Glenn Priest
Assistant Organist-Choirmaster
Glenn Priest joined the staff of Church of the Redeemer as Assistant Organist-Choirmaster in June 2025. His career in church music has included time at Grace Chapel in Boston, Cedar Springs Presbyterian in Knoxville, Calvary Church in Charlotte, Fairhaven Church in Dayton, and First Congregational Church in Sarasota.
As a freelance organist, he can be found subbing in Sarasota, Tampa, and Tallahassee. He has been a featured organist with the Knoxville Choral Society; The Miami Valley Symphony in Dayton, Ohio; St. Peter’s Cathedral in Tallahassee; St. Boniface in Sarasota; and Christ Episcopal Church in Bradenton.
As an artist, he has appeared as a concert pianist, concert organist, choral conductor, clinician, adjudicator, and national conference speaker. He has accompanied for masterclasses with conductor Leonard Bernstein, composer Aaron Copeland, and composer Norman Dello Joio. He also has accompanied instrumentalists, such as trumpeter Rolf Smedvig, the Empire Brass Quintet, and violinist In-Hong Cha.
Glenn, a native Bostonian, graduated from Boston University with a Bachelor of Music and Master of Music in piano. While in Boston, he studied piano with Bela Nagy and Anthony di Bonaventura; organ with Douglas Marshall of Marshall and Ogeltree Organ Builders; voice performance and choral conducting with Joseph Huszti; and vocal accompanying with Allen Rogers.
At age 22, he made his concert piano debut with Arthur Fiedler and the Boston Pops Orchestra, performing three seasons. He served as a music staff member at Boston University’s Young Artists Tanglewood Institute for seven years. He has several recordings of both choral and keyboard music. Glenn partnered with concert organist Christopher Garven to create an organ and piano concert series called Musical Benches.
Glenn is the principal keyboardist for Key Chorale and Via Nova (formerly Musica Sacra). He performs regularly at concert venues in Sarasota on piano, organ, and harpsichord. In May 2025, Glenn was the featured pianist performing The Beethoven Choral Fantasy with Key Chorale at the Sarasota Opera House. He serves as a director of the Sarasota-Manatee Chapter of the American Guild of Organists.