Featured Artists

JULIE BATMAN, SOPRANO Sings professionally with the Orlando Light Opera, Opera Orlando, Opera Tampa/ Tampa Singers, The Dicken’s Carolers, and Mary Queen of the Universe. She is a graduate of and staff professor of voice and piano at Rollins College. She has been a choral director and choral accompanist at Rollins College and she also teaches voice and piano at Lake Highland Preparatory School. Julie has been featured as a vocal soloist for several local arts organizations in Orlando. Her credits include being a featured soloist for The Villages Philharmonic Orchestra; the contemporary ballet, Carolina, Handel’s The Messiah - with the Messiah Choral Society, The Villages Philharmonic Orchestra, the Central Florida Community Arts, and the Basilica Mary Queen of the Universe Shrine. She has sung as soloist for Mozart’s Requiem, Schubert Magnificat, Vivaldi’s Nulla in Mundo Pax/Alleluia, Mozart’s Laudate Dominum and several other solos with Bach Festival choir, Et in Carnatus Est from Mozart’s Grand Mass in C with CFCA and has been a featured soloist on several CDs: Osterkantate Ernest Wolf Easter Cantata - Moravian Society, All is Bright - Bach Festival Choir, Ave Maria and The Basilica Choir - Stemik Music. Carolina contemporary Ballet CD and DVD. In addition to singing and teaching, Julie enjoys accompanying choral groups and playing solo piano for events. EMILY HEUMANN, MEZZO-SOPRANO Mezzo-soprano Emily Heumann is gaining recognition for her "credible" storytelling (Orlando Sentinel), and "delicious vocals" (Arts and Culture Texas Magazine). Last season, Emily appeared in Songs of Love at the Romanza Festivale in St. Augustine, in the world premiere of Juliano’s The Brightest Star, as Lydia in a workshop reading of Curt Tucker’s Penelope Ann’s Revenge with First Coast Opera, and as the Alto Soloist in Handel’s Messiah with The Villages Philharmonic Orchestra. Other recent appearances include Cherubino in Le nozze di Figaro with Opera Orlando and First Coast Opera, The Fox in The Little Prince with First Coast Opera, and Hansel in Hansel and Gretel with Rec Room Arts Houston. Emily was a 2018-2020 Studio Artist at Opera Orlando, where she sang Mrs. Noye in Noye’s Fludde, Nicklausse in the outreach tour of Les contes d’Hoffmann, and covered Hansel in Hansel and Gretel. She was also a 2019-2020 Emerging Artist with St. Petersburg Opera Company, where she appeared as Il Paggio/Giovanna Cover in Rigoletto, and as a soloist in Harmony: Tolerance and Acceptance. Emily enjoys performing new music, especially works by her husband, composer Eric Heumann. She has performed in dozens of new music programs across the country. She received her M.M. in Voice Performance and Pedagogy from The University of Houston. emilyheumann.com

DEVIN M. EATMON, TENOR Devin M. Eatmon is a full lyric operatic tenor from Ocala, FL. His performance history includes working with the Central Florida Lyric Opera, Chelsea Opera, Opera in the Ozarks, Aspen Music Festival, most recently Opera Colorado, and soon to be Opera Orlando. With both a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Voice Performance from Florida State University; Devin studied under the tutelage of former San Francisco Opera staring baritone, David Okerlund. Some of Devin’s most notable collegiate roles include, George Villiers in the Scholastic Premier of Carlisle Floyd’s, Prince of Players, Rodolfo in Giacomo Puccini's, La bohème, Curley in Floyd's, Of Mice and Men, and Edgar Aubrey in Heinrich Marschner’s German Romantic opera, Der Vampyr. Mr. Eatmon accepted a contract offer to be a member of the Apprentice Singer Program at The Santa Fe Opera in the summer of 2020 however, it was postponed due to the Coronavirus pandemic. While at Opera Colorado, he was to cover the role of Don José in their production of Georges Bizet’s, Carmen however, the season was postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Currently, Mr. Eatmon is a member of the new operatic/pop fusion trio, The Serenad3, with America’s Got Talent finalist, Fernando Varela as well as internationally acclaimed OperaNews baritone, Craig Irvin. The group has already received critical acclaim having collaborated with some legendary artists, such as David Foster, Gloria Estefan, American Idol’s, Pia Toscano, and the A Capella sensation, Voctave. Devin is currently living in Orlando, FL and is looking forward to future endeavors with The Serenad3 as well as Opera Orlando.

