2024–2025 Season
A 17th-Century German Christmas
Micah Behr received his Doctorate in Viola Performance at UW-Madison, where he studied viola with Sally Chisholm and collaborative piano with Martha Fischer. His original compositions and transcriptions have been premiered by the Madison Bach Musicians, Stoughton Chamber Music Festival, and the Griffon String Quartet. In 2023, he premiered works with Toronto-based new music ensemble, The Happenstancers. He also composes music for Geneva Campus Church, where he serves as Director of Worship and Arts.
Soprano Anna Joy Buegel is a teacher and singer in the Chicagoland area, regularly joining such ensembles as Grant Park Chorus, Chicago Symphony Chorus, Music of the Baroque, Chicago Bach Festival Chorus, Bella Voce, Stare at the Sun, Roots in the Sky, and The New Earth Ensemble. She serves on staff as soprano section leader and Youth Choir director at Trinity United Methodist in Wilmette, as voice faculty member at The Musical Offering in Evanston, and at Maine East and Niles West High Schools. She holds a Master’s degree in Vocal Performance from North Park University and a Bachelor’s degree in Sacred Music from Moody Bible Institute.
Hailed for her “floating, silky” “luminous soprano” and deemed “a standout in acting and voice” (Chicago Classical Review), soprano Nathalie Colas is a versatile and curious musician. She has been a featured soloist with Haymarket Opera, Newberry Consort, Incantare, and Bach Society of Saint Louis, and with Fonema and Collective 113 in Minneapolis. An active chorister, Nathalie is a member of the Chicago Symphony Chorus, the Grant Park Chorus, and Music of the Baroque. She is a recurring guest at colleges around the midwest to lead courses on Melodie Francaise. A graduate of DePaul University School of Music and of the Brussels Royal Conservatory, she completed her opera training at the Swiss Opera Studio/Hochschule der Kunst Bern, Switzerland.
Micah Dingler is a tenor and voice teacher originally from Toccoa, Georgia. He received his B.A. in voice performance and M.A.T. in music education and choral conducting from Piedmont College in Demorest, GA. He then completed a Master of Music in voice and opera from Northwestern University. Micah currently sings with Chicago Symphony Chorus, Bella Voce, The Crossing, Grant Park Chorus, and teaches private voice lessons at Whitney Young Magnet High School in Chicago.
A native Chicagoan, Nora Engonopoulos earned a bachelor’s degree in vocal performance from DePaul University and a master’s degree in Opera/Voice from McGill University in Montreal. She has been a member of Bella Voce for ten years and has also sung with the Chicago Symphony Chorus and Grant Park Chorus. During the day, she works in non-profit fundraising.
Jerry Fuller’s career began at 18 with a performance in Carnegie Hall. He then joined the Chicago Lyric Opera Orchestra, later performing with Santa Fe Opera, Orchester Musikkollegium Winterthur, and many other internationally acclaimed ensembles. This coming summer, he makes his Preservation Hall debut in New Orleans playing early jazz. Performing throughout Europe as a Chicago Artists Abroad grantee, he became interested in historically-informed performance and has earned international recognition for work with period instruments, including awards from Early Music America and International Society of Bassists. In addition to performing, he writes about period instruments and performance for The Strad, Double Bassist, and Bass World, and curates the Digital Dragonetti Archive at Northwestern University. He served on the editorial board of the Online Journal of Bass Research.
Madison-based violinist Nathan Giglierano is an avid performer of early music. He often plays with Madison Bach Musicians, Wisconsin Baroque Ensemble, and other local groups. In addition to performing in Wisconsin, Nathan has given recitals across Europe, Central America, and North America. He has degrees from Oberlin and UW-Madison. He was a student of Allen Ohmes, Marilyn McDonald, and David Perry. Nathan is also a luthier and owner of Gig Violins in Madison, where he makes both modern and historical violins and violas as well as historical bows. His instruments are played by professionals across the US.
Basso-Profundo Mark Haddad earned his BM in Vocal Performance from Texas Tech University and his MM in Vocal Performance from the University of Delaware. He sings with Chicago-based chamber choirs Bella Voce and the William Ferris Chorale, and with Haymarket Opera Company. He is also a member of the Grant Park Music Festival Chorus. In March of 2018 he performed the role of Herbert in the World-premiere of Ross Crean’s The Great God Pan with Chicago Fringe Opera.
