Alex Rappaport, Bass – Brooklyn, NY

Alex Rappaport is an entrepreneur, board member and advisor in the education field. For fifteen years, Alex was co-founder and CEO of Flocabulary, a music-based learning platform that has been described as "Schoolhouse Rock meets Hamilton." Flocabulary was acquired in 2019 and is used by millions of students around the world. Alex sang under Stephen Kushner at Phillips Exeter Academy, where he learned that being on time means being early. He majored in music at Tufts University, with a focus on vocal performance, West African drumming and a little a cappella. Alex lives in Brooklyn with his wife Lisbeth and his daughters Winona and Evangeline.

 

Alexander Levicoff, Bass – Philadelphia, PA

Alexander is an educator and performer born and raised in the Philadelphia area. A founding member of the Keystone State Boychoir, under the direction of Steven Fisher and Joe Fitzmartin, Alex was lucky to travel the world learning and making music. He completed his undergraduate degree in Music Education at Temple University, where he sang under Paul Rardin and Rollo Dilworth. A featured soloist with Warminster Symphony Orchestra and Bryn Athyn Orchestra, Alex performs regularly around Southeastern Pennsylvania. No stranger to sacred music, he is a bass section leader at St. Thomas’ Episcopal Church in Whitemarsh, under the direction of Michael Smith. Alex is currently a STEAM specialist in Northeast Philadelphia. When not busy at school, he enjoys biking, tinkering, and reading. Alex lives with his wife, cat, and dog in Lancaster county. 

 

Alexandra Strausbaugh, Soprano – Philadelphia, PA

A native of York, Pennsylvania, Alex is excited to be making her debut with Coro Mundi. Now based in Philadelphia, she works as a licensed social worker in the pediatric intensive care step-down unit at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Alex holds a Bachelor of Music degree with a vocal concentration from Susquehanna University and a Master of Social Work from the University of Denver. In addition to her clinical work, Alex is a passionate choral artist with a deep love for ensemble singing. She has performed as a soprano scholar with Mountainside Baroque in Cumberland, MD and has sung with the Susquehanna Valley Chorale, York County Honors Choirs, as well as the Susquehanna University Choir and Chamber Singers, where she served as the choir manager. Outside of work and singing, Alex enjoys travelling to new places, cooking or baking new recipes, watching New Girl, and snuggling with her rescue pup, Millie. 

 

Allie Lipshutz, Alto – Boston, MA

Allie is a scientific researcher and current PhD student in biomedical sciences at Harvard University. Before moving to Boston, she lived in New York City, earning her Bachelor’s degree from Barnard College of Columbia University and working at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Raised in a family of singers whose parents met in a semi-professional choir, Allie cannot remember a time without music in her life. She credits her love of singing largely to her tenure in the Choir at Germantown Friends School under the direction of Stephen Kushner, where she eventually served as Alto section leader and Choir President. She continues to creatively introduce music into her daily pursuits, including briefly with Choral Chameleon in NYC, and more recently on her small electric keyboard and treasured blue ukulele. When she isn’t singing or researching, Allie can be found running through the parks of Boston or cuddling her cat Evie.

 

Anand Desai, Baritone – New York, NY

Anand is a physician who lives and practices in New York City where he has lived for the past 20 years. After singing under Steve Kushner at Exeter and Steve Sano at Stanford, he sang briefly with the Collegiate Chorale (now Master Voices) in New York. His work as a psychiatrist and psychoanalyst involves teaching and supervising medical students, residents, psychoanalytic candidates and other postdoctoral clinicians. He has recently served as the Associate Director of the Center for Psychoanalytic Training & Research at Columbia University and is currently co-director of its Adult Psychodynamic Psychotherapy Program. He lives with his partner and their beloved dog Sadie.

 

Andrew Padgett, Bass – Belmont, MA

Praised as "splendidly declamatory" (Opera Today) and for his "powerful baritone and impressive vocal range" (Boston Music Intelligencer), bass-baritone Andrew Padgett is an accomplished interpreter of early music from medieval to baroque repertoire. He has worked with several early music luminaries including Masaaki Suzuki, Benjamin Bagby, and Paul O'Dette, and has been featured as a soloist in concert venues worldwide, such as Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center, NYC, the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., and the Esplanade Concert Hall in his hometown, Singapore. He is a frequent collaborator with ensembles such as TENET, Bach Collegium San Diego, Pegasus Early Music, and Piffaro, both as an ensemble artist and a soloist.

