Jordan DeRouen
Columbia
Summary
Dynamic and award-winning Organist, Conductor, and Composer with expertise in hymn-playing, improvisation, and conducting with 18 years of experience. Proven ability to oversee comprehensive music programs, foster relationships, and enhance liturgical experiences in diverse settings. Currently seeking a full-time church position anywhere in the continental US.
Overview
18
18
years of professional experience
6
6
years of post-secondary education
Work History
Organist/Choirmaster
Basilica of St. Peter
Columbia
05.2019 - Current
- I play the organ for all weekend liturgies (4 in total), except for Sunday evening Masses, which are done by a contemporary ensemble. This includes one Mass on Saturday evening, and 2 choral masses on Sunday morning, followed by a Mass in Spanish.
- I also play for weekly school Masses on Wednesdays, Novus Ordo Latin Masses every Thursday, all feast days, holy days of obligation, and special diocesan liturgies and events held at the Basilica.
- I select all hymns, service music, choral music, and organ music for the Masses for which I play, often collaborating with the Rector for the selection of hymns.
- I am the director of the Gallery choir, which is comprised of 11 paid, professional, contracted singers and a handful of very talented volunteers.
- I train and contract all cantors for the parish.
- The choral scholar (paid singer) program was expanded from 8 members to its current number under my direction, after securing benefactors to become patrons of the Basilica music department.
- In addition to the Gallery choir, I also direct the parish school choir, which is called Capella Pueri. It is comprised of students in grades 2-6 from St. Peter's school, rehearses every week, and leads the music for the school Mass every Wednesday morning of the school year.
- I have overseen the implementation of the Gregorian propers which come from the Graduale Romanum. The propers that are now regularly chanted by either myself or the choir (when present) are the Introit at the very start of Mass and the Communion antiphon which is sung at the beginning of communion. These chants are the heritage of the Roman Church, and have been warmly accepted here.
- I am responsible for designing the orders of worship for the Masses each week. Under my direction, they have evolved from tri-fold leaflets with only listings of scripture and hymn numbers to full booklets, which contain all of the music for hymns and service music, as well as the full text of the readings.
- I also play for all funerals and weddings in English at this parish. I consult with couples about choosing music for their wedding.
- In collaboration with the pastor, I undertook a major phase of renovation of the Peragallo pipe organ at the Basilica. The console was completely redesigned, several ranks of pipes were added, and still more ranks were revoiced. This was to take the organ to a more French-Romantic sound and design.
- Following the renovation of the organ, I personally undertook the responsibility of keeping the organ in tune every week (in addition to regular visits from service technicians to tune 2-3 times a year). This involves spot-tuning the instrument nearly every day, and collaborating with the parish Facilities Manager to configure the HVAC system so that the tuning is kept more stable.
- During COVID-19 closures, the basilica continued to hold private live-streamed Mass on Sundays, for which I played every week and published virtual orders of worship.
Organist
Canyon Creek Presbyterian Church
Richardson
01.2017 - 05.2019
- As organist for this church, I supplied all organ/piano music and hymn-playing/accompanying at the 11:05 service every Sunday as well as for the many special services and concerts throughout the year.
- In addition to accompanying the Sanctuary Choir in their weekly singing for the service, I also played for the Covenant Children’s choir and the Revelation Youth choir. Both of these ensembles rehearsed weekly on Sunday evenings and performed about once a month at one or both of the Sunday services.
- I was often asked to lead sectionals or even the whole choir in rehearsal at times for both the Adult and Youth choirs.
- I also suppled the music for most if not all funerals/weddings that take place at the church.
- I attended at least two meetings every week.
- Through my position here I was featured with the Pro Musica Ensemble performing the Poulenc Organ Concerto in May of 2017, in addition to being featured on the special patriotic and Christmas performances the church gives each year with various solos and improvisations.
- The beautiful Quimby organ at CCPC was featured on the cover of the American Organist magazine in November 2006, and is one of the finest instruments in the Dallas area. It was my privilege to play and oversee the maintenance of this instrument every week.
Accompanist
Southern Methodist University
Dallas
08.2018 - 05.2019
- At SMU, I played for several different classes ranging from theatre to choral methods classes which involve a lot of sight-reading and challenging music.
- Additionally, I played for several voice students preparing for juries and recitals. This gave me opportunities to play widely varying styles of accompaniments, creating a further exciting challenge to the experience.
- I was also often asked to play for the choral ensembles at SMU for rehearsals and performances, both on piano and organ.
Accompanist
Verdigris Ensemble
Dallas
09.2017 - 05.2019
- Verdigris is a professional choral ensemble based in Dallas which performs innovatively-programmed concerts in the area several times a year. Under the vision and direction of Sam Bruckman, the ensemble has made a mark on the choral scene in Dallas, and is trying to reinvent the way choral singing is presented to the listener.
- I was fortunate enough to be the accompanist for this incredible group of singers, and was heavily featured on the organ in the Christmas 2017 performance, Including works by Mathias, Rutter, and Dove, also supplying improvised transitions at times during the performances.
- In the 2019, the opening concert of the season featured all works by Leonard Bernstein, including the Chichester Psalms for Organ, Harp, and Percussion.
