"In times of turmoil, the earth and stars inspire to…Behold The Wonder!”University Singers, Treble Choir, and Glee Club present their Fall 2022 concert, conducted by UW School of Music graduate Choral Conducting students Cee Adamson, Scott Fikse, Anjali Chudasama, Larke Witten, Evan Norberg, and Tyler Todd Kimmel.
Biographies
Cee E. Adamson (she/they/Mx.), mezzo-soprano, is pursuing the DMA in Vocal Performance at the University of Washington, where she is studying with Dr. Carrie Shaw. Prior to the University of Washington, Cee studied at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, based in London, where she received the Master of Music and the Master of Performance degrees and was designated a Guildhall Artist. Other education includes the Advanced Artist Diploma and Master of Music from Shenandoah Conservatory at Shenandoah University, and undergraduate degrees in music, accounting, and management from Franklin Pierce University.
Mx. Adamson occupies a fluid place as an operatic talent, capable of treading the beguiling and liminal space between the countertenor and mezzo-soprano. Cee’s vocal versatility has been well showcased in roles as Oberon in Benjamin Britten's A Midsummer Night's Dream, Giulio Cesare in Handel's Giulio Cesare, The Sorceress in Purcell's Dido and Aeneas, and tragic and comic roles from Mercedes in Carmen to Florence Pike in Albert Herring. Cee was also requested to appear as a featured supernumerary in Glimmerglass Opera’s production of Philip Glass’s Orphée.
Before turning her full attention to performing, Mx. Adamson served as an arts administrator and educator with several organizations such as Bel Cantanti Opera, Washington Revels, and Glimmerglass Opera. Cee is an avid performer in opera and recitals and has an affinity for the music of Buxtehude, Handel, Schumann, Poulenc, and Wagner. Additionally, Cee enjoys early jazz, music from the Roaring Twenties, Cole Porter, Sarah Vaughan, and contemporary classical music.
Outside of music, Mx. Adamson is passionate about social justice, higher education administration, fashion, travel, and just about all things pertaining to the United Kingdom.
Anjali is an alumna of the Masters of Music in Choral Conducting program. Before moving to Seattle, she was an active performer and conductor in the Southern California and Chicagoland areas, particularly centered in the intersection between music education, choral music, and community music making.
Anjali completed her Bachelor of Music Education from Wheaton College where she studied with John William Trotter and Mary Hopper. She served as the Honors Conductor for the Concert Choir for two years as a creative and musical leader for many unorthodox projects such as: FEAST - an interactive exploration of the Shabbat dinner through the musical, theatrical, visual, and culinary arts; Singing the Reformation - the premier of a semi-staged concert-length compilation of Michael Praetorius' poly-choral works; and, The Big Sing - a project of community building through choral music which included hundreds of "non-musician" singers and participants. Following graduation, she was invited back to serve as a guest conductor to continue her work in choral improvisation and audience engagement with the Concert Choir through projects such as the WCC Chicago Weekend, which included multiple performances and engagements throughout Chicago from homeless shelters to churches, and to continue the Concert Choir's dedication to singing, teaching, and learning in the Sheridan Correctional Center.
An educator by trade and by heart, Anjali has taught Choir, Music History and Appreciation, and Music from Different Cultures in classrooms with students of all ages from K-5, to middle school and high school, to a community treble choir in the Chicagoland area, striving to utilize a student-centered and equity-based pedagogical approach. She has also performed as an active Mezzo-Soprano soloist, chamber musician, and symphonic chorister to feed her love of the vocal instrument, and teaches voice lessons to students of all ages. Anjali is grateful for the opportunities she has had to learn from master conductors such as Jerry Blackstone, Bruce Chamberlain, Simon Carrington, Geoffrey Boers, Giselle Wyers, John William Trotter, and Mary Hopper, and to sing under and absorb knowledge from many others, notably Rodney Eichenberger and John Nelson. She hopes to utilize the wisdom and experience learned from her students and teachers to help expand the tradition of choral music to reach populations and transform individuals beyond the scope of the concert hall.
Scott is a second-year MM in choral conducting student at the University of Washington, as well as a vocal coach, conductor, and choral scholar with various organizations in the greater Seattle area. Scott moved to Seattle from Honolulu in 2022, where he directed the music program at the Lutheran Church of Honolulu and created the church’s popular “First Mondays” and “Jazz Journey” concert series. Under his direction the LCH choirs prepared over 200 works each year, ranging from chant, Renaissance polyphony, and Baroque works to modern masters. He also served as director of the Honolulu Chorale and artistic director of Early Music Hawai’i.
Scott has a degree in musical arts from Pacific Lutheran University, where he was a founding member of the university’s student-run ensemble PLUtonic. After his studies at PLU, Scott worked as a judge with Varsity Vocals and as a quartet vocalist and arranger with Celebrity Cruises. He still performs with his cruise ship quartet when the group’s schedule allows, recently celebrating their 11th anniversary this past summer. In his free time Scott enjoys travel, hiking, fishing, and practicing yoga and meditation.
Tyler Todd Kimmel is a third year doctor of musical arts student in choral conducting at the University of Washington. He was born and raised in Seattle, where he currently works as a collaborative performing artist and educator.
Passionate about music and theater, he has sought opportunities to maintain both mediums as a director of performing arts at Seattle Christian School, where he runs the secondary choir and theater departments. He also works with local professional and youth theater companies in their production and education departments, and works as a freelance actor and musician. As a composer, he has written several chamber pieces and solo works, two musicals, three film scores, and premiered incidental music for two plays at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Scotland. He is also an avid arranger, continually re-visioning and adapting works for his secondary and church choirs, and runs a voice and piano studio in south Seattle.
Before moving back to Seattle, Tyler served on the adjunct music faculty at Pepperdine University, where he was an assistant conductor of the orchestra, conductor for musical theater, theory tutor and vocal coach. While pursuing his masters degree at Florida International University (FIU), he served as an undergraduate composition teacher, and as an assistant conductor for the FIU Symphony under international conductor, Gzregorz Nowak.
Tyler is a member of the National Association for Music Educators and the American Choral Directors Association. He is passionate about performing arts education for secondary students, and loves hiking, running, skiing, and watching hockey.
Evan has extensive knowledge in both classical and jazz styles, having been part of top notch ensembles in both community and school groups; Edmonds Community College’s Soundsation, Seattle Children’s Choir, Central Washington University’s Chamber Choir, Vocal Jazz 1, and Seattle based Choral Arts Northwest just to name a few. In the professional arena, Evan is a sought after bass/baritone soloist and has performed as a guest for many local community and school groups for major works, such as René Clausen’s Memorial, Handel’s Messiah, Faure’s Requiem, Mozart’s Vespers, and more.
Through inspiration and guidance by the great arrangers of the Pacific Northwest such as Vijay Singh, Kirk Marcy, and Kelly Kunz, Evan has been arranging his own jazz standards and compositions since 2003 with a steady stream of charts for his own ensembles. More notably, his arrangement of Love You Madly was premiered at the National American Choral Directors Association Conference in Chicago in 2011.
During the pandemic, Evan formed his own LLC called Envision Studios with business partner Daniel Schreiner. The goal was to help build virtual content for music teachers throughout the US to support their regular online rehearsals, projects, and virtual performances. Envision supported upwards of 40 school teachers in over 100 projects throughout the pandemic, bringing quality music programs to people's homes, enriching 'classroom' learning, and instilling confidence, recording, and musical skills to students across the country.