Dundon's Organ
Now the section of the Pirate FM Website that may send your virus checker spinning due to a double entendre or two!
James is famous for owning and traveling mechanical organs. He goes to all sorts of events across Cornwall and beyond in his spare time. Here is the story of James and the organs...
Why do you have a big organ?
Hmmm... good question. I've always been facinated by their mechanism. My interest in mechanical music started from a young age. I spent many long hours sat listening to the music, captivated by what I saw and heard.
I have helped out many organ owners over the years putting books through their instruments when they wanted a tea break, and after passing my driving test at the age of 17, I could wait no longer and just had to get my hands on a Fair Organ of my own, something I could restore and look after.
I got word of a organ in bits for sale in Rye, Sussex. The organ itself hadn't played for many years. The bits were mostly there, it was just a question of tinkering with the many valves and pipes to get it to play an audible noise!
Over the next 12 months the neighbors were kept well entertained. (The couple living next door to us immigrated to Spain - the reason why is still unknown...)
The organ was mounted in a trailer and spent 8 years entertaining Cornwall!
2012- time for a change
I've decided its time for a change. I've parted with the Fair Organ pictured above. It was a sad moment to deliver it to the new owners, but its time to give someone else a bit of enjoyment with it.
I haven't been without an organ for long...
My NEW aquisition- a Dutch Street Organ named "Het Blauwtje" (The Little Blue One)
I'm famous for my big organ, but its just got a whole lot bigger!
2012 is going to be quite a year I've just purchased a new instrument- from Holland. Its a Dutch Street Organ, which has a really sweet sound and capable of playing toe tapping medleys.
The organ is currently stored in a garage (see video below) and will be on the road from April at many Cornish events. I'm currently kitting out a trailer to transport it around in.
Picture: the organ as it looks now, only pictured in the 90's on the streets of Holland.
Since the 20's its entertained on the streets of Holland. The instrument has undergone a lot of changes though life. As various fashions and tastes have come and gone, the instrument has been modified and changed. Today, it is a tuneful instrument with a highly ornate carved front, painted beautifully.
I'm very lucky to own it. Its a really different thing, not often seen in the UK, so when you see it out and about, be sure to have a listen and say hello.
Right: The organ in the 'good old days' in Holland. As you can see its paintwork has been altered and side pannels have been added since then. You will also notice it is on a wooden cart instead of a trailer, and it is my ambition to remount it on a cart again in 2013.
James Dundon
As a young man, James never thought about making a career out of radio. Originally he started as a volunteer for Truro Hospital Radio, then when he realised how he loved it, he did some voluntary work behind the scenes at the BBC He was poached by Pirate in 2004, and worked part time while he completed a degree at the University College Falmouth.
