Page 14 - CR31R.pdf

Ron Boyce - Man

Behind the Music

From an interview by Alan Webb and
Brendan Moore
Seated at the console of the Mighty Wurlitzer
Organ, Ron Boyce would ascend into Cinema
Nirvana - a luxury dream palace of drifting
clouds and twinkling stars. This is the story of
the man behind the music at Auckland’s
atmospheric Civic Theatre.

orn on the 4th March 1914, Similar to the WurliTzer in bells and chimes; birdcalls; waves and
Ron Boyce was a lad of 14 or Sydney’s State Theatre, the Civic surf. They were not recordings and all
B15 when he first sat at the organ had 3 manuals. the sound was generated at the
keyboard of an organ – at the Epsom It was supplied and installed by the console, however the organ was not
Methodist Church. WurliTzer Organ Co, W. A. Crowle able to produce all of these effects as it
From these humble beginnings, Ltd of York Street, Sydney, at a cost of became older.
Ron would go on to play the 10,000 pounds ($20,000). The Civic organ had two big room-
WurliTzer organ at the Civic The opening display advertisement sized chambers under the stage with
Theatre, in Auckland, for 12 years. proudly stated: "Associated always vertical venetian-type shutters that
Starting on Easter Saturday, 31st with grandeur, with the most sublime were opened and closed as the music
March 1956, he played six nights a and exquisite tone colours ever was required, using the swell pedal
week for seven years, and then for the created, this acknowledged king of which was activated by the right foot.
next five years, every Friday and instruments will thrill Aucklanders to It had a real piano in the left box
Saturday evening until Easter Saturday, a new conception of Musical and chimes and marimba (like a soft
March 31, 1968, when the final Entertainment". xylophone) in the right box. The
performance of the Civic WurliTzer The WurliTzer would rise to fill the percussion and the pipes were
was held. auditorium with majestic sound: underneath the stage as there were no
By then, cinema attendance’s had popular tunes of the day; stirring brass- pipes in the towers. The stops had
gradually declined since the band marches; sophisticated classics different colours for different groups of
introduction of television and the performed by an entire symphony instruments, ie. Red for the reeds and
organ was played only on the orchestra; solo instrumentals and a white for the tibias and others.
weekends until it ceased altogether. seemingly endless repertoire of silent- The Civic organ also had one of the
The last performance (at a movie sound effects. highest rises for organs in the world,
screening of “Gone With The Wind”) The extensive range included ascending over sixty feet and
was extensively advertised, resulting in thunder; canon; car and klaxon horns; understandably, some of the women
a capacity audience to farewell the sirens and firebells; melodramatic, would not play without a backrest!
organ. romantic tremolos; cathedral wedding Ron “went on” at 7.40pm every
night and as he rose from the depths he
would play his theme tune,
"Remember Me", which had featured
in the 1937 film "Mr. Dodds Takes the
Air". He would then also play during
the twenty minute intermission.
He played from memory, but would
have a list of titles on a sheet of paper
on the music rest to refer to. He
usually chose light music, (with a
leaning toward Richard Rodgers) and
would even play requests from patrons
on their birthday.
Ron said that it was a real
challenge in attempting to exploit the
organ to its fullest capacity. After
many years of playing, he found that
the instrument had a fascination that
the piano could not match.
The organ was professionally tuned
by Crofts, who would carry out checks
every couple of months. If a note didn't
sound, they would 'rob' a note from the
Ron Boyce at the Auckland Civic Theatre in the 1940’s. very top or bottom of the keyboard, as

14 2002 CINEMARECORD