Choral Chameleon: 2011 - Summoning Light Program

presents

12.14.11 7:30 pm Vince Peterson Artistic Director

Lang Recital Hall Hunter College North New York, NY

Dear Chameleon Family, Putting up a Christmas tree is my favorite part of the Christmas season.

Even now as I write this I am stopping to enjoy its twinkling lights. I don’t think I’m spoiling a big secret when I say that the tradition of the tree is a carryover from more ancient pagan-based traditions. But now it has become far more than even a Christian symbol. It is an unmistakable symbol of the season. Every New Year’s Eve people around the world, regardless of where they place their faith, share kisses with their loved ones and cast their dreams into the year to come. There is an undeniable magic to the season which transcends a person’s individual faith – in one way or another this palpable feeling is shared by all. It is in this time more than any other that we reach out to strangers, come together with family, light a candle and wait for the coming of the warm rebirth of spring. That is why we have gathered here together tonight. We bring you offerings from a variety of artistic disciplines which we feel exemplify the universal themes which in some way encapsulate this special time: the end of one year and the birth of a new. We seek here, in this place, to light a candle of our own – one that you can take with you to bring light into the world for this year and the years to come.

With Best Wishes, Gregory Cicchino, Stage Director Vince Peterson, Artistic Director

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Denise Mazzaferro and the faculty of Hunter College, for allowing us to rehearse and sing in this beautiful space, Janna Taylor of Mindful Tutors, for letting us use her office for our board meetings, Jeff Eason, for his photography, David DeLauro for his Hebrew translations and copy, Joshua Diamant and Kelly Baxter Golding, eagle-eyed proofreaders of this program, Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, for their financial support during the year, Marc Bovino, for his creative art work,

Choral Chameleon is a member of the New York Choral Consortium.

SUMMONING LIGHT Ritual Some Children See Him

Alfred Burt (1920-1954) Wilha Hutson (1901-2002)

Benediction Spoken by Sheera Ben-David Noel

Eustache du Carroy (1549-1609) Mystery

New Moon Julie Waters, Evan Crawford, Michael Gullo, Mark Johnson, Quartet

Ricky Ian Gordon (b. 1956)

―On Looking Up by Chance at the Constellations‖ Spoken by Justin Randolph Dance Soloist: Natalie Greene

Robert Frost

O Magnum Mysterium

Joseph Gregorio (b. 1979) Home

“Home is Not a Place‖ Spoken by Kevin Stanfa

Christine Steele

Somewhere

Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990) Arranged by Roger Emerson Abundance

Can’t Buy Me Love Mi Na Shin, Margaret Gianquinto, Jamey Grisham, Brian Mummert, Quartet

John Lennon (1940-1980) Paul McCartney (b. 1942) Arranged by Keith Abbs

All Good Gifts Brian Mummert, Soloist

Stephen Schwartz (b. 1948) Intermission Courage

Al Hanissim

Elliot Levine (b. 1963)

―A Letter From A Soldier‖ Spoken by Shelleen Kostabi

Private Sarah Albrycht

One by One

Lebo M. (b. 1964) Arranged by John Leavitt Renewal

Bashana Haba’ah

Nurit Hirsh (b. 1942) Arranged by John Leavitt

Changing is Hard Jacqueline Perez, Soloist

Tony Asaro (b. 1977)

The Storm is Passing Over

Charles A. Tindley (1851-1933) Arranged by Vince Peterson Kindness

No One is Alone

Stephen Sondheim (b. 1930) Arranged by John Higgins

―The Christmas Visit‖ Spoken by Kelly McCabe

Howard Murphy Light

Morning Julie Waters, Michael Gullo, Soloists Denotes World Premiere

Vince Peterson (b. 1981)

I. Ritual

TEXTS

SOME CHILDREN SEE HIM

Alfred Burt & Wilha Hutson

Some children see Him lily white, The Baby Jesus born this night, Some children see Him lily white, With tresses soft and fair.

Some children see Him bronzed and brown, The Lord of heaven to earth come down; Some children see Him bronzed and brown, With dark and heavy hair.

Some children see Him almond-eyed, This Saviour whom we kneel beside, Some children see Him almond-eyes, With skin of yellow hue.

