Royal College of Organists launches ‘Play the Organ Year’

Led by the Royal College of Organists (RCO), organisations from across the organ and church music sector have announced that 2025 will be Play the Organ Year. The year-long project aims to increase the number of people playing the organ and reach more than 2,000 newcomers to the instrument through creating opportunities for people to hear and play the organ for the first time.

As part of the campaign, organists and venues are being encouraged to programme First Encounter organ recitals and Play the Organ sessions throughout 2025, using a specially created set of resources from the RCO. Individual organists can also use the resources to introduce people to the instrument over the course of the year.

RCO chief executive Sir Andrew Parmley said: ‘The organ is a magnificent instrument unlike any other – powerful, versatile, visceral and enormous fun to play. But with declining church attendances, drastic cuts in school music education, and ever-smaller audiences for live performances, we know that fewer and fewer people are getting the chance to discover this for themselves. So, at the heart of Play the Organ Year is an attempt to reopen this experience to as many people as possible – to encourage them to take a step towards the organ, to lay hands on it wherever possible, and to discover for the first time the unique and thrilling experience of playing this remarkable instrument.’

The initiative is a combined effort by organisations including the RCO, Incorporated Association of Organists, Royal School of Church Music, Society of Women Organists, British Institute of Organ Studies, Institute of British Organ Building, The Organ Club, the Cathedral Organists Association, and the Association of Assistant Cathedral Organists. Project partners will also be running their own events around the UK, starting with a launch event on 19 January in London.

Play the Organ Year is supported by organist, broadcaster and Play the Organ Year patron Anna Lapwood MBE who will head up a team of ‘regional ambassadors’ for the organ from around the UK. She called on organists to ‘take up the Play the Organ Year challenge to throw open the doors and make 2025 the year we share this remarkable experience with a record number of people.’

As well as the specially-created resource pack, the Play the Organ Year webpage also contains a listings page, where organists and venues can share Play the Organ Year events.