A small tour around St Mary-le-Bow church, London

I have recently had the great pleasure of playing at Saint Mary-le-Bow church in Cheapside, London.

This beautiful church, just 5 min away from St Paul’s Cathedral, was founded around 1080 and has had a turbulent history of collapses and reconstructing. The current church is a reconstruction dating from 1946, after it was destroyed in a bombing in 1941.

Since it ministers mainly for workers from the City, the church only holds weekday services from Monday to Friday.

The notoriety of Saint Mary-le-Bow church mainly comes from its famous bells – the “bow bells” were known to be heard as far as Islington, Hackney, Tower Hamlets, Southwark and even parts of Camden and Waltham Forest.

Saint Mary-le-Bow’s new organ was inaugurated in 2010. It is a two-manual and pedal organ designed by Kenneth Tickell & Company, inspired by Silbermann’s works in Alsace.

The church hosts many musical events and notably the October series of the Eric Thompson Trust’s organ recitals.

Great

Stopped Diapason 8
Gamba 8
Principal 4
Spitz Flute 4
Fifteenth 2
Cornet III
Furniture IV
Trumpet 8
Cromorne 8
Tremulant
Swell to Great

Swell

Chimney Flute 8
Viola 8
Voix Celeste 8
Principal 4
Traverse Flute 4
Nazard 2 2/3Open Flute 2
Tierce 1 3/5Larigot 1 1/3Mixture III-IV
Bassoon 16
Trumpet 8
Hautboy 8
Tremulant
Bow Bells (Cymbelstern)