Christ Church Anglican Cathedra - Ottawa, Ontario

, Canada

Christ Church Cathedral purchased a new Trillium Masterpiece 958 as the new main organ for its sanctuary.

The new organ of 54 stops and 56 Voice Palette™ stops has been installed at the front of the church and speaks from both sides of the chancel area from behind the choir stalls. The instrument is comprised of 5 divisions playable over 3 manuals and pedals: Great, Swell, Choir, Solo (floating) and Pedal. Of note within the organ’s specification are full independent principal choruses on all the primary divisions, 2 Festival Trumpets and 2 English Tubas of varying tonal colour and available on different manuals. The tonal scheme of the organ allows for traditional English cathedral music to be performed easily while still providing enough versatility to perform music from all other major musical schools and eras.

The audio system, comprised of 14 audio channels, was customized to meet the unique acoustical characteristics of Christ Church’s chancel and to achieve optimal projection of sound throughout the entire room. Rodgers' exclusive Parallel Digital Imaging™ technology provides a realism of sound that creates a “sense of space,” whether listening to the organ up close or from a distance.

Organist and Director of Music Matthew Larkin says of the new installation, “The new Rodgers at Christ Church has allowed us to explore many areas of repertoire that were simply not possible before, given the limitations of the pipe organ. The expanse of colour and sound made possible by the Rodgers has greatly enhanced our performance and the worship experience in general.”

Christ Church Cathedral has a long and rich history in choral music of the Anglican tradition. The Cathedral Choir of Men and Boys dates back to 1891, and to this day is one of the finest such ensembles in North America. The choir recently visited England, where it was the choir-in-residence at Ely Cathedral and served as guest choir at St. Paul’s Cathedral London.

Installation and voicing is scheduled to be completed in the spring of 2010. A special celebratory concert is scheduled for October 2010 featuring Philippe Belanger, titular organist of St. Joseph’s Oratory, Montreal, QC.