Some children see Him dark as they, Sweet Mary's Son to whom we pray; Some children see Him dark as they, And, ah! they love Him, too!

The children in each different place Will see the baby Jesus' face Like theirs, but bright with heavenly grace, And filled with holy light.

O lay aside each earthly thing, And with thy heart as offering, Come worship now the infant King, 'Tis love that's born tonight!

SPOKEN: Benediction NOEL Noël, Noël, Sors de ton lit, Paré comme un nouveau soleil.

Romps les lieux et descend, Ange du grand conseil.

Enfant, mais homme-dieu, Fils du Très-Haut qui porte Ta grand principauté Sur ton épaule forte.

Noël, Noël.

Sheera Ben-David Eustache du Caurroy (1549-1609) Noel, Noel, Get up out of your bed, dressed like a new sun.

Sunder the high places and come down, Angel of the Great Council.

Child, but Emmanuel, Son of the Most High, who brings your Grand Principality upon your strong shoulder.

Noel, Noel.

Translation and Program Notes by Vince Peterson Eustache du Caurroy (baptized February 4, 1549 – August 7, 1609) is, today, a lesser known French composer. However, in his own lifetime, he held several of the highest positions a musician could hold in French high society: including Assistant Director (and later, Director) of Music at the Royal Chapel in Paris.

Through his work as a composer in the church, he accrued a number of benefices and even an estate in Picardy. Noel is one of a set of 53 sacred motets for 3 to 7 voices. It is a choral example of Musique Mesurée which was pioneered by Claude Le Jeune; a practice of the late 16th century in which composers set longer or stressed syllables of French texts to longer note values, and shorter to shorter as a means of creating what was then a "contemporary" understanding of Ancient Greek text declamation. Though popular in France, it was also popular in Italy. In particular, it was studied by the Florentine Camerata, which gave birth to the first recitatives and eventually to opera itself.

II. Mystery NEW MOON

Ricky Ian Gordon (b. 1956)

There's a new young moon Riding the hills tonight, A new young moon Riding the hills.

There's a sprightly young moon Exploring the clouds.

There's a half shy young moon Veiling her face like a virgin, Waiting for a lover.

There's a new young moon Riding the hills tonight, A new young moon Riding the hills.

SPOKEN: ―On Looking Up By Chance at the Constellations‖ - Robert Frost O MAGNUM MYSTERIUM O magnum mysterium, et admirabile sacramentum, ut animalia viderent Dominum natum, jacentem in praesepio!

Beata Virgo, cujus viscera meruerunt portare Dominum Christum.

Alleluia.

Traditional O great mystery, and wonderful sacrament, that animals should see the newborn Lord, lying in a manger!

Blessed is the Virgin whose womb was worthy to bear Christ the Lord.

Alleluia!

III. Home SPOKEN: ―Home is Not a Place‖ SOMEWHERE

Christine Steele Stephen Sondheim (b. 1930)

There's a place for us, Somewhere a place for us.

Peace and quiet and open and air Wait for us somewhere.

There's a time for us, Someday a time for us, Time together with time to spare, Time to learn, time to care.

Someday, somewhere, We'll find a new way of living, We'll find a way of forgiving, Somewhere.

There's a place for us, A time and place for us.

Hold my hand and we're halfway there.

Hold my hand and I'll take you there, Somehow, someday, somewhere.

IV. Abundance CAN’T BUY ME LOVE John Lennon (1940-1980) & Paul McCartney (b.1942) I'll buy you a diamond ring, my friend, If it makes you feel alright.

I'll get you anything, my friend, If it makes you feel alright.

I don't care too much for money, Money can't buy me love.

Can't buy me love, Ev'rybody tells me so.

Can't buy me love, No no no.

I'll give you all I've got to give If you say you love me too.

I may not have a lot to give But what's I've got I'll give to you.

I don't care too much for money, Money can't buy me love.

Can't buy me love, Ev'rybody tells me so.

Can't buy me love, No no no.

Say that you need no diamond rings And I'll be satisfied.

Tell me you want the kind of things That money just can't buy.

I don't care too much for money, Money can't buy me love.

Can't buy me love, Ev'rybody tells me so.

Can't buy me love, No no no.

