The New Sound of St. Mark's

After years of planning and construction, the Roosevelt Family Pipe Organ was officially unveiled to the Dallas community with a special dedication recital on January 11, 2015. Guest organist Dr. David Heller, Chair of the Music Department at Trinity University, performed a varied selection of arrangements, spanning the centuries that allowed the audience to hear the complete tonal range of the instrument.

 

Before the recital, Eugene McDermott Headmaster David Dini said, “For those of us who hear the Roosevelt Family Pipe Organ now on a daily basis, we’ve quickly come to appreciate what a special gift this truly is for our school."

 

For the past few years, St. Mark’s has worked closely with renowned organ builder Orgues Létourneau Ltée, who designed and constructed the instrument. The Roosevelt Family Pipe Organ first arrived at the School last September and was meticulously assembled and tuned over the next few months.

 

"We feel most fortunate that our company and the Létourneau name is now associated with St. Mark's," said company president and founder Fernand Létourneau. "The School's sense of common purpose and desire to strive for the very best has been evident to us in so many ways throughout this project."

 

The new organ is modeled after great English pipe organs and built to accompany the St. Mark’s Choir and support congregational singing. The organ has already added its unique voice to the School's weekly chapel services, Evensong programs, and the traditional holiday service of Lessons & Carols. Situated in the rear gallery of the chapel, the Roosevelt Family Pipe Organ is visually striking, with a case of solid oak and with wood accents to compliment the Chapel surroundings. The polished façade pipes are up to 16 feet long, but represent only a small portion of the 3,432 pipes inside the organ, the longest of which measures 32 feet long.

 

"The new pipe organ in the Chapel at St. Mark’s School of Texas is a significant achievement," said Andrew Forrest, Létourneau's Artistic Director. "It is a tangible statement of the School’s collective faith, one that underscores music’s unique power to reach us in ways that words cannot.”

 

The Dallas community will have another chance to hear the new organ next month during Evensong on February 8, 2015, at 7:00 p.m. The Dallas Morning News recently featured the Roosevelt Family Pipe Organ in a feature about several new organs built in the Dallas area. 

Click here to learn more about the Roosevelt Family Organ.