The winds were moaning in the heights

As I was leaving the grocery shop this morning, I heard a piping tone. It was the wind blowing across part of the structure, and causing it to resonate. The phrase, "The winds were moaning in the heights" popped into my brain. It is a mangled version of the Dwarves song from Lord of the Rings, Far over the Misty Mountains. The original is, "The pines were roaring on the heights, The winds were moaning in the night."

This set my brain to thinking about other structures making noises. The first was the Zadar Sea Organ. It is a wave powered organ in Zadar, Croatia. As the tide comes in against the structure, it pushes air through pipes (think pipe organ pipes) and this makes random, but harmonious sounds. Many people find it incredibly relaxing, but I need moments of resolution in music, little times when it all comes together before it opens out again.

I was wondering about other sculptures/structures that make music, and discovered the Blackpool High Tide Organ. Eight pipes connect to the water through the sea wall and link up to 18 pipes in the body of the High Tide Organ. When the tide rolls in or out, air pushed up the pipes causes the sculpture to resonate with its unique music. The sound of this sea organ is more melodious to me than the Zadar one.

Blackpool is not terribly far out of the way when I am travelling to see my parents, and I was starting the get excited about the prospect of hearing this 'musical manifestation of the sea'. Sadly, sadly, the High Tide Organ was very poorly maintained, and only lasted 20 years before it was dismantled in 2022. Part of me wonders if the organ was also poorly designed, at least in terms of the materials used. Outdoor sculptures need to be able to withstand the elements, and when the sculpture is right by the sea, strength and durability need to be planned in right from the start.