Chapter Board & Organization 2022–2026

The Executive Board is composed of the seven officers, who hold two-year terms, and the twelve board members, who hold four-year terms. Officers and board members are elected during biennial elections in the late spring of even-numbered years. Committees are constituted for the planning of chapter events and the direction of special activities, including: Education & Program, Newsletter, Nominations, Placement, Professional Concerns, Regional Competition for Young Organists, and the website. NYCAGO members interested in helping with the work of these committees are encouraged to contact the Dean.

James D. Wetzel, Dean

James D. Wetzel is the director of music and organist of the Parish of Saint Vincent Ferrer and Saint Catherine of Siena. He formerly served as the organist and choirmaster of midtown’s Church of Saint Agnes and as organ scholar of the Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine, where he continues as an assisting organist. Since 2010, James has also been the assistant conductor for the Greenwich Choral Society in Connecticut and from 2011-2016 taught as an adjunct lecturer in Hunter College’s music department. Active as an organist and continuo player, he has performed with the American Symphony Orchestra, the American Classical Orchestra, the Collegiate Chorale, the Oratorio Society of New York, and the Orchestra of Saint Luke’s. He is on the board of the New York City Chapter of the American Guild of Organists and the Catholic Artists Society, is music advisor to the New York Purgatorial Society, and is a member of the Society for Catholic Liturgy and the Saint Wilfrid’s Club for Organists in Manhattan. Born in Pittsburgh, James earned a bachelor’s degree in organ performance from The Juilliard School where he studied with Paul Jacobs and was the first person to graduate with a master’s degree and a professional studies certificate in choral conducting from Manhattan School of Music under Kent Tritle. He also studied privately with Donald K. Fellows and Robert Page and spent a year reading Early Christianity and Apologetics at Columbia University.

David Shuler, Sub-Dean

David Shuler was educated at the Eastman School of Music, Columbia University, and the Berkshire Music Center at Tanglewood. He studied organ with David Craighead and Leonard Raver, and composition with Joseph Schwantner, Samuel Adler and Gunther Schuller. Mr. Shuler is presently Director of Music and Organist at the historic Church of Saint Luke in the Fields in New York City, where he oversees an extensive music program. In addition to an active chorister program, a professional choir sings masses and motets from the fifteenth century to the present day at the principal services of the church throughout the year. The choir is featured in an annual concert series of sacred music, and has made numerous recordings, including Refuge and Strength: Selections from the Psalter of the Book of Common Prayer, released by Church Publishing, the publishing arm of the national Episcopal Church. The Choir’s recent recordings include Missa Reges terrae – Music of Pierre de Manchicourt, and Missa Tu es Petrus – Music of G.P. da Palestrina, both released on the MSR label. Mr. Shuler is a Fellow of the American Guild of Organists, and was awarded the certificate at the age of 22, one of the youngest organists to achieve this distinction. He has served on numerous AGO committees, both at the national and local levels, and was for seven years the Director of the AGO Committee for Professional Certification. He has also served as President of the Association of Anglican Musicians and President of the Anglican Musicians Foundation. Mr. Shuler has been active as a synagogue musician and has recently completed a 22 year tenure as the Music Director of the Dalton Chorale in Manhattan.

Raymond Nagem, Secretary

Raymond Nagem is Minister of Music at The Brick Presbyterian Church in New York City, and a member of the organ faculty at Manhattan School of Music, where he teaches organ literature, service playing, and improvisation. He completed his D.M.A. at The Juilliard School in 2016, where he was a student of Paul Jacobs. A native of Medford, Mass., Dr. Nagem attended the Boston Archdiocesan Choir School and began organ lessons there with John Dunn. He earned his B.A. from Yale University in 2009, studying the organ with Thomas Murray, and his M.A. in 2011 from Juilliard. Prior to his appointment at Brick, he served for eleven years at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City, where he was Associate Director of Music and Organist. His album Divine Splendor, recorded on the Great Organ of St. John the Divine, is available on the Pro Organo label. At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in spring of 2020, Dr. Nagem began a weekly online recital series from the cathedral, “Tuesdays at 6,” featuring a diverse range of music spanning the entire organ repertoire. In his spare time, he enjoys running, cycling, and crossword puzzles.

