Scott Lykins is the founding Artistic and Executive Director of the Lakes Area Music Festival in Brainerd, Minnesota, a position he has held since co-founding the organization in 2009. Under his leadership, the festival has grown into one of the region's premier performing arts institutions, presenting approximately 250 professional artists each year with a commitment to accessibility and community engagement. A graduate of the Catherine Filene Shouse Arts Leadership Program at the Eastman School of Music, he has pursued advanced leadership training through the Harvard Kennedy School's nonprofit leadership program and was a member of the 2014 cohort of the Institute for Executive Director Leadership at the University of St. Thomas Opus College of Business. He has served on the boards of Minnesota Citizens for the Arts and the South Dakota Symphony.
Lykins brings to his administrative work a deep background as a performing musician. He is currently a member of the South Dakota Symphony Orchestra and Duluth Superior Symphony Orchestra, and has served as principal cellist of the National Orchestra Institute, National Repertory Orchestra, Classical Symphony of Chicago, and the Eastman Philharmonic Orchestra. He has appeared as soloist with the Minnesota Philharmonic Orchestra, Heartland Symphony, Northeast Orchestra, and Lakes Area Music Festival, and maintains an active career as a collaborative pianist with appearances throughout the United States and Europe. He holds bachelor's and master's degrees in cello performance from the Eastman School of Music, where he studied with Steven Doane and Alan Harris.