This popular annual program by the Chamber Singers, University Chorale, University Singers, Treble Choir, Gospel Choir, and UW Glee Club features seven conductors, six choral ensembles, five hundred singers, four graduate conductors, three choral faculty, two hours of great music, and one impressive grand finale.
Program
University Singers
Cee Adamson, Egija Ungure, Tatiana Boggs, directors
O Magnum Mysterium: Evan Ramos
Greensleeves: Arr. Philip Lawson
Winter Night: Audrey Snyder
Glee Club
Evan Norberg, Michael McKenzie, David Ferguson, directors
Sieze the Day: Arr. Roger Emerson
I Am Light: Arr. Derita Seth
Hope Lingers On: Arr. Andrea Ramsey
Treble Choir
Larke Witten, Heidi Blythe, directors
II. Failure is Impossible from Suffrage Cantata: Andrea Ramsey
What Happens When a Woman: Alexandra Olsavsky
Combined Choir
What a Wonderful World Arr. Craig Hella Johnson
UW Gospel Choir
Phyllis Byrdwell, director
Program TBA
University Chorale
Giselle Wyers, director
At the Round Earth's Imagined Corners: Williametta Spencer
Rosas Pandan: Filipino folk, arr. George Hernandez
Crowded Table: The Highwomen (Hembry, McKenna and Carlile) arr. Ramsey
Chamber Singers
Geoffrey Boers, director
A Little Song of Life: Reginald Unterseher
We are Held: Jessica French
Gloria: J.S. Bach
Recital Choir
Justin Birchell, director
Set Me as a Seal: Rene Clausen
Director Bios
Geoffrey Boers is Director of Choral Activities at the University of Washington in Seattle, a program widely recognized as forward thinking, unique, and of great distinction. Under his direction, the graduate choral program has developed a singular mission: to nurture the whole student as conductor-teacher-servant-leader-scholar. This vision has led the program to become one of the most vibrant and innovative in the country, attracting students from around the world interested in exploring the future of our art. Through his teaching he is exploring the evolution of conducting gesture and rehearsal pedagogy and their connection with the emerging neuroscience of mirror neurons, empathy, perception, learning, and personal transformation. His exploration has led to new thoughts about conducting and teaching with regard to breath, movement, artistry, personal awareness, and cultural development. Recently, his work has led to the mentoring of local choral cohorts of teachers and conductors who are interested in building professional communities of ongoing mentorship and musical development. He has developed such mentorship programs across the United States and Canada. In addition to these thoughts about mentorship he is actively working with other leaders in ACDA and NAfME to develop a more unified and useful system for development of musicianship, assessment, adjudication, and repertoire grading.
Geoffrey maintains an active conducting, teaching, workshop and clinic schedule; his recent engagements have included conducting concerts in Orchestra Hall in Minneapolis, Meyerson Concert Hall in Dallas, New York’s Alice Tully and Avery Fischer Hall at Lincoln Center, the Mormon Tabernacle in Salt Lake City, and Benaroya Hall in Seattle. In addition he has served as artist-in-residence in Toronto, Ontario, Mainz, Germany, as well as Seoul, Korea with the world-renown choir the Incheon City Chorale.
In addition to his position at the UW, Boers sings professionally and is the conductor of the Tacoma Symphony Chorus where he conducts both the choir and symphony players in a four-concert season.
Since his tenure at the University of Washington, the choral program has become a leader in promoting the performance, study and exchange of Baltic music in the United States. The choir has toured to the Baltic countries in 2000, 2005, 2010, and 2013. Geoffrey Boers was awarded a prestigious Royalty Research Grant in 2004 to create a Baltic Choral Library in collaboration with the UW Library as well as State and academic libraries in the Baltic. This collection of scores, manuscripts, vocal music, and writings is the first of its kind in the United States. This collection has promoted yearly exchanges with choirs and conductors from the Baltic area who travel each year to Seattle. Further, it has led to numerous UW choral students winning awards and scholarships to travel, study, and work in the Baltic countries.
Phyllis Byrdwell, director of the UW Gospel Choir, is Minister of Music at Mount Zion Baptist Church of Seattle and also a music educator for Lakeside School. She has conducted several seminar workshops on Gospel music throughout Washington state and nationally, and served as a songleader for the Baptist World Alliance conference in Birmingham, England in 2005.
Byrdwell was inducted into the Washington Music Educators Association's Hall of Fame in 2002 and serves on the Seattle Symphony Board of Directors.
A School of Music alumna, she holds a bachelor's degree in music and bachelor's and master's degrees in music education.
