Alison Custer is choral director of the 7th Grade Treble Choir and 7th Grade Troubadours at Clinton Junior High School in Clinton, MS. She also assists in directing the award-winning Ambassadors Show Choir. Ms. Custer graduated from Mississippi College with a Bachelor's in Music Education, K-12 (Vocal Emphasis). She is currently working on a Master of Music Performance in Conducting, at Mississippi College. Ms. Custer teaches private voice lessons through The Taylor School of Music at Mississippi College and assists the youth choir, "Infused", at Parkway Baptist Church in Clinton, MS.

Erin Linton is choral director of the 7th & 8th Grade Mixed Cappella Choir, 8th Grade Bella Voce Women's Choir and 8th Grade Troubadours at Clinton Junior High School. Mrs. Linton also directs the award-winning Ambassdors show choir. Mrs. Linton graduated from Mississippi College with a Bachelor's in Music Education. She has served as the DIstrict VI Choir Chair for the Jr. High Music Division in Mississippi and is currently the Mississippi Music Educators Association Junior High Choral Division President.

The Clinton Junior High School Choral Department is comprised of approximately 250 7th and 8th graders. The choirs at Clinton Junior High School include: 7th & 8th Grade Cappella Mixed Choir, 7th & 8th Grade Troubadours, 7th Grade Treble Choir, and 8th Grade Bella Voce Women's Choir. All choirs at Clinton Junior High School have received numerous Superior ratings at both the District and State Choral Festivals in Mississippi. They have also received Superior ratings at music festival competition hosted in Georgia, Tennessee, Texas, and Missouri. 

David Garber is a graduate of Eastern Mennonite University (Virginia), with graduate studies in Choral Conducting at the University of Alberta. He is Artistic and Administrative Director of Edmonton Metropolitan Chorus, and has taught in public schools, Alberta College Conservatory of Music, The King’s University College, and University of Alberta. As a bass, David sang with Pro Coro Canada for 28 seasons, and currently sings with i Coristi Chamber Choir. David is the recipient of Alberta Choral Federation’s Con Spirito Award, in recognition of spirit, dedication and commitment to choral music, and has been nominated for the Mayor’s Award for Excellence in Artistic Direction.

Currently in its eleventh season, Edmonton Metropolitan Chorus is based on the principles of inclusiveness and participation. In keeping with these principles, the chorus (120+ members) is non-auditioned. Everyone, regardless of talent and experience, is welcome. Through the performance of music from a diverse range of cultures, and by singing in many languages, the chorus and members of the audience experience and develop a deeper appreciation for all cultures. Edmonton Metropolitan Chorus is honoured to have performed the Canadian premiere of Sir Karl Jenkins' The Peacemakers, in Edmonton's Winspear Centre for Music with jazz legend PJ Perry.

Douglas Grogan is the Director of Music Ministries at the First United Methodist Church in Peoria, IL. In addition to his position at FUMC Peoria, he directs the Chamber Choir at Illinois Central College. Mr. Grogan holds Bachelor degrees in Music and Biology from Mercer University and a Master of Music in Choral Conducting from Mississippi College. Mr. Grogan currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Peoria Symphony Orchestra, the Townsend School of Music Alumni Board of Mercer University, and currently is the chairman of the Illinois Great Rivers Conference Chapter of the Fellowship of United Methodist in Music & Worship Arts.

The Sanctuary Choir of the First United Methodist Church is the primary choral ensemble of the church. This volunteer choir leads in two worship services weekly and presents additional music offerings throughout the year such as, an annual Christmas Lessons & Carols service, Good Friday Tenebrae Service, and a Great Day of Hymn Singing. The choir sings a variety of literature from Renaissance to contemporary composers. The most recent major choral works include Ola Gjeilo’s Sunrise Mass (2014) and Karl Jenkins Peacemakers (2015). The choir has been invited to perform both on the state and national level at conferences of the United Methodist Church.