ALL GOOD GIFTS

Stephen Schwartz (b. 1948)

We plow the fields and scatter The good seed on the land, But it is fed and watered

By God's almighty hand: He sends the snow in winter, The warmth to swell the grain, The breezes and the sunshine, And soft, refreshing rain.

All good gifts around us Are sent from heaven above.

So thank the Lord, O thank the Lord For all his love.

We thank thee then, O Father, For all things bright and good, The seed time and the harvest, Our life, our health, our food.

No gifts have we to offer For all thy love imparts But that which thou desirest: Our humble thankful hearts.

All good gifts around us Are sent from heaven above.

So thank the Lord, O thank the Lord For all his love.

Intermission

V. Courage AL HANISSIM

Elliot Levine (b. 1963)

Al hanisim v'al hapurkan V'al hag'vurot v'al hat'shuot V'al hamilchamot sheasita laavoteinu Bayamim haheim baz'man hazeh.

Bimei Matityahu ben Yochanan Kohen Gadol hashmomai uvanav K'sheamdah malchut Yavan al am'cha Yisraeil L'hashkicham toratecha Ul'ha'aviram meichukei retzonecha V'atah b'rachamecha harabim Amad'talahem b'et tzaratam.

Meaning: For the miracles and for the deliverance, and for the mighty acts, and for the acts of salvation and You performed for our ancestors in those days, at this time of year; in the days of Mattathias the son of Yochanan, the High Priest, the Hasmonean and his sons, when the Greek Empire sought to force Your people Israel to abandon Your Torah and to deviate from Your chosen laws and practices, You in Your great mercy stood with them in their hour of distress.

SPOKEN: ―A Letter From A Soldier‖ ONE BY ONE

Private Sarah Albrycht Lebo M. (b. 1964)

Ibambeni njalo bakithi Ninga dinwa Ninga phelelwa nga mandla Siya ba bona Bebe fun' ukusi qeda

Hold tight my people Don't get weary Don't lose your strength We can see They wanted to hold us back One by one

Ngeke ba lunge

They will not succeed One by one

Sizo nqoba Ngeke ba lunge Ngoba thina Siya zazi Ibala lami

We will win They will not succeed Because We know who we are The color of my skin

Elimnyama Ndiya zidla Ngalo Ibala lami Elimnyama Ndiza kufa Nalo

That is dark I'm proud Of it The color of my skin That is dark I will die With it

VI. Renewal BASHANA HABA’AH

Nurit Hirsh (b. 1942)

Bashana haba'ah Neshev al hamirpeset V'nis por tsiporim nod'dot Y'ladim b'chufsha y'sachaku To feset ben habayit l'ven hasadot Od tire kama tov yiye Meaning: Next year, when peace will come, we shall return to the simple pleasures of life so long denied us. You will see, you will see, O how good it will be, next year!

CHANGING IS HARD No one's good at keeping resolutions, sure, But maybe I'm the worst.

I always do the opposite of what I vow On January first.

I resolve to lose weight I resolve to dress better I resolve to stop watching Jersey Shore.

Then I order Chinese, Throw on jeans and a sweater, And watch Snooki pass out on the floor.

And the woman I wanna be, Looks down at the couch at me And walks out the door.

One year I made a level-headed action plan To pay off all my debt.

Within a month, I'd leased a Mini Cooper, Which I haven't paid off yet.

Tony Asaro (b. 1977)

I resolve to work out I resolve to eat kale I resolve to stop Facebook stalking men.

But it never works out Chips Ahoy! goes on sale, And I'm checking his status again!

Changing is hard!

Every new year, I'm learning That changing is hard!

All my new leaves are turning Overwrought, Incomplete, I relapse.

I retreat.

I resolve to change, But changing is hard.

Changing is hard.

This year I turn this house into a home.

This year I turn this prune back to a plum!

The time has come, And this year will be the year I follow through Out with my old.

In with my new.

If I stopped making New Year's resolutions, Then I'd never drop the ball.

But how do you determine where your balance is If you don't ever fall?

I resolve every year.

I resolve 'cuz I need to.

I resolve hoping life is mine to make.

OK, maybe I fail, Breaking rules I agreed to, But damn it, I put those rules there to break!

Changing is hard!

Every new year means learning.

Yes, changing is hard!

