Date & Time: Saturday May 4, 2024 at 7:30 p.m.
Venue: Incarnation Episcopal Church, 1750 29th Avenue, San Francisco
Tickets: $25 General, $20 Seniors/Students
Eventbrite Tickets: Click here
Program
- Bring Me Little Water, Silvy by Huddie Ledbetter (1888–1949), arr. Moira Smiley
- Autumn Song by Eugene Butler (b. 1935)
- “Stirb, Ungeheuer, durch unsre Macht!” from Die Zauberflöte by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791)
- “Barcarolle” from Les contes d’Hoffmann by Jacques Offenbach (1819–1880)
- Kaleidoscope Heart by Sara Bareilles (b. 1979)
- You Are The New Day by John David (b. 1946)
- The Singing Bowl by Jeff Newberry (b. 1984)
- Witches Scene from Dido and Aeneas by Henry Purcell (1659–1695)
- Te Quiero by Alberto Favero (b. 1944) arr. Liliana Cangiano
- Chi la Gagliarda by Baldassare Donato (1525–1603)
- “Dolce cantavi” by Caroline Shaw (b. 1982)
- “You Could Drive a Person Crazy” from Company by Stephen Sondheim (1930–2021)
- How Can I Keep From Singing, Quaker hymn arr. by Gwyneth Walker (b. 1947)
- Me and My Shadow – Words by Billy Rose and music by Al Jolson (1886–1950) and Dave Dreyer (1894–1967) arr. Hawle Ades
- Wild Mountain Thyme by Francis McPeake (1885-1971) arr. Sam Reider
- I Left My Heart in San Francisco – Words by Douglas Cross and music by George Cory (1920–1978)
- Terry Alvord, Level III Director
- Chesley Mok and Christopher Hewitt, Pianists
- Dr. Laney Armstrong, Director of Choral Studies
- Tonia D’Amelio, Phillip Harris, Kelley O’Connor, and Candace Y Johnson – Instructors
- Valérie Sainte-Agathe, Artistic Director
Health and Safety: Masks are optional but highly recommended
In accordance with the recommended health and safety recommended guidelines from the City and County of San Francisco, the Episcopal Diocese of California, masking is now optional but highly recommended. We strive to make the concerts a safe place for everyone.
About San Francisco Girls Chorus
The mission of the San Francisco Girls Chorus prepares girls and young women from diverse backgrounds for success, on stage and in life, through rigorous, empowering music education, and enriches Bay Area cultural life through innovative vocal performance.
Since 1978, hundreds of singers from 45 Bay Area cities ranging in age from 4 – 18 participate annually in the SFGC’s programs. The organization consists of the Premier Ensemble, a professional-level performance, recording, and touring ensemble and a six-level Chorus School training program. A leading voice on the Bay Area and national music scenes, the Chorus has produced award-winning concerts, recordings and tours, empowered young women in music and other fields, enhanced and expanded the field of music for treble voices and set the international standard for the highest level of performance and education.
Commissions of new works from the leading composers of our time, collaborations with renowned guest artists, and partnerships with other Bay Area and national arts organizations provide the young singers of SFGC with matchless performance experiences among powerful adult role models. In addition to its regular engagements with the San Francisco Opera and San Francisco Symphony, recent artistic partnerships include the San Francisco Ballet, Philip Glass Ensemble, The Knights, Opera Parallèle, Kronos Quartet, Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, New Century Chamber Orchestra, and more.
SFGC’s commitment to artistic excellence has been recognized through many awards and honors, including five GRAMMY Awards; four ASCAP/Chorus America Awards for Adventurous Programming; and, in 2002, becoming the first youth chorus to receive Chorus America’s prestigious Margaret Hillis Achievement Award for Choral Excellence.
SFGC owns and operates the Kanbar Performing Arts Center in San Francisco, which has become a hub for small to midsize arts organizations in the Bay Area. For more information, visit http://www.sfgirlschorus.org.
