"We Are One Voice" Program Book July 2023

Ryan Duff | Artistic Director Ryan is a 2001 graduate of Ball State University. He holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Choral Music Education. He also completed a Master’s Degree in Educational Administration from Southern Utah University in 2017. Ryan is a proud member of American Choral Directors Association (ACDA). He has served as the Chair of the CCSD Honor Choir since 2015, and currently serves on the Nevada ACDA All-State Choir Committee. Duff has also served as the 2020 Western Region ACDA Honor Choir Chairman, the 2022 All-Conference Sing Coordinator for the 2022 Western Region ACDA Conference, and as a member of the Western Region’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Task Force. He has served as President of the Nevada ACDA chapter, and currently serves as the Nevada ACDA Men’s Choir Repertoire & Resources Chairman. In 2017, he received a CCSD Heart of Education Award, recognizing Excellence in Teaching.

Currently, Ryan has been a High School Choir Teacher in the Clark County School District for 15 years. He just completed his 12th year as the Choir Director at Basic Academy in Henderson, where he directs 6 choirs, and serves as the Department Chair for the Performing and Visual Arts.

Before his career as a teacher, Ryan worked as a Professional Singer and Entertainer. Outside of Las Vegas, he worked for Holland America Cruise Lines, Busch Gardens Theme Park Entertainment, Cedar Point Amusement Park Entertainment, and Harvey’s Lake Tahoe; he has also worked as Musical Director for several Professional Regional Musical Theatre Productions. His Las Vegas performing career as a singer and musician has included “Tony & Tina’s Wedding” at the Rio Hotel & Casino, “The Can-Can Cabaret” at the Paris Hotel & Casino, and performing as a Singing Gondolier at the Venetian Hotel & Casino.

Ryan is proud to serve as the Artistic Director for the Las Vegas Men’s Chorus, and this season we celebrate his 10th year leading and conducting us from the podium. He resides in Las Vegas with his husband and Las Vegas Men’s Chorus Choreographer, Justin McClendon.

From our Artistic Director, Hello and welcome to our 2023 Summer Production entitled “We Are One Voice.” This show continues to celebrate our 30th season of bringing high quality choral singing and entertainment to the Las Vegas community. Through this show, we will celebrate the power of music in our lives, how it has the power to unite us as a world, and how as a community of brothers, we can impact change through our singing.

Our ensemble members, our staff, and our Board of Directors have worked tirelessly to put this show together. I continue to stand in awe of the cooperative spirit of our leadership team, and I am so proud to share with you all of the hard work of our organization.

We are thrilled to continue to bring you high quality production value with our growing choral sound, plus added choreography, fun costumes, and exciting projections. Our Dance Line and our Featured Vocal Ensemble will continue to add their special flare to our show, and there will of course, be some surprises!

We are once again honored to take the stage in our new home, the beautiful Artemus W. Ham Concert Hall on the campus of UNLV. Thanks so much for sharing with us today, we hope you enjoy the show!

Ryan Duff Artistic Director, Las Vegas Men’s Chorus

Jonathan Tuala | Collaborative Pianist Jonathan is a pianist, singer, actor, and educator.

He began piano lessons at age five, competed in regional competitions in grade school, and started playing for church services in middle school. He received his Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from the Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University in Chicago, IL. In the Las Vegas Valley, he has been musical director and keyboardist for various churches, schools, and many local musical theatre productions with companies such as Signature Productions and Super Summer Theatre. Jonathan sang with the Las Vegas Men’s Chorus for three seasons as well as serving as Member-at-Large on the Board of Directors.

James Koperski | President Welcome to We Are One Voice and LVMC’s 30th season!

Over the past 30 years the Las Vegas Men’s Chorus strives to bring our community together through the power of song. Today’s program “We Are One Voice” highlights the power of music to transcend our differences and reveal our shared humanity.

As we perform music in 5 different languages and from cultures all over the world, remember that music is our common language. It is one of the few things that every person on the planet shares.

Thank you for supporting the Las Vegas Men’s Chorus and enjoy the show!

James Koperski President, Las Vegas Men’s Chorus

James Kop er s ki

About the Las Vegas Men’s Chorus….

Our Mission: The Las Vegas Men’s Chorus creates safe spaces for our community and allies through musical experiences which inspire all of us to be stronger together.

Community Harmony Opportunity Respect Unity Service Our Performance history has included performances for Golden Rainbow, Las Vegas Prime-Timers, Las Vegas Pride, World AIDS Day, and the Gateway Arts Foundation. Every year, in conjunction with the Clark County School District, we perform at “Sing Out,” a Tenor/Bass Choral Festival intended to bolster confidence and a lifelong love of singing in our community’s young men. As a GALA Chorus, we had the honor of attending the 2016 GALA Conference in Denver with over 125 other choruses from around the world. We have begun preliminary planning for our return to the GALA Festival 2024 in Minneapolis.