Andrew has been a featured soloist on a number of recently-released recordings, including Fortuna Antiqua et Ultra and Medieval Song from Aristotle to Opera with Concordian Dawn, and The Music of Gerre Hancock with The Saint Thomas Choir of Men and Boys. As an ensemble singer, he most recently performed on Skylark Vocal Ensemble’s GRAMMY-nominated album, Clear Voices in the Dark, which includes the first recording by an American choir of Francis Poulenc’s Figure Humaine.

Andrew holds a B.S. in physics, an M.M. in voice from UC Santa Barbara, and an M.M. in Early Music, Oratorio, and Chamber Ensemble from Yale University’s Institute of Sacred Music. After several years in New York City, as a member of the internationally-acclaimed Saint Thomas Choir of Men and Boys, he now lives in the suburbs of Boston with his wife and son, where he frequently sings with Emmanuel Music on their pioneering and long-running Bach Cantata Series, under the direction of Ryan Turner. In his free time, Andrew enjoys miniature painting and homebrewing.

 

Anne Hess, Soprano – Philadelphia, PA

Anne Hess is a choral conductor, music educator, and soprano living in Philadelphia, PA. She joined the Germantown Friends School faculty in 2004 and has been integral to the tradition of choral excellence at GFS through her leadership of Middle and Upper School choral ensembles. She currently directs the Upper School Choir and Chorus and teaches and develops general music coursework. Outside of GFS, Anne is a long-time soprano with the Singing City choir of Philadelphia. Anne got her start as a musician studying piano as a child and singing in the church choir. In high school and college, she also trained as a vocalist, pianist, and orchestral percussionist. Anne is fluent in French and Spanish, holds a Bachelor's degree in Music and Biology from Lehigh University, and a Master’s in Music Education from Boston University. She has relished the privilege of conducting her two sons in choirs at GFS since they were in sixth grade. They are now a first-year college student and a junior in high school. Anne enjoys fitting as many plants as possible into her urban garden and loves traveling, hiking, and learning new languages. 

 

Anthony Wirtz-Regele, Tenor – Denver, CO

As a current student at The Lamont School of Music through The University of Denver, Anthony is pursuing a double masters in vocal performance and conducting. His choral music experience is extensive at almost 30 years - starting all the way back to grade school in Belmond, Iowa.  He has been a member of SPEBSQSA (the Barbershop Harmony Society) as well as the Norsemen and Nordic choirs at Luther College, is active in the Lamont opera program and the Opera Colorado chorus, sings for two of Lamont’s choirs (Chorale and Voces Fortes), and he has participated in countless choral recitals and other choral performances peppered throughout his career.  He is currently at Denver’s St. John’s Cathedral as one of the tenor section leaders and is also a conducting and vocal intern with St. Martin’s Chamber Choir of Denver.  Among all of his choral experience, he is an active multi-instrumentalist, composer, and music history/theory enthusiast.  Anthony would like to extend his gratitude to everyone at Coro Mundi for the opportunity and experience, and he would like to give a special thanks to his husband, Jeffrey, for being insanely supportive of him through all of his many, many endeavors.

 

Bryan Frederick, Bass – Bethesda, MD

Bryan is a Senior Political Scientist at the RAND Corporation, where he conducts research on a range of international security issues. Bryan started singing under Mr. Kushner at Phillips Exeter Academy, for which he is eternally grateful. He founded his college a cappella group (which just celebrated its 25th birthday) at Williams College and later sang in the semi-professional vocal group Uncle Bazz and the Jive Street Five in New York City (which is now, perhaps unsurprisingly, defunct). In graduate school at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, he wrote and composed two original musicals about international relations: Love On a Lie, and Free Trade, Tough Love. He lives outside of Washington, DC with his wife and son, who would really prefer he had more musical outlets outside the home. 

 

Caleb Hess, Bass – Gettysburg, PA

Caleb Hess is a rising sophomore at Gettysburg College majoring in French and Political Science, with a minor in music. He is a Wagnild Scholar at Gettysburg’s Sunderman Conservatory with a concentration in Voice Performance. Raised in a family of singers and conductors, Caleb has been singing his whole life, including tenures with the Keystone State Boychoir and the choirs at  Germantown Friends School. Caleb is also an athlete, playing basketball, golf, and now badminton; he also enjoys hiking, biking, reading, and traveling.