Jennifer Adams earned two degrees at Mississippi College: the Bachelor of Music Education and the Master of Music in Conducting. Ms. Adams is in her fifth year as Choral Director at Germantown Middle School; she also serves as the Assistant Artistic Director for The Mississippi Chorus and as the Music Director at Maranatha Baptist Church. She is a member of the National Association for Music Education and the American Choral Directors Association. Ms. Adams' teaching philosophy is "Rigor plus Relationship equals Results," and her joy in teaching is hearing her students read music.

Germantown Middle School is located in Madison, Mississippi. The GMS Choir consistently earns superior ratings at district, state, and national choral festivals; last spring, two of the choir's ensembles won first place at Festival Disney in Orlando. Each year, several GMS Choir members are selected by audition for the Mississippi Music Educators Association's All-State Honor Choir. Members of the GMS Choir are excellent music readers due to their daily training in solfege and rhythm counting in the choral classroom. 

Geoffrey Badger lives in Bega, NSW, Australia. He has been involved in choral music all his life: singing, conducting and composing for many adult and children’s choirs. After studying piano and cello he became interested in music pedagogy and worked in the Kodaly-based Music Education Program at the Canberra School of Music. Geoffrey teaches music in both primary and secondary schools, privately and in other community based music programs. He is the founder/director of the Bega based Heartsong sacred music choir, and is also currently the conductor of the Bega Chamber Orchestra and the Bega Valley Youth Choir.

Heartsong is a community choir based in the Bega Valley, a rural part of South-east Australia with a population of around 30,000. The choir is dedicated to singing beautiful sacred choral music. Started by Geoffrey Badger in 2000, Heartsong has cultivated a wide and enthusiastic audience with its glorious cathedral style singing. The choir regularly performs in churches and at music events around our region, and  will be traveling to New York City in 2016 - the first time traveling to sing overseas.

SunHee received her M.M in Choral Conducting at Westminster Choir College in Princeton and her B.M in Voice Performance with Secondary Education Teaching Certificate at Catholic University of Daegu, South Korea. Before she came to the States, she served as an assistant director for five years for the youth choir Pueri Cantores in South Korea and also performed extensively in choral works around the world. SunHee joined Highbridge Voices as a voice instructor in 2010 and she now serves as Associate Music Director and conducts the Concert Choir, a 70-voice ensemble of students in grades 4-6.

Mary Clementi is Executive Director and Music Director of Highbridge Voices. She conducts the Chamber Choir. Mary has led the choir in several high-profile performances, including a concert for the Justices of the United States Supreme Court and a performance of the National Anthem at Yankees Stadium. She has served as a guest clinician in schools in Virginia, Maryland, and Wisconsin. She is the Metropolitan Region Representative of NY-ACDA. In 2014, she was an Eastern Division representative for the International Conductors Exchange Program in China. She received her M.M.Ed. at Florida State University and her B.M. at St. Olaf College.

SunHee received her M.M in Choral Conducting at Westminster Choir College in Princeton and her B.M. in Voice Performance with Secondary Education Teaching Certificate at Catholic University of Daegu, South Korea. Before she came to the States, She served as an assistant director for five years for the youth choir Pueri Cantores in South Korea and also performed extensively in choral works around the world. SunHee joined Highbridge Voices as a voice instructor in 2010 and she now serves as Associate Music Director and conducts the Concert Choir, a 70-voice ensemble of students in grades 4-6.

Since 1998, Highbridge Voices has used music to inspire excellence in the lives of the children in the Highbridge community of the South Bronx. Highbridge Voices’ programs teach children to embrace a commitment to excellence by providing an extraordinary experience in choral singing.Highbridge Voices has distinguished itself as the premier Bronx children’s choir, having performed for the Justices of the United States Supreme Court, on national television, and throughout New York City. Since 2006, over 90% of Highbridge Voices seniors have graduated from high school in four years. Of those, over 80% enrolled in a two or four-year college.

Shonda Bradshaw is a graduate of Winthrop Univeristy with a Bachelors in Music Education and a Masters in Music. She currently resides in Rock Hill, SC and has been teaching Chorus and Piano at Indian Land Middle School for eight years. Under the direction of Ms. Shonda Bradshaw, the Indian Land Warrior Choir, consisting of 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students, has been lauded for its excellent musicianship and has received many awards recognizing the talents of its members.

