October 09, 2021

Meet Our Fall 2021 Soloists

October 09, 2021/ Guest User

On November 21, 2021, at 3 PM ET, St. George’s Choral Society will present our fall concert in person at St. George’s Church, 7 Rutherford Place, New York, NY and via livestream. In-person and livestream tickets are available for purchase online for $30.

The concert will feature four talented soloists:

GRAMMY Award-winning soprano Sarah Brailey enjoys a versatile career that defies categorization. Praised by The New York Times for her “radiant, liquid tone,” and by Opera UK for “a sound of remarkable purity,” she is a prolific vocalist, cellist, recording artist, and educator. Sarah’s numerous career highlights include performing with Kanye West and alternative-classical vocal band Roomful of Teeth at the Hollywood Bowl, serenading the Mona Lisa with John Zorn’s Madrigals at the Louvre in Paris, and performing the role of The Soul in the world premiere recording of Dame Ethel Smyth’s The Prison, for which she received the 2020 GRAMMY Award for Best Classical Solo Vocal Album. Other notable recent and upcoming projects include Barber’s Knoxville: Summer of 1915 with the Colorado Symphony; Julia Wolfe’s Her Story with the Lorelei Ensemble and the Boston, Chicago, Nashville, National, and San Francisco Symphony Orchestras; and John Zorn works with Barbara Hannigan at the Elbphilharmonie. Sarah is a member of Beyond Artists, a coalition of artists that donates a percentage of their concert fees to organizations they care about. Through Beyond Artists, she supports NRDC, Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness, and the Animal Welfare Institute. Sarah is a co-founder of Just Bach, a monthly concert series in Madison, Wisconsin, the Artistic Director of the Handel Aria Competition, and the Director of Vocal Studies at the University of Chicago. Learn more at www.sarahbrailey.com.

Heather Petrie is “a true contralto, with a big, deep, resonant projection that can fill a hall” (New London Day) and is thrilled to be singing with the St. George's Choral Society again this season. In 2019 Heather was the second-prize winner in the Lyndon Woodside Oratorio Competition, and made her Carnegie Hall solo debut that winter with the Oratorio Society of New York. As a soloist she has appeared with the American Symphony Orchestra, Voices of Ascension, Sacred Music in a Sacred Space, and the New Orchestra of Washington. She performs frequently with the NY Philharmonic, Musica Sacra, the Choir of St. Ignatius Loyola, Musica Viva NYC, and the Cathedral Choir of Saint John the Divine. In addition to numerous operatic roles, she has been a member of the opera chorus at both Bard Summerscape and the Princeton Festival, and is currently a member of the Metropolitan Opera Extra Chorus. She holds degrees from Bard College and SUNY Purchase Conservatory. More information can be found at www.heatherpetriecontralto.com.

Praised for his “infectious energy” (Schmopera) and "clear and robust" tenor (Opera News), Michael Kuhn is a versatile singer/actor whose career has spanned across opera, musical theater, concert, and recital repertoire. Recent highlights include Pedrillo in Die Entführung ausdem Serail with Opera Omaha, and Romano in the world premiere of Stonewall with New York City Opera at Jazz at Lincoln Center. An active performer in NYC, Michael has appeared at Carnegie Hall as the tenor soloist in Haydn’s Mariazellermesse, in two off-broadway runs of ¡Figaro 90210! at the Duke on 42nd Street, and was recently featured with the Kaufman Center in their Musical Storefronts series. In the US, Michael has performed with Opera Theatre of St. Louis, Central City Opera, Florida Grand Opera, Virginia Opera, The Princeton Festival, Syracuse Opera, On Site Opera, Opera in the Heights, and more. He has also made several appearances in France as a solo artist with the Festival Lyrique-en-mer. In concert repertoire, Michael has appeared as a soloist with the Omaha Symphony, Carolina Philharmonic, Cape Symphony, Atlantic Symphony Orchestra, the New York Choral Society, among others. A passionate recitalist, Michael recently debuted his self-directed and produced project in collaboration with the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (MASS MoCA) titled Nachtund Träume, a staged recital of German lieder programmed to represent a journey through a night of vivid dreaming. Next year, Michael returns to Opera Omaha as Tobias in Sweeney Todd, and reappears with On Site Opera in NYC as Gherardo in Gianni Schicchi. www.michaelkuhntenor.com

Praised by The New York Times as having a “beautiful sound,” Filipino-American bass-baritone Enrico Lagasca performs oratorio, opera, chamber music, and recitals with repertoire from early to contemporary music both as soloist and chorister across the United States and internationally. In New York, Enrico regularly performs as soloist and chorister with the Choir of Trinity Wall Street, Choir of St. Ignatius Loyola, Bach Choir of Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, St. Thomas Choir of Men and Boys, Musica Sacra, Cathedral Choir of St. John the Divine, Bard Festival Chorus, New York Choral Artists, TENET Vocal Artists, Clarion Music Society, and The Metropolitan Opera Chorus. Across America, Enrico performs with the Santa Fe Desert Chorale in New Mexico, Conspirare and Ensemble VIII in Austin, Texas, Skylark Vocal Ensemble and Kaleidoscope Vocal Ensemble in Massachusetts, Bach Collegium San Diego in California, Spire Vocal Ensemble in Kansas City, Missouri, The Thirteen in Washington D.C., and Seraphic Fire in Miami, Florida. In 2013, he was a finalist in the Das Lied International Song Competition in Berlin, Germany and in 2015 in the 24th International Vocal Arts Competition Le Centre Lyrique in Clermont-Ferrand, France. In 2019, he was selected to be a participant in the inaugural of Renee Fleming's Song Studio at Carnegie Hall. www.enricolagasca.com

April 26, 2021

Meet Our Dvorak Soloists

April 26, 2021/ Guest User

On May 1, 2021, at 7 PM ET, St. George’s Choral Society will debut our online concert featuring music of Dvorak. Tickets are available online for $10, and also allow access to the concert after the debut.