Giselle Wyers (she/her/hers) is the Donald E. Petersen Endowed Professor of Choral Music at the University of Washington, where she conducts the award-winning University Chorale and teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in choral conducting and music education. She serves as the newly appointed School of Music's designated Diversity Liaison. University Chorale’s latest CD, Chasing Daybreak, will begin streaming in January 2024 on Apple Music and Spotify. Their third CD, Resonant Streams (on the MSR Music Recordings label) was featured in a 2018 Gramophone magazine article. Wyers is the newly appointed director of Concord Chamber Choir, an adult community chorus within the Columbia Choirs community. Her professional project choir Solaris Vocal Ensemble, specializes in the performance of contemporary American choral literature. Their premiere album Floodsongs, on the Albany Music label, won the American Prize Ernst Bacon Memorial Award for the Performance of American Music in 2017-18.
As a guest conductor, Wyers has led high school honor choirs and all-state choruses in New York (Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center), Kansas, Wisconsin, Georgia, Missouri, Louisiana, Connecticut, Nebraska, Texas, Washington, Alaska, Idaho, Nevada and Vancouver, Canada. She has conducted semi-professional ensembles across the United States and in Germany, the Netherlands, Estonia, and Sweden.
Wyers is a leading national figure in the application of Laban movement theory for conductors. She has served as guest lecturer in conducting at Sweden’s Örebro Universitet, European Festival of Church Music (Germany), Latvian Academy of Music, Eastman School of Music, Ithaca College, Westminster Choir College, University of Iowa, Hobart and William Smith Colleges and Portland State University.
Wyers’ choral works are published by Santa Barbara Music Publishing Company as part of the "Giselle Wyers Choral Series," as well as with MusicSpoke and Hildegard Publishing. Her works have been performed across the United States, South America, Canada, Australia, Cuba, and numerous European cities. She conducted her 30-minute choral cycle entitled And All Shall Be Well, in Carnegie Hall during May of 2022 with a consortium of NW-based choruses, and she will return with a newly composed choral/orchestral work in May of 2026. In 2021-22, she served as composer-in-residence for the Greater Seattle Choral Consortium's annual festivities celebrating the return of in-person singing (her appearance was sponsored by Consortio). Wyers is also committed to mentoring scholar-writers in the field, and served on the editorial board of ACDA’s Choral Journal for six years.
In the distinguished sphere of classical music, Cee E. Adamson (she/they/Mx.) stands as a beacon of versatility and excellence, seamlessly weaving together her roles as an opera singer, voice teacher, choral director, arts administrator, and student affairs practitioner with grace and passion.
As a mezzo-soprano, Cee occupies a fluid place as an operatic talent, capable of treading the beguiling and liminal space between the countertenor and mezzo-soprano, and her 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.
A relentless pursuit of artistic growth and expression has marked her journey as an opera singer. From her early days honing her craft in conservatories to gracing international stages, Cee has consistently captivated audiences with her powerful performances and nuanced interpretations. Moreover, she brings a profound authenticity to each character she embodies, leaving audiences spellbound in her wake.
As a choral educator, Mx. Adamson assumes the role of a visionary choral director whose leadership has transformed vocal ensembles into beacons of musical excellence. Cee is known for her meticulous attention to vocal technique and ensemble precision and her ability to cultivate a deep emotional connection within her choirs, resulting in authentic performances that resonate deeply with audiences and performers alike.
But Mx. Adamson's talents extend far beyond the realm of performance. As an arts administrator, she is a driving force behind the scenes, working tirelessly to cultivate the next generation of artists and administrators alike. Her roles in higher education and student affairs have provided her with a platform to inspire and mentor aspiring musicians, instilling within them a passion for the arts and a commitment to excellence that will resonate throughout their careers. Whether advocating for the importance of arts education, spearheading innovative programming, or fostering meaningful collaborations within the arts community, Cee is dedicated to ensuring that the transformative power of music continues to enrich lives for generations to come.
Throughout her journey, Cee has remained steadfast in her dedication to the power of music to uplift, inspire, and unite. Her contributions to the world of classical music, both as a performer and as a mentor, serve as a testament to her unwavering commitment to artistic excellence and her profound belief in the transformative potential of the arts.
Cee is completing the Doctor of Musical Arts in Vocal Performance at the University of Washington, where she studies with Dr. Carrie Shaw and is undertaking Choral Conducting as a secondary proficiency area with Geoffrey Boers and Giselle Wyers. Before the University of Washington, Cee studied at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama (UK), where she earned the Master of Music and the Master of Performance degrees and was designated a Guildhall Artist. Her other education includes coursework towards the MBA in Leadership & Legal Studies from Northern Kentucky University, the Advanced Artist Diploma and Master of Music from Shenandoah Conservatory at Shenandoah University, and undergraduate degrees in music, theatre arts, accounting, and management from Franklin Pierce University.
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.
Larke Witten, mezzo soprano, music educator, voice teacher, choral conductor, and mother has intentionally kept one foot in the world of music and the other in the lives of her family members. She returns to academia to pursue a Master of Music degree in Choral Conducting.
