Guest Artist

ALFREDA GERALD

"The one word that could best describe ALFREDA GERALD is 'POWERHOUSE'!!! Her unparalleled vocal stylings are compared to Aretha Franklin, Chaka Khan, Orinda Clark-Cole and Fantasia." A classically trained soprano, Alfreda is extremely versatile and can sing music from any genre. Alfreda is a "Diva" in her own right. She has shared the stage with Sir Elton John, Cher, Celine Dion, Yanni, Chaka Khan, Charlie Wilson, Gladys Knight and Whitney Houston to name a few. She is a guest soloist with the New York Philharmonic, the Atlanta Symphony, the London Symphony, the American Film Orchestra, and was cast in several operas including Aida, Madame Butterfly, Porgy and Bess, and The Magic Flute. Her voice can be heard on national commercial jingles including Coke, Diet Coke, Sprite, General Motors, Ford, Nissan, Honda, McDonald’s, KFC, Church’s, Popeye’s, Hardee’s, Arby’s, Toyota, Motorola, Texas Pete Hot Sauce, The Georgia Lottery, Marriott, Dixie Crystals Sugar, TBS, The Cartoon Network, Space Ghost: Coast To Coast, and was a featured vocalist in Tyler Perry’s box office hit, Madea’s Witness Protection. She has also appeared on the NBC series The Detour, Game Of Silence, and more. Alfreda is a graduate of Mars Hill University, The Julliard School, Westminster Choir College, and the North Carolina School of the Arts, with degrees in Music Education and Opera Performance.

CLARK BARRIOS

The name Clark Barrios has become synonymous with a musical talent that is both universal and entertaining. Born in New Orleans and raised by his grandparents, young Clark's first musical exposure was through the recognition he achieved singing in the church choir at the tender age of 5. This recognition led to a Musical Scholarship at Loyola University. Recognizing that music and entertaining would become his life challenge, Clark began a musical quest which would ultimately bring happiness and joy to thousands of people in audiences and on stages across the country. Chasing a dream has led him from New Orleans to Atlanta to Las Vegas to Austin to Orlando twice and now to his home here in Central Florida. This gifted performer/singer is excited to share his vocal gifts with the audiences here in The Villages.

STEWART KITTS

Stewart Kitts is a third generation professional violinist. Stewart began playing at the age of five on a ¼ size violin built by his teacher and grandfather Otto Frey. At the age of six, Stewart soloed with his violinist mother and bassoonist father's orchestra, the Indianapolis Symphony. At ten he soloed with the University of Florida Symphony and also became the Concertmaster of the Alachua County Youth Orchestra (with a high school senior sitting next to him). At fourteen, Stewart became the youngest member ever of the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra. At eighteen, Stewart soloed more than thirty times with the Jacksonville Symphony, performing St. Saens, Introduction and Rondo Capricciosso and the third movement of the Tchaikovsky violin concerto. After his grandfather passed away, Stewart studied with several other teachers, including four summers with famed teacher Ivan Galamian at the Meadowmount School of Music. Stewart then studied with the soloist James Buswell, as a violin performance major at Indiana University. After college, Stewart spent one year as the Principal Second of the Savannah Symphony. The following summer, Stewart was the Concertmaster of the Spoleto Music Festival, in both Charleston and Spoleto. Following Spoleto, Stewart won the position of Associate Concertmaster of the Florida Orchestra, a position he held for twenty three years. During those years, Stewart spent nine summers as Associate Concertmaster of the Colorado Music Festival. Following the Florida Orchestra, Stewart has been Concertmaster of the Hollywood Philharmonic, The Charlotte Symphony and Concertmaster for Disney recording sessions and for touring shows including; Mannheim Steamroller, Johnny Mathis, Ann Murray, Styx, Little River Band, Young Frankenstein, The Alan Parsons Project, Sting, Adam Levine and many others. Stewart is currently Concertmaster of the Ocala Symphony and Co-Concertmaster of The Villages Philharmonic. Stewart resides in Gainesville, where he has a teaching studio, and is co-director, with his sister Jennifer, of the Celebration Suzuki Strings and conducts the Celebration String Orchestra. Stewart is the father of fourth generation violinists, Elizabeth and Natalie Kitts.

MARCELLA RICHARDSON

Marcella Richardson started her singing career in northern Michigan, Torch Lake area, at a family restaurant called Brownwood. She went on to travel with a 10-piece show band that started from Brownwood called TORCH. She continued to travel the country performing and eventually formed her own groups with partners based out of Atlanta, GA. She has also done radio, TV jingles, and commercials. Eventually moving her business to The Villages, FL, in 2010 she started singing in The Pops and Holiday Concerts with The Villages Philharmonic Orchestra. Along with performing with The Villages Philharmonic Orchestra, she studies and competes in ballroom dancing.

AARON ODOM

Born in New Orleans, tenor, Aaron Odom, is a graduate from Louisiana State University and Manhattan School of Music. He has studied with legendary names such as the great Marilyn Horne, Sir Thomas Allen, and Anthony Rolfe Johnson. Demand for Aaron as a lyric tenor began early in his academic years as he performed for the Bach Chorale Society of Brooklyn, Ohio Light Opera, Des Moines Metro Opera, Festival di Roma, Mobile Opera, and Wildwood Park. In 1997, Aaron recorded the tenor role of Astrophel in Newport Classics' live recording of Lionel Monckton's, The Arcadians. In 2002, Aaron moved to South Florida and founded a non-profit which would go on to facilitate more than five hundred sacred solo concerts in more than twenty different countries. Funded by offerings and three solo recording projects, Adoration, Servant, and Vintage Hymns, Aaron sang for tiny farming village churches on the mountains Chimaltenango, Guatemala, large Southern Baptist Churches throughout the Southeastern United States, pilgriming tourists at The Church of St. Anne in Jerusalem, and even The Pope at St. Peter's Basilica at The Vatican. Aaron eventually broke into the Southern Gospel world touring with The Booth Brothers, and was even a guest artist on Bill Gaither's televised Homecoming Concert Series. In 2010, Mr. Odom joined the famous gospel quartet, The Imperials, in a Hollywood produced Elvis tribute tour. Keeping in rhythm with the late Elvis on the giant jumbo-tron video screen, the original supporting cast with live orchestra performed in nineteen major European cities including London, Paris, Glasgow, Frankfurt, Dublin, and Rotterdam. Aaron currently lives in DeLand, FL and still sings professionally in both secular and sacred venues.