Historic St Andrews Church Raises Funds for Restoration Through Musical Concerts

Time of India

4 days ago

When a massive pipe organ was installed at St Andrews Church (The Kirk), the parishioners would hardly have thought that 135 years later, the same instrument would help fund the church's restoration.
'We held free western and Indian classical Christian music programmes to fund the restoration,' says Shantakumar, secretary. 'Contributions from attendees are used to build a fund. ' The latest such was a concert on Saturday by the Madras Musical Association string orchestra and The Shatabdi Express.
'The pipe organ, one of the largest in Chennai, was restored about 15 years ago, but the original structure is the same, and it works perfectly,' says Shantakumar.
'The Kirk has a long legacy of music. Well-known musician Handel Manuel, who was part of All India Radio, was the organist and choirmaster here. Every year, a specialist from the UK tunes the organ.'
The three-manual, trackeraction organ was bought from Yorkshire-based award-winning makers Peter Conacher & Company in 1883, more than 60 years after the church consecration. The estimated cost was `8,000 in 1883, but the members had only Rs 1,800 in the organ fund at the time.
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A committee was set up to organise a bazaar to generate funds,' says P C R Suresh, a parishioner who headed the restoration project. The church also has a grand piano, which is an indispensable part of the choir
Built in 1817 for the Scottish community, The Kirk, which is Scottish for church, stands tall at 166.6ft, its steeple the tallest in the city. 'The leaky roof, spire and dome were restored and the terrace waterproofed,' says Suresh.
'It was made of locally available materials, and we used the same materials – cured and treated limestone, sand and jaggery, for the restoration.'
The structure is unique in that the soil in the area was clayey, because of which an ordinary foundation could not be laid. 'The foundation stands on a bed of 150 wells, packed with stones,' says Suresh.
According to architect Major Thomas Fiott De Havilland's account, the foundation has also been connected by a series of vaults to strengthen the edifice. 'These vaults, if needed, can bury the dead," says Havilland. However, the entrance to these vaults has not been found. The dome, he writes, is unsupported, and 'built like an eggshell' with pottery cones, without the use of steel or wood.
IIT-M's civil engineering and structural engineering department was the consultant for the recent restoration.