Concerts
Hear new works by local Local Composers!
General Admission $15 | Oregon Trail Holders and Students $5
Tickets can be purchased at the door with cash or check.
Voices of Spring
May 16, 2:00pm
SOU Recital Hall
A Choral Concert with Nine Talented Vocalists
conducted by
David Harris
Springtime floats on the notes love sings. Lighten your heart with the floral virtues of choral music as heard through the compositional voices of Rogue Valley composers I’lana Cotton, Beth B. Martin, William Ashworth, Ken Deveney, Ethan Gans-Morse, Mark Jacobs, Aletha Nowitzky, Vanessa Nowitzky, Melissa Orr, and Greg A Steinke as sung by some of the Rogue Valley’s most talented choral singers.
Remember how to forget, and float away on a May breeze.
Refreshments in the lobby!
Purchase tickets online or at the door
General Admission: $15 | Student/EBT: $5
Program
Mark Jacobs: Chimes
Beth B. Martin: Anticipation – Song for Lily
I’lana Cotton: song of greeting/song of praise
Ken Deveney: Attar of Roses 1 (TTB); First Mother’s Day 2:30 (S)
William Ashworth: sky songs
Vanessa Nowitzky: Questions by Bing (SSA)
Melissa Orr: Lento
Greg A Steinke: Singing Heart
Ethan Gans-Morris: Ode to Love
Aletha Nowitzky: New Age Vocal Odyssey
David Harris, conductor
L.A.-based composer/performer David Harris specializes in new music, American music, and the intricacies of communication in singing, writing, and conducting. Through his “compassion-focused, artist-centered” rehearsal process, David opens vocalists into discovery spaces that prioritize each individual’s experience. He has premiered hundreds of pieces for vocal and instrumental ensembles, and theatrical works.
Compositionally, David explores elements in many styles including illuminating harmonics in vocal music, textural layering, structured improvisation, and contrasting resonant strategies. He is director of the professional ensemble Laude with whom he has recorded more than 300 pieces. Their premiere album and performance of Patrick Cassidy’s “The Mass” for choir and organ has over a million listens on Spotify. He is also the Ensemble Director for the N.E.O. Voice Festival, an active part of much of L.A.’s new music scene, and a promoter of justice-inspiring musical exploits.
David is the co-founder of VoiceScienceWorks, an organization helping vocalists learn to translate difficult voice science into immediately applicable tools, and is devoted to his wife and collaborator, Laurel Irene, and their two girls.
Performers
Soprano: Laurel Irene, Taylor Pulsipher, Jennifer Matsuura
Alto: Shelley Cox-Thornhill, Laurie Anne Hunter
Tenor: Andrew Davis, Eric Sohnrey
Bass: Michael Sorensen, David Harris
Piano: Jodi French
Performers’ Bios:
Shelly Cox-Thornhill
Shelly Cox-Thornhill, local of the Rogue Valley, has studied voice for more than 25 years. She is a frequent soloist and chorus member with many ensembles in the region including Jefferson Baroque Orchestra, Siskiyou Singers, Rogue Valley Chorale, Trinity Episcopal Church and Ashland First Presbyterian Church. She is a core singer with the Southern Oregon Repertory Singers. Shelly works for Jackson Co. Mental Health on the administrative team and lives in Medford with her loved ones.
Andrew Davis
Andrew was born and raised in Medford, Oregon. They have studied voice with LynnSjolund, Michael Morris, Dr. Jerron Jorgensen, and Dr. Christi McLain. Andrew hasperformed as both a chorister and soloist with the Rogue Valley Chorale, Southern OregonRepertory Singers, and the choirs of Southern Oregon University. Their operatic workincludes lead roles as F. Scott Fitzgerald in The Ghosts of Gatsby and William Royle inStaggerwing, and most recently as the Current Narrator in The Raven by Jesse Preis. In2025, Andrew was one of four finalists for the Partnership for the Performing ArtsScholarship.
