Hanrich Claassen is a passionate cellist, conductor, and educator who believes a balance between educating and performing music is the key to true artistic enlightenment. Mr. Claassen obtained his Bachelor of Music in both piano and cello at the University of the Free State in South Africa. He furthered his cello studies at the University of Stellenbosch, where he completed both a Bachelor of Music (Honours) and his Masters Degree in Chamber Music. Mr. Claassen was awarded the Teacher's Licentiate from the University of South Africa with distinction before furthering his cello studies in Portugal in 2003 at the Escola Superior de Artes Aplicadas. As a professional cellist, Mr. Claassen has been a member of various philharmonic and chamber orchestras in South Africa, Portugal, Bahrain and China. During Mr. Claassen’s stay in Shanghai he was Assistant Music Director, cellist and conductor for the Shanghai Baroque Chamber Orchestra. Mr. Claassen was awarded the bronze medal during the 2010 Len van Zyl Conducting Competition in Cape Town after his direction of the Cape Philharmonic Orchestra. 2004-2007 Mr. Claassen spent in Saudi Arabia as Coordinator of Performing Arts at the British International School of Al Khobar. Since 2007 he was String Orchestra Director and Head of Middle School Fine Arts at the Shanghai American School, Pudong Campus where he conducted four string orchestras and the SAS MS symphony orchestra. Mr. Claassen relocated to Vienna, Austria in June 2013 as the Middle and High School String Orchestra Director for the American International School Performing Arts team. In August of 2015 Mr. Claassen was appointed to Montverde Academy, Florida as Instrumental Music Teacher and Lower Strings Specialist in the newly established Montverde Academy Conservatory.

The Symphonic Orchestra, conducted by Music Director Mr. Hanrich Claassen, is a pre-professional, conservatory level orchestra in which students are challenged with exceptionally difficult literature. Celebrating its 61st Season, Florida Symphony Youth Orchestras continues its commitment to providing Florida’s young musicians with the opportunity to strengthen their musical talents and develop an appreciation on of the arts through classical music. Membership in Florida Symphony Youth Orchestras is by invite on only, following competitive entrance auditions. Florida Symphony Youth Orchestras is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization that has served the Central Florida region for over 60 years. In 1957, Alphonse Carlo, concertmaster emeritus of the Florida Symphony Orchestra, recognized a need for a youth orchestra in Central Florida in which young musicians could develop their talents. Young musicians were invited to attend and participate in rehearsals with Florida Symphony Orchestra musicians and the Florida Symphony Youth Orchestra was born. FSYO is comprised of three full orchestras, a chamber orchestra, a jazz orchestra, and one string training orchestra. The six FSYO orchestras are carefully structured so that students can grow with the FSYO throughout their primary and secondary years. The full range of ensembles gives every student a place to excel with peers at a similar level, and all an opportunity to collaborate with and learn from seasoned music professionals, on the local and national levels.

Alison Seaton has performed in Europe and does frequent chamber music and recital work in the Seattle area. Ms. Seaton has conducted a wide range of repertoire from early music to serious modern music. She is at home with many genres and her choirs’ performances reflect that commitment to a diversity of musical education founded upon a good traditional choral and vocal foundation. She has worked with many of the most respected composers and conductors in the choral community. In addition to her commitment to musical excellence, Ms. Seaton is dedicated to the building of community and relationships through the medium of art.

Forest Ridge School of the Sacred Heart is an all-girls school located in Bellevue, Washington. The chamber choir is dedicated to singing a wide repertoire of music and has cultivated relationships with composers world-wide as well as local composers. The Chamber Choir was honored in 2007 and 2013 to participate in the international choir festival, Festival 500 in Newfoundland, Canada. The choir has worked with such notable composers as Alice Parker, Stephen Hatfield, Michael McGlynn, Javier Busto, Eleanor Daley, Rollo Dilworth, Henry Leck and MacArthur Genius Grant recipient, Francisco J. Nunez. The choir frequently travels nationally and internationally.