Kirsten Hedegaard has enjoyed a varied career as singer, conductor, and scholar. Having been described as a “seraphic soprano” (Chicago Tribune), who “glides angelically above the rest” (Austin 360), she has performed with many early music specialists, most notably Nicholas McGegan, Paul Hillier, Ivars Taurins, Mary Springfels, Kenneth Slowik, and John Butt. Hedegaard has also appeared as soloist and ensemble member with groups across the country, including Philharmonia Baroque, Mercury Baroque, Ensemble viii, Baroque Band, Schola Antiqua, Newberry Consort, Ars Antiqua, Rook Ensemble, Bella Voce, Callipygian Players, Elgin Symphony, Elgin Master Chorale, and eighth blackbird. She is Director of Choral and Vocal Activities at Loyola University.
Leanne Kelso enjoys a varied career as a performer and teacher in the Midwest. She is the associate concertmaster of the Madison Symphony and assistant concertmaster of the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra. Leanne teaches a vibrant studio of violinists and violists at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, where she also leads the Chancellor’s Quartet and the Baroque Ensemble. Recent solo performances include the Beethoven Violin Concerto with the Lake Forest Symphony and Bruch’s Scottish Fantasy with Symphony 847 in Chicago. As a chamber musician, she performs with the UW-Whitewater Piano Trio, Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society in Madison, and the Illinois Chamber Music Festival in Bloomington.
Kangwon Lee Kim, Madison Bach Musicians Concertmaster and Assistant Artistic Director, is a versatile violinist with repertoire ranging from the 17th to 21st centuries, using both Baroque and modern violins. She has performed throughout the US as well as in Korea, Canada, Puerto Rico, Switzerland, Norway, and the Czech Republic. As a Baroque violinist, Dr. Kim has performed with numerous early music ensembles and has given lectures on performance practice both in Korea and the US. She was Assistant Professor of Violin and Chamber Music at Biola University in CA and has also taught at Ripon College and Lawrence University Conservatory in WI. Since 2021, Dr. Kim has served as Music Director of Love in Music, a nonprofit organization that reaches out to the underserved communities in the LA area; she enjoys working with the music teachers who give free lessons to the young students. During the summer, she teaches at Credo Summer Music Festival and is the Chair of MBM’s Summer Chamber Music Workshop.
A graduate of the early music program at The Royal Conservatory of The Hague (Holland), natural trumpeter David Kjar has performed with the Newberry Consort (Chicago), Haymarket Opera (Chicago), La Petite Bande (Brussels), Concerto Köln, Musica Antiqua Köln, Musica Antiga Barroca (Brazil), The Bach Ensemble (Boston/Europe), and Rebel (NYC) while working with early-music specialists Liza Malamut, Sigiswald Kuijken, Joshua Rifkin, Rene Jacobs, Reinhard Goebel, Martin Pearlman, Jörg Michael Schwarz, Masaaki Suzuki, and Richard Egarr. He soloed with Rebel under Jörg Michael Schwarz, Quintus (Holland), the Lyra Baroque Orchestra with Jacque Ogg (MN), and the Jerusalem Baroque Orchestra (Israel). Solo performances have been broadcast on American Public Radio’s Performance Today with Fred Childs, Minnesota Public Radio, and Belgium’s classical radio station Klara—and recorded with the Naxos and Hännsler Classic labels. He taught natural trumpet for nine years at Festival Musica Antiga in Juiz de Fora, Brazil. He currently teaches at the Chicago College of Performing Arts, Roosevelt University.
Mezzo-Soprano Amanda Koopman’s solo appearances include Bach’s Mass in B-minor with Bella Voce, Mozart’s Requiem, Bach’s Magnificat and Cantata 80 with the Elgin Master Chorale, and Bach’s Mass in F with Music of the Baroque. She has performed two recital series in China, where she grew up, in cities including Beijing, Shanghai, and Yan Cheng. She regularly appears with well-known performing groups such as the Grant Park Music Festival Chorus, Bella Voce, and Music of the Baroque. She holds a M.M in vocal performance from Northwestern University.
