Our inaugural recital on the new organ console was fantastic!
What a simply fabulous concert we enjoyed on Friday evening when David Briggs performed the inaugural recital of the new console. A packed cathedral was present to witness music-making of the very highest order. What a treat!
Music is never an individual endeavour, and our most fulsome thanks are offered to numerous members of the cathedral community for their time: our own fabulous staff and volunteers at the doors, the wardens, John Struve who maintains the organ, and indeed everyone present. A concert such as this is evidence of how music can bring people together.
Most of all, however, I would like to reiterate our thanks to Peter Farah for his most generous gift. As you may know, the console is dedicated to his father, the Reverend Canon Shafik Farah who was a priest both in Palestine and in the Diocese of Toronto. It is a donation dedicated to the memory of a dear father, and to perpetuate the values that Canon Farah embodied and espoused. Given in memory of a man whose life bridged two worlds, the dedication is a prayer that the music which is created from the console gives life to everyone who enters the cathedral, whatever their faith, nationality, hopes, dreams, and state of mind. Music is a sign of the universality of God, of the world we inhabit, and of the significance of our relationships with each other. The beauty of the console, with Canon Shafik’s signature carved into it, is a daily physical reminder of this truth, which I pray lives in every note which emanates from the organ from this time onwards.
Yours most sincerely,
Thomas Bell
Director of Music
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Join us as we celebrate the arrival of the new Létourneaw organ console, a generous gift which will enhance our musical life for many years! You can view the video here.
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St. James Cathedral is pleased to invite you to our inaugural recital on the new organ console on Friday, September 22 at 7:30pm!
Get tickets here
Dear friends,
We are looking forward to welcoming you to St. James Cathedral for the inaugural concert of our new console. It promises to be a fabulous concert.
The doors will open at 6.45pm. Seating is unreserved.
The cathedral bells will be rung in celebration from 7.00 p.m.
The programme is as follows:
‘The Art of Transcription’
Prelude and Fugue ‘The Spitfire’ by Sir William Walton
Clair de Lune by Claude Debussy
Hungarian Dance No 5 in G minor by Johannes Brahms
Menuet des Follets (from Damnation of Faust) by Hector Berlioz
Liebestod (Tristan und Isolde) by Richard Wagner
La Valse by Maurice Ravel
Interval
Improvisation – Symphony in Four Movements
Introduction and Allegro
Scherzo
Adagio
Finale
The organ console, a most generous gift from the Farah family, is dedicated to Rev. Canon Shafik A. Farah, who led a life of service to the church and wider community in Palestine and Canada. Our prayer is that the new console will allow our music to flourish, touching the hearts of all who enter this building for many generations, as a tribute to a wonderful priest and father.
The following morning after the concert the Royal Canadian College of Organists has generously sponsored an event at which Andrew Forrest, Artistic Director of Létourneau Organs, will explain the new technology and beautiful artistry of the new console. This is free and open to everyone: Saturday 10:30am
Thank you for your support of our music. We very much look forward to sharing an evening of exceptional music with you.
Yours sincerely,
Thomas Bell – Director of Music
Get your tickets and join us with your family and friends!
*Eventbrite.ca: Search for “David Briggs Recital” or click here
*Front Desk of the Cathedral Centre: Monday to Friday from 9:00am to 4:00pm.
*Cheque payable to St. James Cathedral (65 Church Street, Toronto, ON M5C 2E9).
*At the door on Friday, September 22 from 6:45pm (cash and debit/credit card payment available).
We are delighted that Organist David Briggs will play the inaugural recital. David is regarded as one of the world’s finest improvisors, with a very busy schedule on both sides of the Atlantic.
He has held appointments at Hereford, Truro, and Gloucester Cathedrals, and – we are happy to have this association – for a number of years as Artist in Residence at St. James Cathedral.
The evening’s programme is a rare opportunity to hear organ transcriptions of the orchestral music of Brahms, Debussy, Ravel, Berlioz, and Walton, and it concludes with a complete symphony improvised on the organ. He will introduce all the music in his charming inimitable style. “I am thrilled to be coming back to St James to inaugurate the new console, recently installed by the excellent Letourneau company. During my five very happy years at the cathedral (2012-2017), I felt increasingly close to the beautiful and historic Warren/Casavant organ, but it was very clear that work needed to be done to the instrument. The console, in particular, was very worn – extremely rickety and proned to playing wrong notes on your behalf! The generous gift of the new console represents a major start in the restoration of this important instrument, which is such a significant and wondrous part of Ontario’s musical heritage.” Organist David Briggs
Join us as we celebrate the arrival of this beautiful new console, a generous gift which will enhance our musical life for many years to come.
For more information, please send an email to info@stjamescathedral.ca or call (416) 364-7865
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St. James Cathedral is pleased to invite you to our inaugural recital on the new organ console on Friday, September 22 at 7:30pm!
Click here to buy tickets and join us with your family and friends!
Dear friends of St. James Cathedral, we are truly honoured to be presenting what will be an exceptional concert on Friday, September 22. It is – of course – the inaugural recital of our new organ console. At 7.30 p.m., David Briggs will unleash the mighty sounds of the cathedral organ in a programme guaranteed to delight everyone fortunate enough to be in attendance.
Tickets are $25, join us with your family and friends!
Get your tickets in one of these ways:
*On Eventbrite.ca search for “David Briggs Recital” or click here
*E-transfer to bookkeeper@stjamescathedral.ca (Please specify “David Briggs Recital” in the message).
*Front Desk of the Cathedral Centre: Monday to Friday from 9:00am to 4:00pm.
*Cheque payable to St. James Cathedral (65 Church Street, Toronto, ON M5C 2E9).
*At the door on Friday, September 22 from 6:45pm (cash and debit/credit card payment available).
For more information, send an email to info@stjamescathedral.ca or call (416)364-7865
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The new console is the generous gift of the Farah family and is given in memory of Rev. Canon Shafik A. Farah, whose life of service and love of music is a most fitting dedication and example for all who play the instrument. His name is embedded into the decoration of the beautiful woodwork. Many generations of organists will play on this console. There will certainly not be another console dedication concert this century!
David Briggs will be familiar to many at St. James Cathedral as he was the Artist in Residence for a number of years, and through his international reputation as one of the world’s finest improvisors. The evening’s programme is a rare opportunity to hear organ transcriptions of the orchestral music of Brahms, Debussy, Ravel, Berlioz, and Walton, and it concludes with a complete symphony improvised on the organ. He will introduce all the music in his charming inimitable style.
“I am thrilled to be coming back to St James to inaugurate the new console, recently installed by the excellent Letourneau company. During my five very happy years at the cathedral (2012-2017), I felt increasingly close to the beautiful and historic Warren/Casavant organ, but it was very clear that work needed to be done to the instrument. The console, in particular, was very worn – extremely rickety and proned to playing wrong notes on your behalf! The generous gift of the new console represents a major start in the restoration of this important instrument, which is such a significant and wondrous part of Ontario’s musical heritage.” Organist David Briggs
Tickets for the concert are $25. I do hope that you will join us with your family and friends!
Thomas Bell – Director of Music & Organist
