Kent Tritle is one of America’s leading choral conductors. Called “the brightest star in New York’s choral music world” by The New York Times, he is Director of Cathedral Music and Organist at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City; Music Director of Musica Sacra, the longest continuously performing professional chorus in New York; and Music Director of the Oratorio Society of New York, the acclaimed 200-voice volunteer chorus. In addition, Kent is a member of the graduate faculty of The Juilliard School. Also an acclaimed organ virtuoso, Kent Tritle is the organist of the New York Philharmonic.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Saturday, September 19, 3 PM
Smithfield Church
Amenia, NY
KENT TRITLE, organ

Dieterich Buxtehude: Praeludium in E Major
Girolamo Frescobaldi: Toccata Quinta
J.S. Bach: Wer nur den lieben Gott lässt walten
J.S. Bach: Prelude and Fugue in E minor
Jeanne Demessieux: Ubi Caritas (Ricercare) from Twelve Choral Preludes on Gregorian Chant Themes
Rachel Laurin: Omaggio Festivo

Wednesday, October 7, 7:30 PM
Cathedral of St. John the Divine
New York, NY
MUSICA SACRA
SURROUND: THE EARTH REMEMBERS

Kent Tritle, conductor

This program will be performed under Gaia, a touring artwork by U.K. artist Luke Jerram.

Splendor & Interconnection
Gregg Smith: Now I Walk in Beauty
Meredith Monk: Astronaut Anthem
Jean Mouton: Sancti Dei omnes (From the Medici Codex of 1518)

Lament & Fracture
Robert Paterson: “Infinite Oceans” (from The Essence of Gravity)
Christina Whitten Thomas: “Prière de la Baleine” (“Prayer of the Whale”) from Choral de Bêtes
Einojuhani Rautavaara: Die Erste Elegie (The First Elegy)

Reconciliation & Renewal
Frank Ticheli: Earth Song
Caroline Shaw: and the sparrow
Robert Paterson: “A Song on the End of the World” (from Eternal Reflections)
Christina Whitten Thomas: Take Peace
Juan Pérez Bocanegra: Hanacpachap Cussicuinin

Tuesday, November 10, 8 PM
Carnegie Hall
New York, NY
ORATORIO SOCIETY OF NEW YORK

Kent Tritle, conductor
Zen Wu, soprano
Jesse Blumberg, baritone
Bridget Kibbey, harp
Richard Deane & Eric Reed, horns

Gabriel Fauré: Requiem
L.v. Beethoven: Elegischer Gesang
Johannes Brahms: Vier Gesänge
Jasmine Barnes: Portraits: Douglass and Tubman

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RECENT NEWS

Kent Tritle’s 2026-27 Season

(press release – pdf)

  • Mozart’s Requiem with the Cathedral Choirs of St. John the Divine; Bach’s Mass in B Minor with the Oratorio Society of New York; Thea Musgrave’s The Voices of Our Ancestors with Musica Sacra
  • Also: “SurRound: The Earth Remembers” and Britten’s A Ceremony of Carols with Musica Sacra; Jasmine Barnes’s Portraits: Douglass & Tubman, Fauré’s Requiem, and Handel’s Messiah with OSNY

Kent Tritle’s Spring 2026 Season

(press release – pdf)

  • A Recital on the Great Organ of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, Brahms A German Requiem, the World Premiere of Wayne Oquin’s On the Words of Walt Whitman, and Handel’s Alexander’s Feast
  • Soloists include Susanna Phillips, Lauren Snouffer, Richard Pittsinger, John Moore, Sidney Outlaw, and Joseph Parrish
Kent Tritle’s 2025-26 Season

(press release – pdf)

  • Musica Sacra: “SurRound: Spem in Alium”; Carnegie Hall holiday program of Messiah excerpts, Bach, and more; world premiere of Wayne Oquin’s On the Words of Walt Whitman
  • Oratorio Society of New York: Mozart’s Great Mass in C Minor; Handel’s Messiah and Alexander’s Feast; French Romantics
  • Cathedral Choirs of St. John the Divine: Brahms’s A German Requiem; Beethoven’s Ninth on New Year’s Eve
  • Soloists include Kathryn Lewek, Susanna Phillips, Lauren Snouffer, Jennifer Zetlan, Joshua Blue, Joseph Parrish

Kent Tritle Stars in WIRED “Masterminds” Episode: What Conductors Are Really Doing

Kent takes a star turn in the latest episode of WIRED “Masterminds,” a new series of online videos from the celebrated platform that explores the intersection of technology and culture. “Masterminds” spotlights experts in various fields who let the viewer inside the finer points of their work; earlier episodes included “Former CIA Operative Explains How Spies Use Disguises” and “Amazing Illusions: Using Human Bodies to Create Shadow Dances.” Watch “What Conductors Are Really Doing” now.