Patrick Kreeger, Treasurer

Praised by The Philadelphia Inquirer for his “elegantly detailed phrasing,” and “having a lot to offer beyond the organ console,” Patrick Kreeger maintains a versatile career as a pianist, organist, and choral conductor. He holds degrees from The Curtis Institute of Music (BM), Yale University (MM), and The Juilliard School (DMA), where his teachers included Alan Morrison, Martin Jean, and Paul Jacobs, respectively. He has been a guest soloist with the North Carolina Symphony, Musica Sacra Chamber Orchestra, Symphonicity, Chilliwack Symphony Orchestra, Barton College/Wilson Symphony Orchestra, and the SUNY-Purchase Conservatory Orchestra, and has performed recitals around the U.S., U.K, Denmark, France, Italy, and the Middle East. Patrick is the Associate Organist at Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church in New York City and serves on the College and Extension faculties at The Juilliard School.

Larry J. Long, Registrar

Larry J. Long is Director of Music and Organist at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Brooklyn, after having been Acting Music Director at the Church of the Heavenly Rest, and Organist and Choirmaster at the Church of the Epiphany (Episcopal), both in Manhattan. He conducted the choir for the annual Chelsea Community Church Candlelight Carol Service for twelve years. Before moving to Manhattan in 2005 he lived and worked in Chicago. He performs regularly in recital, and has been organist, choral conductor, and workshop presenter for a variety of organizations including the Valparaiso University Institute of Liturgical Studies, American Guild of Organists, Association of Lutheran Church Musicians, Anglican Association of Musicians, and the Metro Chicago and Metro New York Synods of the ELCA. He was the accompanist and a singer with the Cathedral Singers, a Chicago professional choir directed by the late Richard Proulx. He is a composer of liturgical church music including psalm settings, choral anthems and masses. He has works published by Paraclete Press, Augsburg Fortress, GIA Publications, World Library Publications (now part of GIA) and St. James Music Press.

Mr. Long received the Bachelor of Music degree in church music from Valparaiso University (Indiana) and the Master of Music degree in organ performance from Southern Methodist University in Dallas. He did some composition study with Harold Oliver at SMU and also with Richard Proulx. Other studies included the Royal School of Church Music in Croydon, England, and with Anton Heiller at the Haarlem Summer Academy for Organists in the Netherlands. Organ teachers included Robert Anderson, Philip Gehring, Albert Bolitho, Mano Hardies and Paul Eichmeyer; choral studies were with Eldon Balko and Lloyd Pfautsch.

Andrew Henderson, Auditor

Andrew Henderson is Director of Music & Organist at Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church in New York City, where he oversees an extensive liturgical and choral program, including the Saint Andrew Chorale, the New York City Children’s Chorus, in addition to the Saint Andrew Music Society’s Music on Madison concert series. He also serves on the organ faculty of the Manhattan School of Music, as the organ instructor at Teachers College, Columbia University, and as Associate Organist at New York City’s Temple Emanu-El. Dr. Henderson, a native of Thorold, Ontario, holds degrees in music from Cambridge and Yale Universities, and in 2007 he was awarded the Doctor of Musical Arts degree at The Juilliard School. He was a finalist in the international competition Grand Prix de Chartres in France in 2002, and won first prize in the Royal Canadian College of Organists’ biennial National Organ Playing Competition the following year. Recent performances include organ and continuo playing with the New York Philharmonic, Musica Sacra, Voices of Ascension, The Oratorio Society of New York and The Collegiate Chorale, and solo recitals in Poland, Canada, and throughout the USA. His performances have been featured on the nationally-syndicated public radio programs Pipedreams and With Heart and Voice. He has been featured as a recitalist and workshop leader at national and regional gatherings of the Presbyterian Association of Musicians, the Fellowship of United Methodists in Worship and Music Arts, the Royal Canadian College of Organists, and the American Guild of Organists. His first solo CD, Andrew Henderson at St. John’s, Elora, was recorded and released in 2010. A Fellow of the Royal Canadian College of Organists, his teachers have included John Tuttle, Barrie Cabena, David Sanger, Thomas Murray and John Weaver.

