Music plays an important part in the healing mission of Mayo Clinic. Since 1928, our campus in Rochester, Minnesota, has featured a large instrument of cup-shaped bells known as a carillon, located in the tower of the Plummer Building. Now you can enjoy the carillon from any place in the world by watching live performances as they stream on camera, above, or by visiting our library of recorded carillon music, below.
For a behind-the-scenes look at the carillon and the story of how it became part of the Mayo Clinic experience, watch the short film, “Crowned with Music: The Carillon at Mayo Clinic,” at the bottom of this page. Open other tabs for additional information, and please send us your comments and suggestions.
Monday, March 25, 2024
No recital
Schedule of Events
The carillon can be heard Mondays at 7:00 p.m. and Tuesday through Friday at 12:00 p.m. (CT).
Recitals featuring the Mayo Clinic carillonneur are scheduled each weekday throughout the year. Typically lasting between 20-30 minutes, recitals are also presented on Memorial Day, the Fourth of July and for other special events. In the summer, Mayo Clinic hosts talented guest carillonneurs from around the world. Recitals are open to the public and free of charge.
In a live performance, carillon music is best heard about 500 feet downwind from the source – ideally, in an open area away from distracting noise. The sound is clearest during crisp, cold weather, though performances can be enjoyed at any time. Enjoyable spots to listen to the carillon on the Mayo Clinic campus in Rochester, Minnesota, include Annenberg Plaza, between the Mayo, Plummer and Gonda Buildings, and the courtyard behind the Harwick Building.
Featured Recordings
Pål på haugen
Arranged by Dean Robinson, performed by Austin Ferguson
America
Arranged and performed by Austin Ferguson
Auld Lang Syne
Arranged and performed by Austin Ferguson
What is a Carillon?
The carillon is dedicated “To the American Soldier.”
Plummer Building, Rochester, MN
The Carillon at Mayo Clinic
The largest bell is nearly 6 feet high and weighs 7,840 lbs.
“Today we dedicate this carillon to the American soldier, in grateful memory of heroic actions on land and sea to which America owes her liberty, peace and prosperity.”Thirty-three additional bells, along with a new clavier, practice console and glass-enclosed performer’s cabin, were installed in 1977. These enhancements were made possible with gifts from Mrs. Frances G. Sheets and Mrs. Isabella Gooding Sanders, descendants of Alphonso Gooding, a Rochester pioneer. The new bells, weighing from 19 to 130 pounds, were cast at the Petit & Fritsen Foundry in Aarle-Rixtel, The Netherlands. Now at 56 bells, the carillon covers a 4.5 octave range. The total weight of all 56 bells is 40,000 pounds. In 2006, the smallest bell from 1928 was found to be cracked and in need of replacement. It was recast from its original mold by the John Taylor & Co. bell foundry of Loughborough, England, and installed in the same location as the original. The Mayo Clinic Dolores Jean Lavins Center for Humanities in Medicine’s Mayo Clinic Connect page contains sheet music for numerous carillon compositions, including works commissioned by the Center, available for free download.
The Carillon Players of Mayo Clinic
From left: James Drummond, Dean Robinson,
Jeffrey Daehn and Austin Ferguson
- James Drummond – Originally from San Antonio, he played the carillon from its installation in 1928 until he retired in 1958. He said his goal was to play music as a way to give “peace and inspiration and a lift of spirit to Rochester visitors, which was the intent of the carillon’s donors, Drs. Will and Charles Mayo.”
- Dean Robinson – A Rochester native, he served as Carillonneur from 1958 until his death in 2004. He studied music at Oberlin Conservatory in Ohio and MacPhail College of Music in Minneapolis. His career included performing and teaching carillon, organ and piano.
- Jeffrey Daehn – Originally from Chicago, he studied music at Valparaiso University in Indiana and Union Theological Seminary in New York City. He came to Rochester in 1977 as organist and music minister at Zumbro Lutheran Church, studied carillon with Dean Robinson and other well-known carillonneurs and served as Carillonneur of Mayo Clinic from 2004 through 2016.
- Austin Ferguson – A native of Longview, Texas, he led the carillon program at The University of Texas at Austin from 2011 to 2015, performing daily recitals and supervising student carillon instruction. He has been a featured recitalist around the country and is an active member of the Guild of Carillonneurs in North America. He was named the fourth Carillonneur of Mayo Clinic in February 2017. Outside of Mayo, he serves as Director of Music and Organist at Calvary Episcopal Church in downtown Rochester and teaches a full piano studio.
Benefactor Support
We recognize with gratitude the following benefactors, who have supported the carillon at Mayo Clinic throughout its history:
- 1928 – William J. Mayo, M.D., and Charles H. Mayo, M.D., donated the original 23 bells.
- 1977 – Mrs. Frances G. Sheets and Mrs. Isabella Gooding Sanders, descendants of Rochester pioneer Alphonso Gooding, donated an additional 33 bells along with a practice console and glass-enclosed performance cabin.
- 2013 – John T. and Lillian G. Mathews donated funds for a computer system to play the “Westminster Quarters,” “Sicilian Mariners” and “St. Clement”.
- 2021 – The Sisters of St. Francis, with gift funds donated by Gerald and Henrietta Rauenhorst, provided support for enhanced audio equipment for the recording and web-based broadcast of carillon performances.
Mayo Clinic Dolores Jean Lavins Center for Humanities in Medicine
Programming of the carillon at Mayo Clinic is administered by the Mayo Clinic Dolores Jean Lavins Center for Humanities in Medicine. The center supports Mayo Clinic’s primary value, the needs of the patient come first, by integrating the arts and other expressions of human culture into the healing environment.
The Center engages interconnected communities of patients, families, staff, learners and the public to promote the artful and compassionate delivery of health care. Music, visual art, dance, theatre, creative writing, lectures and other educational programs all contribute to the healing environment and uniquely touch each of Mayo’s three shields: Patient Care, Education and Research. Furthermore, Humanities in Medicine is a champion and ideal collaborator for Mayo Clinic initiatives such as the institution’s commitment to diversity and inclusion, emphasis on innovation, encouragement of continued professional development and, most significantly, belief in caring for the whole patient. The Center for Humanities in Medicine operates throughout the Mayo Clinic with program staff in Rochester, Minnesota; Jacksonville, Florida; and Phoenix, Arizona.
The Dolores J. and Paul N. Lavins Fund in Humanities in Medicine endowed the Rochester program in 2014. Mrs. Lavins was known for her love of the arts and was a devotee of theatre, opera and dance. As loyal patients of Mayo Clinic, Dolores and Paul valued Mayo’s unique ability to integrate the arts as part of the healing process. After Dolores’ passing in 2010, the Dolores and Paul Lavins Foundation made a gift that names the Dolores Jean Lavins Center for Humanities in Medicine in her honor. This generous gift supports our mission to offer an engaging and reflective healing environment for patients and their families through music concerts, visual art exhibitions and beautiful architecture.
Contact Us
For questions, please contact Mayo Clinic Carillonneur Austin Ferguson at carillon@mayo.edu.
Crowned with Music: The Carillon at Mayo Clinic
The 56-bell carillon housed in the tower atop the Plummer Building in Rochester, Minnesota, is an important part of the healing mission of Mayo Clinic. – Download the Discussion Guide