Summer Organ Academy at UNT

June 8-13, 2026

Overnight campers will check into the residence hall on Monday, June 8 and have the option to depart on Saturday, June 13 or Sunday, June 14. Day campers do not need to attend any events on Monday, June 8. Camp instruction begins at 8:30am on Tuesday, June 9 and will conclude no later than 3:30pm on Saturday, June 13.

About the Academy

You are invited to take part in an exciting, week-long organ academy centered at the University of North Texas. Daily lessons and workshops will focus on repertoire, improvisation, and liturgical playing and skills using the university’s impressive instruments. In addition, students will be introduced to the harpsichord and accompaniment using figured bass, and the academy will make an excursion to Dallas to see a collection of some of the city’s most impressive instruments including the Richards, Fowkes and Co. organ at The Episcopal Church of the Transfiguration, the Juget-Sinclair organ at Christ the King Catholic Church, and the C.B. Fisk organ at the Meyerson Symphony Center. Students at high school and undergraduate level are encouraged to register to be instructed by leading performers and clinicians. The academy will conclude with two participants’ recitals in UNT’s Winspear Performance Hall and Main Auditorium.

Malcolm Matthews, who earned a doctoral degree in organ performance from the Eastman School of Music, is one of only four organists to have been awarded the prestigious Artist's Certificate in Eastman's century-long history. In addition to his organ studies with David Higgs, he earned a master's degree in harpsichord performance under William Porter and pursued a minor in collaborative piano with Jean Barr.

Dr. Matthews comes to UNT most recently from the faculty of the Blair School of Music at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennesee where he served as Adjunct Artist Teacher of Organ and Harpsichord. He also served as associate organist and choirmaster at Christ Church Cathedral in Nashville. Matthews enjoys collaborative work and often accompanies ensembles and soloists across a broad repertoire. He has performed as a soloist with the Oak Ridge Symphony Orchestra, Knoxville Symphony Orchestra, and Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. A featured artist at national conventions of the American Guild of Organists and the Organ Historical Society, his accolades include first place at the 2013 Westfield International Organ Competition, second place at the 2012 National Young Artist's Competition in Organ Performance, semi-finalist at the 2016 International Bach Competition, second place at the 2016 OSM Manulife Competition, first place at the 2005 Southeastern Region IV Young Organists Competition and semi-finalist at the 2009 Concours international d’orgue de Lyon.

Michael Conrady is the Organist and Choirmaster at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church in Dallas, TX. A native of Anthony, KS, he received his bachelor’s degree at Baylor University, where he studied organ with Joyce Jones. While at Baylor, he was the first-place winner of the 1998 William Hall Organ Competition. His graduate degrees include the Masters of Music (MM) in organ, the Masters of Theological Studies (MTS), and the Masters of Sacred Music (MTS) degrees at Southern Methodist University, where he studied Sacred Music with Michael Hawn and Chris Anderson, organ with Larry Palmer, and conducting with David Davidson.

Postgraduate studies led him to the University of North Texas, where he studied organ with Jesse Eschbach for two years, specializing in 18th-century performance practices of France and Germany. He completed the Doctor of Ministry degree at SMU in 2019, studying liturgics with Mark Stamm. His doctoral thesis was written on the topic of Communion antiphons in the Roman Rite.

Dr. Conrady oversees an active and vital music program at St. Thomas Aquinas that is known for musical excellence. During his tenure, the ministry has grown to feature eight diverse choirs, an exemplary children’s music program, a contemporary worship ensemble, a cantor ministry, and a concert series. As part of his responsibilities at St. Thomas Aquinas, he conducts three of the parish’s regular choirs (St. Thomas Aquinas Choir, St Francis Choir, and the Schola Cantorum) as well as the Palestrina Singers, a professional Renaissance choir which sings at special concerts and holy days throughout the year.

In addition to parish ministry, Dr. Conrady also concertizes, composes liturgical music, and serves on a number of area boards and commissions related to music, liturgy, and theology. His involvement with the American Guild of Organists has included the roles of chairperson of the Robert T. Anderson Recital Series and the Southwest Regional Coordinator for Education. He was certified as an Colleague of the American Guild of Organists (CAGO) in 2005 and as an Associate (AAGO) in 2007. He has served on the Dallas Diocesan Liturgical Commission, the Diocesan Commission for Sacred Places, and as organist for the Diocesan Choir. He is active in the Hymn Society of United States and Canada, where he presented the opening hymn festival at the 2019 convention and has taught seminars on liturgy and music at previous annual conventions.

Dr. Lenora McCroskey is professor emeritus of music in the College of Music at the University of North Texas in Denton. She served from 1982 to 2009. In addition to teaching organ and harpsichord, she was the assistant director of Early Music Studies, teaching Baroque performance practice, continuo, and coaching Baroque chamber ensembles. Her keyboard students have won various competitions and hold prominent positions in the profession.

Prior to her appointment at UNT, Dr. McCroskey was on the faculties of Stetson University, the Longy School in Cambridge, MA, and the Eastman School of Music of the University of Rochester and was the Associate Organist/Choirmaster in the Memorial Church at Harvard, working with John Ferris. She holds the BA and BM degrees from Stetson, where her organ study was with Paul Jenkins; an MA from Harvard in musicology, working with Dr. John Ward; and the DMA from the Eastman School of Music, where her organ study was with Russell Saunders. She studied harpsichord with Gustav Leonhardt and continuo with Veronika Hampe at the Amsterdam Conservatory in the Netherlands.

