First Stop! is a website designed to provide information for anyone wanting to find out more about the organ (in all its forms), its music, the people who play it, and the many roles it plays in our lives.
First Stop! is designed as a portal to provide a user-friendly framework in which to find and watch organ-related resources which are hosted elsewhere on the internet (typically, but not always, YouTube).
While some of these resources are produced by the RCO itself, the larger volume has been created by organisations and individuals around the world who share our passion for sharing this remarkable and unique instrument with the widest possible number of people, in order to grow audiences, inspire future organists, encourage the organ builders of tomorrow, and simply put more organ music into the world.
First Stop! is divided into four sections, containing in turn content suitable for:
You can navigate to any of these sections via the menu at the top of the website.
There is also a comprehensive search facility accessible at the top of every page (look for the magnifying glass icon), which will allow you to search by these four categories, tags (from a large library of subject matters), content types (e.g. film, audio or pdf) or free text.
Across the site, resources are presented as individual pieces of content, or in collections of themed / linked content known as Playlists. A playlist might bring together a collection of content suitable for a teachers lesson plan, for example, or material suitable for an outreach event aimed at adults.
While we make every effort to ensure that the resources in First Stop! are up to date, available and properly annotated, copyright and control is retained in all cases by the producers of these resources. Similarly every effort has been made to make sure that proper permission has been given for the inclusion of all resources within First Stop!
If you believe that some content has been incorrectly included, categorised, annotated or otherwise used incorrectly within First Stop!, or you believe that you might have some content which would be suitable for First Stop!, please let us know by email to firststop@rco.org.uk
First Stop! was built and is managed by the Royal College of Organists (RCO), with support and engagement from the large number of organisations and individuals with whom the College works towards its vision of a world in which organ and choral music are widely valued as being central to cultural and spiritual life.
The Royal College of Organists would like to thank the following organisations and individuals for their contributions to the development and ongoing provision of First Stop!
British Institute of Organ Studies (BIOS); Incorporated Association of Organists (IAO); Royal College of Church Music (RSCM); Institute of British Organ Building (IBO); British Institute of Organ Studies (BIOS); Society of Women Organists (SWO); and American Guild of Organists (AGO).