Terry Alvord, Level III Director
Terry Alvord, a mezzo soprano and conductor, has conducted the San Francisco Symphony Chorus in rehearsals of Brahms’ Requiem and Mahler’s Symphony No. 3, and has conducted the San Francisco Conservatory’s chamber vocal ensemble, assisting Maestro Ragnar Bohlin. She has also been one of four assistant conductors for the San Francisco Symphony’s Community of Music Makers “Sing Out Davies” program from 2011-2017. Ms. Alvord prepared singers for the premiere of the opera Prospero’s Island by Alan Shearer in conjunction with Ninth Planet as well as for the Opera Parallel production of the “The Shining ” by Paul Moravec, performed at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in June of 2023.
Ms. Alvord was the interim artistic director during the 2015-2016 season for Resound Ensemble, a 50 member mixed voice choir based in San Francisco. She was a featured conductor in a program of sacred music in Sarteano, Italy in 2017 and 2018. Ms. Alvord was music director at Trinity United Methodist Church in Berkeley for 20 years. She was also the conductor of the U.C. Berkeley Section Chorus 2022-2023.
In addition to conducting, Ms. Alvord is a vocal soloist and choral singer. She has appeared as soloist in James MacMillan’s Seven Last Words from the Cross with the Berkeley Symphony and with many other groups in performances of Handel’s Messiah, Vivaldi’s Gloria, Haydn’s Lord Nelson Mass, Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy and Bach’s Magnificat. Ms. Alvord has sung with many Bay Area opera companies in roles such as Dorabella in Cosi fan tutte, Cherubino in Le Nozze di Figaro, Siebel in Faust, Mercedes in Carmen and Hansel in Hansel and Gretel. She has been a professional member of the San Francisco Symphony Chorus since 2000, and has also sung with San Francisco Opera Chorus and Philharmonia Baroque Chorale.
Ms. Alvord has been the SFGC Level III Director since 2018.
Chesley Mok, Pianist
A native of San Jose, Chesley Mok graduated from the University of California, Irvine with a Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance. After moving back to the Bay Area to further her studies, Chesley received her Master of Music at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music with a focus on Collaborative Piano, under the mentorship of Timothy Bach.
With a versatile repertoire spanning classical to new music, Chesley collaborates with both vocalists and instrumentalists. Her passion for music has led her to work with various local organizations, such as the Golden State Youth Symphony, California Youth Symphony, and Crystal Children’s Choir. In her work with the Premier Ensemble of the San Francisco Girls Chorus, Chesley has also performed private events for Senator Dianne Feinstein and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi.
Currently serving as a staff pianist for the Pre-College division at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, Chesley enjoys sharing her musical knowledge and years of experience with the next generation. Beyond her collaborative endeavors, she dedicates her time to teaching piano and violin to youth across the Bay Area, fostering an appreciation for music within her students and contributing to the cultural enrichment of the community.
Christopher Hewitt, Pianist
Christopher Hewitt is a professional pianist and music director residing in San Francisco. Christopher graduated from the University of the Pacific Conservatory of Music with a B.M. in Piano Performance. Active all throughout the Bay Area, Christopher has held a myriad of music jobs in various capacities. As an in-demand Music Director, Christopher’s attention to detail and dedication to authenticity brings his shows to critical acclaim, including nominations for Best Music Direction for “Young Frankenstein” at the 2020 Shellie Awards and for “RENT” by SFBATCC in 2023. Recent Music Directing credits include “Spelling Bee”, “Hair”, “Songs for a New World”, and “In The Heights”.
In addition to music directing theatre, Christopher is the Director of Music Ministry at Notre Dame des Victoires Catholic parish in San Francisco, where he plays piano, organ, and cantors the masses. Besides teaching private piano and voice lessons, Christopher is also an accompanist for several ensembles in the San Francisco Girls Chorus, is an associate accompanist for the National Children’s Chorus, and is a frequent collaborator for cabaret shows. Find Christopher on Instagram @chrishewittpiano.