Danur Kvilhaug is active as a lutenist and vocalist, performing regularly throughout North America. Recent engagements include performances with the Newberry Consort, Les Delices, Bourbon Baroque, Tonos del Sur, and the Bloomington Symphony Orchestra. Additionally, he has performed at the Madison Early Music Festival, the Boston Early Music Festival, and the Bloomington Early Music Festival. In addition to performing, he has held several teaching appointments, teaching at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music and The University of Oklahoma. He has received graduate degrees from the University of Oklahoma and Indiana University, the latter under the tutelage of Nigel North.
Countertenor Luke Lemmeier is actively engaged as a singer in the Chicagoland area. Luke currently sings with Bella Voce, common pulse, and in the Choir at St. Chrysostom’s Episcopal Church in the Gold Coast. Luke has previously sung with Chicago Choral Artists, Chicago Bach Week Festival, Early Music at the Barn, and has been engaged as a cover soloist with the Grant Park Music Festival. Luke was a Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions District Winner and won an Encouragement Award prior. He holds a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from Baldwin Wallace University Conservatory of Music in Cleveland, Ohio.
Eric Miller performs as a viola da gambist and cellist around the Midwest. He gives frequent solo and chamber recitals, and currently performs with the Wisconsin Baroque Ensemble and Generations Baroque. Beyond the sphere of classical music, he has recorded several hours of lo-fi electronic music with his electronic duo, Basidium. Eric is a dedicated educator and currently teaches orchestra in the Oregon School District and maintains a cello studio for all ages and abilities in Madison. He has taught at the Madison Early Music Festival, the Blue Lake Family Suzuki Camp, and the Madison Bach Musicians Summer Chamber Music workshop.
Passionate about early music, contemporary repertoire, and everything in between, tenor Keith Andrew Murphy sings with Bella Voce, Schola Antiqua of Chicago, the Chicago Symphony Chorus, Music of the Baroque, the Oriana singers, and is a vocal artist-in-residence at the University of Chicago’s Rockefeller Chapel. Trained as a composer, he holds a DMA from Yale University, and his compositions have been performed by the Minnesota Orchestra, Eighth Blackbird, Opus 21, and Trio Eos, among many others. Dr. Murphy also teaches music theory, aural training, and composition at Loyola University Chicago, DePaul University, and North Park University.
LaRob K. Rafael is the Founder and Artistic Director of Hearing in Color, amplifying historically excluded stories in classical music. Sought after as a guest artist and speaker, he frequently collaborates with several artistic institutions in the city of Chicago. His arts administration work includes roles with Lyric Opera of Chicago and serving on boards with the Chicago Philharmonic, Picosa Ensemble, La Caccina and more. The Artistic Director of the upcoming Ear Taxi Festival (2025), LaRob is also the co-host/producer of Sounds Classical and a weekend host on WFMT, using his voice to expand the scope of classical music.
Trevor Stephenson—harpsichordist, fortepianist, and pianist—is the Artistic Director and founder of Madison Bach Musicians. Trevor received a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Historical Performance of 18th Century Music from Cornell University, where he studied fortepiano with Malcolm Bilson. With his colleague, Norman Sheppard, Trevor has made and refurbished a series of historical keyboard instruments ranging from Italian Renaissance harpsichords to Victorian pianos. He has released sixteen recordings on the Light & Shadow label and tours throughout the United States as performer and lecturer. Information at trevorstephenson.com.
Ryan Townsend Strand, tenor, is a Minnesota native whose "beautiful vocalism" (San Francisco Chronicle) and "expressive poise” (Chicago Classical Review) have afforded him a successful career as a concert and oratorio soloist. Strand most recently was a featured soloist performing Beethoven’s 9th Symphony with the Illinois Philharmonic. Highlights of the 2024-2025 season include a featured recital with the Ravinia Festival at Bennett Gordon Hall in November, chamber performances with Madison Bach Musicians in December, and Dido & Aeneas with Bella Voce in April.