Emily Painter is in her third year of teaching choir and class piano at Douglas Middle School in Douglas, Wyoming. Though early in her career, Mrs. Painter has seen tremendous growth in her program, which now boasts 42% of the total school enrollment in choir. She has had students participate in the NW ACDA Honor Choirs in Seattle in 2015 and Portland in 2018. This spring, the 16 member 7th/8th auditioned choir, Arioso, will be performing at Carnegie Hall. Her choirs consistently receive superior ratings at district and regional festivals. She is an active member of NAfME and ACDA. Mrs. Painter completed her BME at the University of Wyoming in Laramie, WY.

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 an active music educator and teaches at several academies in the greater New York area as well as directs the choral and instrumental ensembles at Bishop Kearney High School. In addition to her career as a music educator, Anastasia is also an active choral and operatic performer. 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 as well as Europe since their formation in 2014.

The Bishop Kearney Chorus is the premiere vocal ensemble at Bishop Kearney High School, an all girls Catholic school in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn sponsored by the Sisters of Saint Joseph. The chorus performs extensively in the community and at school liturgies. The chorus is composed of singers of all grade levels. The ensemble performs music from various time periods and styles and has an extensive repertoire of sacred music.

Earning her B.A in Comprehensive Music Education with a concentration in voice, she graduated Magna Cum Laude from Delaware State University. Not only the Artistic Director of the Delaware Youth Chorale, she is a seasoned elementary and middle school music educator at a private school in Dover, Delaware. She directs an adult handbell choir, and has served as the Delmarva State Chair of Area 3 for the Handbell Musicians of America. She is currently active in the Delaware Choral Society and the Kent Chamber Choir. She also provides private lessons from her home studio and is the mother of four.

Eriko comes from Okinawa, Japan. She has been involved in choral music from a young age. She studied Music Education and Singing at the University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa, and took further studies in acting, singing and dance at the Theatre Shiki Acting Institute, Tokyo. Eriko studied choir conducting under Gabriella Thész, Artistic Director of the Hungarian Radio Children’s Choir; Zoltán Pad, the chief conductor of the Hungarian Radio Choir; and Doreen Rao of Choral Music Experience. She is motivated by a desire to increase children’s knowledge and understanding of other countries and cultures, through the global language of music.

Master of music in music education Founder conductor of Leticia choir Composer Music teacher at primary, secondary and high school Mother of six children.

Founded in 2003 Groups for singers from 5-years-old to adults The whole choir consists of 170 singers No entrance exam, all the singers are taught how to sing Child and youth choir groups have performed in Estonia, Germany, Canada and the USA and reached the golden level in Interkultur choir competitions in Lithuania World choir games 2014 and in Spain 2016 . Leticia has produced two full recordings, in 2013 and 2015.

Scott Logan teaches middle school and high school vocal music in Central Kansas. He holds a B.A. in Music (Piano) from Brewton-Parker College, Mt. Vernon, Georgia and an M.M. in Choral Conducting from Missouri State University, Springfield. His choirs have been featured on concerts at Friends University, Wichita State University, the Kansas Music Educators Association state convention, Dick Clark's American Bandstand Theatre in Branson, and have worked under conductors Michael Hanawalt (formerly of Cantus), Janet Galván, and Sr. Nuñez. Scott lives in Hutchinson, Kansas with his beautiful wife Angie and their four children Max, Sam, Emma, and Aaron.

Madrigals is the premier vocal ensemble at Nickerson High School, a school of over 300 students in Central Kansas. NHS Madrigals has made appearances at the Kansas State Fair, Wichita State University, Friends University, Dick Clark's American Bandstand Theatre in Branson (opening for Legends in Concert), and the Kansas Music Educators Association State Convention. Madrigals repertoire includes pop tunes, vocal jazz, and traditional choral music from Renaissance to modern composers. In October 2017, Madrigals participated in a collaborative performance of Dan Forrest's "Requiem for the Living" with other high school and collegiate performers.

