2022 Performers
Matthew Daley
Matthew Daley began his career as an aspiring pianist. Between 2009-2015, Matt received both a B.M. and an M.M. degree with an emphasis in classical piano from the University of Maryland, College Park, studying under Dr. Larissa Dedova. While working on his two piano degrees, Matt simultaneously took organ lessons with Dr. Dale Krider, William Neal of the National Symphony Orchestra and eventually, John Walker, Former President of the American Guild of Organists.
By the time he completed his master’s degree, his passion for the organ led him to opportunities to serve as a church organist for several churches in the DC-Metropolitan and New England areas such as Calvary Baptist Church, National Presbyterian Church, Sligo Seventh-day Adventist Church, Union Baptist Church, New Haven Seventh-day Adventist Church and Colesville United Methodist Church. To further his growth as a church musician and as an organist, he accepted a full scholarship to study at Yale University and the Yale Institute of Sacred Music under Thomas Murray where he acquired his second master's degree and received The Julia R. Sherman Memorial Prize for excellence in organ playing.
In 2021, Matt became a finalist in the National Association of Negro Musicians Scholarship Competition. Currently, Matt is furthering his studies as a doctoral student at the University of Southern California, studying under Professor Cherry Rhodes. Matt considers it a great honor to serve as a church musician and aspires to continue producing sacred music of the highest quality for congregations throughout the duration of his career. Apart from his duties at USC, Matt enjoys serving as the Minister of Music at Westminster Presbyterian Church of Los Angeles. No matter what the future holds, Matt looks forward to learning as much as he can and using that knowledge to bless as many people as possible.