Dr. Damin Spritzer

Friday night recital
Saturday workshop, A Survey of Newly Composed and Newly Discovered Organ Repertoire
A native of Washington and Oregon, Dr. Damin Spritzer is Area Chair and Associate Professor of Organ at the University of Oklahoma and Artist-in-Residence for Cathedral Arts at Saint Matthew’s Episcopal Cathedral in Dallas. She has performed in Israel, Italy, Germany, Brazil, Norway, France, England, Belgium, Iceland, and throughout the US. She has released seven critically acclaimed CDs for Raven Recordings recorded in France, the United States, and England, and publishes an ongoing series of critical editions of the music of R.L. Becker.

Her Doctor of Musical Arts degree is from the University of North Texas in Denton, Texas, her MM in Organ Performance from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York, and her BM in Organ Performance from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music in Oberlin, Ohio. Devoted to researching and performing unknown and underrepresented composers as well as music by women composers, she serves active roles with the Association of Anglican Musicians, the American Guild of Organists, and the Organ Historical Society, is a member of the Society of Women Organists and the American Theatre Organ Society, and a supporting member of Organ Media Foundation and Pipedreams.

​Damin Spritzer is represented in North America exclusively by Phillip Truckenbrod Concert Artists, LLC.

Dr. Timothy Olsen

Performance Anxiety workshop
A performer, teacher, and Lutheran Cantor, Timothy Olsen intertwines his passion for musical excellence throughout these three areas.

In his solo organ recital performances for churches, AGO chapters, and universities throughout the United States, Dr. Olsen enjoys exploring the many colors and sounds of each unique pipe organ on which he performs. Matching repertoire to instrument while creating and performing eclectic programs that excite, inspire, and uplift audiences, his recitals draw on works both familiar and new. Recent performances have taken him to the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart (TX), St. Thomas Church (NY), Cathedral of St. Philip (Atlanta, GA), Methuen Memorial Music Hall, Duke University, and Cornell University. He has performed across the United States and in Ireland, and his recordings on the NAXOS and Raven labels have been heard on American Public Media’s Pipedreams, WXXI’s With Heart and Voice, and WCPE’s Great Sacred Music.
As organ professor at UNCSA & Salem College, Dr. Olsen enjoys working with a wide range of students—from those just beginning their organ study to graduate students. Meeting the students where they are in their musical journey, he guides them in developing their technique and artistry to attain their
goals as performers whether that be in the concert hall, the sanctuary, or elsewhere. Dr. Olsen’s students have won numerous regional competitions, and have gained entrance into some of the most prestigious organ programs in the country.

Currently serving as Cantor (Organist/Music Director) at Augsburg Lutheran Church in Winston-Salem, NC, Dr. Olsen lives out his Lutheran heritage through sacred music. In his role as Cantor, he directs two adult choirs, plays for two weekly services, and arranges guest concerts for the congregation and
community. They eagerly await the installation of Noack Organ Co. Op. 171 at Augsburg in the summer of 2026.
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Dr. Olsen resides in Pfafftown, NC with his wife, Daniele, three sons, and their six-pound Chihuahua,
Milo Bjørn.

John Beck

​Hearing Damage Prevention workshop
John R. Beck is the principal percussionist of the Winston-Salem Symphony and he teaches at the UNC School of the Arts and Wake Forest University. In 2023 after 25 years of studio percussion teaching at UNCSA he took on a new role as Coordinator for Arts & Health Partnerships. Beck regularly performs with the Brass Band of Battle Creek and the Philidor Percussion Group. His career began as a member of the United States Marine Band, and for 10 years he performed regularly with the National and Baltimore Symphonies, Washington and Baltimore Operas, and the Theater Chamber Players of the Kennedy Center. John R. Beck is the principal percussionist of the Winston-Salem Symphony and teaches at the UNC School of the Arts and Wake Forest University.

​In 2023 after 25 years of studio percussion teaching at UNCSA he took on a new role as Coordinator for Arts & Health Partnerships. Beck regularly performs with the Brass Band of Battle Creek and the Philidor Percussion Group. His career began as a member of the United States Marine Band, and for 10 years he performed regularly with the National and Baltimore Symphonies, Washington and Baltimore Operas, and the Theater Chamber Players of the Kennedy Center. 

Tom Lewtak

Basic Organ Maintenance workshop
Tom Lewtak, educated as an organist with two master's degrees in Organ Performance, found his inspiration to become an organ builder at the age of 16 when he witnessed the ​construction process of the monumental organ at St. Mary’s Cathedral in Gdansk (Danzig), Poland, by the esteemed German firm of Hillebrand. His journey into organ building continued during his five years at the Academy of Music in Katowice, Poland, where he delved into the intricacies of organ building and design.

​Subsequent years led him to Denmark and Norway, where he apprenticed with Carsten Lund Organ Builders of Copenhagen. A pivotal phase of his education involved acquiring voicing skills from Mogens Pedersen, the chief voicer of the legendary Frobenius Organ Builders for over twenty years.
Tom's organ building expertise is not merely theoretical but stems from hands-on experience with some of the finest organ builders in Europe.

In his role, Tom assumes responsibility for tonal design, pipe scaling, voicing, windchest, and action design. His artistic vision is manifested through the sound of the organs crafted under his guidance, showcasing a unique blend of expertise and firsthand experience gleaned from working with the best in the field.

Henry Tysinger

Conducting at the Console workshop
Henry Tysinger is retired as choir director and organist serving in churches in Michigan and
North Carolina. During most of his 45-year career, he directed choral and instrumental music while accompanying at the organ or piano. In the local chapter of the American Guild of Organists, he has served as Dean and newsletter editor. Currently he serves as substitute organist and pianist in area churches. He also conducts the residents’ choir at Salemtowne and plays organ twice monthly for Vespers. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from UNC-Chapel Hill, a Master of Arts from the University of Michigan, and studied organ and music history on the doctoral level with Dr. Marilyn Mason (deceased) and Dr. James Moeser, former chancellor at UNCSA.​

Dr. Michael Dodds

Conducting Instrumentalists workshop
Michael R. Dodds—musicologist, composer, and conductor is Director of Worship, Music, and the Arts at First Presbyterian Church of Winston Salem and Professor of Music History at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, where he also conducted the Wind Ensemble for several years. In his books From Modes to Keys in Early Modern Music Theory (Oxford University Press, 2024), and its forthcoming twin, The Organ in Baroque Office Liturgy (also from OUP), Dodds traces the transition from modes to keys in the realm of theory and practice, respectively. His story as a composer, including his creation of a choral symphony on Psalm 145 (available on YouTube) is told in Blessed Unrest, an award-winning 2023 documentary by Bonnemaison (available on Vimeo).

Celeste Watson

Injury Prevention workshop
Celeste Watson (MA, MS, MM) has a passion for helping others enjoy music by playing the piano with exciting musically and scientifically-informed technique. As a student, she won numerous competitions, but due to to a severe playing-related injury, she worked outside of the music industry for 10 years. After retraining with Dr. Barbara Lister-Sink she returned to performing and teaching. She owns a conservatory-model school for pre-collegiate students, speaks on musicians' health, and retrains keyboard instrumentalists. Her credentials include certifications from the Performing Arts Medicine Association, the Feierabend Association of Music Educators, the Gordon Institute for Music Learning, and the NCTM designation from MTNA. Playing the piano continues to challenge and grow her both as an artist and as a human being, and she works to help each of her students experience that same joy and growth.