Forrest's 65 Key Gavioli
Fairground Organ
The famous organ builders GAVIOLI of Paris were responsible for the
craftsmanship that went into the building of this beautiful hand - carved
mechanical instrument.
Built in 1895 for the firm of William Hoadley & Son of Barrow it has
travelled the fairgrounds ever since.
The superb 65 Key organ was built to stand in the centre of the magnificent
set of three-abreast Gallopers built by Savages of Kings Lynn Norfolk the
previous year 1894.
The Gallopers and Organ were taken from fair to fair behind a Mammoth Steam
Traction Engine named DREADNOUGHT. When the fair was in full swing the
engine's other job was to generate the power for the Gallopers' electric
lights.
The Gallopers, Organ and Engine were bought from Matilda Hoadley in 1921 by
Swales Forrest of Gravesend Kent. The set travelled together until the
beginning of the second World War when DREADNOUGHT was replaced by an
ARMSTRONG SAURER haulage tractor.
In 1962 the organ was taken to Holland to be rebuilt by Mr.G.Perlee of
Amsterdam.
The Gallopers and Organ can still be seen travelling the fairgrounds of the
London and Home Counties area
A CD of this organ is now available. It contains 24 tracks and is priced at £10.00. They can be purchased from John where ever the ride is, or by emailing me if you can't locate him.
Tapes of the Gavioli are available from John, and are priced at £5.00 each.
To hire the Ride and Organ,
Go to John's new website at:
http://www.traditionalfairgrounds.co.uk
call John Forrest on:
07885 475916
Pipes and Registers
Melody 21 notes with Violin F; Piccolo; Glockenspiel.
Counter Melody 17 notes with Baritone and Clarinet.
Accompaniment 10 notes with Open and Stopped Flues.
Bass 6 notes with Open and Stopped Flues plus Reed Trombones.
Percussion: Snare drum (2 keys); Bass Drum and Cymbal (coupled)
The bell ringers arms are controlled by the Bass drum key.
The band leader's left arm and head are controlled by the Cancel key, while
her right arm has it's own key.
The Glockenspiel is triggered by the Trombone register.
| Date | Event |
Location |
| 30th April - 2nd May | Sweeps Festival | Rochester Castle Gardens |
| 3rd - 5th June | Dickens Festival | Rochester Castle Gardens |
A recent picture of the Gavioli. taken at the 2004 Rochester Sweeps Festival.
Again, the organ looking immaculate at the 2004 Rochester Sweeps Festival.
The key frame, which is located on the right hand side, just behind the snare drum.
The following pictures were taken of the organ and ride at the Dickens Festival in Rochester Kent. On June 1st - 3rd 2001
The next three pictures were taken at the 2003 Detling Steam and Vintage Vehicle Rally. It was the hottest day ever recorded at 101 f and all organs were suffering from the heat.
This picture of the ride was given to me by John, and it shows how it looked prior to the most recent refurbishment.
This picture was supplied by the Emerson family who used to own an almost identical organ. It appears to be an early picture of Forrest's Gavioli, possibly taken while it was stored at the Wingham engineering works during the 1970s.
This picture was also supplied by the Emersons of Barrow. It is more recent and shows the organ during a period when John occasionally took it to steam rallies on a trailer without the ride. Note the excellent oil paintings at the bottom left and right, which were the works of John himself.