Here are our talented soloists and host:

Naomi Lewin, host, served as an announcer at WQXR in New York for six years, after cutting her radio teeth at WGUC in Cincinnati, Ohio and WKYU Bowling Green, Kentucky. At WQXR, she hosted afternoon drive-time classical music, and led debates on hot topics in the music world as host of the podcast Conducting Business. She also emceed live events – both audio and video – and produced recorded specials ranging from Stephen Foster: America’s Bard to Nutcracker Sweets. Radio audiences around the world heard her host opera broadcasts from the Glimmerglass Festival. https://www.naomilewin.com/

Soprano Elizabeth Van Os is one of New York City’s most dynamic performers, making waves not only as soloist and ensemble member but also as a co-founder of the non-profit Pleiades Project. For her efforts, opera-zine parterre noted her “striking impression,” with additional praise from Voce di Meche for her “lovely, affecting” voice and “justifiable passion.” Born Elizabeth Smith, she holds performance degrees from the Eastman School of Music and Brigham Young University in Idaho. Learn more by visiting elizabethvanos.com.

Miriam Kushel has been described as "brilliantly confident" in Opera News. She has performed as a studio artist at Sarasota Opera where she covered the roles of Elizabeth in Don Carlos and the title role of Tosca and with Opera New Jersey as cover for Magda Sorel in Menotti's The Consul. NYC appearances have included the title role of Suor Angelica with dell’Arte Opera Ensemble, Chelsea Opera's On Rosenstrasse (world premier), Amela in Un Ballo in Maschera for renowned opera diva Martina Arroyo, and the world premiere of Great Expectations, in a role written for her. Miriam has performed with Glimmerglass Opera, New York Lyric Opera Theatre, Bard Summerscape, Motor City Lyric Opera, and Ohio University (as a guest artist). Past roles include Lady Billows (Albert Herring), Mrs. Grose (Turn of the Screw), Mother (Hansel and Gretel), Mother (Amahl and the Night Visitors), Old Lady (Candide), Queen (The Goose Girl), Clara (Signor Deluso), Forrester’s Wife/Owl (Cunning Little Vixen, in Czech) and Terentia (The Beautiful Bridegroom, NY premier).

Christopher Carter, tenor, studied under Randall Scarlata and earned a performance degree from West Chester University of Pennsylvania. While attending graduate school at the University of Toronto, he studied with Mary Morrison. Chris has performed with the Toronto International Bach Festival (under the direction of Helmuth Rilling), the Toronto Bach Consort (Yannick Nézet-Seguin), the Festival Ensemble with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra (under Peter Ouindjian). Chris has performed and toured throughout southern Germany singing Benjamin Britten’s “War Requiem” with the Festival Ensemble Stuttgart, under the direction of Helmuth Rilling. In the same year, as a member of the Choir of St. James Cathedral (Toronto), he was a performance soloist at the National Arts Festival in Grahamstown, South Africa. Chris has also been an active singer in the New York City metro area for 12 years, performing at Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, Trinity Wall Street, and Bard College.As a professional chorister, Chris has been a member of St. Bartholomew’s Choir since 2010.

October 21, 2020

Meet our Fall 2020 Artists

October 21, 2020/ Guest User

Our Fall 2021 concert is like no other we’ve presented before. Soloists and chamber ensemble will be live on stage, amply spaced. Choir members will be seen by the audience via screen as a part of the multimedia performance, merging live and pre-recorded sections. Tickets for the live stream are now available.

The piece is one commissioned by St. George’s Choral Society—Phillip Martin’s Missa Brevis.

Meet the composer and the four soloists who will premiere this exciting new composition:

Phillip Martin studied composition at the University of Michigan with Leslie Bassett and William Albright and at the University of Denver with Normand Lockwood. His music strives to build on traditions of the past, interpreting these traditions in modern, inventive ways. Martin served as composer-in-residence for Hartford Opera Theater (HOT), which presented two of his operas at their annual New in November festival. HOT also premiered his opera Tom Sawyer at the Mark Twain House as part of their centennial commemoration of Mark Twain’s death. Martin “has a masterful way with music, which tends to build intense feelings and draw the listener into the drama of opera.” (Hartford Courant) Martin also writes chamber music (particularly for cello and piano), choral music, and film scores. Originally from Spartanburg, South Carolina, Martin now lives in Scarsdale, New York. He served as Chief Technology Officer of the hedge fund Gargoyle Group and has recently joined Fortium Partners, which provides on-demand technology leadership.

Hailed for her “sparkling voice” (Opera News) and “full-toned soprano” (New York Classical Review), Meg Dudley has established herself as a versatile vocal artist in a variety of genres. Recently, Ms. Dudley has been a featured soloist in Carnegie Hall (Dan Forrest’s Lux, Vivaldi’s Gloria, Haydn’s Mass in the Time of War and Lord Nelson Mass), in Lincoln Center’s Avery Fisher Hall (Vaughan William’s Mass in G Minor and Leonardo Leo’s Magnificat), with the Boston Symphony Orchestra (Puccini’s Suor Angelica and Debussy’s Nocturnes), and A Far Cry Chamber Orchestra (Kareem Roustom’s Hurry to the Light). A highly sought-after ensemble singer, Ms. Dudley works regularly with the Lorelei Ensemble (core member since 2017), Conspirare, the Santa Fe Desert Chorale, the Choir of Trinity Wall Street, The Crossing, the New York Philharmonic, the American Classical Orchestra, Oregon Bach Festival’s Berwick Chorus, and the Bard Festival Singers. Ms. Dudley holds a BM from the University of Denver and a MM from Mannes School of Music.

