 |
|
|
|
||||||||||||||
 |
|||||||||||||||||
 |
 |
||||||||||||||||
 |
|||||||||||||||||
|
|
Home > About Us Meet the Artists
For his innovative programming and high musical standards, Jonathan Miller has gained international accolades, most recently the 2008 Louis Botto Award for Innovative Action and Entrepreneurial Zeal from Chorus America. Since founding Chicago a cappella in 1993, he has guided the ensemble through more than 130 concerts, six commercial CD releases, and thirty choral-music demo CDs. Passionate about bringing new music to Chicago audiences, Jonathan has presented more than sixty-five new a cappella works in their local, national, or world premieres. His skills at presenting a wide spectrum of music are a combined product of his singer’s ear, scholar’s training, and composer’s temperament. He was exposed at an early age to a wide range of music by a remarkable group of mentors, including Christopher Moore, Lena McLin, Max Janowski, Joseph Brewer, Howard Mayer Brown, Richard Proulx, John Nygro, and Anne Heider. Eager to learn research tools for repertoire, Jonathan pursued musicology, earning his doctorate at UNC-Chapel Hill while remaining an active performer. Since returning to the Chicago area, Jonathan has led the volunteer choir at Unity Temple in Oak Park (1997-2006), Heritage Chorale (2001-03), and several other choirs as clinician and coach. He has written more than fifty choral works including his latest, Half asleep in prayer (for Chicago a cappella, upcoming in February 2009); his music has been sung at venues including St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City and the Pentagon. Since 1998, Jonathan has taken a growing leadership role in Chicago-area Jewish music, conducting high-holiday choral music and now leading Kabbalat Shabbat services at Congregation Rodfei Zedek in Hyde Park. He has guest-conducted Kol Zimrah (the Jewish Community Chorus of Metro Chicago) and holds as a great honor his role as publisher of the late Max Janowski’s catalogue. Jonathan lives with his wife and daughter in the woods of Downers Grove.
An acclaimed choral conductor, pianist, vocal coach, and chamber musician, Patrick Sinozich joined Chicago a cappella's musical staff in 2007 as Music Director. He is currently in his 12th season as Artistic Director of the Chicago Gay Men’s Chorus. Patrick did his undergraduate studies at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and completed graduate studies at Northwestern University. He is on the musical staff of the Chicago Symphony and the Grant Park Music Festival and has performed chamber music with members of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Lyric Opera Orchestra, the San Francisco Symphony and the Cincinnati Symphony. He has also produced three CDs for Chicago a cappella and three for the Chicago Gay Men’s Chorus (which featured many of his own arrangements). Patrick’s association with Chicago a cappella goes back to the ensemble’s very first auditions, which he accompanied, and he has provided musical support as the ensemble’s occasional rehearsal coach since 2005.
With feats of vocal and linguistic derring-do, Hoss Brock has become a perennial favorite with audiences and critics alike. As a soloist with the Grant Park Music Festival, Hoss earned praise from critic John Von Rhein for his “plaintive, clarion singing” and his command of Slavic texts. When asked to fill in for Warsaw Opera star Adam Zdunikowski in the Lira Ensemble’s “Polish Christmas,” with only days to prepare selections by Paderewski and Moniusko, Brock (who can barely pronounce “Zdunikowski”, much less speak Polish) delivered a “warm and emotional rendition” (Chicago Sun-Times). Sponsored by a grant from the Metropolitan Opera Competition, Hoss traveled to Barcelona, Spain, to compete in the Francisco Viñas International Vocal Competition, from which he was promptly eliminated, and subsequently enjoyed a fabulous week of shopping, sightseeing, and sangria. Recently, Hoss has performed Mozart’s Requiem, Bach’s B Minor Mass, and “Baba Yetu” from Civ IV at Video Games Live.
Baritone Matt Greenberg has appeared frequently on Chicago’s concert and theater stages, singing everything from Bach to Broadway. His solo appearances include Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, Mozart’s Requiem, and an evening of Rodgers and Hammerstein. Matt is a longtime member of the Grant Park Chorus and sang for over 20 years with the Chicago Symphony Chorus, where he made over a dozen solo or small ensemble appearances. A founding member of Chicago a cappella, he has also performed with Music of the Baroque, William Ferris Chorale, and the Harwood Early Music Ensemble. Matt’s work in musical theater includes the Jeff-award winning Sylvia's Real Good Advice, Hot Mikado, and appearances at Light Opera Works and Wisdom Bridge. He has also appeared with the pop quintet Table For Five. Combining his performing with a career in arts administration, Matt is Chicago a cappella’s Executive Director.
Mezzo-soprano Elizabeth Grizzell has performed with groups both in Chicago and abroad. She has appeared as soloist with the Tunbridge Wells Opera, the Marlow Choral Society, and the Wooburn Singers of England. As a member of the Chicago Symphony Chorus, she has recorded the role of Apprentice with the late Sir Georg Solti and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in Wagner’s Die Meistersinger. Especially fond of oratorio, her recent performances have included Mendelssohn’s Elijah, Mozart’s Requiem, and Dvorak’s Mass in D. Betsy records regularly for both GIA Publications and Hinshaw Music, and is a soloist with GIA’s Cathedral Singers. She holds a Bachelor of Music degree with a vocal emphasis from DePaul University. Of special note is her Musikgarten program, a musical education experience designed for children ages 16 months to 8 years old. Her studio in Naperville currently introduces more than 100 children to the fun and beauty of music.
