Born in Paris, Annick Deschamps early achieved a first award of flute. She joined the Paris Conservatory, then succeeded in joining the Geneva International Conservatory, where she obtained an award of flute virtuosity and the diplomas of orchestra conducting and lyric singing. In 1997, she participated at the Epidaure Festival (Greece) and sung in Italy and Germany. In 2003, at the Ravel Granados International Contest, she won the First European Lyric Song Award. She created Choeurs au Diapason in 2004 and organized concerts throughout France and several European countries. Deschamps is Choir Master attached to the Marseille Cathedral.

Choeurs au Diapason was set up in June 2004 by Annick Deschamps, musician, Choir director, conductor and professional lyric artist, holder of distinguished french and foreign honors. The Choir gathers 140 singers from the South of France, all of them volunteers. Its repertoire includes sacred songs, classical songs, gospels, movie music and modern songs. The Choir provides its support freely to charities and humanitarian organizations (Lions Club, Rotary Club, Unicef, Order of Malta). Up to now, the Choir has organized concerts in France (Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Chartres), Italy (Rome), Belgium (Brussels, Antwerp, Brugge), Spain (Barcelona), United Kingdom (London), Monaco.

Eldom Soares began his formal studies in Brasília Music School where he began studying flute with Silvana Tixeira and Nivaldo Francisco. He studied in the class of Dra. Beatriz Magalhães Castro in Universidade of Brasilia where, in 1997, graduated in Bachelor of Music. In 1999, completed undergraduate curs in art education.Then immediately he began to study conducting with Dr. David Junker and Dr. Edson Carvalho completing his bacharelado in regency in the year 2001. Currently, is a teacher in the Professional Education Center Brasília Music School, sings in Madrigal de Brasilia and is the conductor of Brasilia Adventist Choir since 2001. Eldom is married to a social worker Simone Pires and has a daughter, Beatriz, aged 9.

Heber Morales is from Guatemala and is very well known in the music community, not only in Guatemala but also throughout Central America.  He is a concertmaster and pianist, choral director of the Coro de la Comunidad Guatemalteca, and the Minister of Worship and Music Director of the Union Church of Guatemala.  He is also a music professor in various educational institutions in Guatemala.  He is frequently hired as a pianist, organist and harpsichordist for orchestras and chamber ensembles, and he is often the choirmaster for locally-produced operas.

Juliana O’Connor is from Minneapolis, Minnesota and has been living for over 30 years in Venezuela and Guatemala.  She is very active in the community serving as a volunteer in various groups raising funds for under-privileged children.  She has produced, as well as participated in, various presentations of well-known operas in Guatemala and has been the Choir Coordinator for the Coro de la Comunidad Guatemalteca since its founding and also sings in the soprano section of the chorus.
 
The Messiah Project in Guatemala was founded in 2004 by the Whitbeck family due to their love of the music and a desire to raise funds to help under-privileged children in Guatemala.  It has been a great success and has made a worthwhile contribution to Guatemala.  Soloists come from the United States, and they, along with the chorus, donate their time and talent to the project.  This year, the chorus consists of 95 voices, and concerts are scheduled for December 8 in the National Theatre in Guatemala City and December 9 in the colonial city of La Antigua, Guatemala.  In addition, we are pleased to announce that Dr. Jonathan Griffith will be our guest director this year.

Dubai Chamber Choir is a non-profit choir, which has been running for 11 years. They are made up of 44 Dubai based amateur and semi-professional singers from 15 nationalalities. They come from all walks of life - mothers, lawyers and teachers to name a few. The one thing they all have in common, however, is their love for music, performance and the choral scene. Under the baton of conductor Stuart Squire, the choir likes to challenge their audiences with music that is seldom heard in Dubai. Delighting audiences with many Middle Easter premiers, in addition to regular favourites. 

Christine Day, Concert Conductor Mrs. Day has a music degree from Iowa State University in Music Education and Performance. She is also certified in the Orff Levels and Master Class. This is her 40th year of teaching music in the public schools. For 32 years she has been Chancel Choir Director for the United Methodist Church in Wamego. She has received the “Outstanding Elementary Music Teacher” for the North Central District of the Kansas Music Educator’s Association two times, and Educational Teacher Award from the Santa Fe Trail Association, the Geary County “Shining Star” award, the Paul Bentrup Ambassador Award from the Santa Fe Trail Association and the Huck Boyd “Leader of the Year” award for the Santa Fe Trail education trips with students. This is Mrs. Day’s 23rd year as musical director of the Flint Hills Messiah Chorus.