Hailed as “a true contralto, with a big, deep, resonant projection that can fill a hall,” (New London Day) Heather Petrie is a familiar voice throughout the Northeast. In 2019 she was the second prize winner in the Lyndon Woodside Oratorio Competition, and made her Carnegie Hall solo debut in Handel's Messiah with the New York Oratorio Society. As a soloist she has appeared with the American Symphony Orchestra, Voices of Ascension, Sacred Music in a Sacred Space, and the New Orchestra of Washington. She performs frequently with the NY Philharmonic, Musica Sacra, the Choir of St Ignatius Loyola, and the Cathedral Choir of Saint John the Divine. In addition to numerous operatic roles, she has been a member of the opera chorus at both Bard Summerscape and the Princeton Festival, and is currently a member of the Metropolitan Opera Extra Chorus. She holds degrees from Bard College and SUNY Purchase Conservatory. More information can be found at www.heatherpetriecontralto.com

Known for his warm, silky tone, tenor John Ramseyer is a New York City-based performer of operatic, concert, and sacred works. Well-versed in operatic repertoire spanning the eras, Mr. Ramseyer has performed leading roles with The Bronx Opera Company, Apotheosis Opera, Resonanz Opera, Christman Opera Company, The Midwest Institute of Opera, and many others. As a concert soloist, Ramseyer has collaborated with many of New York’s finest ensembles, including the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, the American Classical Orchestra, and Camerata New York. The Illinois native has toured the United States and Europe with the Grammy-nominated Clarion Choir and the English Concert, under the baton of Harry Bicket. With the Clarion Choir, he will be the featured tenor soloist on an upcoming release of Rachmaninoff’s All-Night Vigil. Ramseyer holds a master’s degree from Mannes School of Music.

Bass-baritone Jonathan Woody is an active performer of early and new music in NYC and across North America. He has performed as a soloist with historically-informed orchestras such as Tafelmusik, Apollo’s Fire, Boston Early Music Festival, Washington Bach Consort, and New York Baroque Incorporated. He sings regularly with many ensembles, including the Choir of Trinity Wall Street, the Clarion Music Society, and TENET Vocal Artists. Jonathan is also immersed in the world of new music and has premiered several major works, including Ellen Reid's p r i s m, Ted Hearne's The Source, and Du Yun’s Angel’s Bone. In the last few years he has also been commissioned as a composer and has written for Lorelei Ensemble, Cathedral Choral Society of Washington DC, Handel & Haydn Society, and the Uncommon Music Festival of Sitka, Alaska.

October 26, 2019

Meet the Soloists for Mendelssohn's Elijah

October 26, 2019/ Guest User

On November 20, St. George’s Choral Society will perform Mendelssohn’s Elijah in English in its entirety. Tickets are now available.

This choral masterpiece for choir, orchestra, and soloists tells the biblical story of the prophet Elijah in dramatic form. It combines some of Mendelssohn's best choral music and brilliant orchestrations with beautiful and exciting solos.

We have four fantastic soloists joining the choir and orchestra for this performance. Be sure to click the links to visit their websites and listen to their voices:

Baritone Steven LaBrie, a native of Dallas, Texas, is beginning to attract attention for his beautiful timbre, expressive singing and dramatic presence. Mr. LaBrie was named among the five leading lyric baritones to watch by Opera News.

During the upcoming season, 2019-2020, Mr. LaBrie will make his role debut as Mr. Maguire in Tobias Picker's Emmeline with Tulsa Opera and role/company debuts as Heger/Jäger in Dvořák's Rusalka at the Tiroler Festspiele Earl. Additionally, he will make his debut at the Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage of Carnegie Hall with The Cecilia Chorus of N.Y. singing the baritone solos in Orff's Carmina Burana and Walton's Belshazzar's Feast. Mr. LaBrie will also return to Jazz at Lincoln Center to sing Escamillo in Bizet's Carmen with MasterVoices.

Engagements for the 2018-2019 season included his return to Opera Omaha in his role debut as Belcore in Donizetti's L'Elisir d'Amore; his company debut with Tulsa Opera in the title role of Rossini's Il barbiere di siviglia; and his company and role debuts with San Diego Opera in Heggie's Three Decembers and Teatro Nuovo as Valdeburgo in Bellini's La Straniera. Additionally, Mr. LaBrie made his debut in concert with the St. Hugh-Steinway Concert Series in Miami, Florida and in Mexico with the Orquesta Filarmónica del Estado de Chihuahua.

Mr. LaBrie has received numerous awards and honors, including a 2016 top prize award and a 2013 encouragement grant from the George London Music Foundation, second place from the Gerda Lissner International Vocal Competition, as well as the Judges Award with the Opera Index Competition.

Praised by The Washington Post for her “clarion” voice with “a wealth of shades,” French and Canadian soprano Chloé Olivia Moore recently made her role debut as as Liù in Turandot with both Dayton Opera and Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre. Other recent performances include Nedda in I pagliacci with Dayton Opera, Donna Anna in Don Giovanni with Bar Harbor Music Festival, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with both The Orchestra Now and the Rogue Valley Symphony, Dvorak’s Requiem with the St. George’s Choral Society, a concert of Viennese favorites with the Ocean City Pops, a recital with pianist Hector Acosta in the Festival del Pitic in Hermosillo, Mexico, a concert with Annapolis Opera, and her Kennedy Center debut in the "Art Song Discovery Series" with Vocal Arts DC.

Other recent performances include her company and role debut with Dayton Opera as Leïla in Les pêcheurs de perles, and Donna Anna in Don Giovanni with the Castleton Festival. As a resident artist at the prestigious Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia, Chloé performed numerous roles, including Violetta in La Traviata, Manon Massenet’s Manon, Tatyana in Eugene Onegin, Adina in L'elisir d’amore, Mélisande in Pelléas et Mélisande, Antonia in Les contes d’Hoffman, Garcias in Don Quichotte, Zdenka in Arabella, Sorella Infermiera in Suor Angelica, Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni and Ms. Brown in the world premiere of The Scarlet Letter.