Paolo Bordignon, Auditor

Paolo Bordignon is Organist & Choirmaster of St. Bartholomew’s Church and harpsichordist of the New York Philharmonic. He has appeared with Camerata Pacifica, Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, Boston Symphony Chamber Players, Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, English Chamber Orchestra, the All‐Star Orchestra, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Lincoln Center’s Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra, the Knights, New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, ECCO (East Coast Chamber Orchestra), and the Florida Orchestra, among others. He has performed chamber music with Sir James Galway, Itzhak Perlman, Bobby McFerrin, Midori, Renée Fleming, and Wynton Marsalis. Festival appearances include Aspen, Bard, Bay Chamber, Bridgehampton, Jackson Hole, Palm Beach, and Vail. He has appeared on NBC, CBS, PBS, CNN, NPR, the CBC, and on Korean and Japanese national television. Paolo has performed organ recitals at venues such as St. Thomas Church Fifth Avenue and St. Eustache (Paris) and he has been a frequent recitalist at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, including a 10‐recital residency. Born in Toronto of Italian heritage, Paolo attended St. Michael’s Cathedral Choir School before studying with John Weaver and Lionel Party at the Curtis Institute of Music. He holds ARCT and FRCCO diplomas and earned Master’s and Doctoral degrees in harpsichord from the Juilliard School.

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Class of 2024

Loraine Enlow

Loraine Enlow has been full-time Music Associate at St. James' Church, Madison Avenue since 2015; there she directs a graded choir program of students from kindergarten through high school, and assists with the professional and volunteer adult choirs. She is a regular guest conductor and clinician for children’s choral conferences across North America. From 2015-19, she worked under Daniel Hyde as Admissions Director at Saint Thomas Choir School and as Director of the Saint Thomas Girl Chorister Course. As Organist & Choirmaster at Holyrood Church (NYC) from 2010-2015, she founded and directed the Washington Heights Choir School, a free daily afterschool program for under-served elementary students. Before her move to Manhattan in 2010, Mrs. Enlow was Assistant Organist & Music Assistant at Prince of Peace (RC) Church in Taylors, SC, where she served on the board of her local AGO chapter for several years. She is currently a Trustee for VOICE Charter School, a K-8 school in the Queensbridge Projects in which all children learn solfege and sing daily as the center of the curriculum.

Nathaniel Gumbs

Nathaniel Gumbs is a native of the Bronx, NY and has performed throughout the United States and abroad, including Antigua, St. Thomas, Ghana, Paris, and Munich, and is consistently gathering new fans and followers. The New York Times described Nathaniel's playing in their review of his recording with bass-baritone Dashon Burton, as "mature, lyrical, accurate and energetic," and that his performance was presented "deftly and with feeling."

Dr. Gumbs currently serves as Director of Chapel Music at Yale University where he works with students, faculty, and guests to coordinate music for three worshiping communities: the University Church in Battell Chapel, and at Yale Divinity School in both Marquand Chapel and at Berkeley Divinity School. He earned his undergraduate degree from Shenandoah Conservatory in Virginia, his Master of Music degree from Yale University, and his Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the Eastman School of Music. Nathaniel's principal teachers include Steven Cooksey, David Higgs, and Martin Jean. Prior to his position at Yale, Dr. Gumbs served as Director of Music and Arts and Church Organist at Friendship Missionary Baptist Church in Charlotte, NC, where he led several hundred volunteer musicians and staff in four choirs and other ensembles. Nathaniel currently serves as the Interim Minister of Music and Fine Arts at the historic Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem, NY. In 2017 The Diapason magazine recognized Nathaniel as one of 20 outstanding organists under 30 years old for his achievement in organ performance and church music. In 2018, Nathaniel curated the opening Hymn Festival (Singing Diverse Music in The New Church) for the Hymn Society's annual conference. He is also featured on various recording projects through GIA publications with James Abbington, choral projects with award winning conductor Jason Max Ferninand, and recordings of revised choral works by Margaret Bonds with NY Philharmonic's Chorus Director, Malcolm Merriweather. Most recently, Dr. Gumbs is a contributing composer in Pulling Out The Stops, Volume 3, Congregational Song Accompaniments for Organ, published by Augsburg Fortress.

Bernadette Hoke

Bernadette Hoke performs each year in concert and recital with a variety of vocalists, instrumentalists, and chamber groups. As a member of the Birk and Hoke Duo, she was a Chamber Music Award winner of the Artists International competition and was presented in concert at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall and Merkin Concert Hall in New York City. Ms. Hoke is the Music Director and Organist of the Saint Albans Church. In addition to the semi-professional choir she conducts at Saint Albans, in the fall of 2019 she was appointed conductor of the New York City Encore Chorale. Ms.Hoke earned a Master of Music degree from the Manhattan School of Music and holds the Associate certificate of the American Guild of Organists.