Bronte Ficek has been a choral conductor with the Southern Maryland Youth Choir since 2017. She simultaneously works in clinical neuroscience research at Johns Hopkins Hospital within the Center for Music and Medicine. Originally from Montana, Bronte graduated from the University of Southern California with degrees in choral music and neuroscience. Bronte began piano and violin at an early age and is an accomplished musician on both instruments. As a teenage violinist, she played with the Billings Symphony Orchestra and Ceidlidh Fiddlers. As a pianist, she performed the Grieg Piano Concert with the Billings Symphony at age 15. At USC, she sang with multiple groups and conducted performances with the USC Concert Choir and Choral Lab. She continues to play violin with several Peabody orchestras and sings with the Baltimore Choral Arts Society. She is also the piano accompanist for Parkinsonics, a choir for people with Parkinson’s, a clinical trial at Hopkins.

Paul Graves – is an accomplished teacher, director, and pianist. He has taught middle school through college level music courses for the past 22 years throughout Oklahoma and Kansas. Under his direction, choirs have received superior ratings at district, state, national, and international festivals. Paul has been named Who’s Who Among America's Teachers and has been nominated for Teacher of the Year. He is an award winning musician, has been nominated for a Jester Award for Musical Direction as well as orchestra direction. Paul is married to Denice and has three daughters: McKenzie, Molly, and Hayden.

Ms. Ringenberg has been directing the choir and general music program at Clarksville Middle School for 13 years. She loves the unique challenges that middle schoolers bring to the classroom.

The Clarksville Middle School Chamber Choir is a small group of 7th and 8th grade students selected from the 100+ students we have in our choral program. They focus on bringing their passion and unity to every venue they perform in.

Mrs. Jessica Barney is a graduate from the University of Texas at El Paso. She graduated in the top 10% with a Cum Laude Honor. Mrs. Barney made history with the UTEP Opera (3 singers from each voice part) and traveled to Bhutan to perform the first opera in Bhutanese history. Mrs. Barney started college as a Performance Major, but after realizing that she had a passion for teaching, she changed her degree to Music Education. Before beginning her Teaching Career, she worked as a Music Therapist, using music to help children with disabilities. Mrs. Barney began teaching at Hornedo in 2014. Since then, the choir has grown significantly. Mrs. Barney's goal, as the Hornedo Choir Director, is to make an impact on her student’s lives and to encourage them to keep music and the Performing Arts alive and thriving!

The Hornedo Choir has received numerous Sweepstake ratings at EPISD Sight Reading and Choir Contests. Last year, the Hornedo choir was the first choir, from Hornedo, to receive sweepstakes at The University Interscholastic League Sight-Reading and Concert Contest. The Hornedo Choir was also invited to sing with the Choir from The University of Texas at El Paso. The Choir has also received Superior Award Trophies, for 4 years in a row, at The Superior Festivals Choir Contest. Every year a numerous number of students from Hornedo make the All Region Choir, normally ranking top 10 chairs. Many Hornedo Choir students participate in Solo and Ensemble and receive high scores in both solos and ensembles. There is a lot of dedication and hard work that goes into being a successful choir. The students at Hornedo give 100% dedication. Not only do we make beautiful music, but we have fun doing so.

Evan Roberts is Choral Director at Mirman School in Los Angeles, CA. Mr. Roberts' teaching career encompasses both classroom and choral music education throughout Los Angeles, where he works with ensembles such as the Donald Brinegar Singers, the Artes Vocales of Los Angeles, and the Los Angeles Children's Chorus's Young Men's Ensemble. A graduate of the Eastman School of Music in Vocal Performance, Mr. Roberts has sung roles spanning from Riff in West Side Story to Figaro in Le Nozze di Figaro. Mr. Roberts also currently serves as interim Music Director at American Lutheran Church in Burbank, CA.

Concert Singers is an award-winning choir ensemble from Mirman School in Los Angeles, California. Over nearly two decades, the ensemble has performed at numerous festivals, both nationally and internationally, including Heritage Festivals and Festivals of Gold. The current cohort is comprised of 28 highly dedicated singers who range in age from 10-14 years of age. Each singer develops a work ethic and an awareness of the responsibilities that promote the highest level of success for the individual student and program as a whole. The ensemble cultivates an enduring love of choral music from all times and places.