Chloé has won top prizes with the George London Foundation (George London Award), Gerda Lissner Foundation (1st Prize), Giulio Gari Foundation (2nd Prize), Czech & Slovak International Voice Competition (2nd Prize), Liederkranz Foundation (3rd Prize, Opera Division), Loren Zachary Vocal Competition (3rd Prize), was recognized by the Crested Butte Music Festival with the Rosalind Jackson Memorial Award and in her native Canada with the Prix Jeune Espoir Lyrique Canadien with Les Jeunes Ambassadeurs Lyriques.

Hailed by The New York Times as a "striking mezzo soprano" and by The San Francisco Chronicle for her "electrifying sense of fearlessness," in the 2019-2020 season Raehann Bryce-Davis returns to Opera Vlaanderen for her role debut as Eboli in Don Carlos. She also makes her LA Opera debut in the world premiere of Aucoin and Ruhl’s Eurydice, a co-production with The Metropolitan Opera, and continues in further performances of Unknown, I Live With You with the Kurt Weill Festival Dessau. Ms. Bryce-Davis also joins conductor Kent Nagano and the Montreal Symphony for Verdi’s Requiem, and sings Nathaniel Dett’s The Ordering of Moses for the centennial of the Harlem Renaissance at Carnegie Hall, Mendelssohn's Elijah with St. George’s Choral Society, and a recital series for the Art Song Preservation Society in New York with pianist Mark Markham. Last season she made her role debut as Leonor in La Favorite at the Teatro Massimo di Palermo, Marguerite in La Damnation de Faust with Maestro John Nelson and the Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional de Costa Rica, Ms. Alexander in Satyagraha at Opera Vlaanderen, the World Premiere and tour of Unknown, I Live With You with The Airport Society, Kristina in The Makropulos Affair at the Janáček Brno Festival, Verdi's Requiem with the Oratorio Society of New York at Carnegie Hall, Martinů’s Julietta with the American Symphony Orchestra at Carnegie Hall, and Mahler’s Symphony No. 8 with the South Dakota Symphony Orchestra.

On the concert stage, Ms. Bryce-Davis recently sang Elgar’s Sea Pictures at the Musikverein in Vienna, the world premiere of Paul Moravec’s Sanctuary Road in her Carnegie Hall debut with Oratorio Society of New York, and Verdi’s Requiem with both the Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional de Costa Rica and the Greenwich Village Orchestra. She also joined the Aspen Music Festival for John Corigliano’s Of Rage and Remembrance, Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 with Maestro Kent Tritle in a world premiere organ transcription at the Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine, Verdi’s Requiem with Marywood University, Prokofiev’s Alexander Nevsky with Maestro Philippe Entremont and the Manhattan School of Music Symphony, Durufle’s Requiem with Maestro David Thye, and Handel’s Messiah with Maestro Phillip Nuzzo and the Metro Chamber Orchestra. Also an ardent proponent of contemporary music, she premiered composer Kyle Werner's Psalm 42, and sang the world premiere of Four Songs for Mezzo Soprano and Orchestra by Jacob A. Greenberg.

Ms. Bryce-Davis is a 2018 recipient of the prestigious George London Award, the 2017 first place and audience prize-winner of the Concorso Lirico Internazionale di Portofino competition, a prize winner of the 2016 International Hans Gabor Belvedere Singing Competition, and winner of the 2016 Richard F. Gold Career Grant, the 2015 9th International Hilde Zadek Competition at the Musikverein in Vienna, the 2015 Metropolitan Opera National Council Pittsburgh District, and the 2015 Sedat Gürel - Güzin Gürel International Voice Competition in Istanbul. In addition to winning the Zadek competition in Vienna, she also walked away with the supporters and sponsors prize, the media jury prize, a masterclass with Christa Ludwig, and a gala concert at Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe in Germany. She holds a Master of Music and Professional Studies certificate from the Manhattan School of Music and a Bachelor of Music from the University of Texas at Arlington.

Praised by Opera Today for his “sizable lyric instrument” and “honeyed tone on all registers,” Arnold Livingston Geis is a recent graduate of Washington National Opera’s prestigious Domingo-Cafritz Young Artist Program. In the 2019-2020 season he makes his Lincoln Center debut creating the role of Mr. Marks in Ricky Ian Gordon’s Intimate Apparel. He also sings Nemorino in L’elisir d’amore with Illinois Symphony, and Agamemnon in a workshop of Wayne Shorter & Esperanza Spalding’s Iphigenia at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D. C. Last season, Mr. Geis joined Washington National Opera for Jonathan Dale in Silent Night, Gastone in La Traviata, and Busdriver/New Preacher in Kamala Sankaram and Jerry Dy’s world premiere of Taking Up Serpents. He also sang Nikolaus Sprink in Silent Night with Glimmerglass Opera, Arnold Murray in The Life and Death(s) of Alan Turing with Chicago Opera Theater, and Tamino in The Magic Flute with Pacific Opera Project.

On the concert stage, Mr. Geis has performed Gitzy Razaz in the world premiere of Flight of Faith with the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with Pasadena Symphony, Handel’s Messiah with Salastina Music Society, and Britten’s Canticle III with Pacific Palisades Chamber Ensemble. He has also sung Handel’s Alexander’s Feast, Messiah, and Beethoven’s Missa solemnis with the L.A. Master Chorale. In addition to his work in the classical sphere, Mr. Geis is a member of both SAG-AFTRA and Actors' Equity unions, and has recorded solo vocals for many television projects, including popular shows like Tom and Jerry and Family Guy, and has also sung for such blockbuster film soundtracks as The Jungle Book, Sing, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Star Wars: Rogue, Fifty Shades of Grey, Minions, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, and Disney’s new live-action film of The Lion King.