Since landing in Chicago 12 years ago, native Iowan Kathryn Kamp has managed to piece together a career that combines opera, operetta, and musical theater productions with oratorio and concert engagements. She has appeared as a soloist at really amazing venues such as the Ravinia Festival, Orchestra Hall at Chicago Symphony Center, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Grant Park Music Festival, the Peninsula Music Festival, and Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society, among others. She’s performed lots of stuff by cool composers like Mozart (Requiem), Haydn (Creation and Dixit Dominus), and Handel (Messiah); Poulenc (Gloria) and Brahms (Requiem); Gilbert and Sullivan (Patience, Rose Maybud, Yum-Yum and Mabel); and Steven Sondheim (Anne Egerman and Mrs. Segstrom). She’s even directed a bunch of operas! But the constant highlight of Kathryn’s performing life is when she’s singing with the uber-talented cats of Chicago a cappella. Special thanks to the CAC audience – you make all of this possible.
A veteran of the Chicago choral and musical-theater stage, where he has been seen as a middle-aged character baritone, a clueless tenor ingénue and an esoteric a cappella choral singer, Cary can rightfully be described as a truly eclectic performer. Most recently, Cary appeared with Light Opera Works, where he was hailed for his "..zesty dancing skills" performing the role of Alfred Doolittle in their production of My Fair Lady. Immediately preceding this production, he sang the role of Fredrick in Pirates of Penzance. For over a year he was a member of the third national tour of Les Misérables, where he understudied the role of Jean Valjean. He has sung with the Grant Park Chorus and Music of the Baroque, and was a founding member of Chicago a cappella. Visit his website: www.tenor4hire.com.
Trevor Mitchell, tenor
Chicago native Cari Plachy is enjoying splitting her time between choral and opera singing. She has been seen throughout the Midwest with Opera for the Young, DuPage Opera Theater, Light Opera Works and Bowen Park Opera. Her choral work includes singing with the Chicago Symphony Chorus. In 2008, she had an opportunity to step out from the chorus and sing a solo in Bruckner’s Psalm 150. The Chicago Sun Times recognized it as being a “sparkling, and aggressively sung solo.” Cari received her Bachelor’s degree in music education from DePaul University. Since then, she has been working with the education department of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, bringing music to children all over Chicago. In addition to her work in Chicago, Cari is fortunate to bring her love of music to deaf children at Child’s Voice School in Wood Dale.
Bass-baritone Benjamin Rivera appears often as a concert and oratorio soloist. Recent appearances include performances of Bach’s St. John Passion and several Haydn Masses. He is a longtime member of the Chicago Symphony Chorus, where he served in the position of section leader for several seasons. Benjamin also sings with the Grant Park Chorus during the summer. He recently completed his ninth season as conductor of the Chicago-area chamber choir Cantate, with whom he performs a wide range of mainly a cappella music. Benjamin holds the Master of Music degree in Music Theory from Roosevelt University and is on faculty at St. Xavier University.
Susan Schober is a founding member of Chicago a cappella. A native Chicagoan, she sang for nine years with the Chicago Children's Choir, and has performed a wide variety of solo and choral music with Chicago-area ensembles. Most recently, she was a soloist at the 23rd International Kodály Festival in Kecskemét, Hungary. In addition to solo and choral music, Susan has performed leading roles in several theatrical productions, including Puccini's Gianni Schicchi, Britten's Albert Herring, Herman's La Cage Aux Folles, and Sullivan's Utopia Limited. Susan received her bachelor’s degree from Northwestern University and a master's degree in Music Education from Holy Names University in Oakland, CA. She is an accomplished music educator, specializing in the Kodály Method. She has taught students at every level, from preschool to graduate level teacher training. Susan loves both singing and teaching, but her favorite job is being a new mom to twins Katherine and Andrew.
A lover of choral music, Brian Streem has been a member of some of Chicago’s finest choral ensembles, including the Chicago Symphony Chorus, the Grant Park Symphony Chorus, Bella Voce, the William Ferris Chorale, and the Chicago Jazz Ensemble. His theatrical credits have included Pippin (Pippin), Jesus (Jesus Christ Superstar), Sky Masterson (Guys and Dolls), Jack (Into the Woods), Philip (Lion in Winter) and the star of the one-man show All in the Timing. His recent work with Chicago a cappella was praised by critic Cathryn Wilkinson, who noted that he "pattered out a better maraca ostinato with his mouth than many drummers can with two hands." Brian is a graduate of the Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University, studying music theory with Dr. Rudy Marcozzi, and the Managing Editor for GIA Publications. |
 |
|||||||||||||||
 |
|||||||||||||||||
Acclaimed as having
"simply the most uniquely beautiful and easily produced tenor
instrument most people will ever hear," Trevór Mitchell’s career has
taken him across the U.S. as well as to Austria, Italy, Ukraine, the
United Kingdom and other destinations in Europe. Recently audiences
heard him in Bach's B-Minor Mass, Weihnachts-Oratorium, St.
Matthew Passion, and St. John Passion, Britten's
Serenade for Tenor, Mozart's Requiem, Beethoven’s Missa
Solemnis and Ninth Symphony, Vivaldi’s Beatus Vir,
Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, and several recitals, one being a
benefit recital with honored guest Paul, Duke of Oldenburg of
Germany and another honoring Chicago Alderman Willie Cochran. Trevór
made a very successful début with the Baroque Band in performances
of Handel’s Dublin Messiah. Mr. Mitchell also recorded Don Meyers’
Meditation in Three Reflections with the Millennium Symphony
of Norfolk, VA. In 1997, Trevór made his début performance with the
National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine in Kiev.