Tonia D’Amelio, Voice Instructor
Called “extravagantly charismatic” by the San Francisco Chronicle and praised by San Francisco Classical Voice for her “vivid and technically assured” singing, soprano Tonia D’Amelio has sung with opera companies, orchestras, chamber ensembles, and vocal consorts across the U.S. and abroad.
A versatile singer with a repertoire spanning five centuries, Tonia particularly enjoys premiering opera and concert works. She created the role of Celia in Allen Shearer’s Middlemarch in Spring for the world premiere in San Francisco and the revival with Charlottesville Opera, sang in the first performance of Ryan Brown’s Mortal Lessons at the Hot Air Festival, and joined the Grace Cathedral Choir of Men and Boys to premiere Ben Bachmann’s Fantasia on American Christmas Carols. Tonia also performed featured roles in the modern stage premieres of Jean-Philippe Rameau’s Le temple de la Gloire (1745 version) with Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra and Chorale, and Carlo Pallavicino’s Le Amazzoni nell’Isole Fortunate (1679) with Ars Minerva.
Other favorite opera and concert credits include The Queen of the Night (Die Zauberflöte), Musetta (La Bohème), Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni), Elisetta (Il matrimonio segreto), and soprano solos in Mozart’s Exsultate, jubilate, Orff’s Carmina Burana, Anthem by George Lewis, and Ancient Voices of Children by George Crumb. As a passionate advocate for sacred music in sacred spaces, Tonia has been a soloist for liturgical performances of Monteverdi’s Vespers of 1610, Mozart’s Requiem, and J.S. Bach’s St. John Passion, and has participated as a guest artist at the William Byrd Festival in Portland, Oregon, and at the Edington Festival of Music within the Liturgy in Wiltshire, U.K.
In addition to singing and teaching voice, Tonia teaches alignment-focused barre fitness classes at Honor Barre in Piedmont.
Phillip Harris, Voice Instructor
Phillip Harris has sung as a soloist at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center in addition to singing numerous roles in operas and musicals. He has presented lectures, recitals, and masterclasses at John Hopkins University, Westminster Choir College, University of California, Irvine, San Francisco City College, and Los Medanos College. He currently teaches on the voice faculty of the Pre-College Division at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music where he also serves as an adjunct instructor in the music history and literature department. As a recording artist, he has two albums on all major streaming platforms, PHILLIP HARRIS IN RECITAL and IN MY PHILZ. He has music-directed musicals with Mountain Play, Chanticleers Theater, Youth Musical Theater Company, Head-Royce School, Menlo School, Convent & Stuart Hall, and MoonSchool at 42nd Street Moon. He holds doctorate, master’s and a bachelor’s degree in voice from UNLV, University of Michigan, and UC Irvine.
Kelley O’Connor, Voice Instructor
The Grammy® Award-winning mezzo-soprano Kelley O’Connor is one of the most compelling vocal artists of her generation. She is known for a commanding intensity on stage, a velvet vocal tone, and the ability to create sheer magic in her interpretations. O’Connor performs and inhabits a broad selection of repertoire, from Beethoven, Mahler and Brahms to Dessner, Corigliano and Adams (who wrote the title role of The Gospel According to the Other Mary for her); she is sought after by many of today’s most accomplished composers. She performs with leading orchestras and conductors around the world, with preeminent artists in recitals and chamber music, and with highly acclaimed opera companies in the U.S. and abroad.
Candace Y Johnson, Voice Instructor
Praised by Opera Wire for her vocal clarity, dramatic presence, and expressive interpretation, soprano Candace Y. Johnson, has concertized widely, including guest appearances at Carnegie Hall and The Manhattan Center, and with the Memphis Symphony Orchestra. Johnson is a versatile artist, equally comfortable in opera, musical theater, and jazz. She has performed lead roles in Le Nozze di Figaro, The Medium, Suor Angelica, Fame, and she defined the genre- bending role of Jackie in the world premiere of Howard’s End, America with RealOpera, San Francisco (2019).