Jodi French
Born with an intrinsic fascination with sound and pitch, Jodi French has always found music to be both a joyful game and a thrilling challenge. By the age of three, her desire to play led her to the piano, the instrument she is most known for playing today. While her natural talents have earned her a proficiency with many instruments, she has always felt the piano to be the most apt for sharing emotion and telling stories. While her mother taught her to read music, this was not enough for the young Jodi. Through her own insistence, she became equally adept at playing by ear as she challenged herself to play everything she heard in every possible key. This drive to continually challenge herself eventually gave her the skills to work as an accompanist when she was only ten years old. Later in life, Ms. French was privileged to study piano performance with Dr. Alexander Tutunov at Southern Oregon University. She continues to be deeply involved with the Music Department at Southern Oregon University as staff accompanist and informal coach, and by teaching piano class for beginners, one of her favorite activities. Ms. French has given numerous solo performances, played recitals and concertos with other musical organizations in Southern Oregon, and has had several of her sacred works published. Her original compositions have regularly been featured in the James M. Collier New Works Festival. Ms. French also serves as organist at Trinity Episcopal Church in Ashland.
David Harris
L.A.-based composer/performer David Harris specializes in new music, American music, and the intricacies of communication in singing, writing, and conducting. Through his “compassion-focused, artist-centered” rehearsal process, David opens vocalists into discovery spaces that prioritize each individual’s experience. He has premiered hundreds of pieces for vocal and instrumental ensembles, and theater works.
drdavidharrismusic.org
Laurie Anne Hunter
The fourth woman ever to conduct the New York City Opera, Laurie Anne Hunter also conducted on Broadway and worked with many regional opera companies in the U.S. and Canada. Former Artistic Director of the Rogue Valley Chorale, she retired from the adjunct voice faculty at Southern Oregon University after 20 years there. She has also led productions for the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Oregon Cabaret Theater, SOU Theater Arts, Rogue Opera, Brava! Opera and Medford’s Collaborative Theater Project. She holds a Master’s degree from the Juilliard School in New York and is currently a core singer and alto section leader with the Southern Oregon Repertory Singers, as well as Musical Director for the First Presbyterian Church of Ashland.
Laurel Irene
Laurel Irene (M.M.), “astounding…downright superhuman” (LA Times) vocal artist and voice researcher, specializes in bringing new compositional works to life with vocal repertoire ranging from Monteverdi to Mozart to the wacky, wild, and extreme sounds of the 21st century. As “major singer…one who seems as if she can do anything” (LA Times), she draws on her research in vocal timbre and acoustics to heighten unique vocal textures and expressions. In2019 she performed the role of Countess Almaviva in REDCAT’s 12 hour endurance art piece, Bliss, earning Mark Swed’s acclaim as “one of the most astonishing performances, vocally and interpretively, I have ever encountered”. A champion of new music and bringing new works to life, she recently premiered the role of Julia in George Lewis’ Pulitzer Prize finalist opera, The Comet/Poppea. Other recent features include performances with The Los Angeles Philharmonic, The Kennedy Center, AMOC: American Modern Opera Company, Long Beach Opera, The LA Phil New Music Group, Musica Angelica Baroque Orchestra, LACMA: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, The Industry, The Getty Museum, Monday Evening Concerts, MOCA: Museum of Contemporary Art, and The First Congregational Church, L.A.As an avid voice educator, she serves as special Voice Arts faculty at California Institute of the Arts. As co-founder of the educational organization, Voice Science Works and the N.E.O. Voice Festival, she gives voice workshops at conferences and collegiate settings across the United States and Europe including the Pan-American Vocology Association, American Choral Directors Association, Acoustical Society of America, Harvard University, York University,College of the Holy Cross, Southern Oregon University, University of California Los Angeles,and Cornish College of the Arts.Laurel is an alumna of performance programs at the USC Thornton School of Music, New Musicon the Point, Cortona New Music Sessions, Oregon State University, California State University L.A., and the Summer Vocology Institute
Jennifer Matsuura
Jennifer Matsuura
, soprano holds degrees in Psychology, Music, Music Therapy, and a Master’s in Mental Health Counseling from SOU and ASU. She has performed in many operas here in the Rogue Valley, and is a frequent soloist with the Southern Oregon Repertory Singers, and the Jefferson Baroque Orchestra. She was also a featured vocalist in Britt Festival Orchestra’s world premiere installation of Brush, a commissioned work by Pulitzer Prize winning composer, Caroline Shaw. She has performed and recorded many new works by composers of the Southern Oregon chapter of NACUSA, one of which was recognized by the American Prize for Vocal Chamber Music in 2024. She is the soprano cantor at Trinity Episcopal Church in Ashland, where she can often be heard singing new works by composer in residence, Jodi French.
