St. Joseph's Oratory

St. Joseph's Oratorio illuminated by night

The St. Joseph's Oratory ( French Oratoire Saint-Joseph du Mont-Royal ) is a Roman Catholic basilica in the Canadian city of Montreal . The representative domed church is located in an exposed position southwest of Mont Royal and forms the highest point in the city. The church is consecrated to St. Joseph and received in 1954 by Pope Pius XII. awarded the title of a minor basilica . It is visited annually by over two million people and used by pilgrims as a pilgrimage church. In the late 1980s, the oratorio served as the main backdrop for the drama Jesus of Montreal .

architecture

inner space

organ

In 1904, André Bessette (brother André) initiated the construction of a small chapel next to the Collège Notre-Dame du Sacré-Coeur. Soon the cramped space conditions were no longer able to cope with the requirements, so that in 1917 a church was built that offered 1000 seats. In 1924 the construction of a basilica began, which was not finished until 1967. Brother André was beatified on May 23, 1982 and canonized on October 17, 2010. With a capacity of 10,000 people, including 3,000 seats, the sacred building is one of the largest churches in the world and the largest in Canada. The architects of the church are Dalbé Viau and Alphonse Venne.

The church is elevated and can be reached via a wide staircase with 279 steps. It measures 105 meters in length, 37 meters in width and has a total height of 129 meters. The vertical dome with an octagonal floor plan has an inner diameter of 26 meters, the outer diameter is 39 meters. The inside height of the dome is 60 meters from the ground and 97 meters to the outer dome. The main materials used were granite and copper for the dome.

organ

The basilica has two organs . In the crypt there is an instrument that goes back to an organ built in 1917 by the organ builder Casavant (St Hyacinthe). The instrument initially had 18 stops on two manual works and a pedal and was expanded in the 1950s by the organ builder Odilon Jacques and added a third manual work ( swell ). In 2008 the instrument was extensively restored, and the disposition and the organ case were expanded. The organ today has 36 registers on three manuals and a pedal.

The large organ of the St. Josephs Oratorio was built in 1958/1959 by Rudolf von Beckerath Orgelbau in Hamburg and installed in the basilica in 1960. The instrument is considered a masterpiece of the organ builder and is counted among the ten most outstanding organs worldwide. It has 78 registers (118 rows of pipes, 5,811 pipes ) on five manuals and a pedal . The playing and stop actions are mechanical. A special feature is the developed to the C 32 'pedal stops in the prospectus .

I positive C – g 3 Montre 8th' Bourdon 8th' Prestant 4 ′ Flûte conique 4 ′ Nazard 2 2 ⁄ 3  ′ Duplicate 2 ′ Gemshorn 2 ′ Tierce 1 3 ⁄ 5  ′ Larigot 1 1 ⁄ 3  ′ Plein Jeu V 1' Saqueboute 16 ′ Cromorne 8th' Chalumeau 4 ′ Tremblant

II Grand Orgue C-g 3 Montre 16 ′ Montre 8th' Flûte conique 8th' Flûte à cheminée 8th' Prestant 4 ′ Cor de nuit 4 ′ Fifth 2 2 ⁄ 3  ′ Duplicate 2 ′ Fittings VI 2 ′ Cymbals IV 2 ⁄ 3 ′ Trombones 16 ′ Trumpets 8th'

III Bombarde C-g 3 Bourdon 16 ′ Flûte en montre 8th' Prestant 4 ′ Gros Nazard 5 1 ⁄ 3  ′ Big Tierce 3 1 ⁄ 5  ′ Nazard 2 2 ⁄ 3  ′ Quarte de Nazard 2 ′ Tierce 1 3 ⁄ 5  ′ Grande Fourniture VI 2 2 ⁄ 3  ′ en chamade Bombard 16 ′ Trumpets 8th' Clairon 4 ′

IV Récit expressif C – g 3 Quintaton 16 ′ Principal 8th' Flûte à fuseau 8th' Gemshorn 8th' Gemshorn Celeste 8th' Prestant 4 ′ Flûte à bec 4 ′ Nazard 2 2 ⁄ 3  ′ Cor de nuit 2 ′ Piccolo 1' Plein Jeu V 1 1 ⁄ 3  ′ Cymbals III 1 ⁄ 4 ′ Cornet VI 8th' Cor anglais 16 ′ Hautbois 4 ′ musette 4 ′ Tremblant

V Echo expressif C – g 3 Bourdon 8th' Quintaton 8th' Principal en bois 4 ′ Flûte sylvestre 2 ′ Larigot 1 1 ⁄ 3  ′ Sesquialtera II 2 2 ⁄ 3  ′ Plein Jeu IV 2 ⁄ 3 ′ Ranquette 16 ′ Shelves 8th' Tremblant

Pedale C – g 1 Montre 32 ′ Montre 16 ′ Flute 16 ′ Soubasse 16 ′ Montre 8th' Flûte creuse 8th' Prestant 4 ′ Flûte à fuseau 4 ′ Cor de nuit 2 ′ Fittings IV 5 1 ⁄ 3  ′ Plein jeu VI 2 2 ⁄ 3  ′ Bombard 32 ′ Bombard 16 ′ Basson 16 ′ Trumpets 8th' Clairon 4 ′

• Pair : I / II, III / II, IV / II, II / P, III / P

gallery

• 

  St. Joseph's Oratory during the day

• 

  altar

• 

  The originally built chapel by Andrés

• 

  Brother Andrés' grave

• 

  Elevator room inside the church

literature

• Jean-Guy Dubuc, Marguerite-Marie Fortier: Arrow Guide - Saint Joseph's Oratory . Saint-Joseph's Oratory of Mont-Royal (Ed.), Montreal ( ca.1997 ), ISBN 2-920067-12-5 (text in French and English)

Individual evidence

1. ^ Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online: Brother André's biography
2. ^ Rudolf von Beckerath GmbH: St. Joseph du Mont Royal, Montreal, Canada ( Memento from March 15, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
3. ^ Oratoire St-Joseph ( Memento of June 5, 2013 in the Internet Archive )
4. ↑ More information about the large basilica organ

Web links

Commons : St. Joseph's Oratorio  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Web presence (French; English selectable)

Coordinates: 45 ° 29 ′ 30 ″  N , 73 ° 37 ′ 0 ″  W.