When my new leaves are turning Overwrought, Incomplete, I relapse.

I repeat.

I resolve to change,

I can't help but change, Because life IS change, And changing is hard.

THE STORM IS PASSING OVER

Charles A. Tindley (1851-1933)

Have courage my soul and let us journey on.

Though the night is dark and I am far from home.

Thanks be to God the morning light appears.

The storm is passing over.

The storm is passing over.

The storm is passing over, Hallelu.

Billows roll high and thunder shakes the ground.

With the lightning's flash and tempest all around.

Jesus walks out and calms the angry waves.

The storm is passing over.

The storm is passing over.

The storm is passing over, Hallelu.

Soon we will reach the distant shining shore.

Free from all the storms we'll rest forevermore.

Safe in the veil we'll furl the riven sail.

The storm is passing over.

The storm is passing over.

The storm is passing over, Hallelu.

VII. Kindness NO ONE IS ALONE No one here to guide you, Now you're on your own.

Only me beside you.

Still you're not alone.

No one is alone, truly.

No one is alone.

Sometimes people leave you Halfway through the wood.

Others may deceive you.

You decide what's good.

You decide alone, But no one is alone.

Stephen Sondheim (b. 1930)

Mother isn't here now. (Wrong things, right things…)

Who knows what she'd say? (Who can say what's true?)

Nothing's quite so clear now (Do things, fight things…)

Feel you've lost your way?

You decide, but you are not along.

Believe me, no one is alone.

People make mistakes, Fathers, mothers, People make mistakes, Holding to their own, Thinking they're alone.

Honor their mistakes… (Fight for their mistakes,) Ev'rybody makes One another's terrible mistakes.

Witches can be right, Giants can be good, You decide what's right, You decide what's good.

Just remember Someone is on your side.

Someone else is not.

While you're seeing your side, Maybe you forgot: They are not alone.

No one is alone.

Hard to see the light now, Just don't let it go.

Things will come out right now.

We can make it so.

Someone is on your side, No one is alone.

SPOKEN: ―The Christmas Visit‖

Howard Murphy

VIII. Light MORNING Woke up this morning, war on my mind.

My eyes opened to the sound of crying.

Made the decision to finally decide to just accept we don't know what is coming.

Vince Peterson (b. 1981)

Woke up this morning, tears in my eyes.

My mouth opened to the sound of singing.

A lovely voice appeared to me and told me not to hide from what is real, what is now, what is here.

But we'll be alright, cause I know that peace is strong.

We'll be alright; no arguing "right or wrong".

You just keep it up with the faith: every night is followed by morning.

Woke up this morning, hate on my mind.

My ears opened to the sound of fighting.

Made the decision to look it in the face cause we know life's much to short for just pretending.

We'll be alright, for I know that love is strong.

We'll be alright; no arguing "right or wrong" You just keep it up with the faith: every night is followed by morning.

And I know we're starving for love now.

I know some day it will come.

And when love showers down on you and me, my friend, you will know happiness is comin' round the bend.

We'll be alright, for I know that justice is strong.

We'll be alright; no arguing "right or wrong" You just keep it up with the faith: every night is followed by morning.

And I know we're starving for justice.

I know we're half the way there.

And when justice showers down on you and me, my friend, you will know happiness is comin' round the bend.

COMING IN 2012 Join us for the rest of this season!

Watch Choral Chameleon’s website for updates and more details: www.choralchameleon.com

Lyre-Book Lush Choir and harp like you’ve never heard them before!

Sunday, April 1, 2012 at 5:00pm.

John Street United Methodist Church, 44 John Street, NYC

Follow Me

A unique hybrid concert/walking tour of Central Park.

Sunday, May 20, 2012 at 5:00pm.

Central Park West and W77th Street

A special Thank You to the following artists, who helped to make tonight’s innovative concert possible: Dancers The JT Lotus Dance Company: Rachel Snipes Jessie Tomanek Zach Tracz Special Guest: Natalie Greene Guest Choreographer: Emily Keeler Readers Sheera Ben-David Shelleen Kostabi — www.shay4healthrev.com Kelly McCabe Justin Randolph — www.justinrandolph.com Kevin Stanfa

ARTISTIC DIRECTOR Vince Peterson

SOPRANOS

ALTOS

TENORS

Erika Lloyd Mi Na Shin Julie Waters

Evan Crawford Jamey Grisham Margaret Gianquinto Michael Gullo Jacqueline C. Perez Vince Peterson

BASSES Mark Johnson Doug Larsen Brian Mummert

The mission of Choral Chameleon is to engage its listeners in a diverse and innovative musical experience through its integrative concert programming and education outreach.