 

Campbell Holder, Tenor – Philadelphia, PA 

Campbell has been singing in the City of Brotherly Love for twenty years now, beginning at St. Peter’s Church under the late Peter Hopkins, where he eventually rose to become Head Chorister. After aging out of his soprano range, he was fortunate enough to join the choir at Germantown Friends, where he first met the founder of Coro Mundi, Stephen Kushner. Campbell also spent two years with the Five College Collegium of the Pioneer Valley. He is currently a member of the Mendelssohn Chorus of Philadelphia. Professionally trained as an auto mechanic, Campbell is the captain of the Athletic Base Ball Club of Philadelphia, and a member of SAIKA cafe. His interests also include tabletop games, bicycles, and various forms of writing.

 

Charlotte Dobbs, Principal Soloist, Soprano – Belmont, MA

Bio available here

 

Christina Murdock, Alto – London, UK

Christina is an award-winning theatremaker, actor, and opera singer. Based in London for the past decade, she is originally from San Francisco. She began singing in the San Francisco Girls Choir and then sang under Mr. Kushner in the Concert Choir at Phillips Exeter Academy. She has a B.M. in Opera from the University of Redlands, which included studying for a year in Vienna, Austria.  Her M.A. in Acting is from the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in London. In 2019, she was awarded the UK Global Talent visa, based on the success of her award-winning solo theatre show, Dangerous Giant Animals, which she wrote, produced, and performed over 40 times in 4 countries. Christina is an educator at heart, previously working in private schools and now in the corporate sector as an executive facilitator and coach, specifically around inclusive culture. She’s very grateful to join Coro Mundi this year and dedicates these performances to her mother, who always encourages her to sing from her heart. 

 

D’quan Tyson, Baritone  – Philadelphia, PA

D’quan is an active arts administrator and freelance performer based in Philadelphia. He works in the non-profit sector as the Orchestral and In-School Programs Coordinator at Musicopia & their affiliate organization-Dancing Classrooms Philly. Over his professional career, he has had the pleasure of performing with various organizations including the Mendelssohn Chorus of Philadelphia (Section Leader), Old Pine Presbyterian Church (Section Leader), the Philadelphia Symphonic Choir, the Bearded Ladies Cabaret, Opera Philadelphia (Sub Roster), and the Princeton Festival (Chorister). In the summer of 2023, he was a cohort member for the premiere of Freedom is a Constant Struggle in the Lincoln Center Summer Stage series at Damrosch Park. D'quan graduated with a Bachelor's of Music in Vocal Performance from Ithaca College and has completed coursework in trauma-informed practice and socioemotional learning from The Bartol Foundation and the University of Pennsylvania: Graduate School of Education. He is thrilled to be joining Coro Mundi to share in this beautiful program!

 

Elissa Kranzler, Alto – Philadelphia, PA

Elissa is a senior scientist at Fors Marsh, a research company, where she oversees health campaign evaluation research for federal and state contracts. She was born and raised in West Hartford, CT, where her passion for performing started at a young age with violin, piano, and voice lessons. As a teenager, Elissa immersed herself in musical theater at her local Jewish Community Center and delighted in singing everything from motets to vocal jazz with her high school’s select choir. As a college student at New York University, she sang with and served as music director for the Cleftomaniacs, a women’s a cappella group. After completing a BS in Music Education, Elissa taught elementary music in Brooklyn, NY, for two years, during which time she sang with Riverside Choral Society and Uncommon Chord, a vocal jazz ensemble. In 2008, Elissa relocated to Philadelphia to pursue a graduate degree in education at the University of Pennsylvania, and later completed a PhD in Communication from the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania. She has sung with Mendelssohn Chorus of Philadelphia, the Philadelphia Symphonic Choir, and Tower of Song, a summertime immersion in women’s choral music. Elissa’s most fulfilling choral experience has been her tenure with Chestnut Street Singers, a cooperative chamber choir with which she has sung for more than a decade. She enjoys being active outside and spending time with her husband (Thomas), dog (Charlie), and toddler (Emmy), with whom she loves to sing.