Open Rehearsal/Auditions for our upcoming Winter 2023 Concert and the kickoff to our 31st season, will be held on Sunday, September 10, 2023 at 1:00pm. We meet from 1:00pm – 4:00pm every Sunday starting on Sunday, September 17, 2023 at Blue Diamond Crossing, 4150 Blue Diamond Road #102, Las Vegas, NV 89139. If you are interested in joining our dance line, we have openings and auditions will be held on Sunday, September 24, 2023 at 10:00am at Arthur Murray Dance Center Las Vegas East, 2580 Wigwam Parkway, Henderson, NV 89074. Please follow us on all of our social media, reach out to a current member, or visit the website for more information. We would LOVE to have you add your talents to our ensemble.

On behalf of our Artistic Staff, the LVMC Board of Directors, and our entire ensemble, we want to thank you for spending your Sunday evening with us and we sincerely hope that you enjoy tonight’s show, a celebration of music, its uniting power for our world, and its important role in all of our lives. We are so excited to have you with us today in our beautiful new home, the Artemus W. Ham Hall, as we close out the celebration of our 30th season! Your support here today means everything to us all; we hope that you enjoy the concert. Have a wonderful and rest of your summer, we look forward to seeing you back here for our Holiday Concert on Sunday, December 17, 2023 @ 4pm.

SAVE THE DATES: OPEN VOCAL AUDITIONS

Sunday, September 10, 2023 @ 1:00pm, Blue Diamond Crossing, 4150 Blue Diamond Road #102, Las Vegas, NV 89139

FIRST WINTER REHEARSAL

Sunday, September 17, 2023 @ 1:00pm, Blue Diamond Crossing, 4150 Blue Diamond Road #102, Las Vegas, NV 89139

OPEN DANCE LINE AUDITIONS

Sunday, September 24, 2023 @ 10:00am, Arthur Murray Dance Studio Las Vegas East, 2580 Wigwam Pkwy. Henderson, NV 89074

UPCOMING 31st CONCERT SEASON

SUNDAY DECEMBER 17, 2023

SUNDAY MARCH 24, 2024

SUNDAY JUNE 30, 2024

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS & OUR HEARTFELT THANKS UNLV’s Artemus W. Ham Concert Hall Justin McClendon - Choreographer, Arthur Murray Las Vegas Arthur Murray Las Vegas - Dance Rehearsals Henderson Symphony Orchestra - Rehearsal Space Jonathan Tuala - Collaborative Pianist Erick Canfield - Head of Wardrobe Friar Tux - Tuxedos Tyler Williams - Bass Jeremy Meronuck - Percussion Justin Reed - Program Design Ryan Miller - Producer Sectional Rehearsal Hosts LVMC Volunteers All of our supporters, musicians, current members, and alumni

Donate today!

8550 West Charleston Blvd. Suite #102--Box #106 Las Vegas, NV 89117 702.505.1886 info@lvmenschorus.org Las Vegas Men’s Chorus is a 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization EIN 05-0573828

Translation of songs Tahiti “Aha ha ere mai, Ta mu re, mu re rah” (Come let us gather together for a party)

Lion King Celebration “Fatshe leso lea halalela” (This land of our ancestors is holy)

Sisi Ni Moja “Sisi Ni Moja” (We are one)

Ritmo Ritmo, Batir las manos al ritmo.

Rhythm. Clap your hands to the rhythm.

Hábilmente, Batir las manos al ritmo.

Capably, Clap your hands to the rhythm.

Canten en coro gozoso, Sing in a joyful chorus, Con amor y esperanza.

With love and hope.

Cantaremos en ritmo.

We will sing in rhythm.

Cantaremos en coro.

We will sing in chorus.

Hagen en harmonia.

Make harmony.

Vamos a cantar y a jugar. Let’s go sing and play.

Todas voces, todas gentes.

All voices, all people.

Hábilmente, con todas voces, con Capably, with all voices, with Instrumentos, con esperanza, y con ritmo. Instruments, with hope, and with rhythm.

Batir las manos al ritmo.

Batir las manos con toda las gente, con Todas voces, con alegria y con gozo.

Clap your hands to the rhythm.

Clap your hands with all the people, with All voices, with happiness, and with joy.

Cantaremos con gozo.

We will sing with joy.

Con amor y esperanza.

With love and hope.

Cantaremos de paz. We will sing of peace.

Cantaremos de amor.

We will sing of love.

Cantaremos con alegria y con gozo.

