Chapel history
Edward Alleyn, a successful actor-manager and entrepreneur, purchased the Manor of Dulwich in 1605. Some years later, he decided to create a charitable foundation in Dulwich, endowing it with his estate and other property. Christ’s Chapel of God’s Gift was the first of the buildings to be completed, being consecrated on 1 September 1616. Letters patent were granted by King James I, and on 21 June 1619 Alleyn’s College of God’s Gift was formally established.
The Christ’s Chapel organ
Christ’s Chapel Dulwich possesses one of the finest organs of its kind in the country
It was built in 1760 by George England assisted, it is believed, by Richard Bridge. It is an English Classical organ, with three manuals and pedals. In 1760, there were no pedals; the organ music of JS Bach, although known to some, was only able to be played on organs with a full pedal section. Mendelssohn’s visits to play the organ in St Paul’s Cathedral inspired organists to want to play music in the German tradition. As the organ needed mechanical attention during the next hundred years, a pedal section was added, the old pitch of A430 was raised to the current standardised A440, and the older temperament, fifth comma modified mean-tone, was evened out to become equal temperament, something which many composers had been striving for for centuries before. Other modifications also took place, including increasing wind pressure, and adopting new stops to suit more fashionable soundscapes.
Today’s organ was the result of the desire to restore the organ to its original design, including pitch and temperament, and to add appropriate reed stops to complete that original design to leave today’s organists with an instrument, on which to study the sound worlds of older organ repertoire.
Today it is used to accompany acts of worship, and features in recitals and recordings. It is also used as a venue for masterclasses, study days and individual lessons. The organ’s restoration was carried out by William Drake and Company, and the consultant was Dr William McVicker.
A book describing the history of the organ and its 2009 reconstruction has been published by the Chapel Organist, Marilyn Harper and the project consultant Dr William McVicker. Please contact us for a copy.
— Marilyn Harper, 2026.
In this 30-minute film created for the Royal College of Organists, Marilyn Harper, Chapel Organist, discusses and performs the music of Jan Peterzoon Sweelinck of Amsterdam (1562-1621).
Clockwise from top: The organ; A Dulwich College student plays the organ at Christ’s Chapel (Dulwich College); Marilyn Harper and student Christian Willor Tolentino, who travels from Manila every year for intensive lessons to prepare for exams held by the Royal College of Organists (Marilyn Harper).
