DETAILED NOTES for NPOR survey forms These notes are intended to help correspondents to complete the forms in a way which will make the information they contain useful, accessible and suitable for computer storage. Please record the information as accurately as possible - leaving a space blank rather than filling it in on the basis of guesswork or hearsay. If there is insufficient space on the form, please complete the detail as far as possible and then record other material on a separate sheet of paper which should be clearly labelled with the name of the organ. It is important to write clearly in order that the information may be transferred to a computer as accurately as possible. A photograph of the organ is always welcome if you have one to spare. If you already have your information in computer readable form, it may be possible for it to be input directly to the NPOR without being transcribed to survey forms. If you can provide it on floppy disc then please contact the NPOR (address as on form) to discuss the format. The notes below refer to the numbered sections of the NPOR form. 1. Enter the name of the building in which the organ stands as precisely as possible. Always state the dedication of a church. In the case of a secular building, state the room in which the organ stands. The date on which your survey was done in an important reference point. 2. The address is vital, without it the information is useless. In urban areas, please give a full postal address. For rural areas the village name, nearest town and county are important. Post codes and grid references are most helpful if known. 3. If the organ is in a church, give the denomination, otherwise describe the type of building such as private house, concert hall, school hall etc. 4. Information relating to builders may be supplied by a builders plate on the console or (less reliably) by a guidebook. There may be a donor's inscription on or near the organ which gives more information. Sometimes there will be more than one builders plate which may give a clue to the history of the organ and the guidebook may help. The original builder should be entered first (if known) and other episodes of rebuilding or major repairs set down subsequently in chronological order. The name and address of the present maintainer of the organ will be useful if known. 5. Organ cases span a range from architectural, which may have towers and flats, often ornamented by carved structural woodwork and decorated pipeshades, to a simple pipe rack facade with plain or decorated pipes but with the tops of the pipes exposed. The category other is for instruments which do not easily fit either end of the range. The position of the instrument within the building should be given and, if there are multiple cases, then the position of each should be noted. If it is known whether the designer of the case was the organ builder or some other person then this should be entered. Often a new instrument is installed in an earlier case; if this is so then the date of the case should be given, if known. There is a field, called remarks, for any additional information on the case. 6. By department we mean Great Organ, Swell Organ etc. There is space for three manuals and pedals which will accommodate the great majority of organs. Use extra sheets if necessary. Under Compass please record the top and bottom notes of the keyboards (and pedalboard). Use the system which denotes the customary (on a 56 or 61 note keyboard) lowest note of the keyboard (C 8ft) as C, the octave above (tenor c) as c, middle c as c1, treble c as c2, top c as c3 and its octave as c4. The notes in the octave above each of these c's follow the same system, thus a typical 56 note manual would be represented as C to g3 and a 32 note pedalboard as C to g1. The column headed action is for the recording of the mechanism type by which the key action is transmitted to the pallets, the key action, and that by which the stops are operated, the stop action. Only make an entry if you are certain and be careful to distinguish in the case of pneumatics between tubular-pneumatic (TP) and electro-pneumatic (EP). Watch out for pedals using a different action from the manuals. Use the abbreviations supplied where possible. Enter Y or N in the enclosed column, depending on whether or not the pipes for the department in question are enclosed in a swell box. 7. Tick the box which corresponds to the pedalboard type or fill in the type after other. Tick the boxes for the blowing methods available or fill in other. If the pitch is known, please write like A=440. Similarly the tuning scheme may be given, this is especially useful when not equal temperament. 8. Much can be learned about the history of an organ from the shape, material and lettering of the stop knobs. Tick the boxes which best describe the type on the organ being studied or write a brief description under other. Description should identify the main features of the console; eg. en fenetre, detached, square or angled jambs etc. 9. Couplers should be shown in the form Swell Octave Great or Great Pedal as appropriate. There is space for 18 but a separate sheet of paper may be used if needed. 10. Record combination pistons, balanced swell pedals and other aids to the player under this section. Specify the departments to which they apply. Tremulants should be entered in the stoplist. 11. Give each department in turn, carefully listing the stop names,including tremulants, as they appear on the stop knobs or keys - together with their pitches (or number of ranks in the case of mixtures). The stop names should always use the spelling on the knobs; however where this is not the usual spelling, "sic" should be entered at the end of this field. If any of the stops are of short compass, make a note of this by recording the lowest note (eg from c). Use an additional sheet of paper if necessary. 12. Please fill in your name, address and, if possible, a telephone number in this section. Though not specifically asked for on the form, any additional information which you are able to contribute about the history of the organ and its organists would be welcome on an accompanying sheet of paper.