 

Ellen Peters, Alto – West Chester, PA

Ellen Peters has been a steadfast choral alto in the Philadelphia area ever since she moved here post-graduation from Vassar College in the 90’s. She’s been a core singer with multiple churches and organizations, most notably with Opera Philadelphia, Philadelphia Singers, Mendelssohn Club, Curtis Opera, Coro Mundi, Bearded Ladies Cabaret, and the Crossing, where she sang on grammy-nominated and grammy-winning recordings. She’s performed at the Bard SummerScape Festival, the Festival dei Due Mondi in Spoleto, Italy, Westminster Cathedral, St Paul’s and St Martin-in-the-Fields in London, La Mama Experimental Theatre in NY, and in the backup choir for Andrea Bocelli, Taylor Mac, Rod Stewart and for the Rolling Stones on their 50th anniversary tour.  By day, Ellen is the Accounting Director of UnTours, a travel company dedicated to slow travel, based in Media, PA. UnTours has the honor of being the very first certified B Corporation and is the home of Fair Trade Media and the UnTours Foundation. 

 

Eve Lukens-Day, Alto – Philadelphia, PA

Eve is a grants project officer with the Environmental Protection Agency, Region 3 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She has a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Science from Brown University and prior to working at the EPA she worked at environmental advocacy nonprofits to advance access to clean transportation and energy. Outside of work, Eve loves to find ways to infuse the arts into her life, including participating in local dance performances and recently joining a community choir in West Philadelphia. Her love for choral music dates back to her time in the Upper School Choir at GFS under the direction of Steve Kushner where she was the Alto section leader. She also has dabbled in music composition and had her first choral piece performed with the GFS choir her senior year of high school. Eve is so excited to be singing with Coro Mundi this summer and can’t wait to get to know all her fellow singers!

 

Hee Sung Kim, Principal Pianist and Alto –  Brooklyn, NY

Bio available here

 

Jenna Bly, Soprano – Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Jenna (they/them/iel) is a registered midwife and founding co-lead of the Midwifery and Toronto Community Health (MATCH) Program at South Riverdale Community Health Centre with staff privileges at Michael Garron Hospital. Jenna sang under the direction of Steve Kushner at Exeter and then went on to complete a BA and an MA at McGill University where they sang under the direction of Welsh-Canadian choral director, Iwan Edwards in the McGill University Chorus and the McGill Concert Choir. Jenna was a founding member of McGill’s first ever a cappella group, Effusion (still running, now in its 26th year). During and after their studies at McGill, Jenna also sang under Iwan Edwards with the St. Lawrence Choir, the Montreal Symphony Orchestra Choir and the multi-award winning, 17 voice chamber choir, Concerto Della Donna for many years. Jenna lives with their wife and their three teenage daughters, along with a doodle named Atlas and two kittens named Chicken and Duck on land governed by the Dish With One Spoon Wampum Belt Covenant, now known as the city of Toronto. 

 

Joy Warren, Alto  – Philadelphia, PA

Joy is a former teacher at Germantown Friends School, recently retired.  She has sung for many decades: first in her native Wisconsin with the Lawrence University Choir; later with the Riverside Church Choir in Manhattan where she met Steve Kushner; currently in Philadelphia with the Presbyterian Church of Chestnut Hill Gallery Choir, the Philadelphia Women’s Music Project and Choral Arts Philadelphia. She was a member of the inaugural Coro Mundi choir in Orvieto, Italy and is pleased to be back with the group.

 

Julia Gray, Soprano – Chatham, NJ

Julia is thrilled to have the opportunity to sing with Coro Mundi. Although it feels like a lifetime ago, Julia graduated from the Eastman School of Music with a degree in Vocal Performance and concurrently earned an English degree from the University of Rochester.  From there, she spent a decade working in the artistic programming department at Carnegie Hall, before transitioning to full-time parenting while her two sons were young. She later completed her Masters in Social Work at Columbia University which led her to her current role as a psychotherapist in private practice. Alongside her clinical work, Julia is a dedicated yoga teacher and practitioner and she is honored to guide yoga sessions at Coro Mundi's recent retreats. Being a part of Coro Mundi is a profound gift and cherished part of her life, blending her love for music, wellness, and community connection.  

 

Julian Dorsey, Tenor – Baltimore, MD

Julian is a devops (systems) engineer at Elsevier, a multi-national health and science research publisher. He was first exposed to choral music while a student at Germantown Friends School ('15). There, he sang under Stephen Kushner and eventually served as Choir President. After graduating from GFS, Julian earned a bachelor's degree in computer science from Johns Hopkins University ('19). While doing so, he served as music director for the campus' premiere a cappella group, the Octopodes, and arranged more than a dozen songs for both concert and competition. Julian now lives in Philadelphia and is currently taking an independent study of composition while honing his skills as a multi-instrumentalist in a variety of styles.

