher, Prof. Urrows was sent a link to this interesting meme/post written by an IB teacher in Hong Kong, Wilson Chua, regarding Chinese names for Western products, which has been floating around the internet. We add, that this process is also involved in the faking of genuine foreign product names, such as the fake running shoes scandal of 2020 involving the Chinese brand name, niu bar lun (新百伦), which resulted in successful trademark infringement lawsuits from New Balance.
Organs in the Census: 223
Hits this month: 1,156
Top Day for Visits: (still) Tuesday!