EVAN CRAWFORD, alto, is thrilled to be singing with the talented members of Choral Chameleon. An enthusiast of opera and musical theater as well as choral music, he has played supporting roles in Susan Stoderl’s The Veil of Forgetfulness, Christian McLeer’s House, and Douglas Moore’s The Ballad of Baby Doe, as well as singing in concert with the Bel Canto Institute in Florence. As a chorister, Evan has performed in the world premiere of Christian McLeer's Requiem with the Remarkable Theater Brigade, and in Bach’s B-Minor Mass with the Musica Bella Orchestra. In 2008, he toured with the Beijing Olympics Festival Chorus, performing at cultural festivals in Beijing and Shanghai.

In addition, he has performed as a soloist in Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms and Handel’s Messiah and has sung in numerous opera choruses, including Carmen (Bizet) and The Cunning Little Vixen (Janacek). Evan is a recent M.M. graduate of the Brooklyn College Conservatory of Music, where he studied with Monica Harte. He currently maintains a private voice studio in Brooklyn.

MARGARET GIANQUINTO, alto, is thrilled to be joining the talented members of Choral Chameleon for her first official season! A Brooklyn based singer, music educator and pianist, she enjoys singing and playing an eclectic mix of music. She has sung in various professional church choirs around the New York Metropolitan area. For several seasons she sang with New York's Cerddorion Vocal Ensemble under the direction of Kristina Boerger and has participated in ensemble singing workshops with The Tallis Scholars (in the UK) and The Western Wind. On the side, she indulges her love of the old standards by participating in Brooklyn's own Beauty Shop Quartet. In addition to singing in and around NYC, she is an active music educator in Greenwich, CT where she maintains a private piano studio. Her love of acoustic music is showcased in a recently released album with her older sister, Mary Pierce entitled Miles Away on which she arranges and plays guitar and piano, & sings harmonies.

JAMEY GRISHAM, tenor, is beyond thrilled to be singing with Choral Chameleon! A recent transplant to NYC, Jamey is an actor/musician with a proficiency in Jane Austen and a penchant for collecting vintage bow ties. Recent theatre work includes the following--The Barn Theatre (Resident Acting Company Member): Artie Green, Sunset Boulevard (Starring Kim Zimmer); Prince Christopher, R&H's Cinderella; Fred Casely, Chicago; Anselmo, Man of La Mancha (Starring Robert Newman); Trinity Repertory Company: Mordred, Camelot; Valentine/Musical Director, Twelfth Night; Lyric Opera of Chicago: Guillot, Eugene Onegin (starring Dmitri Hvorostovsky); The Barber of Seville (starring Nathan Gunn); Chicago Humanities Festival: Harold Arlen, Songs of Our Time (starring Andrea Marcovicci); Brown/Trinity Rep: Eugene Gant,Look Homeward, Angel; Valene Connor, The Lonesome West; Suzy, The Hot L Baltimore; Sky, Vieux Carré; Crook-Fingered Jake, The Threepenny Opera. As a dancer and choreographer, Jamey has apprenticed and performed at The Joffrey Ballet School, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Lou Conte Dance Chicago, Alabama Ballet, Workhorse Theatre Ensemble, and Trinity Repertory Company as well as serving as the Resident Choreographer at his beloved Barn Theatre. He also just completed the World Premiere of the dance piece Of Human Bondage with choreography by Danny Mefford (Bloody, Bloody Andrew Jackson) and music by Michael John LaChiusa (The Wild Party). Training: Roosevelt University (BFA), Brown University (MFA, Stephen Sondheim Fellow).