Madison Bach Musicians Principal Cellist James Waldo is a voracious performer and passionate educator. Equally at ease on historical and modern instruments, Waldo has performed, toured, and recorded with numerous ensembles, including LeStrange Viols, the orchestral folk ensemble Spirits of the Red City, and the A.W.Duo (with his pianist spouse, Alyona A. Waldo). Recent engagements include concert soloist with the Edgewood Chamber Orchestra, faculty artist for the Clazz International Music Festival in Tuscany, and performances around Wisconsin with the Listeso and Kite String Quartets, LunART Festival, and the flute/cello/piano ensemble Trio Collage. Waldo will be a regular performer for the Magisterra Soloists 2024-2025 season of concerts in London, Ontario, and is Lecturer of Cello at the Mead Witter School of Music at University of Wisconsin-Madison. Waldo holds degrees from Mannes College, The New School for Music, and the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Bass-baritone Vince Wallace is a native of St. Louis, MO. He has been on the scene in Chicago for over 15 years, now singing primarily at the Lyric Opera of Chicago. He usually has contracts also with Chicago Opera Theater, Chicago Symphony and Grant Park Music Festival. For over a decade, he has sung the national anthem for the Chicago Bears, Cubs, White Sox and Bulls, as well as college and semi-pro sports teams in Chicago. Wallace performed at the Metropolitan Opera during the premiere of Terrance Blanchard’s opera Fire Shut up in my Bones which landed him a Grammy award (2021). He also has an Emmy for Lyric Opera’s production of I Pagliacci (2022).
HANDEL’S MESSIAH
Basso-Profundo Mark Haddad earned his BM in Vocal Performance from Texas Tech University and his MM in Vocal Performance from the University of Delaware. Mr. Haddad currently sings with Chicago-based chamber choirs Bella Voce and the William Ferris Chorale. He is also a member of the supplemental chorus for the Grant Park Music Festival, and performed the Rachmaninoff Vespers in July of 2017. In August of 2017, as a member of the Lakeside Singers, he performed with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra at the Ravinia Music Festival. In March of 2018 he performed the role of Herbert in the World-premiere of Ross Crean’s The Great God Pan with Chicago Fringe Opera. When he is not singing, he works as a substitute teacher with Intrinsic Schools of Chicago and also works security at various concerts and festivals. In his free time, he works out regularly, and is an avid pool player.
Mezzo-Soprano Amanda Koopman is a singer and soloist in the Chicago area. Solo highlights include Bach’s Mass in B-minor with Bella Voce, Mozart’s Requiem, Bach Magnificat and Cantata 80 with the Elgin Master Chorale, Purcell anthems and Bach Mass in F with Music of the Baroque, San Ignacio chamber opera at the Art Institute of Chicago, and a recital celebrating motherhood with the Musicians Club of Women and Northwestern University. She has performed two recital series in China, the country in which she grew up, in cities including Beijing, Shanghai, and Yan Cheng. She regularly appears with well-known performing groups such as Grant Park Chorus, Bella Voce, and Music of the Baroque. She holds a M.M in vocal performance from Northwestern University.
Praised for her lithe and elegant lyric soprano, Carolyne DalMonte is a versatile singer who loves to sing opera, oratorio, and choral music. She enjoys an active and similarly versatile career from her new home city of Chicago. As a sought-after oratorio soloist, she has performed Bach’s Magnificat, Handel’s Dixit Dominus, Handel’s Messiah, The Fauré Requiem, The Brahms Requiem, and the Haydn Nelsonmesse (among other oratorios) with various ensembles across the United States. Her performed opera roles include Adina in L’elisir d’amore, Dorinda in Orlando, Mimi in La Bohème, the title role in Manon, and Despina in Così fan tutte. She also immensely enjoys her life as a choral artist and feels lucky to have performed with many excellent ensembles in her career, including the Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Choir, Brevitas, The Thirteen, the Grant Park Festival Chorus, Bach Collegium San Diego, Bella Voce, Music of the Baroque and the Choir of the Ascension (Chicago). In addition to her work as a performer, Miss DalMonte is a passionate voice and piano teacher who loves to inspire and empower her students along their musical journeys. Outside of her musical endeavors, she finds great joy in taking walks with her husband and her beloved dog, Apollo.
Matthew Schlesinger holds a Bachelor’s of Arts degree in Music Education from Western Illinois University and a Master's Degree in Music Education from VanderCook College of Music, and an Educational Leadership Certificate from Roosevelt University. He is proud to be in his sixteenth year as the Choral Director at Hoffman Estates High School, as well as the Choral Director of the D211 Adult Chorus. Outside of D211, He also serves as the ILMEA State Honors Choir Chair, and the Division VII Choral Representative.