GABRIEL PREISSER, BASS Grammy Award winning baritone Gabriel Preisser has been praised by Opera News for his "handsome voice, charismatic energy, and timbral allure" and The New York Times called his performance as Lt. Gordon "wonderful." His resume includes over 40 operatic and musical theater roles including Danilo in The Merry Widow with Utah Festival Opera, Billy Bigelow in Carousel with Minnesota Orchestra, Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia with St Petersburg Opera, Dandini in Cenerentola with Opera Tampa, Escamillo in Carmen with Lyric Opera of the North, Belcore in L’elisir d’amore with Shreveport Opera, Le Mari in Les Mamelles de Tiresias with Opera Parallele, Albert in Werther with Minnesota Opera, Mercutio in Romeo et Juliette with Opera Tampa and St. Petersburg Opera, Tommy in Brigadoon with Gulfshore Opera, Silvio in Pagliacci with Opera Naples, Harold Hill in The Music Man with Colorado Symphony, and Bob Baker in Wonderful Town with Skylark Opera to name a few. He has been praised for having a "matinee idols charm and charisma", "a beautiful, luscious baritone", and "a compelling, commanding stage presence." Mr. Preisser has made a name for himself as a versatile, cross-over performer and has especially been active in new works. He created the role of Lt. Gordon in Kevin Puts’ Pulitzer Prize winning Silent Night at Minnesota Opera with subsequent performances at Opera Philadelphia, Cincinnati Opera, and Michigan Opera Theatre. His performance as Lt. Gordon with Minnesota Opera was also broadcast nationally on PBS in 2013 and 2014. He also took on the role of Farmer Bean in Tobias Picker’s Fantastic Mr Fox both with Opera San Antonio and Odyssey Opera of Boston. He can be heard on the first official audio recording of Fantastic Mr Fox under the baton of Gil Rose with the Boston Modern Orchestra Project which won the Grammy Award for best new opera recording in 2020. He has also been seen as the title role in Aldridge’s Elmer Gantry, Tom Joad in Gordon’s The Grapes of Wrath, Riolobo in Catan’s Florencia en el Amazonas, Antonio in Hagen’s New York Stories, John Brooke in Adamo’s Little Women, and the Shoe Salesman/Puppet role in Argento’s Postcard from Morocco. He recently made his Italian debut in Naples, Italy as soloist in the Mozart Requiem under the baton of Maestro Pasquale Valerio. A 2016 League of American Orchestras Emerging Artist, Preisser is known for his dynamic interpretation of Orff’s Carmina Burana performed with the Winter Park Bach Festival, Atlanta Ballet, Gulf Coast Symphony, and others. He has also been heard as a bass soloist in Bach’s St Matthew Passion with the Colorado Symphony under the baton of Cristian Macelaru, soloist in William Walton’s Belshazzar’s Feast with Jacksonville Symphony and the Canterbury Chorale, Schlendrian in Bach’s Coffee Cantata with Orlando Philharmonic, bass soloist in Bach’s St John’s Passion with the Houston Bach Society, and bass soloist in Handel’s Messiah with Ars Lyrica and The Messiah Choral Society.

JOHN DEPAOLA, TRUMPET John DePaola has been a full time freelance trumpeter for over 30 years. He lives in Orlando, FL where he has been a musician at Walt Disney World and a member of the Rosie O’Grady’s Good time Jazz Band. John has performed with entertainers such as Ray Charles, Sammy Davis Jr., Bob Hope, Johnny Mathis, Kenny Rogers, Frank Sinatra Jr., The Moody Blues, and many others. He has also played for national touring Broadway Shows like West Side Story, Hello Dolly, A Chorus Line, 42nd Street, The Producers, and Chicago. John is also a regular performer at jazz festivals across the U.S. with different groups and has also leads his own group, performing for Jazz clubs and societies in Florida.

He is in his 3rd season as a member of the Dr Phillips Center Jazz Orchestra under the direction of Rodney Whitaker. As a symphony musician, John has played Principal Trumpet with The Villages Philharmonic since 2003 and also served as Principal Trumpet with the Imperial Symphony in Lakeland Fl. He also performs with The Brevard Symphony and

Orlando Philharmonic when required to do so. You can see his concert schedule and listen to his latest recording "Take Two" JohnDePaolamusic.com TARCISIO BARRETO D’ADDONA, TRUMPET Tarcisio Barreto D’Addona is a Venezuelan trumpet player born in Barquisimeto, trained in the National System of Youth and Children's Orchestras of Venezuela. He began his trumpet studies at the "Vicente Emilio Sojo" Conservatory, continuing at the Latin American Trumpet Academy, and finishing at the "Universidad Centroccidental Lisandro Alvarado". He has participated in international courses and festivals such as: Campos do Jordao Winter Festival 2007, Epsival 2010, Spanish Brass Festival 2011, Italian Brass Week 2012, Grande Maurice 2012 and Schagerl Brass Festival 2014, where he participated as an active student with the teachers: Andrew Balio, Uwe Köller, Francisco "Pacho" Flores, Giancarlo Castro, Franck Pulcini, Pierre Dutot, Thomas Gansch, Thierry Caens, Jean Francois Dion, Guillaume Couloumy, Juanjo Serna, Carlos Beneto, Luis González, Max Sommerhalder, Allen Vizzutti, Andrea Tofanelli, Rex Richardson, Tiger Okoshi, Gabor Tarkövi, Brian Neal. He was the principal trumpet of the Lara Youth Symphony Orchestra and a member of the Lara Symphony Orchestra, as well as a member of the brass quintet Bronces Larenses and founding member of the Lara State Brass Ensemble, where he toured nationally and internationally (Portugal 2008, Spain 2009). He is a founding member of Ensamble 7/4, a group with which he has participated in several international tours in Europe, the United States and South America, appearing as guest artists in large theaters, universities and festivals such as: Beethoven Haus Concert Hall, Peabody Institute, Curtis Institute of Music, Berklee College of Music, Harvard University, New England Conservatory, University of California Berkeley, Stift Melk, Sauerland Brass Festival (Germany 2015, 2016, 2017), Schagerl Brass Festival, Anton Bruckner Privatuniversität, Salzburger Festspiele, Berliner Philharmonie, International Trumpet Guild (Ohio 2015, Miami 2019), among others. He has shared the stage with artists such as Thomas Gansch, James Morrison, Leonhard Paul, Bryan Davis, Andrea Tofanelli, Rex Richardson, Brian Neal, Thomas Clamor. Together with Ensamble 7/4, he has recorded 4 albums, out of which two of them received awards at the Global Music Awards for best group and best album. In 2022 he released his first solo album called Grande Astor, as a tribute to Astor Piazzolla on his centenary. He currently makes a musical life in Miami, playing in orchestras such as the The Villages Philarmonic Orchestra, Orchestra Miami and as a principal guest in the Miami Symphony Orchestra.