MICHAEL GULLO, tenor, is a rising star in contemporary and jazz vocal music. At an early age Michael felt a powerful attraction to jazz music and continued studying at Seattle’s Roosevelt High School, one of the top jazz schools in the country. His musicianship and fresh interpretations of jazz standards like “I’m Beginning to See the Light” and “Body and Soul” won him the “Best Male Vocalist” award at the

Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival two years in a row; in 2008, he was one of four male vocalists in the country to be selected to perform in the exclusive Gibson/ Baldwin Grammy Vocal Jazz Ensemble, where he was a featured Vocalist and Vocal Percussionist. As a scholarship student at the University of Miami’s prestigious Frost School of Music, Michael had the opportunity in 2010 to work with legendary producer, Phil Ramone (Tony Bennett, Ray Charles, Natalie Cole, John Legend) when cast as a young Sinatra in his new musical “Lanza.” He graduated May 2011, cum laude with a degree in Jazz Voice and Studio Music.

MARK JOHNSON, bass, has sung in a cappella ensembles of every size and many musical styles. He has worked with Toby Twining, as music director, producer, and singer for Chrysalid Requiem (1999– 2002) and Eurydice (2008–11); and with the Western Wind, as arranger, recording producer, and ensemble coach at their workshops. This led to work with Hiroko Juni, with Studio Arsis and Tokyo Voices in Japan in the 1990s. Mark sings at Marble Collegiate Church under the direction of Ken Dake, where he does a good deal of piano tuning and music copying & editing. He appears on Bobby McFerrin’s latest album, VOCAbuLarieS, arranged & directed by Roger Treece.

DOUG LARSEN, bass, originally from Akron, Ohio, is a Brooklyn-based singer and multimedia producer. Doug graduated from the University of Miami's Frost School of Music in 2008 with a degree in Commercial Music Composition and Music Production. After college, Doug traveled the country teaching songwriting and music video production before settling in Brooklyn, New York. This is his first performance with Choral Chameleon.

ERIKA LLOYD, soprano, is a Brooklyn-based singer and painter who is most widely known as the lead songstress for indie rock band, Little Grey Girlfriend. She also performs with the Renaissance quartet The Good Pennyworths, at Union Church of Bay Ridge, and as a cantor and children’s choir director at Blessed Sacrament in the Bronx. She teaches piano and voice for The Piano School of New York and Ivy Studios. A classically trained artist with a Bachelors of Voice Performance Early Music from Indiana University, Lloyd has studied with world-renowned musicians such as Paul Elliott, Nigel North, and Elisabeth Wright. She was a featured soloist in Pro Arte and developed a love for Renaissance and Baroque repertoire as a part of the Early Music Institute at Indiana. A passionate, dedicated vocalist and artist, Erika loves to blend the elements of classical music with the edge of contemporary rock, finding it both challenging and fulfilling to experience a different level of connection with all types of audiences. Lloyd not only creates beautiful and haunting work with her voice, she’s also a commissioned artist, with projects ranging from family portraits to logo design.

BRIAN MUMMERT, Baritone, a native of Old Lyme, Connecticut, is thrilled to be singing his first season with Choral Chameleon! Brian holds a Bachelor’s of Arts in Music from Yale University, where favorite roles included the title role in Dido and Aeneas at the Institute of Sacred Music, Bob in The Old Maid and the

Thief with Opera Theater of Yale College, and Apollo in Monteverdi’s L’Orfeo at the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival. While at Yale, he also served as the musical director of the Whiffenpoofs for their ’08-’09 Centennial year and as a cantor and associate conductor of the Choir of Christ Church New Haven. Brian appeared as a soloist last season season at Marble Collegiate Church, where he is also a permanent member of the Sanctuary Choir, with the New York Pops at Carnegie Hall, and in the world premiere of Georgi Andreev’s oratorio, A Melancholy Beauty, at Avery Fisher Hall and the Kennedy Center, and can be heard on the recordings of The Presidential Rounds under Judith Clurman in collaboration with NPR. He currently studies with Lielle Berman.