Artur Pinho Maria (1967) graduated in orchestral and choral conducting at Conservatório Superior de Música in Gaia, Portugal. He is principal conductor and artistic director of the Inês de Castro Symphonic Choir and of Portugal’s oldest choir, Coimbra’s Academic Orpheon, founded 1880. He also works with several national classic orchestras, such as the Universidade do Minho, Filarmonia das Beiras, Opus 21, Espoarte, Filarmonia de Gaia and Conservatório Regional de Gaia. Since 2012 he has worked regularly, as guest conductor, with the Orquestra do Norte, Since 2014 he is Visiting Professor at the Minho University (Portugal), teaching regularly Choral and Orchestral Conducting.

The symphonic choir Inês de Castro is based in the Portuguese City of Coimbra, being the only resident symphonic ensemble in this central part of Portugal; the choir draws on the experience of its more than 80 singers, both amateur and professional. Coimbra is home to Portugal's oldest University and has an outstanding choral tradition dating at least from the 17th century. This symphonic project began four years ago, performing choral-symphonic masterpieces of the Baroque, Classical, Romantic and Contemporary repertoires, including some Portuguese composers' major works. The choir is organizing every Easter the yearly "Ciclo de Requiem", an international festival.

Having studied singing at the Northern School of Music, Manchester, Keiran began his professional career in the UK. In 2000, he transferred his flourishing practice to Normandy, France, where he quickly established himself as a soloist, conductor and singing teacher. Keiran lives in Falaise, Normandy, where he works with several choral groups. He often returns to the UK to perform, give masterclasses, and lead choral workshops. In 2014, Keiran created the Sunrise Chorale and Orchestra to perform Ola Gjeilo's Sunrise Mass in Falaise. Choristers from all over Europe participated in this event, which was received to great acclaim.

The Keiran McNiff Singers belong to a number of English choral societies. As an ensemble, they perform several times a year in various venues, and they enjoy traveling as well as singing! They have worked with Keiran on many occasions, both in the UK and in France, performing such works as Handel's Messiah, Mozart's Requiem and Puccini's Messa di Gloria. They greatly enjoyed singing Gjeilo's Sunrise Mass with Keiran in 2014, and are delighted to have the opportunity to sing this beautiful work in New York.

Alec Galambos is an NYC-based composer and conductor for multimedia and concert projects. After growing up on piano and choral music, he studied composition at Emory University and then moved to New York to pursue a M.M. degree in Composition and Film Scoring at NYU. He has since recorded scores for independent features, documentaries, nationwide advertising campaigns, and video games, and has created and conducted arrangements and original works for KHORIKOS and ensembles across the country.
Alec has served as an assistant conductor of KHORIKOS since 2011 and is honored to lead the group in performances throughout the city. 

Khorikos is one of New York City’s most distinguished a cappella ensembles, performing a wide range of music from medieval polyphony to contemporary sound sculpture. The ensemble aims to reinvent the age-old art form of choral music by engaging in unique collaborations with artists of other genres, including film and dance, and by performing in traditional and nontraditional venues. KHORIKOS performances have been described as other-worldly, powerful, and cutting-edge. Khorikos is a project of Dorian Artists Corporation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.

William Perrot graduated from Westminster Choir College in 1975. He has been involved with school, church and community choirs since his arrival in Nova Scotia. He has been active in the Nova Scotia Choral Federation, since its inception serving both on the board of directors and in a variety of leadership roles for their many programmes. He is a Charter Life Member of the Association of Canadian Choral Communities serving both as board member and coordinator for the National Youth Choir. In the spring of 2008 he was awarded the Alumni Merit Award from Westminster Choir College.

Kings Chorale is a non-auditioned choir founded in 1982 by conductor, William Perrot. The group performs a wide variety of music from the classical repertoire through the popular realm and in several languages. The choir is made up of people from all walks of life and all ages, drawn from communities throughout the Annapolis Valley. The only pre-requisite for membership is the enjoyment of singing. In addition to their participation in many concerts in Nova Scotia featuring the choral orchestral repertoire, this is the fourth time a group of singers from Kings Chorale has participated in a DCINY event.