She received the Paul Riedo Award from the Dallas Bach Society for service to the early music community in the DFW area and numerous grants for study in France. She served as an editor of the complete organ works of Nicolas de Grigny published by Leupold Publications and wrote the performance practice section of the preface. She is a Radcliffe Fellow, researching the tradition of alternatim vocal music in the liturgy accompanying French Baroque organ music. She has played both organ and harpsichord recitals in venues throughout the United States and in France.

She served various churches in the DFW area as Director of Music including Trinity Presbyterian Church in Denton from 2010-2023. She is now happily retired and singing in the choir of St Andrew Presbyterian Church, the Denton Bach Society Women’s Chorale, and playing for the Village Singers at Denton Village Retirement Community, where she lives with her husband, Dr. John Todd, and frequently plays with their 1-year-old great granddaughter.

We are so grateful to a generous donor who has stepped forward to cover the cost of attendance for all Summer Organ Academy participants. Participants are only responsible for the $30 non-refundable registration fee.

Overnight Camper - $1,150 which includes:
- $30 Non-refundable registration fee
  - This is the only financial responsibility for each participant
- Tuition
- Housing
- Three meals per day (meals begin with dinner on check-in day and end with breakfast on check-out day)
- Parking
Day Camper - $850 which includes:
- $30 Non-refundable registration fee
  - This is the only financial responsibility for each participant
- Tuition
- Lunch & dinner (Tuesday-Thursday)
- Parking
Overnight campers will arrive on Monday, June 8 and have the option to depart on Saturday, June 13 or Sunday, June 14.
Overnight campers must provide their own bedding (extra-long twin size), pillows, towels, and toiletries.
Day campers are not expected to attend any events on Monday, June 8. They will begin on Tuesday, June 9.
All campers must bring cash or card for two meals out in Dallas on Friday, June 12.
Lunch on the final day of camp is provded at no charge to all participants and their guests.

To register, visit https://app.getacceptd.com/untmusicworkshops. Begin by selecting your Area (Keyboard) and Program (Summer Organ Academy at UNT). For technical questions, please visit the Acceptd Help Desk.

Registration Deadline

May 1, 2026

Registration Policy

The $30 non-refundable registration fee is due at the time of registration.
Enrollment is limited to 12 participants.
- Email to be placed on the waitlist – music.camps@unt.edu.

*The schedule is an example and subject to change. The finalized camp schedule will be communicated to participants in a timely manner.

Monday, June 8
*For overnight campers ONLY

3:00-6:00pm - Registration/Residence Hall Move In
6:30pm - Dinner
8:00pm - Campus Tour
10:00pm - Lights Out

Tuesday, June 9

7:30am - Breakfast (overnight campers only)
8:45am - Improvisation Workshop
10:15am - Break
10:45am - Liturgical Playing Workshop
12:30pm - Lunch
1:30pm - Various Workshops/Practice
6:00pm - Dinner
7:30pm - Faculty Concert
8:30pm - Open Console
9:30pm - Return to Residence Hall (overnight campers) / Dismissal (day campers)
10:00pm - Lights Out

Wednesday, June 10

7:30am - Breakfast (overnight campers only)
8:45am - Lessons
11:30am - Lunch
12:30pm - Lessons
3:00pm - Break
3:30pm - Improvisation Workshop
5:00pm - Introduction to Harpsichord
6:00pm - Dinner
7:30pm - Faculty Concert
8:30pm - Open Console
9:30pm - Return to Residence Hall (overnight campers) / Dismissal (day campers)
10:00pm - Lights Out

Thursday, June 11

7:30am - Breakfast (overnight campers only)
8:45am - Lessons
11:30am - Lunch
12:30pm - Various Workshops/Practice
6:00pm - Dinner
7:30pm - Faculty Concert
8:30pm - Open Console
9:30pm - Return to Residence Hall (overnight campers) / Dismissal (day campers)
10:00pm - Lights Out

Friday, June 12

7:30am - Breakfast (overnight campers only)
8:45am - Day Trip to Dallas
9:30pm - Return to Residence Hall (overnight campers) / Dismissal (day campers)
10:00pm - Lights Out

Saturday, June 13

7:30am - Breakfast & Residence Hall Check Out (overnight campers only)
8:30am - Individual Warmups
10:30am - Student Recital in Main Auditorium
12:00pm - Luncheon for Students and Guests/Individual Warmups
2:00pm - Student Recital in Winspear Performance Hall
3:30pm - Conclusion of the Academy and Sendoff

Winspear Performance Hall (Murchison Performing Arts Center)
Main Auditorium and Organ Recital Hall at UNT
Day trip to Dallas:
- Episcopal Church of the Transfiguration
- Church of the Incarnation
- Christ the King Catholic Church
- St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church
- Meyerson Symphony Center
- Southern Methodist University

Additional questions? Please contact us at music.camps@unt.edu or call (940) 369-6541.

For technical questions, please visit the Acceptd Help Desk.