Mr. Geis is a graduate of the Domingo-Cafritz Young Artist Program, has been an Apprentice Artist with Chautauqua Opera, a Young Artists with Opera on the Avalon, and an Apprentice Artist with Bel Canto at Caramoor. He received his Master of Music from the Thornton School of Music at the University of Southern California and his Bachelor of Music from Biola University.

April 16, 2019

Featured Performers for Milhaud's Sacred Service

April 16, 2019/ St. George's Choral Society

On May 5, St. George’s Choral Society will perform Milhaud’s “Sacred Service,” a rarely presented setting of the Jewish liturgy for Saturday morning. This colorful, varied, and poignant work is a masterpiece of the 20th-century sacred repertoire.

The performance will feature:

Baritone Elijah Blaisdell performs with ensembles across the country as both a soloist and chorister. An early and new music specialist, his most recent credits include the Adams Fellowship with The Carmel Bach Festival, featured soloist with The Crossing on their Grammy Award-Winning album “Zealot Canticles,” St. Matthew Passion with Bach Society of St. Louis, and Coffee Cantata and Dido and Aeneas with Madison Bach Musicians. Elijah also performs as a chorister and soloist with The Santa Fe Desert Chorale, Grammy-nominated Ensemble True Concord, and the Grammy Award-winning Seraphic Fire. Elijah holds a Master of Music in Vocal Performance from New England Conservatory and after years of training and performing on the East Coast, is now based in Seattle.

Naomi Lewin is the former host of weekday afternoon music on WQXR, and of the podcast Conducting Business. Before that, she was midday host at WGUC in Cincinnati, where she created the award-winning weekly program Classics for Kids, which airs on radio stations across the country. She has produced music programs and arts reports for NPR; intermission features for Metropolitan Opera broadcasts; and podcasts on subjects ranging from the Tippet Rise Art Center, to Martin Luther in Saxony, to the bicentennial of St. George's Choral Society. Naomi is also a speaker, emcee, and media coach, and the radio voice of Arizona Opera.

Given her previous lifetime as a singer and actress, Naomi has continued to appear onstage, narrating Peter and the Wolf, Carnival of the Animals, King David, Façade, A Visit from the White Rabbit, and Four Seasons of Italian Futurist Cuisine by Aaron Jay Kernis. She can be seen as J.S. Bach in the Sunday Baroque 30th Anniversary video, and as a spitball-shooting professor in La Folía, from Filmelodic. Naomi created and hosts a new Classics for Kids Live onstage show. She has given talks on operas from Aida to Zauberflöte.

Naomi was born in Princeton, New Jersey, but received both undergraduate and graduate degrees from Yale.

Paolo Bordignon is harpsichordist of the New York Philharmonic and performs in 2018-19 with Camerata Pacifica, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, ECCO - East Coast Chamber Orchestra, the Florida Orchestra and a Trans-Siberian Arts Festival tour with the Sejong Soloists. He has appeared with the English Chamber Orchestra, American Symphony Orchestra, Lincoln Center's Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra, and the Knights.

He has collaborated with Sir James Galway, Itzhak Perlman, Reinhard Goebel, Paul Hillier, Bobby McFerrin, Midori, Renée Fleming, and Wynton Marsalis. For the opening of Carnegie Hall’s Zankel Hall, he gave the east coast première of Philip Glass’s Concerto for Harpsichord and Orchestra. Festival appearances include Aspen, Bard, Bay Chamber, Bridgehampton, Jackson Hole, Palm Beach, and Vail. He has appeared on NBC, CBS, PBS, CNN, NPR, the CBC, and on Korean and Japanese national television.

Paolo has worked with composers such as Elliott Carter (performing Double Concerto for Harpsichord and Piano for his 90th birthday celebration), David Conte, Jean Guillou, Stephen Hartke, Christopher Theophanides, and Melinda Wagner. With the Clarion Music Society, he gave the world première of several newly rediscovered chamber works of Felix Mendelssohn.

Paolo has performed organ recitals at venues such as St. Thomas Church Fifth Avenue in New York and St. Eustache in Paris, and he has been a regular organ recitalist at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, including a 10-recital residency in 2010-11. As interim Organist and Choirmaster at St. Bartholomew’s Church in New York, he helps oversee one of the nation’s pre-eminent church music programs.

Born in Toronto of Italian heritage, Paolo attended St. Michael’s Cathedral Choir School before attending the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. He earned masters and doctoral degrees from the Juilliard School.

October 30, 2018

Meet our Fall 2018 Soloists

October 30, 2018/ St. George's Choral Society

On November 18, we will present our Fall Concert with Orchestra, featuring Bach’s Der Geist hilft unser Schwachheit auf, BWV 226 and Haydn’s Missa Cellensis, "Cecilia Mass," Hob XXII:5. These complex and beautiful pieces will feature four top-tier soloists. Tickets are now on sale.

Rebecca Farley, soprano, has been praised for her poise (Opera News), her "fine, flexible soprano" (Parterre Box), and her "filigree phrasing" (Scoop NZ). She received her master's degree from The Juilliard School in New York City where she was a Kovner Fellow and now as an alumna is a proud recipient of the Novick Career Advancement Grant. At Juilliard she appeared as Bubikopf in Ullman's Der Kaiser von Atlantis and as the stratospheric Controller in Jonathan Dove's Flight. She was also featured in a showcase as the title character of Manon in Massenet's sensuous St. Sulpice scene and appeared at Songfest with Brian Zeger in a recital of obscure Liszt lieder. Ms. Farley premiered Sherry Wood's Mara: A Chamber Opera at The Rubin Museum. January brought her Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra debut in a staged concert of Mozart favorites. Ms. Farley took on Fiordiligi, Countess, and Donna Anna all in one night in scenes from Così fan tutte, Le nozze di Figaro, and Don Giovanni. Just last month she made her David Geffen Hall debut with The National Chorale in Angela Rice's oratorio Thy Will Be Done. This performance included an aria written specifically for Ms. Farley and was the New York premiere of the work. Ms. Farley made her Carnegie Hall debut December 2016 singing the soprano solo in Bach's Magnificat with The Cecilia Chorus of New York. She returned with the same ensemble as the soprano soloist in Bach's Christmas Oratorio. Another Carnegie highlight from last season was Monteverdi's Il combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda in which she sang the role of Clorinda.