 

Karl Erdmann, Tenor – Wilton, CT

Karl began singing choral music as a 5-year-old soprano in a church choir and continued throughout high school when he sang under Stephen Kushner's direction. After college, Karl volunteered in Niger with the U.S. Peace Corps, which began a 20-year career in international aid and development. Karl has led humanitarian and global health efforts with major aid organizations in over two dozen countries, but this is his first time in Iceland. Karl has two children, ages 10 and 7, who have joined him on this trip as they share his love of travel and culture.

 

Katherine Vang, Alto – Menlo Park, CA

Katherine (Kate) returns to Coro Mundi after joining the inaugural choir in Orvieto, Italy. Kate was previously a longtime member of the New London Singers, singing regularly in London venues including St. Martins-in-the-Fields, Westminster Abbey, St. Paul's Cathedral and Royal Albert Hall, as well as contributing to many recordings. She also sang with the USC Thornton Concert Choir and the Phillips Exeter Academy Concert Choir under Steve Kushner. Kate has an extensive resume of theatre, musical theatre and opera, as well as orchestral and jazz instrumental music. She recently relocated with her family to California after living in the UK for nearly two decades.

 

Kelsey Rose DeJesus, Soprano – Collingswood, NJ

Kelsey is a dedicated administrative professional and musician, currently serving as Executive Assistant at Princeton Theological Seminary, as Music Director at Unity Spiritual Center of Springfield, VA, and as a leader of Community and Project Based Leadership courses for Landmark Worldwide. A graduate of Westminster Choir College and Princeton Seminary, Kelsey brings a unique blend of administrative leadership and artistic excellence to her work. Kelsey has sung for numerous international choral tours with the Virginia Choral Scholars and choirs of Trinity Church, Princeton where she served as a section leader and choral scholar. She currently sings with Mendelssohn Chorus and Glassbrook Vocal ensemble. She is an award-winning composer and the proud wife of the exquisite bass, Lucas DeJesus. She is honored to join Coro Mundi this season as a singer and Operations Assistant. 

 

Kirsten Trainer Mallik, Alto – Oak Park, IL

Kirsten Trainer Mallik has worked as a development officer for over twenty years, advancing organizations in education, health care access, antiracism, and the arts. She currently supports Chicago's vulnerable youth at BUILD, providing access to the care and opportunities they need to persist and prevail - especially opportunities to make art and music. Stephen Kushner's choir at Phillips Exeter Academy activated a life dedicated to choral singing, and Kirsten went on to sing with the Harvard-Radcliffe Collegium Musicum, marry tenor Atul Mallik, and continue singing with Chicago's celebrated Chicago Chorale. She has served on both boards - believing fervently in the importance of high-quality non-professional choirs to a healthy society. Kirsten and Atul live in Chicago with their two children, both of whom - unsurprisingly - love to sing.

 

Kristin Kopple, Soprano – Philadelphia, PA

Kristin Kopple has been singing choral music almost her whole life!  From a parish girl’s choir to high school chamber choir and college acapella, from parish choir volunteer to community chorus soloist and early music recording artist, Kristin has kept her love for choral and polyphonic music active for over 5 decades.  She has sung as a volunteer in groups such as the Dartmouth Woodswind, the  St. Martin-in-the-Fields Chestnut Hill Adult Choir and the 20-voice early music ensemble Ancient Voices at the University of Pennsylvania. She was Cantoris Soprano section leader at St. Clement’s Church, Philadelphia, for 15 years, where she participated in three recordings on the Dorian Label.  She performed repeatedly as soprano soloist for Bryn Athyn Cathedral Choir’s Annual Messiah performance.  She has also been part of several small early music ensembles, including Skylark and Chiaroscuro.  More recently, Kristin has volunteered for the St. Mark’s Singers, and for Canto et Spirito.  She first met Steve Kushner when her children sang in his choir at the Germantown Friends School.  Professionally, Dr. Kopple is a licensed clinical psychologist with a private practice in Center City Philadelphia.   Beyond music and psychology, Kristin enjoys walking, hiking, sailing, swimming, tennis, cooking, and being outdoors.

