The completed refurbishment of the organ in Jesus College Chapel provides an opportunity to announce the new John Wellingham Organ Studies Library.
Scores from the John Wellingham Organ Studies Library (© Jesus College, Oxford)
John Wellingham is a distinguished organ teacher and organist who taught at Jesus for over 30 years. The College marked his retirement from teaching last summer by hosting a celebratory recital and reception, at which donations were solicited to establish an Organ Studies Library in his honour. To quote the original invitation:
The aim is to gather a collection of the standard organ repertoire that may be accessed by the university’s organ scholars (and others on application) and borrowed on loan. Literature on the organ and organ studies will augment the collection. To assist students who may not be able to afford to buy their own scores at this early stage in their professional development, it will make available a variety of sheet music and offer a resource that they may explore in order to decide what repertoire they may themselves wish to possess in the future.
So far, the library comprises 150 scores, including anthologies, facsimiles, and hard-to-find editions from Eastern Europe. Many have been donated by John Wellingham himself and others come from the personal library of the late conductor and musicologist Christopher Hogwood. Each has been catalogued individually on SOLO, the library catalogue covering the majority of the library collections of the University of Oxford, as well as in the current list of scores. To see the collection, please email both the Chaplain and the Librarian to arrange a visit.
Owen McKnight (Librarian)