Petra Bjørkhaug is a trained music educator and has been cantor for the Trondheim Music Conservatory from 1983 to1993. She is employed as cantor at Nidaros Cathedral, and has taught organ improvisation, liturgical music and methodology at NTNU, the Music Conservatory in Trondheim. She has worked as organist in several churches in Trondheim and the Bodø region. She has played the organ / piano in many concerts, and since 1983 has been the conductor of several choirs. Further, Bjørkhaug has composed music for choirs and organ, and in the past year has made further studies in organ improvisation in London and Oslo.

Nidarosdomens Oratoriekor - The Nidaros Cathedral Oratory Choir,  is one of five choirs affiliated to The Nidaros Cathedral in Trondheim, Norway. St. Olav was buried here, thus making the cathedral  the most important church in Norway. The cathedral is a Lutheran congregational church and is considered a national shrine and coronation church.

The Oratory Choir sprung from the St. Olav Choir which was founded in 1946 by a youth labor organization. It now consists of about one hundred singers who perform major sacred works for soloists, choir and orchestra. Over the past few years the choir has performed works such as The St. Matthew Passion, Mass in B minor and the Christmas Oratory by J. S. Bach, Die Schöpfung by J. Haydn, Mass in C minor and Requiem by W. A. Mozart, Vesper by S. Rachmaninov, Requiem by A. Schnittke and Symphony no. 8 by G. Mahler. The choir also does a capella music and participates in masses and services in The Nidaros Cathedral. In addition to working with Trondheim Symphony Orchestra on a regular basis, the choir also performs during the annual St. Olav Festival in Trondheim. The choir conductor from January 2016 on will be Karen H. Olsen.

Ellen Fladhagen has conducted smaller choirs in private settings before she started as the conductor of Singsaker songlag. She has been a member of Nidarosdomens oratoriekor for 16 years. Singsaker songlag consists primarily of singers from Nidarosdomens oratoriekor and counts about 20 members. It was founded in Trondheim in 2014. Singsaker songlag has performed at norwegian broadcasting, both national and regional. The repertoir consists of sacral music as well as contemporary norwegian music.

Kathryn Zintel has been a music educator in New Jersey for twenty-four years teaching instrumental and vocal music at the secondary level. For the past fourteen years Ms. Zintel has served the River Dell Regional Schools and is currently the 7-12 vocal director. Ms. Zintel received her Bachelor of Music Education degree from Indiana University majoring in piano. She received her Master of Science degree in Educational Leadership at Long Island University, receiving the Academic Achievement award for her degree program. Mrs. Zintel was honored to conduct the All North Jersey Junior High School Mixed Chorus in 1991 and again in 2006.

The River Dell High School Select Choir is an audition group that rehearses as part of the River Dell High School schedule serving students from both Oradell and River Edge, New Jersey. The Select Choir performs at special community events as well as at the semi-annual River Dell High School concerts and graduation. This choir also regularly performs at the North Jersey School Music Association Choral Festivals in addition to the Roxbury High School and Montclair State University High School Choral Invitational events where they have received superior ratings. Students in this choir also regularly participate in County, Regional, and All-State ensembles.

Virginia Flynn, Garrison Forest School’s Middle School Music Teacher, is a veteran music educator of forty years. Mrs. Flynn is an accomplished choral conductor having directed honor choirs throughout the state of Maryland. She serves as adjudicator for choral festivals and guest clinician for in-services and conferences. She is an active member of NAfME and has held the position of President of the Maryland Music Educators Association/NAfME. Mrs. Flynn has been the recipient of MMEA’s Outstanding Music Teacher Award of Excellence and received a certificate of commendation for the Washington Post Agnes Meyer Outstanding Teacher Award.

