Leon Griesbach is the founder and executive director of the Psalterium Institute and got his start singing with his siblings and mother in their home in Lisbon Falls. Since joining a boy choir at age 7, Leon has sung in a choir nearly every year for more than 30 years.

In 2003, Leon spent a period of time discerning with the Benedictine monks of Blue Cloud Abbey in North Dakota where he studied organ and chanted the Liturgy of the Hours with the monks every day. This experience of living and breathing the psalms and in the liturgy was an important inspiration for Leon and contributed to his decision to devote his career to the liturgical music, and to sharing the Liturgy of the Hours with as many people as he can.

Although Leon studied organ performance in college, he spent most of his time at Catholic University engrossed in choral music, vocal technique, and liturgy. By studying voice and choral conducting privately, and participating in the graduate level conducting courses, Leon distinguished himself as a natural “singer’s conductor” and became the first ever assistant conductor of the University Chorus.

After graduating CUA, Leon became the director of music at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Portland Maine where he served for 5 years. In this capacity, Leon had the opportunity to work with many wonderful volunteers, all of whom taught him many lessons. It was in this capacity that Leon first experienced the joy and excitement of working with “amateur” singers. This word amateur in comes from the Latin amator, which means “to love.” The implication is that an amateur is one who does something out of love for that activity rather than simply for pay. Working with “amateurs” in this sense has become one of the constant sources of joy in Leon’s work. People who sing with a love for what they do make incredible choirs.

After leaving the Cathedral in Maine, Leon became the director of liturgical music at the Pontifical North American College in Rome, Italy where he stayed for five years. This experience in the “heart” of the church made a deep impression on him. His experiences in the church in Rome combined with years of studying liturgy (formally and informally) led Leon to a deeper commitment to the renewal of the Sacred Liturgy outlined in the documents of the Second Vatican Council but seldom expressed in the modern Church.

Upon returning to the United States, Leon landed in his old family home in Lisbon Falls with his wife Cassi and their six brilliant children, all of whom have beautiful voices and love to sing. In 2019 he founded the Psalterium Institute to give singers opportunities to perform sacred repertoire at a high level, to give children a forum to pursue artistic excellence, and to contribute to the renewal of liturgical music in Maine.