We will sing with happiness and with joy.

Ritmo. Rhythm.

LAS VEGAS MEN’S CHORUS BOARD OF DIRECTORS President: James Koperski

Director: Marc Austin

Director: Marty Posner

Vice-President: Christian Garcia

Director: Michael Bond

Director: Justin Reed

Secretary: Stephen Sumner

Director: Joey Doherty

Director: Timothy Wells

Treasurer: Tim Vogl

Director: Frederick Foster

Director: Rob Willis

Member-At-Large: Michael Amesquita

Director: Tom McPherson

Board Advisor: Ryan Miller

Members Tenor 1

Tenor 2

Dancers

Michael Amesquita Erick Canfield Eduardo Celiz Ari Christensen* Chris Doucette James Koperski Ryan Miller Michael Morell Greg Phillips David Pohl Marty Posner Jamie Richards Joric Salvador Rob Willis Masa Yamakawa

Gregory Acosta Joey Doherty Eric Endy Stephen Flesher Frederick Foster Christian Garcia Todd Gerber Ralph Lozano Sammy Mendoza Connor Murphy Mike Nagy* Lee New Kris Relph Rob Scolari Christopher Smith Stephen Sumner Stephen Trumble Leonard Walker Wayne Young

Justin McClendon (Choreographer) Stephen Trumble (Dance Captain) Michael Bond Eduardo Celiz Ari Christensen Joey Doherty Dominic Gaon Greg Phillips Tim Vogl

Baritone

Bass

Ben Adams Gerry Allen Jose Arias Marc Austin Lyon Brooks Jeff Chase Russell Doerig Phillip Fife Ricky Flores Dan Gardner Jim Long Reed Merrell Andy Phairas James Raymond Justin Reed* Isaac Roachford-Gould Timothy Wells Jason Yocum

Dennis Aragon Jason Blouin Michael Bond Kris Burrell Fred Crescente Dominic Gaon Frank Gregory Cherokee Hines Nelson Lucero Mark McCreery Aaron Schave Matthew Vance* Tim Vogl Section Representatives*

Featured Vocal Ensemble Michael Amesquita James Koperski Ryan Miller Joric Salvador Rob Willis Masa Yamakawa Gregory Acosta Erick Canfield Eric Endy Christian Garcia Marty Posner Jamie Richards Christopher Smith Ben Adams Gerry Allen Jose Arias Marc Austin Dan Gardner Jim Long Timothy Wells Jason Blouin Jeff Chase Philip Fife Frank Gregory Cherokee Hines Reed Merrell Justin Reed

Tenor 1 Tenor 1 Tenor 1 Tenor 1 Tenor 1 Tenor 1 Tenor 2 Tenor 2 Tenor 2 Tenor 2 Tenor 2 Tenor 2 Tenor 2 Baritone Baritone Baritone Baritone Baritone Baritone Baritone Bass Bass Bass Bass Bass Bass Bass

WE ARE ONE VOICE - ACT I MUSIC HEALS US, SINGING UNITES US Sing!

as performed by Pentatonix

Come to the Music

by Joseph Martin

Sing

from “Sesame Street”

Can We Sing the Darkness to Light?

by Kyle Pedersen

I Sing Because I’m Happy

Traditional Spiritual

ONE WORLD, ONE VOICE The Wellerman

New Zealand Sea Shanty Soloists: Gerry Allen, Justin Reed, Frank Gregory, Cherokee Hines

Arirang

Korean Folk Song Featuring: James Koperski (Clarinet), Christian Garcia (Cello), Jonathan Tuala (Piano)

Tahiti

Tahitian Folk Song, arr. Harris II

Lion King Celebration

from “The Lion King”

Soloists: Timothy Wells, Chris Doucette

****There will be a 15-minute Intermission****

WE ARE ONE VOICE - ACT II TURN THE WORLD AROUND Turn the World Around

as recorded by Harry Belafonte

Danny Boy Traditional Irish, arr. Juneau Ritmo Traditional Spanish, arr. Davison Featuring: Ryan Miller, Jonathan Tuala (Four-Hand Piano) Roll Out the Barrel Traditional Polka Featuring: The Las Vegas Men’s Chorus Dance Line

WE ARE ONE WORLD, WE ARE ONE VOICE

One Voice as recorded by Wailin’ Jennys Soloists: Gregory Acosta, Philip Fife, Masa Yamakawa Sisi Ni Moja arr. Jacob Narverud Brotherhood of Man from “How To Succeed in Business Soloists: Michael Amesquita, Frederick Foster

without really trying”

One Voice (from “Sing for the Cure”) arr. Joseph Martin Soloists: Fred Crescente, David Pohl, Jamie Richards, Wayne Young