Valérie Sainte-Agathe, Artistic Director
Valérie Sainte-Agathe has prepared and conducted the San Francisco Girls Chorus since 2013, including performances with renowned ensembles throughout the United States and beyond. Through transformative choral music training, education, and performance, Ms. Sainte-Agathe empowers young women and champions the music of today throughout the choral world.
Prior to her time with SFGC, Ms. Sainte-Agathe served as Music Director for the Young Singers program of the Montpellier National Symphony and Opera in France from 1998-2011, and participated in eight recordings with the Montpellier National Orchestra and The Radio France Festival.
In the 2022-2023 season, Ms. Sainte-Agathe celebrated a decade of leadership with the San Francisco Girls Chorus. During her tenure, she has welcomed artistic collaborations with many celebrated guest artists including Chanticleer, Santa Fe Opera, soprano Shawnette Sulker, composer and percussionist Susie Ibarra, GRAMMY-nominated composer Ayanna Woods, Left Coast Chamber Ensemble, the King’s Singers, Roomful of Teeth, Bobby McFerrin. She premiered SFGC’s first self-produced and commissioned opera, Tomorrow’s Memories: A Little Manila Diary at San Francisco’s Magic Theatre in June 2023. Her first recording as SFGC’s Music Director, Final Answer, was released on Orange Mountain Music in February 2018, and her second recording, My Outstretched Hand, was released in July 2019. Ms. Sainte Agathe has toured with SFGC’s Premier Ensemble locally and internationally, and will travel with the ensemble to South Africa in July 2024.
Ms. Sainte-Agathe’s artistry stretches beyond the San Francisco Girls Chorus, including joining Philharmonia Baroque as its new Chorale Director in 2022, and a feature in the 2022 book Music Mavens: 15 Women of Note published by the Chicago Review Press. Ms. Sainte-Agathe joined forces with GRAMMY Award-winning Kronos Quartet during its 2021-2022 season to conduct the world premiere of At War With Ourselves – 400 Years of You by Michael Abels and continues to perform this work throughout the U.S. on tour with the ensemble.
Ms. Sainte Agathe’s performance highlights include her Carnegie Hall and Barbican Center debuts with the Philip Glass Ensemble, conducting with Michael Riesman in Glass’s Music with Changing Parts; conducting SFGC for the New York Philharmonic Biennial Festival at Lincoln Center; and collaborating with The Knights for the SHIFT Festival at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC. She also served as Choirmaster with Taylor Mac, recipient of MacArthur Foundation’s “Genius Grant,” for the “Holiday Sauce” production at the Curran Theater in December 2018.
Dr. Laney Armstrong, Director of Choral Studies
Laney McClain Armstrong is the Director of Choral Studies at the San Francisco Girls Chorus and is an active teacher and conductor. As a conductor and educator, Dr. Armstrong strives to cultivate a love of music in each singer through quality programming, building skills and musicianship, and devotion to the music and texts. She has toured internationally with choral ensembles as a singer and was one of the founding members of the Choral Fellows program at Harvard University in 2001. Dr. Armstrong has worked with singers of many ages, teaching middle school and high school, serving as the Associate Artistic Director and Director of Musicianship at the Cantabile Youth Singers of Silicon Valley, and as the Artistic Director of the San Francisco-based women’s ensemble, Musae.
Dr. Armstrong holds a Bachelor of Arts from Harvard University in Afro-American Studies and a Master of Music in Choral Conducting from the University of Oregon under the direction of Dr. Sharon Paul. In 2013, she received a Doctorate in Musical Arts in Choral Conducting from the University of Washington, where she studied with Dr. Geoffrey Boers. Her dissertation explores the life of the Estonian composer and his arrangements of folk hymns, focusing on those written for treble voices. Dr. Armstrong holds a Level I Certification in Kodaly teaching and has prepared singers to sing with the San Francisco Opera, the San Francisco Symphony, and Opera Parallele.
Sunset Music and Arts 
You must be logged in to post a comment.