Artists
 2009-2010 Season

FEATURED ARTISTS

David Billings has been Accompanist and Organist of the Pittsburgh Concert Chorale since 1989. In addition to these positions, he is Organist and Director of Music Ministries at Fox Chapel Presbyterian Church.
     Formerly, Dr. Billings was Director of Music at Oakmont Presbyterian Church, Minister of Music at Parkwood United Presbyterian Church and also Adjunct Professor of Organ and Sacred Music at Duquesne University. As a recitalist he has performed throughout North America and Great Britain. Dr. Billings is a past dean of the Pittsburgh Chapter of the American Guild of Organists and a former chairman of the Organ Artists’ Series of Pittsburgh. His organ recitals have been featured on WQED-FM’s “Performance in Pittsburgh.”
     Dr. Billings earned a Bachelor’s degree from Penn State University, where he studied organ and harpsichord with June Miller. He received his Masters and Doctoral degrees from the Eastman School of Music, where he was a student of the renowned American organist, David Craighead.
     In honor of David Billings' twentieth anniversary as accompanist, (1989-2009), the Pittsburgh Concert Chorale is pleased to dedicate the “Gloria” concerts to him as a tribute to his faithful and untiring effort on its behalf.

The Academy Chamber Orchestra, under the direction of founder and concertmaster Dr. Warren Davidson, was created in 2001 to provide excellent orchestral accompaniment to choral groups. The orchestra is made up of leading players from a wide geographic area, many of whom are faculty members at colleges and universities. The Academy Chamber Orchestra has become the "orchestra of choice" for Pittsburgh's leading choral organizations, including the Mendelssohn Choir of Pittsburgh, Bach Choir of Pittsburgh, and the Pittsburgh Concert Chorale. Smaller ensembles made up of Academy members frequently provide instrumental support for church choirs throughout Western Pennsylvania.
    Dr. Davidson is conductor of the Slippery Rock Symphony Orchestra and teaches violin, viola, and the strings class at Slippery Rock University. He earned a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from West Virginia University and became music director of the Pittsburgh Civic Orchestra in 2008.

Daphne Alderson is thrilled to be performing Honegger’s King David with the Pittsburgh Concert Chorale. Her diverse, eclectic career as lyric contralto includes opera, oratorio, chamber music and cabaret throughout the United States, Canada and Italy. "An artist of dignified passion," is the description in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette of her performances as contralto soloist in Handel’s Messiah.
     Performances this season include Mahler’s Kindertotenlieder with IonSound Project, J.S. Bach’s St. John Passion, opera outreach with the Pittsburgh Opera, Bricolage Theatre and Chamber music at Chatham. Ms. Alderson has performed with the Pittsburgh Opera, Chatham Baroque, Central City Opera, Opera North, Opera Theatre of Pittsburgh and Amherst Early Opera. A champion of new works, she has premiered the music of John Marcinizyn, Enrique Ubieta, Douglas Levine and Michael Moricz.
     Touring extensively in cabaret, the 2009-10 season hails an original one-woman play, All Heart, All Judy (a Judy Garland memoir), a commission to benefit the Andrew Carnegie Free Library and Music Hall. Words of Love and L’Amour La Vie…Daphne Sings Piaf were written for Heinz Chapel at the University of Pittsburgh and performed to full houses. An American Girl in Paris, World War II and Songs That Oscar Taught Me toured throughout the Mid-Atlantic region and at sea. Ms. Alderson is on the roster of Pennsylvania Performing Arts On Tour and River City Artist Management. She will release her third recording this year.
     A graduate of Duquesne University, with Master of Arts in Music, Ms. Alderson pursued post-graduate studies in Italy and London. Ms. Alderson is alto soloist at Fox Chapel Presbyterian Church and St. Paul Cathedral. She is an Assistant Professor of Voice at Seton Hill University and resides in Pittsburgh with her husband guitarist/composer John Marcinizyn and their two cats, T-Bone and Viola.

