Tina Bernard is the head choral director at Lumberton High School in Lumberton, Texas. She has been teaching, conducting and adjudicating choral music in Texas for the past 27 years and her choirs consistently earn sweepstakes ratings at competition. Mrs. Bernard has a background in flute performance and frequently performs throughout the Lone Star state. She is the music director at First United Methodist Church Nederland and lives in Bridge City, Texas with her husband, Mike and their two teenage sons, Brant and Jax.

Lumberton High School Choir from Lumberton, Texas is located near the Texas/Louisiana border in Southeast Texas. Lumberton choirs consistently earn sweepstakes awards and perform at the Candlelight Processional in the Walt Disney World Resort, Florida. The award winning choir performs the National Anthem at several professional sporting events, annually, including the Houston Astros and the Houston Rockets. The Lumberton Choirs have placed first in the Texas Renaissance Festival Choral Competition the past several years and have traditionally had superior ratings at all state level competitions. The choirs are under the direction of Tina Bernard and Lara Strawther.

Debra is a vocal coach who works with high school students across many of Dubai's most prestigious academies. She has been the manager of Dubai Chamber Choir for 11 years. Having started her career on the musical theatre stage, Debra discovered her passion for choral music through this choir.

Dubai Chamber Choir was formed in 2003. Under the baton of Stuart Squire, the choir aims to bring new music and sacred classics to the Middle Eastern stage. The choir prides itself on it's melting pot of nationalities mirroring the Dubai expat landscape. They premiered the music of Eric Whitacre in the region in 2010.

Kayla Werlin holds music degrees from the University of Michigan and the University of Massachusetts. With over 30 years of experience teaching music at every level, it is high school where she found her true passion. She is currently Music Department Chair at Longmeadow High School. Under her direction, LHS choirs have earned medals at the state choral festival as well as the 2011 American Prize for Choral Performance. They have been featured at state and regional music education conferences, and have performed in New York, Philadelphia, and Washington DC, as well as Italy, England, and Austria.

Lyrics is the honors SATB choral ensemble at Longmeadow High School. This year’s ensemble numbers 47 singers, grades 10-12. Lyrics has toured regionally and internationally, including Italy, Germany, Austria and England. Their repertoire comprises everything from masterpieces of the Renaissance era to brand new works and a cappella pop arrangements. Members of Lyrics represent Longmeadow in District and All-State chorus, band and orchestra. They play active roles in student government and clubs, instrumental ensembles and most of the sports teams at Longmeadow High School.

Joseph Zachowski is the Choral Director at Washington Township HS in Sewell, New Jersey. He is a member of NAfME, SJCDA, and ACDA. He received his Bachelor of Music in Music Education from The College of New Jersey (’04), and his Master of Arts in School Administration from Rowan University (’16). Mr. Zachowski is in his fourteenth year of teaching in Washington Township, where he directs the Mixed Chorus, Women’s Chorus, Chorale, and Pop Choirs. He is excited to share this amazing experience with his students, and is honored to perform at Carnegie Hall under the direction of Eric Whitacre!

Washington Township HS is located 15 minutes southeast of Philadelphia in Sewell, NJ. With a population of over 2200 students, WTHS offers a wide range of music courses including multiple levels of choir, band, orchestra, guitar, theory, and technology. TWP Choir has a membership of 156 students, with three large ensembles meeting daily and small ensembles after school. TWP Choir performs regularly at school, community, and regional events, including the annual NJACDA HS Festival. TWP Choir also holds an annual Pops Concert which has raised thousands for Mother’s Cupboard, Stomp Out Bullying, The National MS Society, and Alex’s Lemonade Stand.

William Klein has been the director of vocal music at Austintown Fitch High School for three years, and three years prior as the middle school director. He holds a Bachelors of Music from the Dana School of Music at Youngstown State University and a Masters of Music from Kent State University. He resides in Austintown, Ohio with his wife, Megan Klein, and dog Charley. Mr. Klein is honored to be here with his choir family and his wife. He considers it an honor and a privilege to be given the opportunity to collaboratively work with this ensemble and Mr. Whitacre.

The Austintown Fitch Concert Choir, established in 1972, is a mixed SATB ensemble comprised of students from grades ten through twelve. The Fitch Concert Choir is the most elite vocal music ensemble in Austintown. The primary mission of the Fitch Concert Choir is to “Serve Those who have Served”. Since its inception in 1972, the choir has traveled throughout the United States performing at Veterans Hospitals, Veterans Nursing Homes, and VA Centers, traveling over one million miles. The Fitch Choir would like to thank Mr. Whitacre and DCINY for this unforgettable experience.