Larke received a Bachelor’s of Music from Brigham Young University in Vocal Performance. There she studied voice with Dr. Lila Stuart-Bachelder. After graduating, she maintained a private voice studio teaching students ranging from young children to adults, but mostly working with high school students in the choral programs of the North East Independent School District of San Antonio, Texas. She maintained an in-demand studio regularly guiding students to the Texas All-State, Area, and Region Choirs, and to Superior ratings at Regional and State Solo and Ensemble Contests. One of her greatest joys is continued association with her former students seeing them succeed in all areas of life, including, but not limited to their musical endeavors. She believes every music student can play a role in the future success of the arts. Her students have gone on to sing in professional choirs, participate in television and stage work, perform folk rock, sing in cover bands, lead religious music, and serve as arts organization board members. Her current vocal coach is Professor Darrell Babidge, Vocal Department Chair, Juilliard School of Music.
Her previous professional choral appearances have been with the San Antonio Chamber Choir (as a charter member) and the South Dakota Chorale-performing with both at National ACDA Conventions. With SACC, she sang on the roster for eleven seasons under Scott MacPherson and Richard Bjella. Other choral projects were sung under the batons of Brian Schmidt, Robert Bode, Ronald Staheli, Mack Wilberg, Craig Hella Johnson, Ryan Murphy, Markdavin Obenza, Joseph Adam, Fred McIlroy, Steve Danielson, and Tim Westerhaus.
Recently in Washington, she was choral director of the program Peace in Christ for the Bellevue Nativity. She served as the Seattle North Stake Choir Director for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and worked as Music Director of A Christmas Carol: A New Musical. She has sung as a soloist in oratorio, concert, recital and church settings in the state.
In Texas, she led the Texas San Antonio North Stake Choir, Texas San Antonio East Stake Choir, Texas San Antonio Temple Devotional Choir at the Alamodome, and the Stone Oak, Eden, Alamo, and Encino Park Ward Choirs of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She also had various soloist roles in her time in Texas.
Discography projects in which she appears: Unfrozen: Christmas in the Baltics (featured soloist), Spanish & Mexican Cathedral Music, The Choral Works of Andrew Rindfleisch, Eric Whitacre: The Complete a Cappella Works, 1991-2001, Songs of Praise and Remembrance, and The Redeemer: A Sacred Service of Music.
Her collaborations include the San Antonio Choral Society, San Antonio Messiah, San Antonio Mastersingers, the Children’s Chorus of San Antonio, the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square, Choral Arts Northwest, Vox 16, St. James Cathedral Cantorei, Emmanuel Episcopal Church Mercer Island, and the Seattle Ensign Symphony and Chorus.
In her leisure time she enjoys traveling, floral arranging, glass fusing, hiking, gentle kayaking, attempting yoga, trying new restaurants, and being with her family and pets. She is passionate about refugee resettlement and assistance, human kindness, all things Brene Brown and/or Jane Austen, and blue and white pottery.
Egija Claire (she/her) is an international conductor from Latvia, and she is known for her passion for uniting people through music. Egija is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Choral Conducting at the University of Washington. Known for her strong leadership skills and talent for organizing large-scale events, Egija has worked with ensembles across continents, blending cultural traditions and musical excellence. Her most memorable experience was conducting a choir of over 1,000 singers at Toronto’s renowned Roy Thomson Hall during the Latvian Song and Dance Festival.
Egija’s career highlights her expertise in both choral and orchestral settings. Her extensive training and performance experience, including organizing tours and festivals, reflect her dedication to creating meaningful musical experiences. With a background rooted in the rich choral traditions of Latvia and honed by international collaborations, she excels in bringing communities together through the power of music. Egija is committed to fostering connection, artistic excellence, and cultural exchange in every project she leads.
Michael McKenzie is an international award-winning conductor and music educator, whose work centers around the power that choral music has to affect social change. They serve as a Managing Director of Voices for Social Justice, a national nonprofit organization whose work combines social activism with justice-centered artistic expression through performance, resources, and community collaboration. Outside of VFSJ, Michael serves as the Director of Music at Magnolia United Church of Christ. Most recently, they served as Director of the Bellevue Chamber Chorus during their gold medal winning performance at the 2024 World Choir Games in Auckland, New Zealand.
Michael is currently pursuing their DMA in Choral Conducting at the University of Washington School of Music. Prior to this, they graduated with an MM in Choral Conducting, with honors, from the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music at California State University – Long Beach. There, Michael served as the director of ConChord, a student community chorus, and as a teaching assistant for the University Choir and Bob Cole Chamber Choir. For their Master's Recital, Michael earned honorable mention as a finalist for the American Prize's Dale Warland Award for Collegiate Choral Conductors.