Stephen Baum is Arts Editor and Producer of the WQED Morning Show, and producer and host of Performance in Pittsburgh. He produced WQED-FM 89.3's Arts Magazine for 20 years, accumulating many awards and also pioneered WQED's web presence in early 1995.
     A native of Monroeville, Mr. Baum became interested in radio at an early age. When he was eight years old, his father built a "transmitter" in a cigar box, which enabled Mr. Baum to broadcast from the top of the stairs. His interest in music was encouraged by his grandfather, whose house resounded with classical music and his early favorites included Stravinsky's Firebird Suite and organ music by Bach.
     Mr. Baum is a former ski instructor who left Pittsburgh for Salt Lake City in 1976 to train and compete in freestyle skiing. He began his radio career in 1978 at the University of Utah's KUER-FM and later joined Salt Lake City's commercial classical station, KWHO.
     Mr. Baum returned to Pittsburgh in 1986 to produce WQED-FM 89.3’s Sunday Arts Magazine, and he often interviews local orchestra members for WQED-FM 89.3’s 26-week Pittsburgh Symphony radio series.

Dean Kokanos has been heard in roles including Ernesto (Don Pasquale), Bill (Flight), Nemorino (L’Elisir d’amore), Count Almaviva (Barber of Seville), Lindoro (L’Italiana in Algeri), Beppe (Pagliacci), Tebaldo (I Capuleti e I Montecchi) and Remendado (Carmen). His concert credits include King David by Honegger, Mozart's Solemn Vespers, Hadyn's Mass in Time of War and Lord Nelson Mass, Handel's Messiah, Bach's Magnificat and Passion According to St. John, Carmina Burana by Orff and Mendelssohn's Saint Paul. 
     Mr. Kokanos has performed with the Pittsburgh Opera, Opera Theatre of Pittsburgh, Opera Memphis, Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, Sarasota Opera, Opera Grand Rapids, Opera Theatre and Music Festival of Lucca, Italy, the Bach Choir of Pittsburgh, the Pittsburgh Concert Chorale and as part of Shadyside Presbyterian Church's “Music In A Great Space” Concert Series, where he was presented in solo recital with organist J. Christopher Pardini and pianist Mark Trawka. He has received awards from the National Society of Arts and Letters and the Metropolitan Opera National Council (Four City District).  
     Mr. Kokanos holds a Master of Music degree from Carnegie Mellon University where he studied with Professor Douglas Ahlstedt and an undergraduate degree from Duquesne University.

Katy Shackleton-Williams Katy Shackleton Williams, lyric coloratura soprano, has gained local popularity with her involvement in the Mendelssohn Choir, Pittsburgh Symphony, River City Brass Band and Pittsburgh Opera. Ms. Williams was a featured soloist for the Pittsburgh Symphony Holiday Pops concert series in 2002, and made her Pittsburgh Symphony debut in September 2005 with Mendelssohn’s Midsummer Night’s Dream. She has toured with the River City Brass Band as a featured soloist in two concert series. She was a soloist in the Heinz Hall performance of The Lord of the Rings, and has performed with the Spoleto Festival in Charleston, SC. Operatic roles include ‘Adele’ in Die Fledermaus, ‘First Mother’ in Dead Man Walking, ‘Love’ in Orfeo and Eurydice and ‘Barbarina’ in The Marriage of Figaro. Notable solo engagements include performances of the Bernstein Chichester Psalms, Vaughan Williams Dona Nobis Pacem, Handel Messiah, Bach St. John’s Passion, and Cantatas 74, 51 and 202, Dubois Seven Last Words of Christ, Barber Prayers of Kirkegaard, Holst Christmas Day, Archer, Brahms, Durufle, Faure, Mozart and Rutter Requiem, and Poulenc, Rutter and Vivaldi Gloria.
     Ms. Williams has recorded Leonardo Balada’s Encenas Borracones with New World Records and his La Muerte de Colon under the Naxos label. Currently, she is a member of the professional core for the Mendelssohn Choir, chorister in Pittsburgh Opera and serves on staff for Jr. Mendelssohn Choir. She is the soprano soloist at Rodef Shalom, Oakland, and Third Presbyterian Church, Shadyside. Ms. Williams is an honors graduate of Carnegie Mellon University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Vocal Performance.