Lauren Ramey is in her fifth year as the director of choirs at Ravenwood High School in Brentwood, TN. She earned her Bachelor of Music degree in piano performance from Vanderbilt University's Blair School of Music and her Master of Education in Choral Music Education from Vanderbilt University's Peabody College of Education and Human Development. Lauren is currently the high school repertoire and resources coordinator for the Tennessee chapter of ACDA. Lauren is the assistant conductor of the Nashville Symphony Chorus and has conducted choirs and orchestras throughout the United States and Romania.

The Ravenwood High School Choir is from Brentwood, TN. Ravenwood choirs consistently receive superior ratings in both sightreading and performance at regional and state choral festivals. In 2014, Ravenwood choirs performed Handel’s Messiah at Lincoln Center with DCINY, as a demonstration choir at the 2015 NAFME National Conference, and as a spotlight ensemble at the 2017 Tennessee Music Educator’s Conference. Every year, many students are accepted into regional, all-state, & national honor choirs. The Ravenwood High School Choir is often acknowledged for its high level of musical excellence and looks forward to new opportunities to collaborate in the future.

John M. Popke has been the Director of Choirs at Kimberly High School since 2014. At KHS, he directs four ensembles, serves as a vocal coach for musical theatre productions, teaches voice lessons to choir students, and teaches AP Music Theory. A Wisconsin native, Mr. Popke holds the Master of Arts degree, summa cum laude, in Instruction (K–12 Choral/General Music) from Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota (Winona, Minnesota), and the Bachelor of Arts degrees, magna cum laude, in Vocal Music Performance and Music Education, also from Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota. He has completed additional coursework in choral conducting, vocal pedagogy, and vocal jazz education. Ensembles under Mr. Popke’s direction have sung at festivals in Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Iowa and at Carnegie Hall in New York City. An active church musician, Mr. Popke is the Director of Liturgical Music at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Parish in Green Bay, Wisconsin. He serves on the Executive Board of the Wisconsin Choral Directors Association (WCDA) and is the Tenor Section Coach for the 2018 WSMA High School State Honors Project Mixed Choir. He is an active member of the American Choral Directors Association, the National Association for Music Education, the Wisconsin Music Educators Association, the National Association of Pastoral Musicians, and Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia music fraternity. Mr. Popke lives in Appleton, Wisconsin.

The Concert Choir is the advanced choral ensemble at Kimberly High School and consists of 55 10th–12th grade voices for 2017-18. The Concert Choir rehearses daily and focuses on advanced sight-reading, solfege, and SATB repertoire from the Renaissance to the Twentieth Century, with a particular emphasis on choral masterworks and/or music of great European and American composers. This auditioned ensemble maintains an active schedule with performances at festivals, school concerts, and other venues and often works with guest conductors and clinicians.

Annabelle Marie has forged new ground as a composer, arranger, vocalist and musician with her lively and infectious reinvention of the children’s choir. Annabelle holds the key to unlocking the angelic resonance in the presence of each child in the choir. Incorporating movement, percussion and theatrical embodiment of music, the choir is a celebration of culture, sound, color, voice and humanity. Annabelle’s training and awards are on par with the best in her industry, but her training and life experience applied to create something altogether new is her gift to humanity that is not to be missed.

VOENA is a captivating multi-cultural, world music experience that redefines “choir” the way Cirque du Soleil redefines” circus.” Director, Annabelle Marie inspires over 120 children from ages 6-18 to celebrate music through voice, sound, rhythm, and physical expression. Singing in over 25 languages, VOENA has performed around the globe inspiring audiences at the 2012 London Olympics, the Grand Ole Opera, as repeat guests at the White House, for Pope John Paul II at the Vatican in Rome, at the half-time show of the San Francisco 49er’s, and the opening ceremony of the Special Olympics. They have traveled as goodwill ambassadors to Sicily, Bali, Italy, Ireland, China, Japan and Indonesia and were the first American Choir to sing at the Soweto Festival in South Africa.

Jessica Pagnan is the founder of Coro Capriccio of Ottawa, Canada, artistic director and soprano. The ensemble is comprised of like minded, professional musicians who were seeking the chance to perform high level music without a conductor. Although Jessica chooses most of the repertoire, the group, as inspired by ensembles like Voces8, performs as a collective with feel and communication.