Taylor Pulsipher
Taylor is a Rogue Valley native. She has directed choirs, provided private vocal coaching in a variety of states and countries, and has worked with internationally known artists: Kristen Chenowith, Voces 8, Frederica von Stade, David Archuleta, and others. Taylor earned her Music Education degree from Brigham Young University-Idaho and is in her second year of teaching at Grants Pass High School. Taylor sings with Southern Oregon Repertory Singers.
Michael Sorensen
Michael Sorensen studied music at Southern Oregon University, where he earned a B.S. in Music in 2013. He studied voice with Ellie Murray, Laurie Anne Hunter, and Paul French. Michael is a core singer with the Southern Oregon Repertory Singers and also serves as principal violist with the Rogue Valley Symphony.
Eric Sohnrey
Eric Sohnrey is a Tenor who loves to sing all kinds of music and loves to share the messages, stories, and emotions that can be found in song. Graduating from Southern Oregon University in 2023 with a BA in Vocal performance and with the help of the Art and Thea Mills Choral Music Scholarship, his professors, and his friends and family, Eric has continued to sing and teach music throughout the entire valley. Eric teaches Voice, Piano, and Little Mozarts at Rogue Music Academy in Medford as their Director of Voice, sings as a Tenor Core Singer for Southern Oregon Repertory Singers, and sings as the Tenor Cantor at Trinity Episcopal Church in Ashland, Oregon. He has also participated in several genres of singing in the valley, ranging from choral music and traditional settings, musical theater productions at the Camelot Theater,or rock and roll at a benefit concert. Eric plans on continuing his education at some point in the near future where he hopes to travel a bit more around the world and learn how the voice really works.
Previous Concerts This Season
Piano Radiance
January 25, 3pm, SOU Recital Hall
Featuring
Liane Alitowski, piano
with
Clara Kidd, vibraphone
Experience a short visit into each composer’s unique journey, including a piece for vibraphone and piano based on the pelog scale that many gamelan instruments are tuned to.
Brief comments will be offered by NACUSA of Southern Oregon composers William Ashworth, I’lana Cotton, Ken Deveney, Beth B. Martin, Aletha Nowitzky and Melissa Orr before their compositions.
Enjoy refreshments in the lobby at intermission!
Program
Beth B. Martin: Midnight Moonlight Dinner with Chopin and Debussy (Sudden Wild Horses)
Aletha Nowitzky: Star Break
Melissa Orr: Through the Fog
William Ashworth: Sonata quasi una Fantasia
Intermission
I’lana Cotton: I Am a Bell Ringing and Ringing
Ken Deveney: Elegy, Brief Piano Sonata
William Ashworth: In Fields Where Roses Fade
I’lana Cotton: All These Little Songs I’ve Sung: A windchime pelog reverie – with Clara Kidd, vibraphone
Liane Alitowski, D.M.A., is a native New Yorker who has been widely acclaimed for her solo and chamber performances in the US, Canada, France, Sweden, Argentina, Israel, Australia and Japan. She did her studies at Indiana University with Menahem Pressler z”l, of the Beaux Arts Trio. As the first resident pianist for Miami’s New World Symphony under the direction of Michael Tilson Thomas, Ms. Alitowski was featured with artists such as Joshua Bell, the Miami String Quartet, the late Audrey Hepburn and New York’s Lincoln Center Chamber Music Society. She has taught at institutions such as The University of Notre Dame, Tel Aviv University, and the Paideia Institute in Sweden. More recently she was on the faculty at McGill University in Montreal for 10 years. As well, she is the author of the Visby the Virtuoso: The Classical Cruising Cat children’s book series.
visbythevirtuoso.com
Outside of her appearances on land, Ms. Alitowski has performed on board cruise lines all around the world. Her seafaring concert audiences have been on Cunard, Holland America, Princess, Renaissance, Costa and World Explorer cruise ships.
