DEXTER KENNEDY

BIOGRAPHY

As the winner of the Grand Prix d’Interprétation at the 24th Concours International d’Orgue de Chartres, DEXTER KENNEDY has established himself internationally as “one of the greatest organists of our times” (Iceland Monitor). Praised for his “prodigious technique and grand style musicality” in The American Organist, his concert programs present performances that are fiery and historically informed, exciting both music connoisseurs as well as people who have never experienced the organ in concert setting. 

Mr. Kennedy is an active recitalist throughout both Europe and North America, having performed in great cathedrals, churches, and concert halls including: Notre-Dame de Paris; Berliner Dom; St. Bavokerk, Haarlem; Slovak Philharmonic Hall, Bratislava; Chartres Cathedral; Grossmünster, Zürich; Chichester Cathedral; Hallgrimskirkja, Reykjavik; Basilica of St. Nazaire, Carcassone; St. George’s, Hannover Square, London; Auditorio Manuel de Falla, Granada; San Luigi Dei Francesi, Rome; St. Willibrordus Basilika, Echternach, Luxembourg; and Bergen Cathedral. His performances have been heard at the St. Albans International Organ Festival, the 51st Bratislava Music Festival, the Bergen International Organ Festival, the London Handel Festival, the Eccles Organ Festival, the Arizona Bach Festival, the Conference of Roman Catholic Cathedral Musicians, and two regional conventions of the American Guild of Organists. In 2017 he was the lone American to be invited to perform at the Catédral Primada of Bogotá, Colombia, for the Bach en Bogotá Festival, where he performed for an audience of over 2,000 people as part of the first organized performances of Bach’s complete organ works in the country’s history. Also in demand as an orchestral player, Kennedy frequently performs with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. In December 2017 he performed and recorded with the orchestra Strauss’s Eine Alpensinfonie for future CD release under the baton of music director Andris Nelsons, and during the 2018-2019 season he performed with the ensemble at Carnegie Hall. His playing has been broadcast nationally on the American Public Media’s Pipedreams program. Recent concert highlights include: Wichita State University, Cornell University, Montreal Bach Festival, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, and Arizona State University; he has also performed for many American Guild of Organists chapters in recent seasons, including Kansas City, Southern Nevada, Charleston, Atlanta, and Grand Rapids. 

As a church musician, Kennedy currently serves as Director of Music at Trinity-by-theCove Episcopal Church in Naples, Florida. Previously he was Assistant Director of Music and Organist of Christ Church Grosse Pointe (MI), where he traveled with the Christ Church Choirs to England and Wales in the summer of 2014, Spain in 2016, to the UK 2017 for choral residencies at Salisbury Cathedral and Westminster Abbey, and again in 2018 at Durham and Canterbury Cathedrals. Additional choir tours as a freelance accompanist have taken Kennedy to the organ benches of St. Peter’s Basilica; La Sagrada Familia; Stephansdom, Vienna; St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Dublin; and St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle. 

Dexter Kennedy holds the Artist Diploma from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, where he was a pupil of James David Christie. He holds a Master of Music Degree from the Yale School of Music and Institute of Sacred Music, where he was a recipient of the Robert Baker Award, as well as the Mary Baker Prize for Excellence in Organ Accompaniment. Kennedy has also studied under Olivier Latry, Martin Jean, Jeffrey Brillhart (improvisation), Arthur Haas and Webb Wiggins (harpsichord), and has attended several international organ festivals where he has coached with many distinguished European artists. Dexter Kennedy is a rising teacher, having taught at both the College of Wooster and Oberlin College Conservatory. In his spare time, he enjoys golfing and following the professional sports teams in his native Detroit. More information about Kennedy and his schedule can be found at his website, www.dexterkennedy.com.