The Flint Hills Messiah Chorus and Chamber Orchestra traces its roots to the late 1980's when the KANZA conference of the United Methodist Church organized an ecumenical performance of 'Messiah' three times before the Wamego Council of Churches and a steering committee of volunteers from the area took the reins of the organization in 1991 and named it The Flint Hills Messiah Chorus. The all volunteer chorus has gathered each year since, except 2000, to perform portions of 'Messiah' during the Easter season. In the beginning, less than forty people sang in the chorus. Over the years the chorus has swelled to eighty members. Until 1998, an organist and pianist accompanied the chorus when the chamber orchestra was added to the performance. The instruments include violin, viola, cello, bass, flute, trombone, bassoon, French horn, piccolo trumpet, trumpet, keyboard, timpani, oboe and clarinet. Over the years, talented people have given countless hours in practicing and organizing this performance. It is truly a labor of love. We hope that you can hear it in our voices and our instruments as we perform this timeless work for you. We have started a tradition in Northeast Kansas that we hope to continue for years to come.

Dianne Leith holds a B.Mus degree from Wilfred Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. A 35 year career in vocal music has included both classroom and choral education where she has proven to be an energetic singer, teacher and conductor dedicated to high musical standards producing choirs of quality.  As artistic director of the Grey Bruce Singers and a 50 voice children's choir known as the Leith Singers, Dianne is a well-known leader of many community events.  Both choirs are well received for their passionate style of performance combining energy, expressiveness and movement connecting both traditional and popular music. 

The Grey Bruce Singers is a 75-voice community choir with deep roots in the Hanover, Ontario area for over 70 years.  Since 1980, under the direction of Dianne Leith and accompanied by Chris Patterson, GBS continues to develop the appreciation of choral music throughout the community while maintaining her widely-known reputation for diverse styles, warm sounds and rich texture.  GBS repertoire includes a broad selection of secular and sacred choral music with opportunities for individuals and small groups to showcase their talents at the 10 highly-energized and polished performances produced each year.

Hailing from the UK, Bethan has spent 16 years living and working in Hong Kong. In 2002 she founded Katterwall, a company dedicated to everything vocal, including Kassia Women’s Choir. Although Bethan’s first love is English cathedral music, she has turned her hand to many genres over the years, as conductor, chorus master, teacher, arranger and performer. In 2011 Bethan was the first person in Hong Kong to become a Licentiate of the Royal Schools of Music (LRSM) in Choral Conducting, which she achieved with Distinction. 

Under the guidance of director Bethan Clark, Katterwall Singers – comprising members of Katterwall's Vocal Academy and Kassia Choirs – have travelled from Hong Kong to be part of this festive concert for the second year in a row. In 2014 Kassia Women's Choir also performed as part of DCINY's celebration of International Women's Day, La Femme Mystique. We are thrilled to be performing in Carnegie Hall.

Alexander Tsaliuk has served as the artistic director and conductor of the Moscow Oratorio Society since 1994. He graduated with distinction from the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatoire, and holds advanced degrees in both choral and symphonic conducting. He currently heads the Department of Choral Conducting at the State Maimonides Classical Academy. Since 1989 Tsaliuk has also been the conductor and artistic director for the professional Moscow Male Jewish Capella, which he co-founded. He has created a host of concert programs of liturgical, folk, classical and popular music for both groups, performing on the world’s most renowned stages with renowned international orchestras.

The Moscow Oratorio Society was founded in 1993 by a group of Moscow’s expatriates wishing to sing the Messiah during the holiday period. Since that time, it has become a well-regarded non-profit choral society composed of members of the foreign diplomatic and business communities, and of many Russian nationals. Under the direction of Alexander Tsaliuk, the group has engaged in a variety of exciting musical projects, including the classical composers such as Handel, Mozart, Mussorgsky, Poulenc and Bernstein, as well as popular songs from Soviet films and Christmas carols. The proceeds from its concerts are donated to local charities.

Mr. Seese is in his seventh year as director of the NFHS Choirs, and his 19th year as a music educator.  Mr. Seese has directed middle & high school choral programs in Colorado, New Mexico, Florida and Georgia.  Choirs under his direction have consistently received Superior ratings at local, regional and & national competitions, most recently winning the Sweepstakes Choral Award at the Heritage Festival competition in Anaheim, CA this past spring. The NFHS Chamber Singers had the privilege of performing at the Georgia Music Educator’s Association In Service Conference in Savannah, GA this past January. In addition to his duties as NFHS Choral Director, Mr. Seese is the director of the Cumming Playhouse Singers, an active church musician & choral clinician. He has had the privilege of directing the Forsyth County MS Mixed Honor Choir in February 2010, the Senior Men’s Chorus for the District 9 Honor Chorus in November 2011 and the 9/10 Mixed Honor Choir for District 13 this past October.

