Renowned 19th century organbuilder S.R. Warren installed a small pipe organ in a chapel on the grounds of the Governor General's residence, Rideau Hall, in 1894. The organ was later given to St Bartholomew's Anglican Church by the Duchess of Connaught upon the chapel's demolition in 1914. A number of ranks from this Warren organ were restored for reuse in an otherwise "all-new" instrument commissioned by St Bartholomew's Church from Létourneau Pipe Organs.
In August of 2013 our new Letourneau organ was delivered and was ready to play by the middle of September. It is the 126th organ for this Quebec firm of master crafters.
The new pipe organ, Létourneau's Opus 126, is located at the back of the church's sanctuary and resides within a case of solid walnut pipe shades. The organ's façade displays polished pipes in tin from the Great 8' Diapason and the Pedal 8' Principal. The organ features pallet-and-slider windchests with electric pull-down action and is played from a moveable two-manual drawknob console.
Modest in size, the organ's stoplist is intended to provide a broad but efficient range of colour to suit the instrument's primary role as an accompanimental and liturgical instrument. The organ's final specification was developed in collaboration with the Organist and Director of Music at Ottawa's Christ Church Cathedral, Matthew Larkin.
The new organ has 17 stops and just over 1,000 pipes. It is played from a moveable console with two manuals (two keyboards) and a pedalboard to be played with the feet; the whole is built on a rigid internal structure with casters to enable mobility on the raised platform at the rear of the church. For organists, the console features a complete system of pistons to store and recall various stop combinations along with 100 levels of memory and a general piston sequencer. The console also offers a record-playback system that enables organists to record themselves playing and then listen to the organ playing back their performance.
Organ Specifications for Opus 126
Great
8’ Open Diapason
8’ Chimney Flute
8’ Dulciana
4’ Principal
2’ Fifteenth
III Mixture
Swell
8’ Geigen Diapason
8’ Viola da Gamba
8’ Voix Celeste
8’ Lieblich Gedeckt
4’ Harmonic Flute
2’ Flute
8’ Trumpet
Pedal
8’ Bass Flute
8’ Principal
16’ Gedeckt
16’ Trombone
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The Church of St. Bartholomew