More Than Just Bells

The carillon of Saint Joseph’s Oratory of Mount Royal is celebrating its 70th anniversary. In this two-part series, the archives invite you to dive into the history of the instrument and of those who have served as its carillonneurs.

An Oratory Without a Bell Tower

Attentive pilgrims may notice that the Oratory does not have a bell tower. There is no structure on the Basilica or the Crypt Church to house bells. But this was not always the case.

In 1908, a donor named Joseph Paquette offered a 1,000-pound bell to the sanctuary (1). The bell, ordered from France, rang for the first time on May 13, 1909. A month later, the Oratory’s promoters organized an official blessing ceremony for the bell. Covered in flowers and white fabric to symbolize its baptism, it was suspended from a wooden structure over three meters high while awaiting the installation of a campanile on the Chapel. This was completed in 1910.

After the Crypt Church was built in 1917, the bell was removed from its campanile. It’s hard to say why, except that its weight may have raised concerns about potential damage to the Chapel. Photos taken between 1924 and 1954 show that the bell was moved several times: first to the roof of the Crypt Church, then to the roof of the Sainte-Croix Pavilion. Was the aim to make it better heard? Was there an intention to install it permanently elsewhere? What happened next is unclear — its whereabouts remained unknown until it was “rediscovered” almost by accident in the summer of 2007 (2).

Two Proposals Submitted Too Early

In 1951, the Morissette Company of Quebec, a representative of Paccard bells since 1894, offered the Oratory a 35-bell carillon for $16,000. The offer was considered interesting, but the religious community themselves stated that “the issue [of having a carillon] does not currently arise.” The proposal was rejected, especially since, according to an expert hired by the Oratory, the set was too small for the size of the sanctuary (3).

A few months later, the Stromberg-Carlson Company offered an electronic carillon of 38 bells. The company proposed to install the instrument for a minimum five-year trial period at no cost. There was hesitation, and the project fell through. The collaboration with Stromberg-Carlson did not go any further (4).

Unexpected Bells

Things took an unexpected turn on June 16, 1954, when the religious community received, on a trial basis, “a 48-bell carillon from the renowned Paccard bell foundry, originally intended for the Eiffel Tower, temporarily installed in the park of Asnières, where carillonneur Mr. [Lannoy] performed concerts during the summer season” (5).

Delighted, the council immediately began searching for benefactors willing to finance the purchase of the carillon. The timing was perfect, coinciding with the Oratory’s 50th anniversary celebrations.

All of the Paccard bells arrived between November and December 1954. They were temporarily installed in the choir of the Basilica. They rang during the Christmas mass, but it was during a grand official blessing ceremony, with Cardinal Léger in attendance, on February 27, 1955, that they were formally welcomed to the sanctuary.

The Oratory’s Bell Tower

Following the ceremony, the council authorized a $8,500 expenditure for the construction of a bell tower to house the carillon. In the April issue of The Oratory, Father Deguire proudly announced that all the carillon’s bells had been funded by benefactors and that the money raised even allowed for the addition of five more bells (6).

In an interview with La Patrie and La Presse, Father Deguire stated that the Oratory aimed to eventually build “a 175-foot-high campanile on the west side of the Oratory. But [that] in the meantime, a temporary campanile would be erected” (7).

In total, the project cost approximately $35,000, entirely funded by donors. At that point, the Oratory’s carillon became the second largest in Canada (53 bells). The Rainbow Tower in Niagara was the largest (55 bells).

The bell tower was built on the site of Brother André’s Original Chapel, which had been relocated in the fall of 1954. Installing the bells in the bell tower required the expertise of a carillon installer sent by the Paccard foundry, Alexis Bouvier, who personally oversaw the fine-tuning of the mechanism.

The inaugural concert was presented on May 15, 1955. Carillonneur Émile Vendette was selected for this first public performance. The program included compositions dedicated to Saint Joseph, and works by Gounod, Haydn, Bach, and Mozart.

(1) Annals of Saint Joseph, September 1912, p. 262.
(2) Jean-François Rioux. “The Eventful Fate of a Bell,” L’Oratoire, January–February 2008, pp. 22–23.
(3) Minutes of the local council, July 10, 1951.
(4) Minutes of the local council, October 2, 1951.
(5) Minutes of the local council, June 16, 1954.
(6) Father Émile Deguire. “In the Silence of the Nave, the Bells Waited,” The Oratory, April 1955, p. 21.
(7) La Patrie, February 5, 1955, p. 49.