Ray Cornils

Ray Cornils recently retired as Municipal Organist for the City of Portland, a post which he held from 1990 to 2017. For thirty years he served First Parish Church, UCC, Brunswick, Maine as Minister of Music where he led an extensive music program of five vocal and two handbell choirs. 

Known for his highly diverse programming, Ray has concertized throughout the United States, Germany, France, Spain, Russia, New Zealand and Ecuador. He has been a featured recitalist for conventions of the American Guild of Organists and the Organ Historical Society. In addition to his solo work, he performed regularly with the Portland Symphony Orchestra.

Ray has been a member of the music faculties of Bowdoin College, the University of Southern Maine, the Young Organists Collaborative and the Portland Conservatory of Music, where he taught organ, harpsichord and related classes.

He has held many leadership roles in the American Guild of Organists, including Convention Coordinator for the 2014 National Convention in Boston.

Mr. Cornils studied at the Oberlin College Conservatory of Music and the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. He has studied organ with Robert Reeves, Fenner Douglas, William Porter, Yuko Hayashi. He has done post-graduate studies with Dame Gillian Weir. He studied harpsichord and continuo with William Porter, Lisa Goode Crawford, Lenora McCroskey and Rhona Freeman.