Bryan Lohr is a native and long-time resident of southwestern Pennsylvania, growing up in Stoystown, Somerset County. His early studies on the organ and piano began in Somerset with Randy Fagan and continued at Shadyside Presbyterian Church in Pittsburgh with Jason Kissel and John Walker. A 2001 graduate of North Star High School, Bryan went on to earn degrees in music from The Juilliard School––where he studied with John Weaver and Paul Jacobs––and Carnegie Mellon University, where he studied with Donald Wilkins. As a solo artist, Bryan has performed across the United States, engaging audiences in venues both large and small.
An advocate for authenticity and excellence in church music, as a student, Bryan served for three years as organist for First Church of Religious Science, New York City, playing weekly on the four-manual Kuhn organ at Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall. Bryan served for eleven years as organist and director of music ministry at St. Paul’s United Church of Christ in Somerset. While working within that denomination, Bryan served on the Board of Directors of the UCC Musician’s National Network, was an artist for the unprecedented complete recording of The New Century Hymnal (The Pilgrim Press), and twice served as General Synod Organist, playing for audiences of as many as 5,000 in Long Beach, California in 2013 and Cleveland, Ohio in 2015.
About Bryan
In 2016, Bryan took on the role of Director of Music Ministries at First Presbyterian Church of Cumberland, Maryland, where he led and expanded a diverse music ministry. Since the summer of 2021, Bryan has served as the Director of Music Ministries at The Presbyterian Church of Danville, Kentucky, one of the most historically significant congregations west of the Alleghenies. In addition to leading a semi-professional choir, bell choir, and concert series, Bryan also plays weekly on one of the finest tracker––or mechanical action––organs in America, the church’s Taylor and Boody, Opus 35.
Bryan currently makes his home in the city of Lexington, where he is enjoying the rich history and culture of the Bluegrass region––particularly the food and the bourbon.