Matthew has performed around the Chicago area with numerous organizations. This includes such groups as the Grant Park Symphony Chorus, the Chicago Symphony Chorus, the Oriana Singers, the Chicago Choral Artists, and most recently with Bella Voce. He has also had the opportunity to serve as the cover soloist in the CSO’s productions of Berlioz's Romeo and Juliet, Verdi's Otello and Britten’s War Requiem. Matthew has also appeared as a Tenor soloist for Harper College and Bella Voce. A review by John von Rhein in the Chicago Tribune of the Oriana Singers production of Songs of Love and War stated that “Matthew Schlesinger wielded the ideal Monteverdi tenor: light, clear, technically solid and musically accomplished.”
Even with all of this, Matthew’s greatest joy in life is spending time with his wife Melissa, and being a father for his two daughters, Emily and Elyse.
Orna Arania has performed extensively as a soloist in concert series and festivals with most of the leading orchestras in her native country of Israel. She has toured as a soloist with various Israeli ensembles in Italy, Germany, Austria, The Czech Republic, Hungary, Denmark, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Thailand, Canada and the United States.
Since arriving in the United States, she has performed as a soloist with ensembles and orchestras such as The Peninsula Music Festival Orchestra, Distinguished Concerts International Orchestra New York, Elgin Symphony, Lima Symphony, Illinois Valley Symphony, The Callipygian Players, Ars Antigua, Northwestern University Chamber Orchestra, Ohio Northern University Symphony Orchestra and more.
Her performances include a vast repertoire of solo oratorio roles such as Hymn of Praise and Psalm 42 by Mendelssohn, Symphony No. 9, Mass in C and Choral Fantasy by Beethoven, Mass in C minor, Requiem and Vesperae Solennes de Confessore by Mozart, Theresienmesse by Haydn, Symphony No. 4 and Songs of a Wayfarer by Mahler, Messiah by Handel, the Requiems of Bruckner, Fauré and Rutter and many more. She also performed several contemporary concert pieces for voice and symphonic orchestra including the world-premiere of Quomodo Sedet Sola by Yehezkel Braun, and The New Moon by Tõnu Kõrvits, the American-premier of Mirror of Perfection by Richard Blackford, and the Illinois-premiere performances of American Requiem by Richard Danielpour, and Requiem for Peace by Larry Nickel. Her performances also include numerous chamber and solo recitals.
In addition to her performances as a soloist, she sings with leading ensembles in Chicago, such as Bella Voce and Bella Voce Camerata, and serves as both a singer and assistant conductor of The Lakeside Singers, with whom she performed extensively in prestigious venues throughout the Chicago area, including multiple appearances at the Ravinia Festival.
Arania earned both her Master of Music and Doctor of Music degrees in voice and opera performance from Northwestern University. Her bachelor's degree in voice (including a minor in choral conducting) is from the Buchman-Mehta School of Music (formally known as the Rubin Academy of Music), Tel Aviv University, Israel. She teaches at Northern Illinois University’s College of Visual and Performing Arts.
Garrett Johannsen is a classically trained tenor from Schiller Park, Illinois. He graduated from the Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University. Recent career highlights include Jane Austen's Persuasion UK Tours with Chamber Opera Chicago, Carl Orff's Carmina Burana with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus at Carnegie Hall, Nederlander Centennial Medley Soloist at Jay Pritzker Pavilion and a recording collaboration with James Stephenson’s As The Fireflies Watched as tenor soloist. He has performed with the Lyric Opera, Chicago Symphony and Grant Park Choruses, Chicago a cappella, Bella Voce, Music of the Baroque, The William Ferris Chorale and contemporary ensemble Stare at the Sun. This past summer, he performed at Concordia University in a concert performance of select scenes from Christine Steyer and David Shenton's new opera Outside the Ring and was a featured dater in Michael Ching's contemporary opera Speed Dating Tonight! directed by Carl Ratner. Among having performed in many operas, recitals, cabarets and city wide events, Garrett is honored to have sung our nation’s national anthem at Wrigley Field, Guaranteed Rate Field, Toyota Park and Soldiers Field. Garrett is a member of the American Guild of Musical Artists.