​The Garrison Forest School Middle School Chorus from Owings Mills, Md. is a Women's Ensemble of sixth, seventh and eighth grade. The Chorus performs at school and community events and choral festivals throughout the Mid-Atlantic region, where the Chorus consistently receives superior ratings. Choral students have also been selected for the Maryland All State Junior Chorus. Open to any interested student, the co-curricular ensemble focuses on the art of singing, developing basic musicianship skills and cultivating an appreciation for music as an expressive art form.

Noted for his versatile musicianship and creative programming, Dr. Joel Tranquilla is Director of Choral Activities and Assistant Professor of Music at Trinity Western University in Langley, British Columbia, Canada. Joel holds degrees from Michigan State University, the University of Michigan, and Mount Allison University as well as performance diplomas from the Royal Conservatory of Music. Joel is the Associate Conductor of the Canadian Chamber Choir and performs regularly with the ensemble. He is a frequent adjudicator and clinician and was selected as the Guest Conductor of the New Brunswick Youth Choir in 2013 and 2014.

Trinity Western University's choral program has gained an international reputation through frequent performances with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and on CBC Radio, in concert at Carnegie Hall in New York, and touring to China, Korea, Eastern Europe, and Ukraine. The Chamber Choir is the top vocal ensemble within TWU's School of the Arts, Media + Culture. Students come from programs and departments all across the Langley campus, and graduates of the choral program have gone on to work as conductors, studio musicians, educators, worship leaders, composers, music scholars, and performers.

After graduating in piano and harpsichord, Orvieto studied in Poland under the pianist Marek Drewnowski and improved her harpsichord skills under Bob van Asperen, Scott Ross, Davitt Moroney and Wladyslaw Kłosiewicz. She has won several prizes in national and international competitions. She has played for prestigious festivals and associations in Italy, France, Spain, Switzerland, Austria, the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, Poland, Slovenia, Greece, Romania, Russia and China. Orvieto has recorded live for Polish radio, Bucharest radio and Italy’s RAI public broadcast service. She teaches piano at “Italo Calvino” middle school in Sanremo and is currently the artistic director of Troubar Clair.

The Troubar Clair choir was founded in Bordighera, Italy, in 1986 with the aim of promoting polyphonic song, particularly compositions that seem to create a link between high culture and popular taste as expressed in its mostly profoundly felt emotions. The name Troubar Clair (conceptually the opposite of “trobar clos”, the medieval hermetic approach to composition) demonstrates the desire to turn music into a language that can bring people together despite the distance in time and place that may separate them. Over the years, the choir has performed in a number of concerts and festivals in Italy and Europe.

Returning to Carnegie Hall after more than 30 years, Montreal native Timothy J. Anderson has performed at the National Arts Centre (Ottawa), Dollywood (Pigeon Forge), Kallang Theatre (Singapore), Hong Kong Cultural Centre, Northern Arts and Cultural Centre (Yellowknife), and a variety of regional theatres in Canada. Part of the original Canadian cast of Phantom of the Opera, Timothy also was Archibald Craven in the Canadian premiere of The Secret Garden and Mashkan in Old WIcked Songs. His roles have included Otto Frank in Yours, Anne, Sherlock Holmes in The Revenge of Sherlock Holmes, Marley in A Christmas Carol, the Skin Horse in The Velveteen Rabbit, Dulcamara in L'Elisir d'amore, Frank in Die Fledermaus, Pooh-Bah and Ko-Ko in different productions of The Mikado, and many more roles in new and standard works of lyric theatre. His work in non-lyric theatre includes classical Shakespearean roles to edgy Fringe productions. Timothy has been narrator for Peter and the Wolf, L'Histoire du Soldat, Henry V Suite and the premieres of Nou Goth Sonne Under Wode and Fowre Thousand Winter; later this month he will perform Bevan's No Mortal Business at the Winspear Centre in Edmonton. Playwright, novelist, poet, composer and director, Timothy has also eben a librettist-in-residence for the Canadian Opera Company and wrote texts for Denis Gougeon, John Estacio, Clifford Ford and David Parsons. His 2014 film Just Keep Breathing explores moral distress in pediatric intensive care teams. Timothy teaches in Communication Studies at MacEwan University in Edmonton, Alberta.