Coro Capriccio is a chamber choir from Ottawa, Ontario Canada who's focus is sacred and secular a cappella works from the Renaissance era to the most current.They have performed in some of the the many prestigious concert series in and around the Ottawa area, invited guests at Notre Dame Basilica Cathedral of Ottawa and performed in the summer choral concert series in Quebec City.
 

RaNae Dalgleish Bio RaNae Dalgleish has loved teaching music for the past 29 years! She is currently director of choirs and orchestra at Hillcrest High School in the Canyon’s School District. She was thrilled to be named Hillcrest High School “Teacher of the Year” in March 2014. In addition to her 20 years as a public school music educator, she has taught private violin and viola in her Midvale/Sandy studio. RaNae served as chairman for the Utah Suzuki Association Celebration VII “Nurtured by Love” grand concert in 2007 and Celebration VIII “A Joyful Journey” grand concert in 2010. She has also served on the Suzuki Association Board as the Violin and Viola Vice- President. RaNae also loved her time on the UMEA Board as the Orchestra Vice-President for the state of Utah. RaNae holds a Bachelor of Music Education degree with a certification to teach grades K-12 from the University of Utah. RaNae loved her 8 years of singing with Dr. Brady Allred in the Salt Lake Choral Artists—one of the highlights being a tour to Japan with the Vocal Artists for a performance in the Karuizawa International Choral Festival. She is currently singing in the Mormon Tabernacle choir. RaNae and her husband, Scott are the proud parents of 5 musical children and 1 adorable princess granddaughter.

Hillcrest High School Vocal Ensemble is comprised of Junior and Senior singers. They are among the most dedicated students at HHS. Many of these students are involved in the school’s International Baccalaureate Program and other Performing Arts classes. They are actors, instrumental musicians, athletes, dancers and leaders in their school. They have many performances throughout the school year including performances on Temple Square, rest homes and senior centers, business functions and other cultural events in the community. One of our most memorable recent performances was in invitation to sing the National Anthem and other selections for the opening session of the House of Representatives at the Utah State Capital. Vocal Ensemble has received many awards including superior ratings at the UMEA State Solo and Ensemble Festival. It is quite an honor just to be invited to perform in New York. These wonderful musicians not only represent a high quality of music and education, but they also become ambassadors for the entire community and state of Utah. This is an event of extreme pride for our ensemble and we are overjoyed to be part of this unforgettable event.

Kira Dixon has been the director of choirs at Christopher High School since 2016. Prior to this, she taught music for nine years at Silver Creek High School in San Jose, California. Miss Dixon earned her Master of Arts degree in Music from Kansas State University under Dr. Julie Yu in 2013. In addition to directing the choirs of Christopher High School, Kira is the District Director for Mu Phi Epsilon, a professional co-ed music fraternity.

The Christopher High School Chamber Choir, under the direction of Kira Dixon, is the top ensemble from Gilroy, California. This choir has performed at Disney’s California Adventure, the Cocoanut Grove at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, and in Washington, D.C. Chamber Choir has also had the privilege of working with several collegiate directors such as Dr. Jeffrey Benson, Dr. Joshua Palkki, Dr. Jonathan Talberg, Dr. Scot Hanna-Weir, Lou De La Rosa, and Dr. Giselle Wyers. At the end of March, Chamber Choir will be premiering a new work in conjunction with their sister school, Gilroy High School, written by Daniel Hughes.

Gina Jolly is in her 21st year of teaching music K-12. Gina has taught Elementary Music, Middle School Chorus and High School Chorus. She is currently serving her 12th year as Choral Director at Greenwood High School. Gina received her BA in Music Education from North Greenville College in 1996, and Masters in Music Education from University of South Carolina in 2005. She received National Board Certification in 2002 and renewed National Board Certification in 2012. She is a member of ACDA, American Choral Directors Associaion and a member of MENC, Music Educators National Conference for South Carolina where she has served as President of the SCMEA Choral Division, and was on the SCMEA Executive board for six years. . She has served on the All- State Committee and the Choral Festival Committee and has served as a judge for the South Carolina All- State Chorus. Gina has served as a Clinician for several Choral Events in South Carolina.