A native Chicagoan, Nora Engonopoulos earned a bachelor’s degree in vocal performance from DePaul University and a master’s degree in Opera/Voice from McGill University in Montreal. She has been a member of Bella Voce since 2014 and has also sung with the Chicago Symphony Chorus and Grant Park Chorus. During the day, Nora works in non-profit fundraising.
A native of the Washington, DC area, baroque trumpeter Josh Cohen is greatly sought after by many leading early music ensembles throughout North America. For the past 20 seasons, Josh has been principal baroque trumpet with the Washington Bach Consort as well as the National Cathedral Baroque orchestra He has also performed as principal and solo baroque trumpet for ensembles such as Studio de Musique Ancienne de Montreal, Arion (Montreal), Bach Sinfonia (Washington DC), Aston Magna (Boston), Musica Maris (Rhode Island), Houston Bach Society, Ensemble Telemann (Montreal), and participated in festivals such as the Indiana Festival of Early Music, International Festival of Baroque Music at Lameque (N.B. Canada) and the Bach Festival of Montreal. Mr. Cohen has recorded some of the most famous and demanding works for baroque trumpet. Most recently, Mr. Cohen recorded J.S. Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto no. 2 with Montreal-based Ensemble Caprice. He can be heard in the Washington Bach Consort’s recording of J.S. Bach’s Cantata no. 51 with soprano Elizabeth Futral. Two recordings Mr. Cohen participated in with prominent Canadian ensembles were both nominated for the 2009 Juno Awards: “Let the Bright Seraphim” with soprano Karina Gauvin and Tempo Rubato, and his recording of Vivaldi’s Gloria with Ensemble Caprice, the latter of which won the Juno award for Best Album of the Year in the vocal category. Most recently, Mr Cohen has released his first solo disc Altissima (2023) on the Chandos label which received critical acclaim all over the world and was even CD of the week in Amsterdam upon its release. Mr. Cohen received a M.M. from McGill University and a B.M. from the New England Conservatory of Music. He currently plays on a Baroque trumpet made by Matt Martin of Norwich Natural Trumpets after an original by Kodisch 1710.
Soprano Kimberly Eileen Jones is an alum of the Ryan Opera Center with the prestigious Lyric Opera of Chicago. Her performances there include the slave girl, Margru, in the world premiere of Anthony Davis' Amistad, which was released nationally on the New World recording label. She also portrayed the feisty Olga in Fedora, Princess Xenia in Boris Godunov, and the spitfire Despina in Così fan tutte student matinee performances. With the Ryan Opera Center, she portrayed Laetitia in Menotti's Old Maid and the Thief. Additionally, she made her Grant Park Festival debut as Zerlina (Don Giovanni) and Adele (Die Fledermaus) the following season.
Kimberly performed in Houston Grand Opera's colorful production of the Magic Flute (Papagena), and reprised her role of Xenia in Boris Godunov. Also with Houston, she participated in their production of Porgy and Bess, as Clara. This tour graced the international stages of La Scala in Milan, the Bastille in Paris, and the Bunkamura in Tokyo, Japan. For her portrayal of Clara, she was nominated for Best Supporting Actress by the NAACP Awards.
She captivated audiences in her Alice Tully Hall debut with the Little Orchestra Society in an evening of Vivaldi arias. She received rave reviews as the Composer in Mozart's Jewel Box with the Chicago Opera Theater, as well as Mahler's Second Symphony with the Madison Symphony. She has also appeared in concert with the Ravinia Festival (Bourgeois Gentilhomme), Richmond Symphony (Knoxville: Summer of 1915), and with Madison Symphony (Messiah and Christmas Pops). Her first Carmina Burana and Haydn Creation were performed with the Rockford Symphony, later repeated with Chicago Sinfonietta. She was showcased opening weekend of Jay Pritzker Pavilion of Millennium Park in Chicago.
She was selected by Maestro Bruno Bartoletti, Lyric Opera's former Artistic Director, to appear with the Orchestra della Toscana in Florence, La Spezia and Piombino. (Barber Knoxville Summer of 1915) She was one of four opera center artists showcased at the Chatelet in Paris, France.
She has received a 3Arts grant, George London grant, Sullivan grant, and a Licia Albanese Encouragement grant. She has been nominated for the Richard Tucker grant, received three grants from the MacAllister Awards competition, and was awarded the Richard Gold Career Grant from the Lyric Opera of Chicago. She is a Union League Civic and Arts Foundation (now Luminarts) prize winner . At the recommendation from Ardis Krainik, she was presented in Opera's Now magazine's "Who's Hot in Opera".