Mezzo-Soprano Kara Dugan has been praised by the New York Times for her “vocal warmth and rich character.” In the 2019/19 season, Ms. Dugan looks forward to performing Michael Tilson Thomas’ Four Preludes on Playthings of the Wind with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and again at Carnegie Hall with the New World Symphony. She has performed with major orchestras like the San Francisco Symphony, the Philadelphia Orchestra, and the Buffalo Philharmonic. Ms. Dugan has spent summers with the Marlboro Music Festival, Ravinia Steans Institute, Boston Early Music Festival, Wolf Trap Opera, Aspen Music Festival and School, and Mainly Mozart Music Festival. KaraDugan.com

James Reese is an avid ensemble, chamber, and solo musician whose singing has been praised for its “intensity and sensitivity...spirituality and eloquence.” Highlights of James' 2018–19 season include his Canadian and Austrian debuts with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra and Gallicantus, and his solo debuts with TENET Vocal Artists, Bourbon Baroque Orchestra, Delaware Choral Society, St. George’s Choral Society, and the Duke Chapel Evensong Singers. In addition this year, James will appear with The Crossing, Santa Fe Desert Chorale, True Concord, and Variant 6. Earlier this season, James sang an all-Mozart program with Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, about which Michael Anthonio of Parterre wrote, “the biggest discovery of the night for me was tenor James Reese. His clear voice was so effortless.” Previously, James has appeared in concerts with Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, Bach Collegium Japan, the American Classical Orchestra, and at the Ad Astra Music Festival. He recently made his Carnegie Hall solo debut in Bach's B Minor Mass with the New York Choral Society, about which the New York Classical Review wrote, "the high, easy tenor of James Reese...floated beautifully on its own over the long, gentle lines of the Benedictus." An advocate for new music, James is a founding member of Philadelphia vocal sextet Variant 6. He appears on The Crossing's release of Gavin Bryars' The Fifth Century, which won a Grammy for Best Choral Performance in 2018. He is also a soloist on 2016 Grammy-Nominated Bonhoeffer, released by the Crossing. He holds degrees from Northwestern University’s Bienen School of Music and the Yale School of Music.

New York City-based opera singer William Guanbo Su, bass, is currently pursuing his Master’s degree at The Juilliard School under the guidance of Cynthia Hoffmann. In 2018, he was a member of GYA young artists at Opera Theatre of Saint Louis and a voice fellow at The Aspen Music Festival and School, where he played as the principle role of Don Basilio in Il barbiere di siviglia. Other roles that he has performed include Pluton in Hippolyte et Aricie; Herr Reich in Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor; and Seneca in L'incoronazione di Poppea. He has also concentrated on German Lieder at the Franz Schubert Institute in Vienna, where he was coached by Emmy Ameling, Helmut Deutsch, Robert Holl and others. In December, 2017, Mr. Su has made his Carnegie Hall Solo debut with The Cecilia Chorus of New York, and also the 1st prize winner for the Gerda Lissner Lieder competition the same year.

April 21, 2018

Meet our Soloists for the Verdi Requiem

April 21, 2018/ St. George's Choral Society

On April 29, we will present a joint concert of the Verdi Requiem with the Greenwich Village Orchestra, a 70-person community orchestra under the baton of Barbara Yahr. This fiery and intense, powerful and transcendent Requiem will feature a stellar line-up of soloists. Tickets are now on sale.

Soprano Rebecca Farley holds a master's degree from The Juilliard School where she appeared as the Controller in Flight, Bubikopf in Der Kaiser von Atlantis, and covered Amina in the Met+Juilliard production of La Sonnambula. She premiered the role of Mary in Angela Rice's oratorio Thy Will Be Done at David Geffen Hall and has performed as soloist with the Cecelia Chorus in Bach's Magnificat and in his Christmas Oratorio at Carnegie Hall.

George London award winner Raehann Bryce-Davis, hailed by the New York Times for her "striking mezzo soprano" recently sang Verdi’s Requiem with Marywood University, joined the Aspen Music Festival for John Corigliano’s Of Rage and Remembrance, and performed Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 at the Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine. This season she joins Theater an der Wien as Wellgunde in Wagner’s ring cycle and makes her Carnegie Hall debut with the New York Oratorio Society in the world premiere of Paul Moravec’s Sanctuary Road.

Tenor Jonathan Tetelman is also an old hand at the Verdi Requiem, having performed it with the Milan Festival Orchestra last season in Lake Como, Italy. This season he joins the Metropolitan Opera roster for Norma, makes his New Orleans Opera debut as Marco in Chadwick and Barnet’s Tobasco. Upcoming engagements include Rodolfo in La Bohème with English National Opera and Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly with Virginia Opera. He has previously performed with St. George’s Choral Society as a soloist for Dvorak’s Stabat Mater and Dvorak's Requiem.

Bass Christian Zaremba, described by the New York Times as "a stage animal with a big bass voice" is currently singing the role of Angelotti in Tosca at the Metropolitan Opera. This season he has also sung Sparafucile in Rigoletto at Michigan Opera Theater, and Zuniga in Carmen with Austin Opera. Recent engagements include Il Re in Aida with the National Symphony and the Bass Soloist in The Little Match Girl Passion with the Glimmerglass Festival and Portland Opera.

