St. Michael Catholic Church - Biloxi

Mississippi, USA

In 2005, Hurricane Katrina caused massive destruction to the entire Mississippi Gulf Coast, and immense damage to St. Michael Catholic Church located directly on the beach in Biloxi. As the tidal surge reached 28' inside of the church, nearly everything was destroyed and washed away into the Gulf of Mexico. The circular building, designed in the early 1960's, withstood the tremendous power of the storm and was able to be rebuilt.

After 5 years of meticulous work, the building has been restored to its spectacular splendor. The original stained glass company had records of the artist's designs and was able to recreate the magnificent windows that surround the congregation. New terrazzo floors were installed and new pews finished in the original light oak have been installed. When it came to selecting an organ to replace the original pipe organ, the church chose a new Rodgers organ with Parallel Digital Imaging to support their music ministry.

Working with Tadlock & Associates area manager Bob Hupka, the church chose a Rodgers two-manual organ, the digital equivalent of 144 ranks of actual wind-blown pipes with four independent sets of voices: American Classic, French, English and German. In addition, the organ features 20 internal memory levels, USB memory storage, six levels of MIDI implementation, 50 orchestral sounds, built-in record/playback sequencer, Rodgers Performance Touch keyboards, together with premium lighted drawknobs, all together in a handsome, custom light oak console which perfectly matches the church's interior wood. The organ console is located in the rear of the sanctuary with the main audio system surrounding the congregation in the front and rear. The independent celestial division speaks gloriously from the center of the room, 40' above the main floor, high above the congregation. The sound of the organ fills the space with both the soft richness and magnificent power of a tremendous pipe organ.

For information on Rodgers Organs for Alabama, the Gulf Coast of Mississippi, North Florida and South Georgia, contact Tadlock and Associates Area Manager Bob Hupka at (251) 300-0991. Email: Bob@TadlockOrgan.com. Visit the Tadlock Website: www.TadlockOrgan.com