 

Lindsey Overstreet, Soprano – Sacramento, CA

Lindsey Overstreet sang under the direction of Mr. Kushner in the Concert Choir at Phillips Exeter Academy. Her senior year began with the events of 9/11, and Mr. Kushner’s choral selections in light of those events made a lasting impact on Lindsey and her classmates. Lindsey pursued a BA in clinical psychology but spent most of her time singing a cappella at Tufts University. She went on to pursue her doctorate in clinical psychology and sang in an a cappella group and in the Memorial Church Choir at Stanford University. Since then, Lindsey has sung with the choirs at Grace Cathedral in Topeka, Kansas, Christ Church Cambridge in Massachusetts, and Christ Church Cathedral in Houston, Texas. She was lucky enough to tour with these choirs to London, Paris, Dublin, Belfast, and Edinburgh. Professionally, Dr. Overstreet is a practicing clinical psychologist, specializing in the treatment of chronically suicidal and self-harming adolescents. She has recently been appointed as the training director for the child and adolescent psychology training programs at UC Davis Medical Center.

 

Lindsey Reinhard Silva, Soprano – Philadelphia, PA

Lindsey Reinhard Silva is a choral conductor, music educator, and soprano living in Philadelphia, PA. She completed her undergraduate degree in Music Education at Westminster Choir College where she sang in multiple award-winning ensembles. Lindsey then received her Master of Music in Choral Conducting from Georgia State University under the mentorship of Deanna Joseph. While in Atlanta, Lindsey also held staff singer positions at The Cathedral of St. Philip and The First Presbyterian Church of Atlanta. Upon returning to the northeast, Lindsey taught music at Germantown Friends School and Monroe Township High School before beginning her current position as Director of Choral Activities at Strath Haven High School in the Wallingford-Swarthmore School District. She loves Philadelphia deeply for its music, culture, and community. Lindsey lives in Fishtown with her cherished husband, dog, and cat. 

 

Lucas DeJesus, Bass – Collingswood, NJ

Lucas DeJesus is a multi-disciplinary vocalist, arts administrator, and voice teacher based near his hometown: Philadelphia, PA. He holds the position of National Director of Program Operations and Regional Coordinator (Philadelphia) for ArtSmart, where he has been a voice mentor since 2017. Lucas specializes in choral music performance and is an active member of the Opera Philadelphia Chorus, EXIGENCE (Sphinx Organization), Mendelssohn Chorus of Philadelphia (Lead Section Leader & Senior Vocal Artist), Philadelphia Symphonic Chorus, Convoco (founding member), Glassbrook Vocal Ensemble (founding member & Chorus Manager), The Same Stream (founding member), and the Delaware Choral Scholars. He received his Bachelor of Music degree in voice performance from Westminster Choir College in 2014. Lucas is committed to providing under-represented youth access to equitable music education and mentorship as well as fighting for the dignity, respect, and fair working conditions of professional choral musicians.

 

Lucy Guida, Alto – Philadelphia, PA

Lucy is a software developer at the LA-based neo-bank Dave Inc where she works on the Risk team to engineer code-based solutions to prevent fraud and protect customer identity. Her love of choral music began at a young age and was fostered while singing with Steve Kushner in the Germantown Friend School choir. Subsequently, while studying  Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, she sang and eventually directed the then student-run a-cappella and performing arts group the Penn Sirens. She currently sings both in the choir of the Church of St. Martin in the Fields in Chestnut Hill, and in the a-cappella group Project Philly. She lives in Fishtown, and enjoys hobbies such as yoga, playing piano, rock climbing, and jigsaw puzzles.

 

Marisa Miller, Alto – Philadelphia, PA

Marisa Miller is a mezzo-soprano, folk singer, and songwriter originally from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, now based in the Philadelphia area. She has served as the alto section leader at the Church of St. Martin-in-the-Fields for four years and has recently been involved with the St. Martin’s handbell choir, the Germantown Oratorio Choir, and Pipe Choir. Offstage, she is an avid birder and naturalist and works with Friends of the Wissahickon. Marisa earned her master’s degree from the Eastman School of Music and her bachelor’s degree from West Chester University, where she studied vocal performance under Anthony Dean Griffey and Stephen Ng.

 

Matt Robbins, Tenor – Brooklyn, NY

Matt is a musician, piano technician, and software developer.  After moving to New York to study and perform as a jazz pianist, Matt found a niche in working as a piano/vocalist in several bands, touring and appearing in clubs and on festival stages throughout the northeast. Simultaneously, he pursued private vocal studies, and found a warm welcome back home in choral music, where his formative experience singing under Mr. Kushner at Phillips Exeter was a tremendous asset. He has been a sought-after ensemble singer, working with the New York based new music ensemble Choral Chameleon, and the Empire City Men’s Chorus, among others. Matt holds a Masters of Music in Jazz Piano performance from the Manhattan School of Music.

