Venues and Organs
All Saints Anglican Church
2850 Bloor Street West
Toronto, ON. M8X 1B2
416-233-1125
Organ
Three manuals and pedals, 41 stops, 51 ranks
Detached movable drawknob console, compass 61/32
Electro-pneumatic action
Opus 3874, 2009
St. Paul’s Anglican Organ
St. Paul’s Bloor Street is located on Bloor Street, east of Yonge Street in downtown Toronto. It is the largest church in the Diocese of Toronto of the Anglican Church of Canada. Wikipedia
227 Bloor St E
Toronto, ON M4W 1C8
Organ
http://www.musiqueorguequebec.ca/orgues/canada/torontospac1.html
Story and Specifications (PDF)
St. Basil Catholic Church
The current organ at Saint Basil’s was installed in 1919 by the organ firm Casavant Frères. It has been modified three times since its initial installation. 1960 saw the replacement of the original console for a then-modern console. Two years later, in 1962, minor additions were made to the organ by the firm Kney & Bright. The London, Ontario-based builder added mixtures on the Récit division, removed the Voix humaine 8’, and added a Chalumeau 4’ on the Positif. It would be another 19 years before the organ was again modified. This time, in 1981, the Toronto-based Alan T. Jackson Co. Ltd. undertook a tonal revision of the instrument, attempting as much as possible to bring clarity to the sound of the instrument’s otherwise generally dark tonal character.
The goal of the 2017 restoration work was three-pronged and hinged on repairing and resolving any longstanding issues through visual, mechanical, and tonal enhancements. Thus was undertaken the most major rebuilding and restoration of the instrument since 1919.
Mechanically speaking, several elements of the organ were releathered, including the Pédale offset chest and the primary distributeurs. The console was upgraded to include a pedal divider, as well as sostenuto functions (both additive and substitutive) on all divisions. A second organ was prepared for in the console, in honour of the original 1919 vision of the Basilian Fathers; the Basilians had conceived of the building of a second organ, operable from the same primary loft console. Though the second organ was never built, the mechanisms had been installed in the 1919 console to allow for the possibility to further enlarge the instrument by building a second, much smaller organ in the sanctuary, to complement the large loft organ. This work was left out in the 1960 console. The 2017 console work has now prepared for the possibility of a future addition of an Orgue de choeur, or choir organ, as was originally planned.
Changes were also undertaken to beautify the visual qualities of the instrument. The Positif and Grand Orgue divisions were swapped and the central portion of the façade lowered, to expose the previously hidden rose window. The fading bronze-coloured façade pipes were stripped and repainted in a silver colour with gold mouths.
Tonal enhancements were undertaken to give greater clarity to the sound. New pipework was introduced to the instrument, and other pipework restored to its original conceptual character. The French Romantic Cavaillé-Coll shallots gave the reeds their fiery sound, and the newly-voiced smooth foundation stops provided the symphonic character that the instrument has today. Currently, the organ has a total of 52 stops, 64 ranks, and 3,624 pipes. Full organ specifications can be viewed here.
Christ Church Deer Park Anglican Church
1570 Yonge Street
The church is situated on the north west corner of Heath Street and Yonge ( two blocks north of St. Clair Ave.) and can be accessed by TTC or car. By TTC, take the St. Clair streetcar to Yonge or the Yonge Subway to the St. Clair stop and walk north. Parking is available in a Toronto Parking Authority lot located at Heath and Delisle. Enter from either Heath Street or Delisle Avenue.
The organ was built and installed in the church in 1982 by the Karl Wilhelm Company of Mont St. Hilaire, Quebec. The organ has mechanical key and stop action. The case is made of white oak and the pipe shades are of carved butternut. Voiced in the classic French style, its 36 stops and 50 ranks are capable of interpreting a wide variety of organ literature.
Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic - Toronto
Venue
3055 Bloor Street West
Toronto, Ontario, M8X 1C6
Our Lady of Sorrows is located at 3055 Bloor Street West, just west of Royal York Road on the south side of Bloor Street. Limited parking available but a “Green P” lot is just north of Bloor Street off Royal York Road. If taking the subway, there is a Royal York stop and a few minute walk on Bloor Street.
Organ Specs
The organ is Casavant Frères Opus 2805 (1965). This two-manual, 25-stop organ is a fully mechanical action instrument with an elegant Ruckpositiv. However, it has no electronic control systems nor expression. Nevertheless, English organist Peter Hurford once mentioned that this was one of the finest Baroque instruments in the world. As such, he recorded extensively on this instrument with DECCA. The results were astounding and his Bach and pre-Bach recorded interpretations were considered as the authority on the performance of Bach’s organ music.
For stop disposition: http://www.sorrows.ca/about-us/opus-2805.html
Metropolitan United Church - Toronto
Venue
56 Queen Street East
Toronto, Ontario, M5C 2Z3
Metropolitan United Church, 56 Queen Street East, two blocks east of Yonge St. in downtown Toronto. It is easily accessible by streetcar or the Queen St. subway station on the Yonge line. Parking is available in the lot on the east side of the church.
The organ (Casavant opus 1367) was built in 1930. In November of 1998, a gallery division of 7 stops was installed as a gift from the Newcourt Credit Group in honour of long-time Metropolitan member Ronald McKinlay. This instrument, still the largest in Canada, has a tonal palette which places it among the finest recital instruments in the country. Comprising five manuals and pedal, the organ contains 120 stops, 131 ranks and 8092 pipes.
Organ
Casavant Opus 1367 (1930)
For stop disposition: https://www.metunited.org/jmv4/index.php/programs/music/music-programs/66-organ