Pipe organ restored after decade of silence

Alice Longbottom, head of music at Millthorpe School, said the pipes in the instrument “sound like an orchestra”

An historic school pipe organ has been restored after more than a decade of silence.

The instrument at Millthorpe School, in York, has been repaired by Geoffrey Coffin, the original organist who installed it in 1983.

Following completion of the work, Millthopre is now the only state school in the city with a fully operational pipe organ for pupils to play.

Head of music Alice Longbottom said the instrument was an "epic piece of engineering that needs to be used".

She said: "I took up a post here in September, and walked into the hall and saw this grand old instrument.

"I got very excited about it and then said ‘who plays it?’, and the answer was nobody, and it hadn’t been played for years."

She said the array of pipes in the instrument sounded "like an orchestra” when they are being played.

Millthorpe School is now the only state school in York with a fully operational pipe organ

Max Elliot, who works with York Minster and serves as the assistant director of music at St Olave's and All Saints churches in York, has also helped with arranging the organ's repair and restoration.

He said: "The joy of this organ is that it is available for all to play, there are so few places that offer the opportunity to play a real pipe organ, but here there is an opportunity for anybody to have a go."

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