April 24, 2017

Meet the Soloists

April 24, 2017/ St. George's Choral Society

We are excited to share the bios of the four soloists for our upcoming performance of Dvořák's Stabat Mater on April 30 at 2:30 pm at the Church of the Incarnation.

Celebrated by the New York Times for her “rare talent that can send chills down a listener’s spine even in familiar music,” Jennifer Check returns to Verdi’s Requiem in the hallmark Defiant Requiem presentation with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra and Chicago Philharmonic. She also returns to the Metropolitan Opera roster as the High Priestess in Aida and for its production of Saariaho’s L’amour de loin and joins the Lyric Opera of Chicago roster for Norma. Last season, she returned to Utah Opera for the title role of Aida, her first performances of Desdemona in Otello with Berks Opera, and returned to the Metropolitan Opera for Anna Bolena and Maria Stuarda. On the concert stage she joined the Aspen Music Festival for Saariaho’s Cinq reflets. She recently debuted three other Verdi titles: Macbeth (Nancy, Palm Beach), Il trovatore (Utah Opera), and Don Carlos (Caramoor) and sang her first Ariadne auf Naxos (Toulon). Other recent performances include Don Giovanni (Metropolitan Opera), Muhly’s Dark Sisters (Gotham Chamber Opera, Opera Philadelphia), Norma (Palm Beach, Philadelphia), Elektra (London, Tokyo, Detroit), Iphigénie en Tauride (Valencia), Dialogues des Carmélites (Caramoor, Austin), and The Legend of the Invisible City of Kitezh (Amsterdam).

Hailed as a “vibrant stage personality” matched with a “sizable creamy mezzo,” Carla Jablonski’s vocal versatility has captivated audiences across the globe. Ms. Jablonski was most recently praised for inhabiting the title role in Dido and Aeneas with “impressive sophistication.” She joined The Metropolitan Opera for Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg and a new production of Verdi's Otello. At Florida Grand Opera she sang Dorabella in Cosi fan tutte followed by performances of the Secretary in The Consul. Past seasons include various roles with Wolf Trap Opera, Opera Santa Barbara, Central City Opera, and Chautauqua. Equally at home on the concert stage and an advocate of new music, Ms. Jablonski made her Lincoln Center debut at Alice Tully Hall singing Five Songs by Charles Ives arranged for orchestra by John Adams, followed by her Carnegie Hall debut as the alto soloist in Handel’s Messiah. She also has sung as a featured soloist with the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, New York Festival of Song, Caramoor International Music Festival, and American Opera Projects, among others. Upcoming, Ms. Jablonski is featured on a tango album of specially arranged and newly commissioned Piazzolla songs in collaboration with The Neave Trio. She holds a Master of Music from The Juilliard School and a Bachelor of Music from Manhattan School of Music and is a proud recipient of a Drama Desk Award.

Praised by Opera News for his “galvanizing presence” tenor Jonathan Tetelman joins the Milan Festival Orchestra in Lake Como, Italy for his first performances of Verdi’s Requiem, the Orchestra Now for Elgar’s Dream of Gerontius, Opera Company of Middlebury for Luigi in Il Tabarro, and New England Symphonic Ensemble for Mozart’s Coronation Mass. He also joins the St. George’s Choral Society for performances of Dvorak’s Stabat Mater, the Greenwich Choral Society for Bizet’s Te Deum and Puccini’s Messa di Gloria, and Gulf Shore Opera for concert performances including selections from La Traviata, La boheme, and Rigoletto. Next season, the tenor joins the roster of the Metropolitan Opera and sings his first performances of Duca in Rigoletto with the Berkshires Opera Festival. Last season, he joined the Martina Arroyo Foundation as Eisenstein in Die Fledermaus and Teatro Grattacielo covering Agamemnone in Gnecchi’s Cassandra. As a young artist with Opera North, Mr. Tetelman sang Steven Sankey in Weil’s Street Scene, Freddy Eynsford-Hill in My Fair Lady, and Alfredo in La Traviata. Additionally, he joined the New York Opera Exchange for performances of Alfredo in La Traviata, and attended the International Vocal Arts Institute in Blacksburg, Virginia performing as Elder Gleaton along with direction by composer Carlise Floyd, in his masterpiece, Susannah.

Bass Matthew Anchel, called "a voice to watch" by the Wall Street Journal and praised for his “magnetic, deep voice” by the New York Times, was a Grand Finalist in the 2013 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. This season he will sing the role of Sparafucile with Anchorage Opera; the bass solos in the U.S premiere of The Hyland Mass: A Prayer for Unity and Diversity by Joseph Vella with New York Choral Society at St. Patrick’s Church in New York City; and the role of Sun Tze in a workshop performance of REV. 23 with the Prototype Festival. He will make his Carnegie Hall debut singing Haydn’s Mass in Time of War and join The Metropolitan Opera for their productions of The Magic Flute, Idomeneo, and Der Rosenkavalier. Next season he will return to the The Metropolitan Opera for their productions of The Exterminating Angel and Cendrillon and sing Sarastro in The Magic Flute with St. Petersburg Opera. Recent engagements include Handel’s Messiah with the Annapolis Chorale, B Minor Mass with Canterbury Choral Society, Marpa in Mila, Great Sorcerer with American Lyric Theater, Zuniga in Carmen with the Savannah Voice Festival, and singing #8 in Transformations with the Merola Opera Program. Past highlights include two seasons covering in five productions with The Metropolitan Opera, Sarastro in The Magic Flute with Opera Theatre of St. Louis, a season with Oper Leipzig, performing in eight productions, Alidoro in La Cenerentola with Knoxville Opera, Ferrando in Il Trovatore and The Bonze in Madama Butterfly with Opera San Jose, and Don Alfonso in Lucrezia Borgia with Loft Opera. Mr. Anchel was a Young Artist with LA Opera, Opera Theatre of St. Louis, and Caramoor. He has won awards from The George London Foundation, Loren L. Zachary Foundation, Sullivan Foundation, Fritz and Lavinia Jensen Foundation, Palm Beach Vocal Competition, and Opera Index.