JACQUELINE C. PEREZ, alto, began singing in grade school and has been singing ever since. She received a BA degree from Colgate University with a major in biology/minor in music. She graduated from the New York College of Osteopathic Medicine and trained in the Primary Care Internal Medicine Residency Program at Saint Vincent’s Catholic Medical Center in NYC. She has dabbled in many musical genres, performing in musical theatre, cabaret and with various choral groups of all shapes and sizes. In addition to Chameleon, Jackie sings in Manhattan with The Ignatian Schola, the Choir of St. Francis Church and in various church and musical settings in the NYC area. When not singing Jackie is the Health Care Provincial Assistant for the New York Jesuits and continues to practice Internal Medicine parttime with the Mount Sinai affiliate: Lutheran Family Health Community Medicine Program (formerly St. Vincent’s Hospital). She is also a Spiritual Director, Retreat Director, Speaker and Presenter. Jackie is privileged and blessed to be part of such an amazing and talented group of “Chameleons” and is deeply grateful to Vince for asking! Peace out…

MI NA SHIN, soprano, is currently an undergraduate student majoring in vocal performance at CUNY Brooklyn College. Her current teacher is Richard Barrett. She had previously studied with Monica Harte.

Through grade, middle, and high school, she has always been involved in a choir. In addition, she has been playing the piano and violin since grade school. She is very thankful to be a part of a truly talented and special group.

JULIE WATERS, soprano, sang harmony for the first time in seventh grade girls choir and experienced something mysterious and powerful; she had found her calling and has been joyfully pursuing a life filled with choral music ever since. She attended Western Washington University in Bellingham Washington, under the direction of Leslie Guelker-Cone, where she served as choir president and obtained her bachelor’s degree in Choral Music Education. In 2008 she made the adventurous move to NYC from Washington state and joined Choral Chameleon the following January. She taught elementary general music for the non-profit organization Education Through Music and is currently finishing up a graduate Music Teacher Certification program at Brooklyn College.

* * * GREGORY CICCHINO, Stage Director, performed with Choral Chameleon for its first two seasons and is happy to return to assist the group in creating such a wonderful holiday program. Greg has worked in commercial theater at every level in New York and extensively in the non-profit arena. He has taken several shows through the reading and workshop stages into full development, the most successful being the musical The Unusual Suspects, through the New York International Fringe Festival, which was one of Backstage's Picks of the Fringe. Associate member of SDC. www.gregcicchino.com.

NATALIE GREENE, Special Guest, is a performer, teacher, creator and collaborator working in dance and theater, based in San Francisco. She is Adjunct Faculty in the Department of Performing Arts & Social Justice at the University of San Francisco, and also teaches through SFArtsED and ODC School. As a performer, Natalie has worked with Deborah Slater, Erin Mei-Ling Stuart, Emily Keeler, Kelly Kemp, Kim Epifano, Mugwumpin, and, occasionally, with her dad and her brother in the family band. Her own work has been presented in theaters and non-traditional performance spaces throughout the Bay Area, nationally and internationally. Natalie also works with Dancers' Group as the facilitator of the Liz Lerman Critical Response Process in the 2nd Sundays Series at CounterPULSE. She is thrilled to be here reconnecting with Emily and Vince and working with Choral Chameleon for the first time.

EMILY KEELER, Choreographer, has worked as a professional dancer and choreographer in the San Francisco Bay Area for more than 30 years. She served as dancer and resident choreographer for the San Francisco Moving Company and was a principal dancer for Cliff Keuter New Dance Company and the Joe Goode Performance Group. Ms. Keeler has choreographed dances for many companies including Joffrey Dancers, DanceArt and Oakland Ballet. She also has choreographed for George Coates Performance Works, Magic Theatre, The Pickle Family Circus, Make*A*Circus, American Conservatory Theater and several Z Space productions. Ms. Keeler is a recipient of four National Endowment for the Arts Choreographers' Fellowships. As Artistic Director of the San Francisco Arts Education Project since 1985, she also serves as Artistic Director and choreographer for the SFArtsED Players. She has worked as a guest artist at School of the Arts Alternative High School for five years and served on the San Francisco Arts Commission from 1994 to 1997. Ms. Keeler is delighted to be reunited with Vince Peterson and Natalie Greene for this special collaboration with Choral Chameleon.