The Greenwood Eagle Singers are from Greenwood, South Carolina. Greenwood High School Choral Department has approximately 300 students enrolled for the 2017-2018 school year with five ensembles in the department. The chorus program at Greenwood High School is one of the finest in the state of South Carolina. GHS consistently has one of the top numbers of students making the South Caroline All-State Chorus and annually earns superior ratings in performance and Sight reading at the South Carolina Performance Assessment and other Choral Festivals. In April of 2016 Greenwood Chorus performed at Carnegie Hall in a group performance of Ola Gjello’s Sunrise Mass. In December of 2016 the chorus performed at Disney's EPCOT in the Candlelight Ceremony. In March of 2017 the Eagle Singers performed in collaboration with the Greenwood Festival Chorale a performance of Dan Forrest's Requiem for the Living. In April of 2018 the Eagle Singers are looking forward to heading back to Carnegie Hall, under the director of Eric Whitacre.

Michele Zuckman has been the Middle/Upper School Vocal Music teacher at Friends’ Central since 2011. Over the past five years, choral students at FCS have performed for community events throughout the Philadelphia area, including the Electrical Spectacle in Franklin Square, Main Line A Cappella Festival, and the annual FCS Singing Valentines event, which raises money for local charities and scholarships. Ms. Zuckman is a member of the Chestnut Street Singers and Healing Presence Singers in Philadelphia, making music with and for others. She holds and a BFA in Voice Performance/Music Education from Carnegie Mellon University and an MM in Choral Conducting/Music Education from Westminster Choir College of Rider University.

The Friends' Central School Chorus is a mixed-voice ensemble that meets during the school day twice a week and is open to anyone interested in singing in a group setting. The Chorus performs in two concerts a year and also sings for various school and community events. Repertoire is varied and represents music in several languages and from different periods and styles. Development of vocal technique and choral discipline is a part of the rehearsal process. This is the FCS Chorus's fourth DCINY event and the second with Eric Whitacre. We are thrilled to be back!

Steven Young, professor of music, serves as the University's director of choral activities. He conducts the University Chorale which performs major works with orchestra each semester, and directs the Chamber Singers, an auditioned a cappella ensemble. Dr. Young also teaches courses in the music theory sequence. He is an active clinician and adjudicator, as well as a concert organist.

The Bridgewater State University Chamber Singers is among the oldest ensembles on the campus. This auditioned choir has performed around the United States and in Europe on their concert tours. The group performs music from all musical periods and styles, but emphasis is placed on music of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. The group has had the honor of performing at regional ACDA events and for MENC conventions.

Mr. Timothy Savoy is serving his Thirteenth year as the Music Director of Chorus, Chamber Chorus, Concert Band, and Jazz Band at Groton-Dunstable Regional High School in Groton Massachusetts USA. Mr. Savoy holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Music and Sociology Interdisciplinary Studies from Plymouth State College, a Post Baccalaureate in Music Education from Keene State College, a Masters of Education in Arts Education from Fitchburg State University, and a Certificate of Fine Arts Directing from Fitchburg State University. As an experienced pianist and vocalist, Mr. Savoy has taught at the elementary, middle school, high school, and adult community arts levels in both public and private school settings for the past eighteen years. He has conducted and directed the Piano Monsters Concert for the Southern New Hampshire Community School of the Arts, and has lead three different school districts to multiple consecutive first place award winning ensembles. The GDRHS Chamber Chorus under the direction of Mr. Timothy Savoy has performed at the 2012 Summer Olympic in London England, Easter Sunday Mass in Padua Italy in 2014, and has performed throughout the USA, England, Italy, Austria, Czech Republic, Croatia and has won several Local, State, and Regional competitions. Mr. Savoy is proud to be part of the staff at Groton-Dunstable Regional High School where he looks forward to sharing his love of music for many years to come.

The Groton-Dunstable Regional High School Chamber Chorus is renowned for their choral performances throughout Massachusetts. The members range from 10th to 12th grade and are admitted through a competitive audition process. They specialize in a cappella pieces that range from classical to contemporary selections featuring 8 to 14 part harmonies that are primarily at a college or professional level.  The choir meets for an hour and a half every day with their conductor, Mr. Timothy Savoy, who works with the students to achieve a professional quality of sound. The choir has competed in regional and national competitions held in New York, Philadelphia, Massachusetts, Florida, and Ohio. In these competitions they have taken first place for many consecutive years and have been honored with the titles, “Best Overall Performers”, several “Best Soloist” awards and “Best Section” awards during those years of competition. The choir is very active in their community through their performances at school events, nursing homes, and charity fundraisers.  Their Winter and Spring concerts are highly acclaimed and largely attended by the surrounding communities.  The camaraderie the choir possesses between its’ members as well as the unity it forges in its’ local community exemplifies qualities that are fittingly emblematic of our nation’s valued principles.