Saunders, Neuville featured soloists
Tickets are on sale for the Waupaca Community Chorus and Civic Orchestra’s Sunday, April 3 presentation of Handel’s Messiah.
The concert begins at 2:30 p.m., at Waupaca High School’s Performing Arts Center.
Tickets may be purchased at the Waupaca Area Chamber of Commerce, Stratton’s Drug Store, Waupaca Community Arts Center, from choir members and at the door.
The cost for adults is $10 in advance and $12 at the door, while the cost for students is $4 in advance and $6 at the door.
Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis.
The concert features soloists who have roots in the community and who previously took the stage with the choir.
This year’s soloists are Holly Saunders, Eric Neuville, Gary Moss and Jessica Timman Schwefel.
Saunders, a soprano, earned her bachelor’s degree in vocal performance from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point and her master’s degree in vocal performance from Colorado University-Boulder.
Last year, she directed the UW-Stevens Point operas of “Dido and Aeneas” and “Trial By Jury,” acted as a guest clinician for the university’s opera workshop, sang Scarlatti’s “Christmas Cantata” with the Central Wisconsin Symphony and most recently set up the blocking for its production of “The Magic Flute.”
She has taught private voice lessons for 21 years and enjoyed a six-year gig at Viterbo University in La Crosse, where she taught musical theater voice with Moss, directed orchestras for main-stage musicals and accompanied acting classes.
For Waupaca Community Theatre, Sanders directed “Annie,” “Steel Magnolias,” “The Wizard of Oz,” “The Music Man” and most recently “Love Letters” and “Hate Mail.”
She lives in Waupaca with her husband and two daughters, ages 13 and 6.
Saunders also happens to be one of Neuville’s first voice teachers.
Neuville, a Seattle-based tenor, was a member of both Seattle and Chautauqua Opera’s Young Artist Programs from 2009-2011.
He has gone on to become a regular on operatic and concert stages throughout the country.
Highlights of his 2015-16 season included performances of Scaramuccio in “Ariadne auf Naxos” and Abdullo in “Nabucco” with Seattle Opera, Don Jose in “La tragédie de Carmen” with The Washington Idaho Symphony, Beethoven’s 9th Symphony with the Seattle Symphony, “Carmina Burana” with the Austin Symphony, The Prince in “Rumpelstiltskin” with Opera Fairbanks, “The Poet Sings: Emily Dickinson” with Sonja Tenblad and Michelle Schumann, Handel’s “Messiah” with the Portland Chamber Orchestra and Pacific Musicworks and Ulysses in Fauré’s “Pénélope” with Vespertine Opera.
His 2016-17 season began with his debut at Madison Opera as Laurie in Adamo’s “Little Women” and continues with “Carmina Burana” with the Tucson Symphony Orchestra, Mozart’s “Requiem” with the Seattle Symphony conducted by Itzhak Perlman, the tenor soloist in John Muehleisen’s “Pieta” with the St. Olaf Choir and “Magnum Chorum,” “Le Comte Ory,” “La Traviata” and “Die Zauberflote” with Seattle Opera and multiple appearances with the Grammy award winning ensemble Conspirare.
Neuville is a graduate of Waupaca High School, St. Olaf College, the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Washington.
Moss, bass soloist, performed with the Waupaca choir in 2006, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2014 and 2015.
He enjoys a varied repertoire which includes opera, oratorio, operetta and musical theater.
Moss has sung roles with opera companies around the country, such as Michigan Opera Theater, Toledo Opera, Santa Fe Opera, Washington East Opera, The Ohio Light Opera and Skylight Opera Theatre.
He may be heard on various recordings on the Naxos and Albany labels.
In 2008, Moss joined the roster of Wade Artist Management.
In addition, he currently serves on the voice faculty at Luther College and the musical theater faculty at Viterbo University.
His upcoming engagements include the role of Danilo Danilowich in Lehar’s “The Merry Widow,” Pirate King in Gilbert and Sullivan’s “The Pirates of Penzance,” Vent du Soir in Offenbach’s “Vent du Soir” and Fresco in Herbert’s “The Fortune Teller.”
He holds an undergraduate degree in vocal performance from the University of Utah, and both a master’s degree and doctorate in vocal performance from the University of Michigan.
Timman, a mezzo soprano, is an adjunct professor of voice at the UW-Oshkosh and owner of the Timman Music Studio, in McFarland.
She has performed in more than 30 operatic productions with Opera for the Young, Fresco Opera Theatre, UW Opera, Music by the Lake and others.
Timman was one of four singers selected to join Madison Opera’s Studio Artist Program for its 2012-13 season and has been a member of the Florentine Opera Chorus since 2008.
While performing with the Florentine Opera, she participated in the recordings of “Elmer Gantry” and “Rio de Sangre,” which collectively earned three Grammy awards in 2012 and 2013.
Timman has also performed with the Madison Bach Musicians and Madison Choral Project.
Solo engagements include performing with the Oshkosh Chamber Singers, South Shore Chorale, UW Choral Union, UW Symphony Orchestra, UW-Oshkosh Choirs and UW-Oshkosh Symphony Orchestra.
Timman received a bachelor’s degree in music education from UW-Eau Claire and a Master’s degree in Music and a doctorate of musical arts in voice performance from UW-Madison.