She has performed the Philip Glass Symphony #5 at the Gewandhaus in Leipzig, Germany, and with the Stuttgart and Danish Radio Symphonies in Germany and Copenhagen. She has performed four times at the Chicago Cultural Center in Preston Bradley Hall, including a WFMT radio broadcast of the Dame Myra Hess concert, and a Negro Spirituals concertwith award winning actress, Irma P. Hall.
She made her Connecticut Opera debut as Fiordigili in Così fan tutte.
Kimberly returned to Mandel Hall singing Vaughn Williams' Sea Symphony and Brahms Requiem. She made her Grand Rapids Symphony debut with Maestro David Lockington in Handel's Messiah. She repeated her performances of Mozart's Exultate Jubilate.
She is recurring artist with the Michigan City Chamber Music Festival. With South Bend Symphony, she performed in her first Britten War Requiem. She sang the soprano solos in her first Verdi Requiem with Chicago Community Chorus.
She debuted with the Singapore Chinese Orchestra in an evening of Porgy and Bess excerpts and spirituals. She is the founder of the soprano trio group, called simply, "Tres Belle."
She was showcased in engagements that included Carmina Burana with the Chicago Sinfonietta, and Beethoven Mass in C with the DePaul Community Chorus.
She was a frequent guest with Yachatz Festival in Yachatz, Oregon. She was showcased in the Christmas Pops South Bend Symphony for Maestro Tsung Yeh's retiring season.
Other engagements included the title role of The Fairy Queen with Chicago Opera Theater, repeated with Long Beach Opera. Also with COT, Stewart Copeland's Invention of Morel as Dora, Micaela in Carmen and Grace Alumond in Quamino’s Map. She performed in Lyric Opera's production of Terence Blanchard’s Fire Shut up in My Bones.
In concert appearances, she sang with Fox Valley Symphony, and Fort Wayne Symphony.
She sang the roles of Tibrino/Amore in the Haymarket Opera production of L'Orontea, and Galatea in Acis. Last summer she portrayed Angelica in an operatic video of Handel’s’ Orlando.
Miss Jones is on the voice faculty at Roosevelt University and DePaul University.
Tenor Oliver Camacho has been praised as “superbly stylish” by the Chicago Tribune and “emotionally generous” by the Chicago Reader. A proud graduate of Chicago’s Lane Technical High School, Oliver went on to study music at Northwestern University, and historically informed performance practice at Amherst Early Music Festival and Early Music Vancouver. Oliver has been a soloist with the Newberry Consort, Chicago Choral Artists, Bach Cantata Vespers, the Chicago Bach Ensemble, Vox 3 Collective, and Distant Worlds Philharmonic Orchestra. Oliver is co-host of Opera Box Score podcast; and is Music Director of Classical WFMT, where he hosts Listening to Singers.
For over two decades, Eric Miranda has performed in venues throughout Chicago, gracing audiences with his “pliable, warm baritone” (Chicago Classical Review).
Eric has appeared as a soloist at Orchestra Hall and Millennium Park, and as a versatile and sought-after singer, he is a frequent collaborator with early music and choral groups, including Newberry Consort, the Grant Park Chorus and the Chicago Symphony Chorus.
In the realm of opera, he has appeared with Haymarket Opera, Chicago Opera Theater, and Lyric Opera of Chicago.
Upcoming season highlights include performances of Latin American Christmas with Newberry Consort, and, in the Spring of 2025, singing the role of Aeneas in Henry Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas with Bella Voce.
Martin Davids came to earth to explore the wonders of Love. This has led to many adventures and two children with his wife of 24 years. When not philosophizing, he enjoys podcasting, cooking, and mixing cocktails with his collection of prohibition era cocktail shakers. He also enjoys playing the violin, especially when it can be used to make connections with other people. No one should have to play alone. His tastes include all styles of music, but he can often be found performing in Baroque ensembles as that is more or less his mother tongue.