Staff Accompanist
Forney ISD-North Forney High School
Forney
10.2016 - 05.2018
- At BMS and NFHS, I played for 9 different choirs, which performed several times a year.
- Not only did I play for the choral performances and competitions for all of these choirs as well as for solo competitions, I also was on site three times a week both playing for and regularly leading rehearsal when the director was not available, or if my input for improving quality was needed.
- Working here gave me a great deal of teaching and conducting experience for a large amount of students over a wide range of ages and abilities.
Organist/Director of Music
St. Lukes Episcopal Church, Dallas
Dallas
08.2014 - 12.2016
- At St. Luke’s, I was responsible for selecting, preparing, and playing all hymns and organ music for all services, weddings, funerals, feast days, and special services. (The choirmaster was at this time a separate position which answered to the director of music, and was the one responsible for selecting choral music.)
- I was the accompanist for the choir, which sings music of various styles including movements from large works by major composers.
- I was also responsible for hiring contract musicians for special services like Christmas and Easter.
- While at St. Luke’s, I brought back and organized and played for the Advent Lessons and Carols Service, which had been discontinued prior to my arrival there.
- Additionally, I was responsible for organizing and booking performers for the church’s Michaelsen Concert Series.
- St. Luke’s Aeolian-Skinner Organ (originally built for SMU’s Caruth Auditorium) was featured in the East Texas Pipe Organ Festival with a guest recital given by the renowned French organist Jean Guillou in November 2014.
Organist/Director of Music
St. Joseph Catholic Church - Zwolle
Zwolle
11.2010 - 07.2014
- Prepared music and played the organ for 3 masses every weekend as well as all major feast days and all weddings and funerals
- I was responsible for selecting the music and for hiring musicians for special services such as Christmas and Easter.
- This position was my first professional experience during college.
Assistant Organist
Minor Basilica of the Immaculate Conception
Natchitoches
09.2013 - 05.2014
- At the Basilica I was responsible for accompanying the Basilican choir which sang on major feast days and all holy days of obligation.
- In addition, I was responsible for accompanying the Schola Cantorum, which sang at the 5pm mass which is a Traditional Latin Mass. During this special service, I would usually improvise harmonizations to accompany the Gregorian Chant (often reading from Neumatic notation), then follow them with my own improvisations on the chants themselves.
- I would also sing in the choir and cantor at the Saturday evening mass. I was often asked to sub on the organ for this mass.
Organist-Choirmaster
St. Timothy Episcopal Church
Alexandria
10.2011 - 01.2013
- In this position, I played the organ and directed the choir for one service every Sunday, and played for all major feast days, and all funerals and weddings.
- I was also responsible for selecting all hymns, choral, and organ music.
- The position offered me the great privilege of working with a wonderful rector, Fr. Matthew Frick, who gave me helpful guidance and advice on being a successful church staff member.
Accompanist
St. Joseph Catholic Church - DeRidder
DeRidder
09.2007 - 05.2010
- This was my very first job while I was in High School.
- I played the piano for two masses every weekend on Saturday and Sunday as well as for all major feast days. (the church does not have an organ)
- this position was an excellent starting point to become familiar with working in a church setting. The director of music here was also the choral director at an elementary school and a middle school, and I would play for the choirs at these schools as well.
Education
Master of Music - Organ Performance
Southern Methodist University
Dallas, Texas, TX 08.2014 - 05.2016
Bachelor of Music - Sacred Music
Northwestern State University of Louisiana
Natchitoches, LA 08.2010 - 05.2014
High School Diploma -
DeRidder High School
DeRidder, LA05-2010
Organ Repertoire And Improvisation
French Organ Music Seminar
Paris, FranceSkills
- Hymn-playing
- organ improvisation
- playing organ repertoire
- Conducting
- music selection/liturgy planning
- organ maintenance
- working and building relationships with people
Affiliations
Solo Performance: Cathédrale Saint-François-de-Sales – Chambéry, France (July 2013)
Timeline
Organist/Choirmaster
Basilica of St. Peter
05.2019 - Current
Accompanist
Southern Methodist University
08.2018 - 05.2019
Accompanist
Verdigris Ensemble
09.2017 - 05.2019
Organist
Canyon Creek Presbyterian Church
01.2017 - 05.2019
Staff Accompanist
Forney ISD-North Forney High School
10.2016 - 05.2018
Organist/Director of Music
St. Lukes Episcopal Church, Dallas
08.2014 - 12.2016
Master of Music - Organ Performance
Southern Methodist University
08.2014 - 05.2016
Assistant Organist
Minor Basilica of the Immaculate Conception
09.2013 - 05.2014
Organist-Choirmaster
St. Timothy Episcopal Church
10.2011 - 01.2013
Organist/Director of Music
St. Joseph Catholic Church - Zwolle
11.2010 - 07.2014
Bachelor of Music - Sacred Music
Northwestern State University of Louisiana
08.2010 - 05.2014
Accompanist
St. Joseph Catholic Church - DeRidder
09.2007 - 05.2010
High School Diploma -
DeRidder High School
Organ Repertoire And Improvisation
French Organ Music Seminar