Jared Lamenzo

Jared Lamenzo is Director of Music at the historic Basilica of St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral, located in Manhattan’s Little Italy. He is also Director of Friends of the Erben Organ, a non-profit dedicated to the preservation and presentation of the Basilica’s magnificent 1868 Erben organ. He has performed on historic organs around the world, and has hosted and worked with international recitalists and ensembles. He has been featured in New York Times, on CBS, and on PBS, in a documentary hosted by Martin Scorsese. A graduate of Harvard (engineering) and of NYU's Tisch School of the Arts, he leads organbuilding workshops for kids and creates interactive music installations. @erbenorgan @jaredlamenzo

Sándor Szabó

Dr. Sándor Szabó is actively engaged as conductor, organist, pianist and harpsichordist throughout Europe, Asia, Canada and the United States. Dr. Szabó was educated in Yugoslavia, graduating from the University of Novi Sad in with the diploma "Academic Musician in the Piano Art." Subsequently, he received his Master's degree from the University of Music Arts, Belgrade. While studying in Yugoslavia, he was a prize winner in both the Belgrade and Zagreb Young Pianists National Competitions. From 1983 until his immigration to Canada in 1988, Dr. Szabó carried on a performing career while teaching piano at the University of Music Arts, Novi Sad, and working as Assistant Conductor/Accompanist at the Serbian National Opera. Dr. Szabó has studied with many distinguished musicians including conducting with Stanko Sepic, Ann Howard Jones and Joseph Flummerfelt; piano with Bogdanov Magda, Bordás Lajos, Jokuthon Mihajlovic, Nevena Popovic, Anthony di Bonaventura and Tong Il Han; organ with Max Miller, Eugene Roan and McNeil Robinson; and harpsichord with Mark Kroll. Dr. Szabó holds Master's degrees in organ performance and sacred music from Westminster Choir College, New Jersey, where he was awarded the full-tuition Currin scholarship. In addition, he has earned a DMA in piano performance at Boston University. He also holds the Fellowship Certificate (FAGO) from the American Guild of Organists and is a member of Phi Beta Delta, an honor society for international scholars, as well as Pi Kappa Lambda, a national music honor society. Dr. Szabó held positions in prominent churches as a music director/organist, such as St. Andrews Presbyterian Church, Guelp, ON, Marsh Chapel at Boston University MA, New Providence Presbyterian Church, New Providence NJ, Central Presbyterian Church, Summit NJ, Christ’s Church Rye NY and the First Congregational Church UCC of Stockbridge MA. Currently he is the director of music, principal organist and choirmaster at Sacred Heart and Our Lady of Pompeii parish in Dobbs Ferry NY, Music Director of the Oratorio Society of New Jersey and Organist and Choir Director at Temple B’nai Abraham, Livingston NJ. Sandorszabomusic.com

Lena Tharp

Lena Tharp was born and educated in Germany. She received her Diploma in Sacred Music from the Hochschule für Musik, Detmold in 2001. She also holds the Cultural Assistant degree, with emphasis in foreign languages, from the European Language School, Dortmund, Germany, and the London Chamber of Commerce Business English Certificate. After holding several church positions in Germany, Maria Helena was appointed in 2006 the Organist for St. Paul’s German Evangelical Lutheran Church in New York City, the only remaining church in Manhattan to hold services exclusively in German.

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[6] posts found.

Class of 2026

Daniel Beckwith

Daniel Beckwith has conducted in many of the major opera houses throughout North America and Europe. With a repertoire that spans the 17th through the 20th centuries, he has been hailed as one of the most exciting conductors of his generation. His Metropolitan Opera debut was with Mozart’s Don Giovanni in 1997; he has conducted throughout the United States, Canada, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and South Korea. Mr. Beckwith’s concert appearances include the Handel and Haydn Society of Boston, Chicago’s Music of the Baroque, The Juilliard School baroque music festival at Alice Tully Hall; Spain’s Santander Festival, the Hartford Symphony and Carnegie Hall, all with Renée Fleming. As an educator, Daniel Beckwith served as Head of Opera Studies at his alma mater, Westminster Choir College, Princeton, New Jersey. Mr. Beckwith has been guest conductor at Michigan State University, Florida State University and is presently Artist in Residence/Opera Conductor at SUNY Stony Brook, New York. As a church musician, Mr. Beckwith has served at The Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church, St. Bartholomew’s Church, the Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine and Church of the Holy Trinity. He is presently Principal Organist at the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola and Associate Organist at Temple Emanu-EL.