In 2023 Liane moved to the Rogue Valley where she now teaches and performs. We are thrilled to have such a renowned pianist perform our works!
Good Vibes
October 19, 3:00pm, SOU Recital Hall
Featuring
Sherril Wood, flute, Walker Kermode, bassoon, Andy Baldwin, vibraphone, Jennifer Matsuura, soprano
Sherril Wood, flute, Andy Baldwin, vibraphone, Walker Kermode, bassoon, Jen Matsuura, soprano
Composers William Ashworth, Ken Deveney, Bruce Harrell, Beth B. Martin, Aletha Nowitzky, Melissa Orr, and Greg A Steinke have each approached the instrumentation in their own unique way. Composer bios.
Each piece will be preceded by brief comments from the composer.
Refreshments will be served in the lobby.
Program (not in performance order):
Bruce Harrell: Baby Elf March for flute, bassoon and vibraphone
Bruce Harrell: Fugue for Thought for flute, bassoon and vibraphone
Greg Steinke: Memories of Chief Joseph (Image Music XIa) for bassoon and vibraphone
Melissa Orr: Odyssey Muse for flute, bassoon and vibraphone
Aletha Nowitzky: Lady Chameleon’s Progress for flute, bassoon and vibraphone
Beth Martin: Wayward Winds for flute, bassoon and vibraphone
Ken Deveney: DynaRhythm for flute, bassoon and vibraphone
William Ashworth: The World More Full of Weeping for flute, bassoon and vibraphone
William Ashworth: The Celtic Twilight for flute, bassoon, vibraphone and soprano
Soloist bios:
Andy Baldwin, vibraphone
Originally from Kankakee, IL, Andy has maintained an extensive 15 year career in music performance and music education throughout Illinois, Utah, Iowa, and Oregon. Andy holds a Bachelors in Music Education from Eastern Illinois University and a Masters in Music Performance from the University of Utah. Throughout his musical career, Andy has performed with a number of nationally renowned ensembles; including The Britt Festival Orchestra, Rogue Valley Symphony, The Piano Guys, SŌ Percussion, The Utah Jazz Street Beats, Utah Chamber Artists, Salt Lake Symphony, Utah Women’s Chorus, American West Symphony, Cinq Percussion, The Danville Symphony Orchestra, and Gentri: The Gentlemen Trio, to name a few.
Walker Kermode, bassoon
Walker Kermode grew up in Hawaii and studied music at the University of Puget Sound. A
resident of the Rogue Valley since 1996, he is an active bassoonist with the Rogue Valley
Symphony. Outside of music, Walker enjoys cycling and sailing.
Jennifer Matsuura, soprano
Jennifer Matsuura is a graduate of SOU with degrees in Psychology and Music and a Master’s in Mental Health Counseling. She also holds a post-bachelor’s degree in Music Therapy from Arizona State University. She appears regularly in operas in the Rogue Valley, and is a frequent soloist and section leader for the Southern Oregon Repertory Singers; she is also the soprano cantor at Trinity Episcopal Church. In 2021, she made her Messiah debut as the soprano soloist with the Rogue Valley Chorale. Ms. Matsuura was a featured vocalist in the Britt Festival Orchestra’s world premiere installation of Brush, a commissioned work by Pulitzer Prize winning composer Caroline Shaw.
Sherril Kannasto Wood
An Ashland native, Sherril Kannasto Wood earned degrees in music performance from Southern Oregon State College (now SOU) and the New England Conservatory in Boston. Upon returning to Oregon, she co-founded the Northwest Bach Ensemble and served as the group’s Associate Director for 13 years. Additionally, she served as Principal Flutist with the Rogue Valley Symphony and the Rogue Opera Orchestra. She also performed with the Jefferson Baroque Orchestra, Ashland City Band, and at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. She later moved to southern California, where she performed with the Santa Monica Symphony, Musica Angelica Baroque Orchestra, the Los Angeles Baroque Orchestra, the Los Angeles Master Chorale, the San Diego Bach Collegium, and the Los Angeles Flute Orchestra. Sherril is delighted to be back in southern Oregon, where she teaches privately and continues to perform on flute, baroque flute, and recorder.