Scott Dettra
Scott Dettra is an American concert organist, ragtime pianist, harpsichordist, and church musician. He tours in North America and Europe, and is a former Director of Music and Organist at the Church of the Incarnation in Dallas, Texas. He is also Director of the period-instrument group Ensemble XIV, and Organist of The Crossing, a professional chamber choir based in Philadelphia. From 2007 to 2012, he was Organist of Washington National Cathedral.
Biography
A native of Wilmington, Delaware, he studied music at an early age, beginning piano lessons at age three and organ lessons at age eight, taught primarily by his father. He holds two degrees from Westminster Choir College in Princeton, New Jersey, where he was a student of Joan Lippincott, and has also studied organ and jazz piano at Manhattan School of Music.He tours extensively as a concert organist, performing at many prominent churches, concert halls, and universities in the United States and abroad. He has been a featured performer at several national conventions of the American Guild of Organists, the Association of Anglican Musicians, the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians, and the American Choral Directors Association. Festival appearances include the Lincoln Center Festival, the Piccolo Spoleto Festival, the Carmel Bach Festival, the Arizona Bach Festival, and the Bermuda Festival of the Performing Arts.
As a church musician, he has held positions at Trinity Church, Princeton, St. Mark's [Episcopal Church (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)|Saint Mark's, Locust Street] in Philadelphia, Church of St. Paul's, [K Street (Washington, D.C.)|Saint Paul's, K Street] in Washington, DC, and Washington National Cathedral. Other former positions include Keyboard Artist of the Washington Bach Consort, Assistant Conductor of the Cathedral Choral Society, and Principal Accompanist of the American Boychoir.