Caitlin Dowling

Emily Caitlin Dowling is Director of Music & Liturgy at the Reformed Church of Bronxville, NY. Caitlin received a Bachelor in Piano Performance from Mercer University in 2013 and is an accomplished pianist. Caitlin began playing the organ in 2012 with Cam Bishop and excelled as an organist, winning the Macon AGO Quimby RCYO Competition in 2013 and 2015. Caitlin completed her Master of Music degree in Organ Performance at Mercer University in 2015 as a student of Dr. Jack Mitchener. She served as Assistant Organist/Assistant Music Director from 2013-2015 at West End United Methodist Church in Nashville, Tennessee. Caitlin moved to Atlanta in 2017 to be the Principal Organist/Music Associate at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church where she stayed for three years and grew the children’s RSCM Chorister program. She is an active performer and has played recitals across the Southeast. Caitlin has been active in the AGO serving on Steering Committee for the 2020 AGO National Convention in Atlanta and as Social Media Coordinator for the Nashville Chapter. Caitlin is currently on the AGOYO National Board and finishing her 9th year of service where she has held numerous roles including Secretary, Vice President, and President of the Southeast region.

James Hopkins

Based in Brooklyn, Jim Hopkins enjoys playing all keyboard instruments, conducting and singing polyphony, and currently serves as Music Director and Director of the Levy Choir School at All Saints Episcopal Church in Manhattan. He especially enjoys collaborating with other musicians, whether that be in a chamber music context, as an accompanist, or in a rock band. His playing will soon be heard on Fine Companion, an indie-rock / medieval troubadour album born from a collaboration between medieval ensemble Alkemie and experimental medieval-adjacent duo Freelance Nun, which will be released in January.

A native of New York City, his early musical training was at the Pre-College division at the Juilliard School. He later earned degrees from Westminster Choir College and the Cleveland Institute of Music, studying with Todd Wilson and Ken Cowan. When he’s not making music, he enjoys cooking, cycling, sailing, playing Super Smash Bros, and nerding out about coffee and liturgical minutiae.

Maria Rayzvasser

Maria Rayzvasser earned a Master's degree from Maimonides State Classical Academy in Moscow, Russia. She also studied with Gregory D’Agostino in New York, with Johann Vexo’s in Nancy, France and at Mataro-Barcelona International Organ Academy in Spain. In 2018 Maria appeared as a featured artist in the Voice of America program “Once upon a time in New York”. In 2017-2022 Maria served a five year term as an Ambassador of Friends of the Erben Organ, promoting a historic instrument located in Lower Manhattan. She also serves on the Executive Board of the New York Chapter of the American Guild of Organists. Recent performance highlights have included recitals at St.Ann's and Holy Trinity Church, St. John Nepomucene Church in Manhattan and Basilica of St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral. Maria Rayzvasser is the organist and a music director at Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Brooklyn.

Michael Shake

Michael Shake became the sixth director of music for the First Presbyterian Church in the City of New York in September 2019. At First Church, he shepherds the musical life of the community as a keyboardist, conductor, and team member, crafting weekly worship and cultivating broader worship and music opportunities for the Church. Michael previously served King of Glory Lutheran Church and Highland Park Presbyterian Church in Dallas, Texas; and, Peachtree Road United Methodist Church, Atlanta, Georgia, hailed by USA TODAY as one of the "ten great places to be enthralled by heavenly music." He is a solo and collaborative artist, and clinician for regional and national events, including the Piccolo Spoleto Festival, the American Choral Directors Association, the American Guild of Organists, and the East Texas Pipe Organ Festival. He is a former dean of the Dallas Chapter of the American Guild of Organists, and currently chairs the Awards Committee for the New York City Chapter. Michael holds degrees in organ and sacred music from Emory University, and Erskine College, where he was the recipient of the 2012 Outstanding Young Alumni Award.

Eva Sze

Eva Sze teaches music theory at New York University and is the Director of Music at the Church of Saint Agnes. She studied composition at the University of Toronto, music theory and analysis at the CUNY Graduate Center, and organ with Dr. William Entriken. She has presented compositions and research papers at local, national, as well as international conferences. A holder of the Fellowship Certificate from the AGO, she serves on the national Committee for Professional Certification.

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