Rachel Casponi has been directing the North Peace Community Choir since January 2014. She completed her Masters of Music at the University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario, Canada and has worked as a singer, teacher and arts administrator. She currently teaches elementary music and beginning band. Rachel has found her work with the North Peace Community Choir to be incredibly rewarding and would like to thank the choir for their spirit, generosity and courage. She also thanks DCINY, Merrill Flewelling, and the people of Fort St. John and the Peace River Regional District for making this incredible experience possible.

The North Peace Community Choir was formed in the 1990s by former members of the Northern Lights Chamber Choir. The choir initially met at the North Peace Cultural Centre and was under the auspices of the Centre. Over the years the North Peace Community Choir has had several directors, most recently welcoming Merrill Flewelling, who has taken on the task of preparing the choir for this event. The choir would like to thank our communities for supporting us, the Northern Winds Community Band, Sabrina Brooks, Jennifer Giesbrecht, Sandra Gunn, Rachel Casponi and Merrill Flewelling. We wouldn’t be here without you.

Geneviève Beauchamp received a M.M. in piano performance from the University of South Florida and a B.M. from the Université de Sherbrooke, Québec, Canada. An active pianist, she has been a national finalist in the Canadian Music Competition in 2000, a participant in the Nina Wideman Piano Concerto Competition and the winner of the 2002 USF Concerto Competition. She is the founder and artistic director of Sarasota Young Voices, a new community children‘s choir that serves Sarasota and Manatee counties . She shares her love of music with her husband and two daughters.

The Sarasota Choral Society’s annual production of the Christmas portion of George Handel’s Messiah: A Sacred Oratorio has been Sarasota’s traditional kick-off to the Holiday Season for 70 years. Membership is open to anyone interested in music, choral singing in particular. Members range in age from 10 years old up to their 80’s. The all-volunteer chorus joins the Sarasota Orchestra, four professional soloists and organist for the grand production. The Sarasota Young Voices open the program with their prelude and return for the finale as all sing the rousing Hallelujah Chorus.

Jenna Elsberry, director of choirs at Summit High School, is in her fourth year of teaching. She received her Bachelor of Music Performance and Music Education at Tennessee Technological University. As a performer, she has been a part of productions such as La Traviata, Carmina Burana, and Madame Butterfly. She has performed with the Bryan Symphony, Oak Ridge and Maryville Symphony Orchestras as winner of their concerto/aria competition. Under her direction, the Summit Choir program has grown from eleven members to almost one hundred in 4 short years. She is a member of Mu Phi Epsilon, Omicron Delta Kappa, TNMEA, NAfME, and ACDA.

The Summit High School Choir from Spring Hill, Tennessee is thrilled to be performing at the 5th Annual Messiah performance at Carnegie Hall. As a new school, only in its fifth year of existence, the choir has become quite accomplished in a short period of time. They have competed on a regional and state level consistently receiving superior rankings. The members of the Summit Choir have also been recognized individually at the Midstate and Allstate festivals for their region. The choir enjoys singing a wide variety of literature and performs multiple times a year in the community and around the state.

Jana Christianson Hart began on the stage of California State’s University Northridge Theater as an opera chorus member. She earned a Bachelor of Music in vocal performance and toured Europe with the Pacific Choral from Orange County, California. Jana performed as a member of the UCLA Opera Workshop and apprenticed as a professional opera singer with the Santa Fe and Long Beach Operas. She held leading roles with the Los Angeles Opera Guild and Pacific Opera. After earning her Masters in Teaching from Washington State University she has taught music in the Evergreen and Battle Ground School districts in Vancouver, Washington since 1999.

 Vancouver USA Singers was founded in 1963 as The Brahms Singers with 16 voices. This all-volunteer choir now consists of nearly 100 members from 11 to over 80 years of age. They are the oldest and largest community choir in SW Washington. The choir has performed concerts in Great Britain, Europe, Canada, and the United States. Under director, Jana Hart, they were honored to commission and perform Henry Mollicone’s “All God’s Children” in November, 2013 for the choir’s 50th anniversary. Vancouver USA Singers are dedicated to their mission of “presenting audiences with quality choral music of all genres”.

Christel Houston is the Music Director for the Steamboat Chamber Singers in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. She prepared the combined choirs of the Yampa Valley Choral Society to perform Handel's Messiah with the Steamboat Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Ernest Richardson in 2014. Until recently, Ms. Houston was the longtime Fine Arts Teacher at Christian Heritage School. Now, she maintains a private music studio in Steamboat Springs, teaching vocal and instrumental music.

The Yampa Valley Choral Society was founded in 2012 by a group of passionate singers who recognized the value of sharing resources to advance vocal and choral arts in the Steamboat Springs, Colorado area. The YVCS' two adult choirs, the Yampa Valley Singers and the Steamboat Chamber Singers, performed Handel's Messiah as a single mass choir in December, 2014. Members of the YVCS are thrilled to travel from Colorado to perform with the DCINY mass choir at Carnegie Hall.