Susan Williams, soprano, has performed nationally and internationally in a wide range of leading opera roles and as a vocal soloist. Most recently, she has performed in a multimedia recital of works from Hugo Wolf’s Italienisches Liederbuch entitled “We Have Both For A Long Time Been Silent” with colleagues Dean Southern (Cleveland Institute of Music) and Jeffrey Brown (Western Illinois University) at the Cleveland Institute of Music, Malone University, Lipscomb University, Ohio Northern University, The University of Alabama, and Armstrong Atlantic University. In Florida, she was soprano soloist in Mozart’s Requiem with the Master Chorale of South Florida, Mahler’s Fourth Symphony with the Frost Symphony Orchestra, and Brahms’s Liebeslieder Waltzes for Miami’s Mainly Mozart Festival.

With the Duke Symphony Orchestra, she sang Despina in Così fan tutte, Gretel in Hansel and Gretel, Barbarina in Le nozze di Figaro, and will be singing Sophie in excerpts from Richard Strauss’s Der Rosenkavalier in December 2014. For Opera Birmingham, she sang the Erste Knabe in Die Zauberflöte and the title role in over 30 performances of Barab’s Little Red Riding Hood. She toured northeast Ohio with Lyric Opera Cleveland’s Overtures and with Cleveland Opera as Adina in The Elixir of Love.

Under the baton of Franz Welser-Möst, she performed in The Cleveland Orchestra’s production of Le nozze di Figaro. She has also been a soloist with the Akron Symphony, the Cleveland Pops Orchestra, the Cleveland Bach Consort, and the Johnson City Symphony. In Graz, Austria, she sang the soprano solos in Mozart’s Coronation Mass and was a finalist in the Meistersinger Competition at the American Institute of Musical Studies.

A graduate of Birmingham-Southern College, she earned the master’s degree at the University of Akron, and the Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the Cleveland Institute of Music under the guidance of Mary Schiller.

Having previously taught at the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music, she is currently Assistant Professor of Voice at The University of Alabama. Her scholarly interests include using body movement systems and the use of virtual anatomy to enhance student learning in the studio. Her article “3D Virtual Anatomy Technology in the Voice Studio: A Pilot Study to Evaluate the Functionality and Limitations of Visible Body®” can be found in the Journal of Singing Volume 69, Number 4, March/April 2013.

Dr. Williams earned her RYT 200 level yoga teacher training certification at Samahita Retreat in Koh Samui, Thailand in June.

http://music.ua.edu/faculty-staff/susan-williams/

Chelsea Coyne (soprano), praised for her dramatic temperament and unique ability to charm any audience, is quickly leaving her mark on the modern classical music world. Chelsea proves her superlative vocal versatility time and time again by being equally successful in solo concerts and recitals, full opera and musical theatre productions, as well as vocal competitions.

Shortly after receiving her Master of Music Degree and Artist Diploma Certificate from The Cleveland Institute of Music, Chelsea proudly took first prize at “The Sparkling City Light Opera Emerging Artist Vocal Competition,” which launched her professional singing career.

Chelsea has been performing almost exclusively at sea for the past three years, yet she still finds the time to sing in various opera and musical theatre productions when she is on land. Chelsea’s most notable operatic roles include Angelina (Cinderella) [LA CENERENTOLA], Jo [LITTLE WOMEN], Carmen [LA TRAGÉDIE DE CARMEN] and Dorabella [COSÌ FAN TUTTE]; musical theatre roles include Mrs. Squires [THE MUSIC MAN], Cinderella’s Mother [INTO THE WOODS] and Dorothy [THE WIZ].
Chelsea is a native of Fort Worth, Texas, USA, and enjoys working with various music schools, including her alma mater Texas Christian University where she received her Bachelor of Music Degree.

Chelsea is represented by Barry Ball Artists. For further information about Chelsea (“The Siren of the Seas”) visit her website: www.ChelseaCoyne.com.

Pianist Chanda VanderHart received her Bachelor of Music Degree in Piano Performance (with honors) from the Eastman School of Music in New York. Her graduate studies took place in Europe with Julius Drake, Roger Vignoles, Dr. Carolyn Hague, Antoinette VanZabner, Kirstin Okerlund, David Aronson and Claus-Christian Schuster among many others. Currently she is a Doctoral scholarship fellow at the University for Music and Applied Arts at Vienna, writing her PhD dissertation on Lieder in 19th Century Vienna under the advisement Dr. Margaretha Saary and Dr. Susan Youens.

An active performer and recording artist, Chanda has given concerts with a wide variety of singers and instrumentalists in numerous halls throughout Europe and North America including London’s Wigmore Hall, Beurs van Berlag in Amsterdam, the Concertgebow Rotterdam, Vienna’s Musikverein, Volksoper and Volkstheater.

In 2008 she recorded both Brahms sonatas for cello and piano on the historical „ Brahmsflügel” in Mürzzuschlag, Austria with cellist Ronald Fuchs. In September 2010 the duo released a double CD of the cellos works of Robert Fuchs on a historical New York Steinway. Other recordings include “13”, songs of Barber and Argento with tenor Jason Brides (2011), Waldgespräch, a collection of fin-de-siecle Lieder with baritone Günter Haumer (2014), the Italian art song CD “Affetti del Pensier” (2015) with soprano Rusalina Mochukova, Arpád Krämer’s musical theatre song-cycle “Wendepunkte” with Drew Sarich and Ann Mandrella (2015).

Chanda has taught for the Sankt Goar International Music Festival and Academy, AIMS in Graz, the Performing Center Austria and the master class series “Bel Canto Bella Voce” in Vienna. She also regularly writes concert and opera reviews for the London-based publication www.bachtrack.com as well as for MET on demand. Chanda is cofounder of both the Mosaique concert series in Vienna and the initiative Talespin, Musical Tales for Big and Small (www.talespin.eu)

Dr. Carrie Pierce joined the faculty of Texas A & M – Corpus Christi in the Fall of 2011 as assistant professor of cello and chamber music. She holds a Doctor of Musical Arts from the University of Michigan, and two degrees from Michigan State University; a Master of Music in Cello Performance and a Bachelor of Music in Music Education. In addition she studied performance at the Meadowmount Music Festival (USA) & the Deia International Music Festival (Bonefro, IT).

Active as an orchestral musician, Dr. Pierce holds positions with the Corpus Christi Symphony and the Victoria Symphony. Prior to these appointments she was principal cellist with the Lansing Symphony Orchestra.

Highly active as a chamber musician, Carrie was a member of Trio La Vita, a piano trio that won numerous prizes such as the Rutenburg Chamber Competition and the Plowman Chamber Competition. She is a founding member of Drumpetello, an innovative new trio featuring cello, trumpet, and percussion. Drumpetello has performed at the Lochabar Arts Festival in Scotland in November 2015 performing newly commissioned works for the ensemble.

As a commercial musician, Dr. Pierce has performed for numerous pop and solo artists, such as Kanye West and the Trans-Siberian Orchestra.

As a chamber musician, Carrie was a member of Trio La Vita, a piano trio that won numerous prizes such as the Rutenburg Chamber Competition and the Plowman Chamber Competition. She is a founding member of Drumpetello, an innovative new trio featuring cello, trumpet, and percussion. Drumpetello has performed at the Lochabar Arts Festival in Scotland in November 2015 performing newly commissioned works for the ensemble. As a commercial musician, Dr. Pierce has performed for numerous pop and solo artists, such as Kanye West and the Trans-Siberian Orchestra.

Amir Eldan performs as a soloist, chamber musician and as guest principal cellist. In 2011-12, he served as Principal Cellist of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra by invitation from Zubin Mehta and last year, he served as guest Principal Cellist with the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. He was the youngest member of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra in New York, when he won the position of Associate Principal Cellist at the age of twenty-two.

Recent music festivals performances include Beijing, Bowdoin, Giverny- France, La Jolla, Pilsen – Czech Republic, Prussia Cove – England, and in West Cork – Ireland. He also participated in the Marlboro music festival and toured with Musicians From Marlboro.

Mr. Eldan was appointed to the faculty of the Oberlin Conservatory in 2006 and currently serves as director of the Strings Department. Mr. Eldan holds a Doctor of Music degree and Master of Music degree, both from the Juilliard School where he also served as a guest teacher. His performances have been featured on public television and radio in the U.S., Europe and in Israel.