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The organ of St Colman's Cathedral,
Cobh, Co. Cork

Thanks to Adrian Gebruers for this information

Cobh Cathedral is one of the most spectacularly situated in the country; rearing up to a height overlooking the harbour, it was the image that many generations of emigrants carried with them as their ships pulled away for America and elsewhere. The Cathedral also boasts a 49-bell carillon, the only such instrument in the Republic and the largest in these islands.

The organ was first built by Telford & Telford in 1905, with its original action being tubular pneumatic. It has a handsome organ case of Austrian oak, but with the pipes being non-speaking. The whole organ was overhauled by the Irish Organ Company in 1967, who changed its action to electro-pneumatic, made a few rank changes, and installed a second console in the nave.

There are three manuals of 61 notes each, and a pedal board of 32 notes (the original organ had 49-note manuals and a 30-note pedal board). Each division has eight combinations.

Telford & Telford, 1905
Irish Organ Company, 1967

Pedal Choir Great Swell
Violone 16 Stopped diapason 8 Double salicional 16 Double diapason 16
Diapason 16 Dulciana 8 Bourdon 16 Open diapason 8
Bourdon 16 Spitz flute 4 Diapason I 8 Dulciana 8
Quint 10 2/3 Nazard 2 2/3 Diapason II 8 Celeste 8
Cello 8 Piccolo 2 Gamba 8 Principal 4
Octave 8 Tierce 1 3/5 Stopped diapason 8 Wald flute 4
Flute 8 Clarinet 8 Hohl flute 8 Piccolo 2
Bombarde 16 Choir octave Quint 5 1/3 Mixture III
Trumpet 8 (from 16') Swell to choir Principal 4 Bassoon 16
Tremulant Flute 4 Cornopean 8
Gemshorn 4 Oboe 8
Twelfth 2 2/3 Clarion 4
Fifteenth 2 Swell octave
Swell to great Mixture III Tremulant
Swell to pedal Swell octave to great Double trumpet 16
Great to pedal Choir to great Trumpet 8
Choir to pedal Choir octave to great Clarion 4

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© Raymond O'Donnell, Galway, Ireland.
This page was last updated on 3 June 2004.