Mr. Eckhardt has been Director of Bands at Newtown High since 2002. He previously taught instrumental music in Kohler, Wisconsin, Manchester, Connecticut, and Redding Connecticut. He earned a Master of Science degree in Music Education from the University of Illinois, and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Lawrence University Conservatory of Music. Mr. Eckhardt has performed extensively as a professional trombonist in a wide variety of styles and venues, but his passion is jazz. He has been a resident of Newtown, Connecticut for the past 27 years, and a proud parent of two daughters who live and work in arts related fields in New York City.

The Newtown High School Wind Ensemble is one of three concert bands at the school. Membership is through recommendation and/or audition. The group studies and performs collegiate to professional level literature. The Wind Ensemble has consistently earned "Superior" ratings at national music festivals. The group has previously performed at Avery Fisher Hall, Carnegie Hall, The New Jersey Center for Performing Arts, The Toronto Centre for the Arts, and Boston Symphony Hall.

Dorking Choral Society is proud to have commissioned Zimbe!, also to have performed the world première of this work in Dorking Halls in the UK in November 2008. With an adult choir approaching 100 voices together with some 50 young voices, all in colourful costume, it was a sold-out concert, to be remembered forever!

A vibrant choral society with a broad repertoire and a bright future, Dorking Choral Society delights in having a rich and varied past, with a history that we can trace back as far as the former Dorking Amateur Musical Society, founded in 1872. We are proud to be part of the Leith Hill Musical Festival, competing in one of the UK's largest annual choral festivals, founded in 1905 with Ralph Vaughan Williams as it's conductor for 50 years. Dorking was also the home of William Mullins, a Pilgrim Father who sailed on the "Mayflower" to America on 16th Sept 1620!

Joanne Hammil is a nationally renowned music educator, composer, performer and community choral director. Her original songs and rounds have been widely performed, recorded and published, and her teaching methods and creative leadership have inspired choral directors, music educators and singers of all ages. Joanne directs the Greater Boston Intergenerational Chorus, established and ran The Choral Connection, a dynamic children’s choral program for 30 years, and presents workshops and performances across the country. Her recordings and songbooks of her original children’s songs and two volumes of her original rounds and partner songs have received the highest acclaim.

GBIC is a non-auditioned chorus for ages 10 and up (really an adult chorus with teens); currently 85 singers who come from 29 different towns in the Greater Boston area. We sing in many styles of music – multi-cultural, folk, pop, classical, gospel, novelty, traditional, etc. We are a little different from a typical chorus: not quite as demanding or formal as some, yet we reach quite a high level of musicality and artistry. We are an inclusive group and have members who are incredibly experienced and talented (and have sung semi-professionally) and members who have only sung in the shower.

Gareth has sung with several opera companies, choral societies and choirs. He also toured across Germany singing under the baton of Stephen Jackson. Gareth went on to study Music at university and gained a Bachelor of Music (Hons) degree from the University of Wales, Cardiff. Gareth is currently Head of Visual & Performing Arts at The ABC International School here in Ho Chi Minh City and is in his eight year of living and working in the community. He is Co-Chair of the Executive Committee for Music for FOBISIA (Federation of British International Schools in Asia), a responsibility that requires his engagement with school Music Directors throughout the region. In June 2016, Gareth became the Artistic Director of the International Choir and Orchestra of Ho Chi Minh City (ICO), a position that he feels he is privileged to hold.

The International Choir and Orchestra of Ho Chi Minh City was established in 1996 by Graham Sutcliffe, the then cultural attaché of the British Embassy in Hanoi. In 2016, Gareth Groves took over as the new Artistic Director, providing a fresh direction to the Choir & Orchestra. The choir currently has 60 members while the orchestra holds 30, comprising a mix of both Vietnamese locals and foreign expatriates. He is supported by the Orchestra Director Ian Alexander and the Assistant Choir Director, Gregory Notebeart.

Mr. Scott Wheeler has been the choral/drama director at Kinard Middle School in Fort Collins, Colorado since opening the school in 2005. Now in his 23rd year of teaching, Mr. Wheeler is a National Board Certified Teacher (NBCT) and performs as a singer, actor, and French hornist throughout the United States and Europe, most recently performing at the Vatican in 2018 under the baton of Dr. Z. Randall Stroope.

The Kinard Core Knowledge Middle School Choir is a select ensemble of 65 young women in 6th, 7th, and 8th grades. This specialized choir was auditioned and selected for this particular performance of ‘Zimbe!’ at Carnegie Hall from 4 established choirs at Kinard. Over 260 middle school students from Kinard participate in choir and drama.

Anastasia Rege received her Bachelor’s of Music degree at the University of Connecticut in 2012 and her Master’s of Music degree from the Brooklyn College Conservatory of Music in 2014. Anastasia is currently an active music director at Medgar Evers College Preparatory School in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. At MECPS she acts as the choir director for three vocal ensembles as well as teaches keyboard studies and music history. In addition to her career as a music educator, she is also an active choral and operatic performer, cantor, and organist. She co-founded and acts as artistic director for JACOPERA, a company whose mission is to make opera relevant, tangible, and accessible to younger generations. JACOPERA has performed throughout the United States and Europe since their formation in 2014.

The MECPS Chamber Choir is the premiere vocal ensemble at Medgar Evers College Preparatory School, a co-ed secondary school in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. The MECPS Chamber choir performs extensively in the school community. The chorus is composed of singers from grades 6-12. The ensemble performs music from various time periods and styles and has an extensive repertoire of spirituals.

Adam Podd is a Vermont-bred, Brooklyn-based music director, pianist, organist, bassist, composer and arranger. He has worked with some of the top artists and organizations in his field including The National Symphony Orchestra, The Boston Pops, New York Pops, Houston Symphony, Idina Menzel, Megan Hilty, Darlene Love, James Monroe Iglehart, Frankie Moreno, Stephen Kellogg, Milton Delugg, Macy’s Entertainment and The Young People’s Chorus of New York City in such venues as Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center, Symphony Space, New World Stages, and others. More at adampodd.com

The Choir at First Unitarian Congregational Society in Brooklyn is a robust community choir, mostly volunteer, led by Adam Podd, and sings every Sunday during the regular program year at First Unitarian (from September to June). Their repertoire spans from Bach to Beatles, including a monthly Jazz Service on the Second Sunday of each month with a 6-piece band. Find out more at www.fuub.org