 GUEST ARTISTS

David Pellow

 For 20+ years, David Pellow studied and performed western classical, jazz and popular music. He studied the string bass repertoire in "basement jams" with his saxophonist father, James. He’s played engagements with various organizations in the Pittsburgh area including Deuces Wild, Nathan Davis and Tomorrow, Harold Betters, Walt Harper, Joe Negri, Rodger Humphries, Kenny Blake, Frank Cunimondo, Benny Benack Jr. He’s toured the United States and Japan with various groups, performed at The Montreux Jazz Festival and accompanied and recorded with many well-known musicians, such as Billy Eckstine, Mose Allison, Chris Connor, Diane Schurr, and Kenny Rankin.
     As an educator, Mr. Pellow played jazz in Pittsburgh elementary schools from 1991-1998 through a Manchester Craftsman’s Guild program. At Carnegie Mellon University, Mr. Pellow was appointed Director of Jazz Studies in 2002. He has instructed in jazz studies and bass in the preparatory school and pre-college, was Artist Lecturer: double bass, and Conductor of Jazz Ensembles.
     Mr. Pellow earned a Master of Music degree in Jazz Studies from Duquesne University and is an alumnus of The International Summer Bass School and the Institute Francois Rabbath.

Robert Rawsthorne

 Robert Rawsthorne was the percussionist with the trio on "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" for more than 30 years. He has appeared as a  guest artist with The River City Brass Band and has performed on numerous occasions with the Benedum Theatre Orchestra. He has also performed with the touring bands of Les Elgart, Nelson Riddle, Jimmy Dorsey, Guy Lombardo and most recently Bob Crosby's Bobcats. Mr. Rawsthorne was an original member of the Gateway to Music Percussion Ensemble and is currently the leader of a popular local group, The Steel City Stompers. They have a reputation as one of the area's most versatile groups with spontaneous comedy and original material with a variety of unusual instruments, humorous song parodies, great jokes and performances that always include the entire audience.

Tom Roberts is one of the leading exponents of early jazz piano in the world today. He has performed on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson and A Prairie Home Companion with Garrison Kiellor. He has arranged music for the syndicated PRI show Riverwalk Jazz, Live from the Landing with the Jim Cullum Jazz Band, as well as a number of pieces for Wynton Marsalis and The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra for a concert of the music of Louis Armstrong in October 2006.
     Mr. Roberts arranged and performed the music for the soundtrack of Martin Scorsese’s film The Aviator, as well as several titles for the film DeLovely. Mr. Roberts has performed in all the major clubs in the French Quarter and on the “riverboats” of New Orleans. He performed at New York’s Carnegie Hall in 2003 with Skitch Henderson and the New York Pops and in solo with Dick Hyman at the prestigious Jazz In July series at New York’s 92nd Street Y. Mr. Roberts was the featured pianist at the 2001 International Stride Piano Summit in Zurich, Switzerland. He has recorded over 30 compact discs and has performed throughout the United States and in nine countries of Europe. 
     Mr. Roberts was commissioned by the Pittsburgh Concert Chorale to arrange an Earl “Fatha” Hines Medley and “Blame It On My Youth” by Oscar Levant which were performed at the 2008 pops concert with the arranger as pianist.

Julia Ann Scott has enjoyed a varied and prolific career including performances as a soloist, chamber and orchestral musician in the United States, Canada, and parts of Latin America. She has performed at Carnegie Hall, Kennedy Center, Madison Square Garden and Teatro Sucre in Quito, Ecuador. Principal Harpist since 1996 with both the Westmoreland and Butler County Symphony Orchestras, she is a founding member of Alia Musica, Pittsburgh’s newest contemporary music ensemble.
     From Parkersburg, West Virginia, Ms. Scott began her studies of both harp and piano with Rita Sharpes, an associate and student of the famous harpist Mildred Dilling, with whom Ms. Scott also studied. She earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, summa cum laude, from Ohio University in 1985 and later a Master's in International Affairs. A Fulbright Scholar in 1986, she performed with the National Symphony of Ecuador as well as studied the Latin American folk harp. Ms. Scott was a frequent concerto soloist and toured as a concert artist during the next four and a half years in Ecuador. In 1991, Ms. Scott earned her Master's in Music with honors from the Indiana University School of Music, Bloomington. In 1997, she earned her Artist's Diploma from Duquesne University's School of Music. She has substituted and toured with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra since 1995.
     Ms. Scott is a member the Pittsburgh Chapter of the American Harp Society, teaches harp at Grove City College and maintains an active private studio in Pittsburgh.