October 03, 2015

Meet Our Fall 2015 Soloists

October 03, 2015/ St. George's Choral Society

We look forward to performing with the following three soloists for Mendelssohn's Lobgesang at our Fall 2015 concert on November 22.

Sarah Brailey, Soprano

Hailed by The New York Times for her “radiant, liquid tone,” “exquisitely phrased” and “sweetly dazzling” singing, soprano Sarah Brailey is in growing demand as a concert and chamber music artist. She previously appeared with St. George’s Choral Society in Haydn’s Lord Nelson Mass.

Highlights of Sarah’s current and recent seasons include Handel’s Messiah with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Charlotte Symphony, and Albany’s Cathedral of All Saints, Constance in Franz Joseph Haydn’s L’isola disabitata with the American Classical Orchestra, Steve Reich’s Drumming at Carnegie Hall (Zankel), Strauss’ Vier Letzte Lieder and the Villa-Lobos Bachianas Brasileiras No. 5 with the Brooklyn Symphony Orchestra, Alberto Ginastera’s Cantata para América Mágica and Stravinsky’s Les Noces with Julian Wachner at Trinity Wall Street, Handel’s Samson under the baton of Nicholas McGegan, Britten’s Les Illuminations with NOVUS NY, and numerous appearances with the Brooklyn Art Song Society and the Polydora Ensemble, a vocal quartet focused on German repertoire of the 19th century.

Sarah is a core member of Boston’s Lorelei Ensemble, an all-female vocal chamber music ensemble dedicated to the performance of new music. She is a frequent guest artist with the GRAMMY® Award-winning alternative-classical vocal band Roomful of Teeth. She has worked with composers such as John Zorn, Steve Reich, Merrill Garbus, Gabriel Jackson, Tarik O’Regan, Jesse Jones, Paola Prestini, Ralf Yusuf Gawlick, Scott Wheeler, and Doug Balliett.

Sarah has recorded with tUne-yArDs, John Zorn, Paola Prestini, Bang on a Can All-Stars (Julia Wolfe’s 2015 Pulitzer Prize-winning work Anthracite Fields), and is featured on New York Polyphony’s GRAMMY®-nominated album Sing Thee Nowell. She can be heard on recordings released by Naxos, Tzadik, Musica Omnia, BIS, 4AD, Soundbrush Records, and VIA Records.

Sarah’s awards include first prize in the 2015 Madison Early Music Festival’s Handel Aria Competition and the Leopold Damrosch Award in the 2014 Lyndon Woodside Oratorio Solo Competition. She was a semi-finalist in the 2014 Concert Artist Guild Victor Elmaleh Competition. Recent opera engagements include the American premiere of Hércules en el Mato Grosso, a new opera by Esteban Insinger, Pablo Ortiz’s Gallos y Huesos with The Americas Society, Stefan Weisman and David Cote’s The Scarlet Ibis with American Opera Projects, and Lera Auerbach’s The Blind at The Lincoln Center Festival.

Kate Maroney, Mezzo-Soprano

Recognized for elegant and versatile singing in oratorio and opera spanning the Renaissance to works by contemporary composers, Kate Maroney was recently featured worldwide in over 75 performances of Einstein on the Beach and made her Lincoln Center soloist debut with the American Classical Orchestra in Bach’s Mass in B-Minor. Kate has recently appeared as a soloist with Musica Sacra and New York City Ballet, Oregon Bach Festival, Anonymous 4, The Bangor Symphony, Clarion, Bach Collegium San Diego, American Symphony Orchestra at Bard SummerScape, Princeton Pro Musica, Yale Choral Artists, Sacred Music Sacred Space, Bach Vespers Holy Trinity, Ensemble Signal at the Lincoln Center Festival, Ekmeles, Mark Morris Dance Group, Vox Vocal Ensemble, St. Luke in the Fields, American Opera Projects, Berkshire Bach Society, Brooklyn Art Song Society, and the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. In the 2015-2016 season, Kate will perform Missy Mazzoli’s Song From The Uproar at LA Opera and travel to South Korea for Einstein on the Beach. Kate teaches at Mannes NEXT (The New School) and holds degrees in music from Eastman, Yale and SUNY Purchase. www.katemaroney.com

Marc Andrew Day, Tenor

Marc began his music education at the Cathedral of the Madeleine Choir School in Salt Lake City, Utah. While studying at the Choir School, he performed two roles with the San Francisco Opera beside Frederica von Stade and David Daniels. He earned a Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana. While at UofI, he performed the title role in Bernstein’s Candide with the late Jerry Hadley performing the role of Pangloss. In addition to Candide, Marc performed the roles of Goro, Gastone, Paco (Manuel de Falla’s La Vida Breve), First Rock Singer (Bernstein’s Mass), as well as roles in The Coronation of Poppea and Purcell’s The Fairy Queen. Marc earned a Master of Music degree from Manhattan School of Music and performed the role of Tony from West Side Story with the School’s Opera Scenes. He currently serves in the professional choir at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, under the direction of Maestro Kent Tritle. He enjoys performing regularly with Musica Sacra, Clarion Society, Voices of Ascension, St. Ignatius Loyola, American Classical Orchestra, and other prominent choral ensembles within the greater New York City Metropolitan area. Most recently, Marc premiered the role of Wilbur Wright in Aaron Siegel’s Brother Brother, part of the Experiments in Opera series, which specializes in contemporary works. In addition to developing his performing abilities, Marc serves as assistant to the president and liaison to the board of trustees at Manhattan School of Music.

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