He can be heard leading the Callipygian Players (which he founded), Brandywine Baroque (DE), Bach Collegium San Diego, and Bella Voce Sinfonia. He is principal second violin with the Haymarket Opera Company, and Baroque Chamber Orchestra of Colorado. In Chicago, he also plays with Music of the Baroque. In the summer, he performs at the Staunton Music Festival (VA). He also works with other ensembles across the USA and Europe. He performs on a Baroque violin by Ferdinando Alberti from 1750 with Baroque bows by Canadian master bow makers Michelle Speller and Stephen Marvin.
Of his recordings, he recommends listening to 12 Sonatas for violin and continuo by Henry Eccles and Michael Christian Festing, Violin sonatas, to start. He’s excited about 3 albums coming soon including the premiere recording of his French Duos arrangements recorded at Chateau Lizieres in January 2024.
Mr. Davids published a volume of arrangements for two violins of J. S. Bach’s solo violin fugues in early 2016. Called Bachfor2, it is the first arrangement of its kind. A second volume was published in 2019. His arrangements of French harpsichord solos for violin and viola duet were published in late 2020, as was his chaconne for solo viola (or violin). He is a third generation disciple of the YiZung Yue school of internal martial arts. He also hosts the “Classical Happy Hour” podcast.
“Expressive, velvet toned” (Chicago Classical Review) Anna Rasmussen, mezzo soprano, is making her mark as an emerging soloist and distinguished choral artist in her hometown of Chicago.
“Mezzo-soprano Anna Rasmussen brought buoyancy and crisp diction to her committed readings of “Behold, a virgin shall conceive” and “O thou that tellest good tidings to Zion,” but stood out in a particularly measured, poignant “He was despised.” (Chicago Classical Review)
Most recently, Anna joined the Music Institute Chorale as the mezzo soprano soloist for Mozart's Requiem in July 2024, and previously appeared as a soloist for Vivaldi’s Gloria in July 2023. In November 2022, Anna joined the Elgin Master Chorale for a performance of Messiah, Part I alongside José Maurício Nunes Garcia's Matinas do Natal as the mezzo soprano soloist.
Other highlights include an appearance with the Music Institute Chorale in March 2022 as the mezzo soprano soloist on a program of Bach and baroque hallmarks, joining the Elgin Master Chorale in April of 2019 as mezzo soprano soloist in Handel’s Dixit Dominus, mezzo soprano soloist in Handel’s Judas Maccabaeus with the North Shore Choral Society, as well as mezzo soprano soloist with Wicker Park Choral Singers on Aaron Copland’s profound choral masterpiece, In the Beginning in November 2018.
Anna is currently on the rosters for Bella Voce and The William Ferris Chorale, and is the Alto Artist-in-Residence at University of Chicago's Rockefeller Memorial Chapel. Additionally, Anna has participated in the Chicago Bach Week festival under the direction of Richard Webster.
Anna holds a Master of Music degree in vocal performance from North Park University and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Valparaiso University.
Bass-baritone Vince Wallace is a native of St. Louis, MO. He has been on the scene in Chicago for over 15 years now singing primarily at the Lyric Opera of Chicago.
Vince usually has contracts also with Chicago Opera Theater, Chicago Symphony and Grant Park Music Festival. For over a decade, Mr. Wallace has sung the national anthem for the Bears, Cubs, White Sox and Bulls as well as other college and semi-pro sports teams in the city.
Vince performed at the Metropolitan Opera during the premiere of Terrance Blanchard’s opera Fire Shut up in my Bones which landed him a Grammy award (2021). He also has an Emmy for Lyric Opera’s production of Pagliacci (2022).
Soprano Anna Joy Buegel is actively engaged as a singer, vocal instructor, and music teacher throughout the Chicagoland area. She regularly serves as a chorister and soloist for various professional ensembles, including the Grant Park Chorus, Chicago Symphony Chorus, Music of the Baroque, Chicago Bach Festival Chorus, Bella Voce, Stare at the Sun, Roots in the Sky, and The New Earth Ensemble. She also serves on staff as the soprano section leader at Trinity United Methodist in Wilmette.
AJ teaches private voice at Maine East and Niles West High Schools, serves as a faculty member at The Musical Offering in Evanston, and directs Trinity United Methodist’s Youth Choir.
She holds a Master’s degree in Vocal Performance from North Park University and a Bachelor’s degree in Sacred Music from Moody Bible Institute.