Music bar

Previous Seasons

The Pittsburgh Concert Chorale has a rich tradition of partnering with talented musical organizations and individuals. Past partners include:

Thomas Godfrey is principal flutist for the Westmoreland and Johnstown Symphonies. As a free-lance flutist, he regularly performs with a variety of musical groups including Pittsburgh Opera and Ballet Orchestras, Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera, Pittsburgh Musical Theatre, Wheeling Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony and Gateway to the Arts. Mr. Godfrey has performed at music festivals in Europe and the United States, and his performances are often heard on WQED-FM’s "Performance in Pittsburgh" broadcasts.
     Mr. Godfrey received his musical training on scholarship at the Peabody Conservatory of Music, New England Conservatory and Duquesne University. He is on the adjunct faculties of Carnegie Mellon, Rogers/CAPA School and this year is serving as visiting assistant professor at West Virginia University.

 

Douglas Levine

 Douglas Levine stays busy in his hometown of Pittsburgh as a piano soloist, accompanist, composer, arranger, musical director and teacher. In early 2005, he released Kromatica, his debut recording of original piano compositions and arrangements. His original scores include Peer Gynt (The Pittsburgh Playhouse Repertory Company), Mimoun (Pennsylvania Dance Theatre), Colorfast (Pittsburgh International Children's Theater Festival) and Shakespeare Street (Playhouse Junior). Mr. Levine has written music for companies including City Theatre, Pittsburgh Irish and Classical Theatre, Attack Theatre, Gateway to the Arts, Pitt Repertory Theatre, Renaissance City Women’s Choir and Pittsburgh Musical Theater.

Eliseo Rael currently performs as principal percussionist of the Pittsburgh Live Chamber Orchestra and is a member of the chamber ensemble IonSound Project. He earned his Master of Music from New England Conservatory of Music and his Bachelor of Music from the University of North Texas, having studied with Will Hudgins, Kalman Cherry, Leigh Howard Stevens, She-e Wu, and Dr. Robert Schietroma. He recently received an Artist Diploma from Duquesne University where he studied with Andrew Reamer and Chris Allen.
     Mr. Rael has performed with the Pittsburgh Symphony, and has previously served as Principal Timpanist with the Texas Wind Symphony and the Arlington Opera. He has been a section percussionist with the Boston Philharmonic, Las Colinas Symphony, Irving Symphony, and the El Paso Wind Symphony.
     Mr. Rael taught privately in the Dallas area for two years before moving to Pittsburgh. His students have been members of the Dallas All-Region Band, All-Area band, and Texas All-State band. He recently accepted a teaching position with the Pittsburgh Public School Center for the Musically Talented.

Craig Verm, baritone, is rapidly gaining recognition for his performances. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette exclaimed that in his recent role in Romeo et Juliette he was "again impressive. His Mercutio was a winning mix of insouciance and insolence with a superb grasp of the French." The Denver Post agrees, citing his ability to "make full use of his resonant, expressive baritone voice, bringing the necessary depth to this complex role and imbuing the all-important final scene with poignancy and depth."
     In the 2006-07 season, Mr. Verm performed with the Pittsburgh Opera as well as the Fort Worth Opera. In the 2005-06 season, Mr. Verm sang with Pittsburgh Opera, Aspen Opera Theater, Cincinnati Opera and Santa Fe Opera as well as appearing on the concert stage with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and Boston Youth Symphony’s Senior Orchestra. Equally adept within the realm of oratorio, his appearances in Portugal and the United States include Bach’s Mass in B minor, Faure’s Requiem, Brahms’ Ein Deutsches Requiem, Handel’s Messiah and Haydn’s Lord Nelson Mass.
     Mr. Verm received his Master of Music degree from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and graduated cum laude from Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music. He is also a 2006 national semifinalist in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions.