Sopranos
Leah Keyes Durham holds the Bachelor of Music degree in choral music education from Furman University and the Master of Music degree in choral conducting performance from Louisiana State University. As a music educator and conductor, Mrs. Durham has taught elementary through high school students and has conducted college and church choirs. She is currently an elementary music educator in Pendleton, SC (between Anderson and Clemson) where she teaches choir, band, and general music. She also directs the Middle and High School Youth Choir at Grace Episcopal Church in Anderson and sings with the Greenville Chorale. Recently, Mrs. Durham was named the 2011-2012 Teacher of the Year for Townville Elementary School as well as the District Teacher of the Year for Anderson School District Four. She lives in Pendleton with her husband, Justin, and their dog and cat.
Elise Giles is a native of Charleston, SC where she attended the Charleston County School of the Arts as a piano major. She graduated from Presbyterian College, class of 2010, with a Bachelor of Arts in Vocal Music. While in college, Elise sang with The Presbyterian College Choir and Armonia and also appeared as soloist with the Chamber Choir. She also performed roles and directed musical theatre including Mozart’s The Impressario, Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas, Haydn’s La Canterina and Sweet Charity. Elise currently works for a local law firm as a project assistant and will complete a paralegal certificate in December 2011. This (2011) is Elise’s second season with the Taylor Festival Choir.
Beth Ivory is pursuing a Master of Arts in Teaching (Performing Arts-Choral Conducting) degree at the College of Charleston. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Vocal Performance from Presbyterian College and was a frequent soloist with the Presbyterian College Choir and Chamber Choir. She has performed with the College of Charleston Concert Choir, Madrigal Singers, the Charleston Symphony Orchestra Chorus, and on the Young Artists Series in the Piccolo Spoleto Festival. This (2011) is her fourth season with the Taylor Festival Choir.
Kara D. Larson is a Physician Assistant practicing in North Charleston. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology & Chemistry from Bob Jones University and a Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies from the Medical University of South Carolina. Growing up in a musical family, Kara began violin lessons at age 4 and has been involved in orchestras and choirs ever since. She has been a member of the Charleston symphony Chorus and Chamber Singers since 2007 and 2010 was her first season with the Taylor Festival Choir.
Kori Miller is a Junior vocal performance major at the College of Charleston’s School of the Arts where she studies voice with Dr. Robert Taylor. In the Spring of 2011 she performed a leading role in the College of Charleston Opera production The Mikado. She also performs with the College of Charleston Concert Choir, Madrigal Singers, and Charleston Pro-Musica. Kori has performed with the Taylor Festival Choir for 3 seasons.
April Raines is the Director of Vocal Music at Durant Middle School in Durant, OK, where she conducts four choirs and teaches music theory and literature. Mrs. Raines is very proud to have implemented a music program for special learners at DMS where students with special needs participate in musical activities. She holds a Master of Music in Vocal Pedagogy from Texas Woman children, Braden, 6 and Lydia, 4, and Sophie 3 months. She is one of the founding members of the Taylor Festival Choirʼs University. She and her husband, William, have three children, Braden, 6 and Lydia, 4, and Sophie 3 months. She is one of the founding members of the Taylor Festival Choir.
Andrea Robertson Scheulen earned a Bachelor of Music in Music Education from Miami University in 2006. She has been a music educator throughout the four years since her graduation and sings with the Charleston Symphony Orchestra Chorus, Chamber Singers and Taylor Festival Choir. Andrea is currently studying for her Master’s Degree in Speech-Language Pathology but music will continue to be a great passion in her life. Andrea currently serves on the Taylor Festival Choir Board of Directors as the organization’s General Manager.
Jamie White lives in Savannah, GA where she maintains a private voice studio. She directed Mister Mercer with the J. Repertory Theatre at the Lucas Theatre for Arts. Ms. White earned a Master on Music from Georgia Southern University and has performed roles and directed musical theatre, straight plays and opera including Pirates of Penzance and Handel’s Messiah and Little Shop of Horrors. She currently serves on the voice faculty at Jacksonville University in Florida.
Tina Zenker Williams hails from Savannah, GA where she is a private voice teacher and singer. An experienced solo performer, Ms. Williams has most recently been heard singing the soprano solos in Mozart’s Requiem with the Savannah Philharmonic.She holds a Master of Music from Georgia Southern University
Altos
Renee Blankenship is a native of Rock Hill, SC, and is a senior at the College of Charleston, majoring in Arts Management with double minors in voice and business administration. Renee is a member of the College of Charleston Concert Choir and Madrigal Singers. She also performs with Charleston Pro Musica and is a staff singer at the French Huguenot Church. Renee has toured Europe twice with the Sound of America’s Honor Band and Chorus. This season (2011-2012) is Renee’s second with the Taylor Festival Choir.
Kristin Brady is the music teacher at Lady’s Island Elementary School in Beaufort, SC. She currently lives in Port Royal with her husband, Matthew Brady, and their dog, Roscoe. Kristin is a graduate of the College of Charleston with a Bachelor of Music, where she portrayed the Royal Wizard in the children’s opera, Many Moons. While at the College of Charleston, she also performed as a soloist for Piccolo Spoleto’s Young Artist Series and with the College of Charleston Concert Choir and Madrigal Singers. She is a graduate of Converse College with a Master of Music Education, where she was a soloist with the Spartanburg Festival Chorus. Kristin sang with the Taylor Festival Choir during its first several years and is so excited to be singing with this wonderful choir again!
Louise Carraway is a vocal performance major at the College of Charleston, studies with Deanna McBroom and performs with the College of Charleston Concert Choir. Ms. Carraway is a staff singer at the French Huguenot Church in Charleston and 2010 was her fourth season singing with the Taylor Festival Choir.
Andrea Elizabeth Horath is pursuing a music degree in conducting from the College of Charleston where she is a member of the madrigal Singers and participates in the college opera productions. She recently began working at the Second Presbyterian Church and 2010 was her second season with the Taylor Festival Choir.
Emmalee Hinson is a sophomore at the College of Charleston studying for a degree in vocal performance under Art Bumgardner. Originally from Atlanta, GA, Emmalee currently sings with the College of Charleston Concert Choir, Madrigal Singers and the Charleston Symphony Orchestra Chorus. 2010 marked her second season as a member of the Taylor festival Choir.
Ansley Lucas graduated from North Carolina School of the Arts with a Bachelor of Music (Opera Performance). She performed for three years with the Piedmont Opera Company in Winston-Salem, NC. Her opera performances include Le Nozze di Figaro, Il Trovatore, Lucia di Lammermoor, La Traviata, Othello, and The Magic Flute. Ansley has performed as a soloist with the Charleston Symphony and Chamber Choir. She is a section leader at Grace Episcopal Church, a freelance soloist and 2010 was her sixth year performing with the Taylor Festival Choir.
Rahni Simpson is a native of Greenville, South Carolina. His early training as a musician was at the Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities and the Fine Art Center of Greenville. He also played in the Greenville County Youth Orchestra. Mr. Simpson’s collegiate training was at the College of Charleston, where studied as a countertenor and performed operatic productions of Dido and Aeneas, Gallantry, and Albert Herring. He has also been a soloist with the College of Charleston Concert Choir and the Taylor Festival Choir.
Tenors
Graham Bridges is a graduate of College of Charleston, where he studied with Mrs. Deanna McBroom and majored in voice performance. He is an operating partner of Catering Etc. in Greenville, SC, and studies voice with Dr. Susan Lyle of Converse College in Spartanburg. He has performed with The Greenville Symphony, Charleston Symphony, South Carolina ETV, The South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts, the Young Artist Series at Piccolo Spoleto.. This will be Mr. Bridges’ sixth season performing with the Taylor Festival Choir.
Chris Green is in the final year as a Master of Arts in Teaching candidate at the College of Charleston where he earned a Bachelor’s in Vocal Performance. Christopher has been featured as a soloist in Piccolo Spoleto’s Young Artist Series and in various musical productions at the college. He has been a member of the College of Charleston Concert Choir, Madrigal Singers, Charleston Symphony Orchestra Chorus and is entering his ninth season with the Taylor Festival Choir.
Kyle Harding received a Bachelor of Music in Church Music (voice proficiency) from Bob Jones University in Greenville, SC. In August, he will be completing a Master of Music in Church Music (choral conducting proficiency) from Bob Jones University. Kyle is on the music faculty at Northland International University in Dunbar, WI., and this is his second full year as part of the Taylor Festival Choir.
Richard Jobe is a founding member of the Taylor Festival Choir since its inception in 2000. Richard is music Director & Principal Organist of Mayflower Congregational Church in Oklahoma City, Staff Coach/Accompanist for the School of Music at the University of Central Oklahoma in Edmond, OK, and Music Director of Temple B’nai Israel in Oklahoma City. Richard is the featured organist on the Taylor Festival Choir’s first international release; This is Thy Hour, O Soul.
Brian “Kentucky” Ross holds a Bachelor of Science in Sociology from the College of Charleston as well as a Massage Therapy Certification from Trident Technical College. Kentucky currently works as the Revenue Manager at Tides Folly Beach Hotel and is the tenor section leader as a staff singer at the French Huguenot Church of Charleston. His career as a choral singer began in 1998 with Dr. Robert Taylor’s first College of Charleston Concert Choir, Madrigal Singers, Charleston Symphony Orchestra Chorus and Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra. Kentucky sang at the 2005 ACDA National Convention in Los Angeles, CA with the College of Charleston Concert Choir; the 2008 ACDA Regional Convention in Louisville, KY and the 2009 ACDA National Convention in Oklahoma City, OK with the Taylor Festival Choir. Singing with these various groups has afforded Kentucky the opportunity to perform in the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles as well as various venues throughout the British Isles. He currently serves on the Taylor Music Group’s Board of Directors and has been singing with the organization since its second year.
Paul Runyon is a sophomore voice major at the College of Charleston where he performs with the College of Charleston Concert Choir, Madrigal Singers and the college’s opera program. He is a Charleston native and an alumnus of the Charleston County School of the Arts.
Michael Sheaffer resides is Dallas, TX and is the Team Lead and consultant for a real estate software company based in Santa Barbara, CA. He has been a featured soloist in many large choral works in Oklahoma and Texas and had held leading roles in operas, operettas and Music Theater including Manon, Die Zauberflote, The Gondoliers and Die Entfuhrung aus dem Serail (where he performed opposite Robert Taylor). Mr. Sheaffer earned a Music Ed. Degree with minors in Chemistry and Biology from the University of Central Oklahoma and a Masters of Music and MBA from Oklahoma State University. Mr. Sheaffer, after a long hiatus, happily made his return to the Taylor Festival Choir during Celtic Christmas, 2010.
John White is a senior music major at the College of Charleston where he has been a featured soloist with the College of Charleston Concert Choir, Madrigal Singers and Taylor Festival Choir. He has had leading roles in the College of Charleston operas of Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro, Impressario and Strauss’s Die Fledermaus. Mr. White was featured as the Frederick in The Company’s production of Pirates of Penzance, and has won numerous state and regional voice competitions.
Basses
William Bennett is the Director of Choirs at Cane Bay High School where he was named the 2009-2010 Teacher of the Year and also serves as the Department Chair for the Fine Arts Department. He is the Assistant Director of the Taylor Festival Choir. Mr. Bennett is conductor of the University Chorus at the College of Charleston. He received a Master of Music: Choral and Orchestral Conducting from Louisiana State University and his BA from the College of Charleston. Mr Bennett was a soloist with the Charleston Symphony Chamber Singers in Monteverdi’s Vespers of 1610. He currently resides in Summerville SC with his wife Aron Lynn, daughter Lillian and chocolate lab, Sugar.
Art Bumgardner holds a Doctor of Musical Arts from the University of Texas, MFA from University of Minnesota, and a BA from University of North Texas. He retired from the University of Wisconsin-Superior in 2003 after 37 years of teaching voice, opera, and musical theater, theory and music appreciation. He is a veteran performer of recitals, oratorio, and opera in such roles as Don Giovanni, Figaro, and Elijah. Art is now an adjunct voice faculty at the College of Charleston. He has appeared as soloist in Dvorak’s Te Deum and Haydn’s Mass in Time of War; in J. S. Bach’s St. John Passion and Brahms Requiem He has been a member of Taylor Festival Choir since 2007.
Doug Burney is the Director of Choirs and Department Chair at Garfield High School in Woodbridge, VA. His choirs have consistently received superior ratings at the district, regional and state levels. They have been recognized as being among the top ensembles in Virginia and have performed in Chicago, New Orleans, New York City, Carnegie Hall, Ireland, Wales and London. Mr. Burney received a Bachelor of Music Education from the University of Central Oklahoma and a master of Music from Oklahoma State University. Mr. Burney is the Assistant Director of the Taylor Festival Choir and is a founding member of the organization.
Ricks Floyd holds a Bachelor of Music in vocal Performance and Music Education from the University of South Carolina where he studied with acclaimed baritone, Jacob Will. His operatic roles at USC include Maestro Spinelloccio in Gianni Schicchi and the Paige in Amahl and the Night Visitors. Floyd made is Taylor Festival Choir debut this past winter with Celtic Christmas.
Patrick Henry is brand new to the Lowcountry and happy to have found a home in the Taylor Festival Choir. A transplant from north Georgia, his recent solo credits included Beethoven’s Mass in C, Puccini’s Messa di Gloria, Rutter’s Mass of the Children, Handel’s Messiah, and the Saint-Saens Christmas Oratorio. By day, Patrick is an accountant with the Robert Bosch Corporation.
Mark Hightower is the Choral Director at Sumter high School. He graduated from Westminster Choir College and holds a Bachelor of Music Education and Master of Arts in Teaching. Mark has sung in conjunction with the New York Philharmonic, Dresden Philharmonic, Lucerne Festival Orchestra, and the Spoleto and Piccolo Spoleto Festivals in Charleston.
Ben Lee is frequently heard throughout the United States on the opera and musical theatre stage. Noted for his “rich and warm tone,” he has become an acclaimed young interpreter of comedic opera and operetta. He has recently performed Mozart, Gilbert and Sullivan, Rossini, and Donizetti. Mr. Lee’s musical theatre career includes stage revivals of the classic works of Rodgers and Hammerstein, Noel Coward, Cole Porter, and George Gershwin. In the competition circuit, Mr. Lee has received honors in some of the most prestigious competitions in the U.S. Recently, he was highlighted as Classical Singer Magazine’s Center Stage Artist, an accolade given to the most promising young opera singers internationally. Mr. Lee also sings in classical crossover collaborations, and is currently completing the MAT program at the College of Charleston.
Lee Lingle is celebrating his 10th year with the Taylor Festival Choir. To date, Mr. Lingle has sung in every Taylor Festival Choir concert since the group’s inception in 2000. He has also sung with the College of Charleston Concert Choir, Madrigal Singers and Charleston Symphony Orchestra Chorus. He serves as section leader and soloist for Second Presbyterian Church in Charleston. Lee works in the Special Education department of the James Island Elementary and holds a BA from the College of Charleston.