Christine Bridges is the lead Treble Choir Director at Acton Middle School in Granbury, Texas. She holds a Bachelor's Degree in Music from Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas and is in her twenty-seventh year of teaching, twenty-four at the choral secondary level. In addition to teaching choir during the school year, Ms. Bridges also teaches theory and leads singing at the Texas Southern Gospel School of Music in Corsicana, Texas each summer. Ms. Bridges has two handsome adult sons, Blake and Cody, and a lovely daughter-in-law, Jordan.

Acton Middle School Treble Choir is in its eleventh year under the direction of Christine Bridges. During her tenure, the choir has received eleven consecutive Sweepstakes awards at Texas UIL Concert and Sight-reading Competition. Each year the choir places a large number of students in the audition-only Texas Music Educators Region Choir, and consistently has students with Superior ratings at solo competitions. Prior invitations for Acton Middle School include performances at several DFW sports venues, and at Arts Education Days at the Capital in Austin, Texas.

Dixian Teng has been teaching Solfeggio since she graduated from Music School of Nanjing University of the Arts in 1986. She found a girls' choral group "Sheng Girls’ Group" in 1994. 6 albums were released by 1999. After that, she went to Australia to study Choral Conducting with Dr.Ronald Smart at Australian Institute of Music where she completed her Master Degree. She received the prestigious Recognition of Outstanding Young College Professors in Jiangsu Province in 2002, and she had the honour to get "Honorary Citizen of Dallas, Texas" when she was invited to give concerts in Dallas at the same year. She went to New Zealand in 2004 and did research in both music education and choral music areas. She set up Meng Girls' Choir after she came back from New Zealand in 2008, and made effort in improving the students' musicianship in an effective way. Meng Girls' Choir received Gold Award in the First Choral Competition of Jiangsu province at the end of 2008. In 2011, she led the Meng Girls’ Choir to join a national choral competition show “Last Choir Standing”, and won “The Third Place” in the final competition. Meng Girls' Choir received Gold Award in the “Zijin Choral Festival of Jiangsu”in 2013. Dixian Teng traveled with Meng Girls' Choir to Germany, the United States and Norway, where they had an exchange program, joining International Choral Festivals. As an artistic director, Dixian Teng has been working with the children’s choir of Changjiang Road Primary School since 2012. 

Adan Jiang, graduated from Nanjing University of the Arts, is a first-grade teacher of music in Nanjing Changjiang Road Primary School. She established the Choir of Nanjing Changjiang Road Primary School in 2012. In the past six years, with the special teaching concept and methods, she instructs the Choir to win the various honors and gains the astonished achievements. Dixian Teng is a Vice Chairman of Choral Association of Jiangsu, an Associate Professor of Music College of Nanjing University of the Arts, and the Artistic Director the Choir of Nanjing Changjiang Road Primary School.

The choir of Nanjing Changjiang Road Primary School was established in February 2012. Nearly a hundred students participate in after-class training. With the cooperation between teachers, students and parents, they have achieved gratifying achievements. Since 2013, they have held a special concert for three times. In 2014 and 2017, they won the Hong Kong International Youth Music Festival Gold Award twice. They also won the first prize many times in the provincial level.

Bridget Warren began piano lessons at age 7. At 16, she taught voice and piano at a local music store was later accepted at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. She received the Vocal Faculty Award and earned a Bachelor's Degree in Vocal Performance and Masters Degree in Music Education. Upon graduation, she was accepted as a student performer of the Bel Canto Institute program in Florence Italy. She currently owns the Pasadena Performance Center in Pasadena, TX and is the Head Choir Director at Melillo Middle School in Houston, TX. JOEY BERNSEN (Assistant Choir Director) has been a music director, conductor, accompanist and organist for many theatres, churches and schools over the years. With a degree in Music (All-Level Music Education), he has taught both band and choir in the public school system. He served as Music Director/Conductor at the age of 19 for his first show at College of the Mainland, Hello Dolly, and followed that with Mame, Annie, The Music Man, Man of La Mancha, Babes in Toyland, A Chorus Line, Drowsy Chaperone, and many others.

The Warren Youth Singers in an ensemble comprised of middle school voices located in the Houston Metro area. They've performed for the Pasadena (TX) Chamber of Commerce, a regional Holiday Tour and made multiple appearances performing the National Anthem for a number of Rice University sporting events, including a nationally televised football game.