Michael was the Founder and Director of two Social Justice Choirs at Gustavus Adolphus College, and their performances earned them 2nd place in The American Prize for Choral Conducting - Community Division and an invitation to present a concert at The 2020 Nobel Conference. Michael graduated from Gustavus Adolphus College, summa cum laude, in 2019 with a BA in Music Education and certification in K-12 Vocal, Instrumental, and Classroom music. Michael is a member of the Music Honors Society Pi Kappa Lambda and the Education Honors Society Kappa Delta Pi, and holds professional affiliations with the American Choral Director’s Association, the National Collegiate Choral Organization, and the National Associate for Music Education.
Scott Fikse is a multi-genre performer and director with a passion for teaching. He is currently pursuing a DMA in Choral Conducting at the University of Washington and serves as a graduate teaching assistant for the School of Music in music history, conducting, and choral methods, as well as an instructor of record for the Program for Writing Across Campus (PWAC) where he teaches Writing in the Humanities. He serves as the assistant conductor of the University of Washington Chorale, Recital Choir, and the Graduate Cohort Ensemble.
Locally, Scott serves as the conductor in residence for the Northwest Edvard Grieg Society and as the choirmaster at All Pilgrims Christian Church. He is also a guest lecturer, with appearances at Seattle Symphony, Early Music Hawai‘i, Midsummer Musical Retreat, Seattle University, and others, and is a regular contributor to the American Choral Directors Association monthly Choral Journal magazine. An active bass-baritone, Scott sings as a choral scholar with the Compline Choir, in the professional vocal ensemble Nothing Gold, and as a guest choral scholar with some of Seattle’s most respected liturgical ensembles. He has also performed numerous roles on the musical theater stage, in vocal jazz ensembles, and in competitions with the Barbershop Harmony Society.
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, where he continues to serve both as artistic director and board member. Scott has secured numerous grants to fund projects with both LCH and EMH, and is currently designing a series of masterclasses that will bring world-class soloists and coaches from across the country to work with Honolulu-based performers. He also remains rooted to Hawai‘i through his work with the Shinnyo-En Buddhist community, where he sings as a soloist for the annual Lantern Floating Ceremony each May which welcomes over 40,000 participants a year.
Scott received his Bachelors of Musical Arts from Pacific Lutheran University, his Masters in Choral Conducting from University of Washington, and has a certification in German language from Eurocentres Köln, Germany. A scholar and active writer, his research currently examines topics in Early Music performance practice and development and the evolution and intersections of both early American and Hawaiian choral music.
Heidi Blythe (she/they) has sung professionally with the Byrd Ensemble, Radiance, SoundCity Singers, and the St. James Cathedral Cantorei. Heidi appeared as alto soloist for Handel's Messiah, Mozart's Requiem, and Considering Matthew Shepard.
An experienced choral director, Heidi is the assistant conductor of Seattle Pro Musica, a nationally recognized ensemble which won the Margaret Hillis award for Choral Excellence and the ASCAP Choral Award for Adventurous Programming. Heidi currently works with SPM's Chroma and Orpheon ensembles. She recently directed the Fauré Requiem for the Music Guild at St. Thomas Episcopal Church with soloists Charles Robert Stephens and Natalie Ingrisano.
Heidi spent thirteen years as the Director of Music at University Congregational United Church of Christ, leading a music program that encompassed seven ensembles and as many as 180 participants a year. A passionate advocate of congregational music-making, Heidi presented a workshop on multi-generational music at the national convention of the United Church of Christ Musicians Association. She twice served as music director for the Pacific Northwest Conference of the UCC.
Heidi provided rehearsal direction for the Seattle Symphony Chorale at the behest of associate conductor Christian Knapp. She was the Gregg Smith Singers’ first choral fellow at the Adirondack Festival of American music, singing with the ensemble under Gregg’s direction, as well as that of Margaret Hillis, Vance George, and Dave Brubeck. She was a research associate at the Smithsonian Institution, working on a joint project on American musicals with the National Portrait Gallery and the National Museum of American History.
Heidi received a Masters in Choral Music Education from the University of Michigan School of Music, Theater, and Dance, where she studied voice with John Gillas and John Charles Pierce, and studied conducting with Sandra Snow and Jerry Blackstone. She was the recipient of the Margaret V. Hood prize and appeared on the Classical GRAMMY-winning album “Songs of Innocence and Experience”. While at Smith College, she studied voice with Jane Bryden and organ with Grant Moss, and was the recipient of the Harriet Dey Barnum and Sarah H. Hamilton prizes in music, and the Imogene Mahony Memorial and Constance Kambour Edwards prizes for organ.
Heidi lives in Seattle with her spouse, Owen, and her children, Felix and Oscar.
Photo credit: Danielle Barnum Photography