 

Michael Miller, Tenor – Philadelphia, PA

Lyric baritone Michael Miller uses classical music to share the joy and beauty he finds in the world. Michael is currently in his fourth season with Opera Philadelphia, having appeared in the chorus of main stage productions of The Listeners, La bohème, and Rigoletto, as well as various concerts and events with Opera Philadelphia and other organizations throughout the city. At home in both contemporary American opera and standard repertoire, Michael’s performances have spanned from the title role of Figaro in Rossini’s classic Il Barbiere di Siviglia to the transformative role of Joseph DeRocher in Jake Heggie’s Dead Man Walking. Michael has held positions at the Glimmerglass Festival, Opera Theatre of St. Louis, Palm Beach Opera, and Florida Grand Opera. Michael currently is the Bass Section Leader at St. Martin-in-the-Fields Episcopal Church, where he occasionally leads the choir as a substitute conductor. Michael is an alumnus of the University of Michigan and Boston Conservatory at Berklee.

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Molly Rabuffo, Soprano – Brooklyn, NY

Molly Rabuffo is a singer and sound healing artist based in Brooklyn, NY. She completed a dual B.M. degree in Vocal Performance and Music Management at The Hartt School at University of Hartford, and has been performing with NYC-based vocal ensemble Choral Chameleon since 2018. Eager to merge her passions for music and meditation, Molly pursued a Sound Healing Certificate from Sage Academy of Sound in 2019. Soon after, she founded Bloom Sound Collective, a community of musicians and sound healing artists dedicated to creating transformative experiences with sound, and created their signature “choral sound bath” combining the power of the human voice with traditional sound healing instruments and rituals. The Collective has since worked with major artists and institutions in New York City, including the World Trade Center, The Seaport, Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Sound Mind Live, and the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. Through Bloom, Molly continues to bring sound meditation to new audiences through innovative collaborations and first-of-its-kind programming across New York and the greater Northeast. 

 

Nicholas Weininger, Tenor – San Francisco, CA

Nick is a software engineering consultant and choral composer based in San Francisco, where he was an engineering manager for Google from 2005-2020. Nick has sung with the International Orange Chorale of San Francisco since 2007 and was its founding Composer-in-Residence in 2015-16; IOCSF has premiered at least ten of his compositions. Scores and recordings of Nick’s music are available at nicholasweininger.com. Nick’s experience singing under Mr. Kushner at Exeter remains a major influence on his composition. Nick lives with his wife Catharine and son Lewis in the Forest Hill neighborhood of San Francisco.

 

Patricia Pei, Alto – Los Angeles, CA

Patricia first discovered a love for choral singing under Mr. Kushner’s direction at Phillips Exeter Academy, where she also sang with the school’s inexplicably unpopular all-madrigal a capella group, LARK. After a long period of dormancy, she reconnected with the joys of group music-making through Coro Mundi’s residency in Orvieto, Italy in 2018. More recently, she has also performed with Glendale Community College’s Concert Singers. Patricia is an attorney and a federal securities regulator. She is incredibly grateful to her husband and daughters for enduring long flights, countless rehearsals, and multiple impromptu one-woman shows in order to enable her to be here today.

 

Rebecca Greenawalt, Alto – Denver, CO

Rebecca is an operating executive, business strategist, and advisor who has spent over twenty years working with companies in multiple industries to drive profitable growth.  In addition, over the last several years (and spurred by her experience with Coro Mundi!) Rebecca has returned to her musical roots and begun an entirely unexpected second career in the vocal arts.  Rebecca recently completed a graduate Certificate in Performance at the University of Denver’s Lamont School of Music, where she performed multiple leading and solo roles in opera and choral works.  She was astonished to make her solo debut at Carnegie Hall in 2023.  Alongside her business advisory work, Rebecca serves as a Teaching and Touring Artist with Central City Opera, has performed with the Opera Colorado chorus, and is a founding member of Cantare Montibus, a professional chamber choir based in Denver.  Rebecca holds a BA in Economics from Harvard University and an MBA from the Harvard Business School, and loves living in Denver with her husband Keith, their amazing teenagers Theo and Lu, and their enthusiastic dog Zelda. 

