To the present day the office of the Kreuzkantor (Head of Music) has been one of the most honourable and prestigious offices of Protestant church music. Since 1997, Roderich Kreile has been 28th Kreuzkantor since the Reformation.
Kreile was born in 1956 and studied church music and choir direction in Munich. He rapidly accquired more than local acclaim as a church musician. He taught at the University of Music in Munich from 1989 to 1996, finally as a full professor, and directed two university choirs. In 1994 he additionally took over the direction of the Munich Philharmonic Choir. As an organist and lecturer, he has accepted invitations from both within and outside Germany.
Kreuzkantor Roderich Kreile conducts all of the Kreuzchor's performances of church music as well as its concerts and tours. At the same time, he and the Crucians are developing a broad repertoire of sacred and secular choral works of musical history. In recent years he has premiered many compositions. He has also intensified cooperation with renowned orchestras and produced numerous radio performances and CD recordings.
While in previous centuries the tasks of the Head of Music focused to a large extent on conducting music for the church liturgy, the array of tasks today extends considerably beyond the purely liturgical. As the Head of Music of the Dresdner Kreuzchor, Roderich Kreile also has responsibilities as municipal artistic director.