Update on the Casavant Organ Restoration
August 4, 2011
This summer’s onsite work involving our Casavant Organ’s restoration is now complete! The 3,000 pipes that have remained at MAPC have all been cleaned, and all the surfaces and components in the organ chamber have also been thoroughly cleaned. The mechanisms and pipes in need of restoration were shipped to the Casavant Frères factory in Quebec in mid-July, and we anticipate that they will return for reinstallation by early October.
Our recently updated photo gallery summarizes the work that has progressed over these past few weeks. If you haven’t watched Andrew Henderson’s “backstage video tour,” click on this link to YouTube so that you can hear him describe the need for the organ project from inside the organ itself.
Additional details about the Organ Restoration project are available on our website. If you have not yet made a pledge or contribution in support of the Casavant Organ Restoration Fund, please pick up a pledge card in the narthex or Church House lobby, or consider doing so online. Thank you!
July 21, 2011The work involving our Casavant Organ’s restoration is progressing smoothly! Now that the mechanisms and pipes in need of restoration have been shipped to Quebec, attention is being turned to cleaning the remaining pipes and interior of the organ chamber. The four-person crew has made excellent progress. For the past two weeks nearly 3,000 pipes have been hoisted down the scaffolding and professionally cleaned (washed and air dried), and the filthy wood and plaster services in the organ chamber are getting a good dose of Murphy’s Oil Soap!
View our recently updated photo gallery to view the work as it has progressed over these past few weeks. If you haven’t watched Andrew Henderson’s “backstage video tour,” click on this link to YouTube so that you can see him describe the need for the organ project from inside the organ itself.
During the summer months our hymns and service music are being led from the piano, and the choir is singing from their temporary quarters in the rear balcony. Continuing into the fall, the preludes and postludes for our worship services will consist of piano, instrumental and vocal works.
Additional details about the Organ Restoration project are available on our website. If you have not yet made a pledge or contribution in support of the Casavant Organ Restoration Fund, please pick up a pledge card in the Narthex or Church House Lobby, or consider donating online. Thank you!
July 14, 2011We are nearing the end of the third week of the work involving our Casavant Organ’s thorough restoration! The large boxes containing mechanisms and pipes that covered the side pews this past Sunday will be loaded into a truck bound for Quebec by the weekend. For the past few days the four-person crew has been busy making minor repairs in the organ chamber, and the cleaning process is well underway. Nearly 1,000 pipes have been hoisted down the scaffolding and professionally cleaned (washed and air dried), and the filthy wood and plaster services in the organ chamber are getting a good dose of Murphy’s Oil Soap!
Photos of the work in progress can be viewed on our online photo gallery. You can also watch Andrew Henderson’s “backstage video tour” posted on YouTube, describing the need for the organ project from inside the organ itself.
During the summer months our hymns and service music will be led from the piano, and the choir has begun singing from their temporary quarters in the rear balcony. Continuing into the fall, the preludes and postludes for our worship services will consist of piano, instrumental and vocal works.
Additional details about the Organ Restoration project are available on our website. If you have not yet made a pledge or contribution in support of the Casavant Organ Restoration Fund, you may do so online.
July 7, 2011
We are well into the second week of the organ restoration! The organ’s complicated and delicate mechanisms have all been removed and have been packed into boxes, ready to be shipped to the Casavant Frères factory. The removal of approximately 1,000 pipes, which need to be restored in the Casavant workshops, has begun and will be completed by the end of this week.
Updated photos of the work being done have been added to the photo gallery! You can also watch Andrew Henderson’s “backstage video tour” conducted inside the organ chamber describing the need for the organ project on YouTube!
This past Sunday Dr. Henderson led our hymns and service music from the piano, and the choir has begun singing from their temporary quarters in the rear balcony. Throughout the summer months and continuing into the fall, the preludes and postludes for our worship services will consist of piano, instrumental and vocal works.
Additional details about the Organ Restoration project are available on our website. If you have not yet made a pledge or contribution in support of the Casavant Organ Restoration Fund, you may do so online.
June 30, 2011
The organ restoration has begun! When you arrive at church this week you will see substantial scaffolding in the center of the chancel, three panels of the organ screen removed, and the choir pews and our 16th-Century Flemish tapestry securely protected. Various mechanisms of the organ have already been removed and sit waiting to be packed into boxes and shipped to the Casavant Frères factory.
The photo gallery on the right captures some of the work that is taking place. You can also watch Andrew Henderson’s “backstage video tour” of the organ that is posted on YouTube!
The Sanctuary and Phillips Lounge will be tidied up in time for Sunday, but throughout July and August, these spaces will be inaccessible on weekdays. Beginning this Sunday and continuing into the fall, our hymns and service music will be led from the piano and the choir will be stationed in the rear balcony. The preludes and postludes for our worship services will consist of piano, instrumental and vocal works.
Additional details about the Organ Restoration project are available on our website.
If you have not yet made a pledge or contribution in support of the Casavant Organ Restoration Fund, you may do so online.
