Biography

Christopher Kraus is a collaborative and solo artist in the Delaware and Philadelphia areas, currently residing in northern Delaware with his wife and son.

As an organist, pianist, accompanist and choral director, Christopher has made his mark in the Delaware Valley performing with such organizations as Tenth Presbyterian Church in Center City, Philadelphia, and with Bootless Artworks, CoroAllegro, the AstraZeneca Corporate Choir, Capitol Brass and Brandywine Valley Baptist Church in Delaware. Christopher is currently the Director of Traditional Music at Faith Presbyterian Church in Wilmington, where he also coordinates the Faith Concert Series and can often be found accompanying and collaborating with professional musicians from all over the eastern United States.

Christopher started his musical studies on piano as a young child with Nancy Goodwin, twice winning the Delaware State Honors Award under her tutelage. As a student at the University of Delaware (BM Music Theory), he studied with jazz pianist John Southard. Christopher’s organ studies began with famed soloist Paul Jacobs while attending an AGO-sponsored Pipe Organ Encounter camp on full scholarship. He has also studied organ with David Herman (University of Delaware) and Eckart Schlandt (while in Romania travelling with the Music School of Delaware). Christopher also received organ and choral conducting instruction at Tenth Presbyterian Church during his time at Temple University (MM Music Theory).

In 2022, Christopher became the second owner of a Zuckermann five-octave harpsichord, originally built from a kit by Doug Nelson in 1972–73. In addition to developing harpsichord-specific keyboard skills, the process of owning such an instrument has required knowledge of tuning, maintenance, voicing and care of these Baroque instruments.

When not performing, Christopher works as Director of Enterprise Reporting & Analytics for the Board of Pensions of the Presbyterian Church, headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He has also donated his time speaking on behalf of the Tyndale Society, USA, on such topics as Tyndalian-era choral and organ music and the influence of Tyndalian English on the poetry of Christina Rossetti.