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Rebecca Thornburgh, Alto – Philadelphia, PA
Rebecca is a writer, illustrator, graphic designer, and singer. A longtime ensemble member and occasional soloist/small ensemble singer with the Mendelssohn Chorus of Philadelphia and the Gallery Choir of the Presbyterian Church of Chestnut Hill, she has sung everything from Mozart and Mendelssohn to modern commissions and gospel spirituals. For years, she fronted the bluesy rock band Reckless Amateurs, and she’s since dipped a toe into musical theater and cabaret. Rebecca studied fine art at Bryn Mawr College and holds graduate degrees in business from the Wharton School and in creative writing from Hamline University. After a career illustrating over 130 books for children, she now writes reviews for ALA’s Booklist and is at work revising a graphic novel for middle grade readers. Her painted polar bear bench, CHillie, lives on a Chestnut Hill street corner, where she’s gotten so much love from over fourteen years of kiddos that Rebecca has repainted CHillie’s sixteen million tiny scenes a total of three times over about three thousand hours. Rebecca and husband David are in their fourth season of co-hosting Corner House Concerts, a concert series in their pleasantly spooky 160-year-old Victorian house.

 

Richard Dupuis, Bass – Philadelphia, PA

Dick is a retired physician who specialized in pulmonary and critical care medicine. A lifelong resident of Philadelphia, he learned to love choral music while a member of the Germantown Friends School choir. (Years later, his daughter, Lilly would sing in that choir under Steve Kushner; his late wife, Marj Little, would serve as the GFS Lower School librarian.) After a deep dive into a cappella singing with the Yale Alley Cats and Whiffenpoofs, he returned to Philadelphia and choral music. Choirs have included Singing City with Elaine Brown, the Music Group with Sean Deibler, and for over 30 years, the Church of St, Martin in the Fields. He lives with two cats, Waffle and Moose, who tolerate his vocalizing and attempts at the piano.

 

Sharayah Heidenhain, Soprano – Krakow, Poland

An alumna of the original Orvieto Festival Choir in 2018 and Coro Mundi 2022 and 2023 residencies, Sharayah is elated to be joining Coro Mundi once again. A lover of music from a young age, Sharayah was a dedicated member of various choral ensembles and a cappella groups, and a musical theater performer from elementary school to university. After earning a Bachelor of Science and a Masters in Public Affairs from Indiana University, Sharayah joined the U.S. Department of State in 2011, and moved to Washington, D.C. where she sang with the Thomas Circle Singers for nearly ten years. She now serves as a Foreign Service Officer at the U.S. Consulate General in Krakow, Poland. In this position, she covers political and economic developments, with a focus on American investment and commercial diplomacy. She adores living in this beautiful and historic city with her husband and two children. 

 

Thayer Fisher, Baritone – Wauwatosa, WI

Thayer is a Finance Guy™ at Zurn Elkay Water Solutions where he manages forecasting, budgeting, and financial reporting. He has been singing for over 40 years, initially inspired and supported by his singing parents and older brother. He sang under Stephen Kushner at Phillips Exeter Academy, studied voice with Brett Johnson and with the Boston University Tanglewood Institute, and has sung with school, church, community, and semi-professional singing groups. He has been singing with Bel Canto Chorus of Milwaukee for the past 7 years and serves as treasurer on its board. He met his wife Hayley in a Seattle chorus and together they encourage music and singing in their two children, Helen and George, and gently discourage it in their two cats, Ricky and Rocky.

 

Tyler Brown, Tenor – Levittown, PA

Tyler is a Customer Account Partner specializing in food grade material at Univar Solutions, a chemical distribution company serving customers around the globe. He is a graduate of Pennsbury High School where he developed a deep love and appreciation for music and choral singing with incredible experiences at Carnegie Hall and overseas in Germany and Austria singing choral masterworks. From there, Tyler went on to graduate from Susquehanna University where he received a Bachelor of Arts in Music and a Bachelor of Arts in Public Policy. Since college, he has been active as a professional tenor in numerous vocal ensembles including the Susquehanna Valley Chorale, Lawrenceville Community Chorus, and Princeton Pro Musica. Tyler has also volunteered time with the Princeton Society of Musical Amateurs as a featured tenor soloist in works such as Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms, Schubert’s Mass in G, and Mozart’s Requiem. He currently serves as the tenor section leader with the Newtown Presbyterian Church and the Pennsbury Community Chorus. Tyler is also currently pursuing a Masters Degree in Project Management at NYU.When he is not singing, working, or studying, Tyler enjoys his book club, playing pool, spending time with his cat, and bonding with his roommate over their shared love of Twin Peaks.