Pipes in the Peaks - Thorpe - Derbyshire

http://www.aboutnottinghamshire.co.uk/
This amazing place is owned and run by David Thorp. As a small boy he had had seen the WurliT'zer at the Tower Ballroom in Blackpool it had been his dream to own such an instrument.
The opportunity came in 1990 when he heard about a Mr H. Jackson of Castle Donnington.  This gentleman had purchased the organ from the ABC, Derby for the princely sum of £300, way back in 1965.  After a lot of negotiations, and about 19 trips in a small van, the organ was carefully removed and put into storage at Dave's garage.
It took another ten years to complete the restoration of every component of the organ, and to construct a building specifically to act as a Showroom to house both cars, the Compton and other 'vintage' curios.
The result is quite breathtaking - and in fact hard to describe!
I was initially quite apprehensive about a concert in a garage - in fact it sounded so strange, and was even more puzzled on seeing people queuing an hour and a half before the concert was due to begin.  Certainly there were hundreds of people, but fortunately there is a large car park in an adjacent field.

The organ rose majestically out of the floor, and the show was huge fun, as, in addition to the organ, dotted around were various instruments which all played by some sort of electrical wizardry.  Fun seemed to be the key word, and clearly everyone was having a marvellous time, with a sign-along, words on scene, complimentary tea and biscuits in the interval, and port-a-loos!

'Pipes in the Peaks' is certainly an experience, and I could clearly see why it is so very popular.  I look forward to returning - now a Big Band concert would be something special!