Coventry Cathedral's pipe organ used for Pink Floyd celebration
2025-01-21
Category: entertainment

A cathedral's "majestic pipe organ" will be used to help celebrate the music of Pink Floyd, concert organisers have said. A group of musicians will perform Wish You Were Here in full at Coventry Cathedral on 8 March, to mark the album's 50th anniversary.  The collective, called Everything Under The Sun, performed Dark Side of the Moon at the cathedral last year. Chris Johnson, guitarist and vocalist with the group, said they got together for a "one off show" in Warwick in 2023 but their success led to other concerts.  
They joined to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Dark Side of the Moon at St Mary's Church in Warwick. The first gig, which was free, had a "couple of hundred of people outside" after the church was filled, Mr Johnson explained. It led to other performances and then to the one in Coventry, which they sold tickets for.It also helped raise funds for the restoration of the cathedral's 1962 Harrison & Harrison organ. He said the organ was "part of the band" and helped create a "one-of-a-kind" live experience which blended the old with the new. 
Organist Colin Millington said the collaboration with the six other musicians had allowed him to combine his passion for organ playing with Pink Floyd. "Incorporating the church organ into the albums has proved to be a great challenge but working with such a fantastic and diverse range of musicians has brought new life to the albums for me and the music has brought us all together in such an organic fashion," Mr Millington said. 
Mr Johnson said the seven-piece band enjoyed playing the "timeless classics" and taking in historic settings. "It's a different take on it," he said. Rachel Mahon, the cathedral's director of music, said its grand organ was "stunning architecturally and aurally" and extremely versatile. "This truly is a part of our heritage and an instrument of the people," she said. The cathedral has hosted a wide range of events, including premiere of a new arrangement of The Specials' Ghost Town performed by a police orchestra in 2022. 
Follow BBC Coventry & Warwickshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram. 