VINCE PETERSON is regarded as one of the most versatile musicians of his generation and has dedicated his career to the integration of musical genres, development of new concert programming ideas and the education of the next generation of musicians. His work has been profiled in The New York Times, The Brooklyn Eagle, The San Francisco Classical Voice and several other publications. In 2008, Peterson founded Choral Chameleon, which has rapidly moved into the foreground of the New York City choral music scene. From The New York Concert Review: “Most importantly, Artistic Director Vince Peterson has the choir shape the lines so they all have forward thrust and an expressive musical profile.” The Brooklyn Eagle praised Peterson for performing with “depth and vigor,” “providing a universal context that resonated with his audience...” and called his concert programming “a stunning symphony of the spiritual and secular”.

Peterson is sought after as composer, conductor and clinician. Commissions of his compositions include work for Cantori New York, The Monmouth Civic Chorus of New Jersey, The DeLaSalle Institute (Napa, CA), Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory (his alma mater), The San Francisco Arts Education Project (where he is also a member of the Artistic Advisory Board), San Francisco School of the Arts, and the multi-Grammy® award-winning ensemble, Chanticleer. His arrangement, "Cells Planets" is a top-seller for Hinshaw Music Publishers and has received over 48,000 YouTube views to date. This season, Chanticleer tours internationally with his new arrangement of “Somebody to Love”

by Freddy Mercury. Additionally, they have commissioned another piece for next season, the third in a row.

He previously served (from 2009 to 2011) as Interim Director of Choirs at Brooklyn College Conservatory of Music, and as Assistant Conductor to Joseph Jennings at The Golden Gate Men’s Chorus in San Francisco as well as to Mark Shapiro at Cantori New York. As choral singer and accompanist, he has traveled on tours throughout the United States, Canada, France, Italy, Hungary, Slovakia, Austria and The Philippines.

Not limiting his work to choral music, Peterson is also active in musical theater and cabaret in New York. His collaboration with MAC®-award winner, Cait Doyle on her hit show Hot Mess In Manhattan was called "Hilarious, with musical perfection" by music director, Paul Schaffer. Recently, performances on tour with Hot Mess garnered him a mention in Dayton Most Metro as one of the “Top Music Directors of the Year”.

He holds the BMus in Composition from The San Francisco Conservatory of Music and a Double MMus in Composition and Choral Conducting from Mannes College, The New School for Music. He has also studied music abroad in Paris at La Schola Cantorum and L’École Normale de Musique. He has been fortunate to work with Conrad Susa, David Conte, David Loeb, Joseph Jennings, Mark Shapiro, Phillip Lasser, Robert Cuckson, Carl Schachter, and Vance George, among others. He was the sole recipient of the 2007 Music Teacher’s League Award upon his graduation from Mannes. In addition to Artistic Directorship of Choral Chameleon, he currently serves as Adjunct Assistant Professor of Music at Brooklyn College, as well as Director of Music at St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn. He also maintains a private teaching practice in Ear Training, Score Reading, Composition, Keyboard Harmony, and Conducting.

2011-2012 CONDUCTOR’S CIRCLE Choral Chameleon salutes those who help us make the music: Alan Ahles Guilford W. Forbes Paul Golding and Kelly Baxter Golding Bebe Landis Bruce and Mary MacIntyre Jacqueline C. Perez Lynn Peterson Vince Peterson Cathy Solomon Choral Chameleon is grateful for the generous support of: Manhattan Community Arts Fund The Fund for Creative Communities Thank you for your attendance today and for your support of Choral Chameleon! We have exciting and ambitious goals including innovative programming, collaborations with other musicians, and an educational outreach project to inspire the next generation of choral artists. But we cannot do it without you! Your tax-deductible donation will help bring us one step closer to our goals.

Choral Chameleon Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. In addition to checks sent by mail, donations to Choral Chameleon may be made using PayPal through the Donate button on our website, www.choralchameleon.com.

Choral Chameleon welcomes new volunteers: in particular, the board is looking for new members with experience in publicity, marketing, fundraising, and studio production. Consider deepening your relationship with us! Volunteering your time and skills on the board of directors is a great way to make connections, broaden your horizons and help keep Chameleon going and growing.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS Cathy Solomon, President Vince Peterson, Artistic Director Steven Smith, Director of Education Outreach Guilford Forbes, Treasurer Bebe Landis, Secretary Alan Ahles Jeremy Howard Beck Evan Crawford (ex officio)

555 Eighth Avenue, Suite 1902 New York, NY 10018 646-553-1339 contact@choralchameleon.com www.choralchameleon.com