Restored Sicilian organ to grace St John's again

The 16th century organ of the Oratory of St John Co-Cathedral, in Valletta will return to its rightful place at the end of the month after it was restored in Italy.

The restoration project was funded by the Italian Protocol and the Valletta Rehabilitation Project.

The organ was restored at Fratelli Ruffatti in Padova, not having been played for many years due to damage.

The VRP said the instrument is the oldest Sicilian organ in existence, adding that the project had raised a lot of interest by organ restorers worldwide.

The project was planned and executed by the VRP within the Ministry for Resources and Infrastructure, with the collaboration of the Metropolitan Chapter and the St John Co-Cathedral Foundation.

Ray Bondin, the VRP's executive coordinator, and Emmanuel Buttigieg, director at the Works Division, visited the Fratelli Ruffatti studios during the final preparations for the testing of the organ prior to shipping.

The original metal pipes that remained were restored and replacement pipes had to be made for those missing.