Dr. Karen Eckenroth began her service at St. Alban’s in 2014. Proficient both on the keyboard and as a choral director, she enriches our worship on Sundays by providing music on the piano and organ while leading the choir. She offers exceptional music for Christmas, Easter, and other significant feast days of the Christian year, as well as for weddings, memorial services, and various occasions for reassurance and celebration. 

Karen earned both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in vocal performance and pedagogy from Pennsylvania State University. She then obtained a Doctor of Musical Arts in voice and choral conducting from the University of Arizona. As a singer, she has performed with numerous orchestras and boasts an impressive solo repertoire that includes works by Beethoven, Poulenc, Mendelssohn, and Verdi, among others. 

Today, Karen is an Associate Professor of Music at Otterbein College, where she serves as the Director of Vocal Activities and Opera Theatre. She teaches studio voice and courses in Opera and Art Song Literature, Women in Music, and Vocal Diction and Pedagogy. Additionally, she has conducted both the Otterbein Vocal Ensemble and the Otterbein Women’s Chorale. 

In the Episcopal Church, the priest and the church musician work together on worship planning. Their creative and mutually inspiring partnership produces heartfelt music that connects us with God and one another during worship.