Swinging on the Mighty Wurlitzer with Robert Wolfe!

Robert Wolfe performs a high-energy selection of swing and early rock 'n' roll favourites on the 3-manual, 19-rank Wurlitzer theatre pipe organ at the Thursford Collection in Norfolk. This concert recording captures Wolfe’s signature style: rhythmically tight, musically expressive, and full of wit and virtuosity.

The Thursford Wurlitzer was originally installed in 1932 at the Paramount Theatre, Leeds. It was later acquired and preserved by George Cushing as part of his unique collection of mechanical music and heritage steam power. The instrument has a Balaban 4-style specification, and is one of the most commanding and colourful Wurlitzers in the UK.

In this programme, Wolfe plays:

🎶 It Don’t Mean a Thing (If It Ain’t Got That Swing) – Composed by Duke Ellington (1931) with lyrics by Irving Mills, this jazz standard became a defining anthem of the swing era.

🎸 Rock Around the Clock – Written by Max C. Freedman and James E. Myers, this 1954 hit by Bill Haley & His Comets became one of the first major rock 'n' roll recordings.

🎷 In the Mood – Popularised by Glenn Miller in 1939, this swing classic features riffs, breaks, and a memorable fade-out coda.

🎺 Alexander's Ragtime Band – One of Irving Berlin’s earliest and most enduring hits, first published in 1911, it helped bring ragtime to a mass audience.

Robert Wolfe has been principal organist at Thursford for over four decades, performing regularly to thousands of visitors each year and preserving the showmanship and musical heritage of the British theatre organ tradition.

🎥 Uploaded with permission from Robert Wolfe.


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