MORE THAN INSTRUMENTS
The organ at TEMC plays a significant role in the life of the church, accompanying weekly church services, weddings, concerts and other events.
Built in 1914 by Casavant Frères (Opus 583), the instrument is one of the largest pipe organs in Canada. It consists of five manuals, 101 ranks, 95 stops and nearly 7000 pipes. The majority of the pipes are located within the walls on either side of the chancel, with the remainder situated at the back of the church.
Toronto is home to three of Canada’s largest pipe organs*, all being Casavants. Another 1914 Casavant of St. Paul’s Bloor Street is a 137 rank, 4-manual organ boasting 7000 pipes. However, this is in turn dwarfed by the 8092 pipes of the much younger (1930) 5-manual cousin at Metropolitan United Church. It is by number of pipes Canada’s largest and just squeaks into the top 50 in the world.
There can be no question that organs in this category are not simply musical instruments. They are marvels of engineering, stunning works of art and craftsmanship. The great church organs have become objects and arbiters of beauty, icons of culture and history, and perhaps most pertinently on occasions like the TEMC Organ Century year, legacies of faith, love and hope. We have surely been bequeathed this musical treasure by those who came before us, and it is our privilege and joy to bequeath it to those who will come after us.
(*In the rest of Canada, only three churches belong to this club, all having between 6000 and 7000 pipes. They are all located in Montreal: Basilique Notre-Dame, Oratoire St-Joseph, and the Church of St. Andrew & St. Paul.)