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Conservatory of Music Concert Series

Annual Christmas Concert - Sold Out

Dawn of Redeeming Grace

Cost and Admission

This is a paid event.

Tickets are sold out for the Saturday concert. If you would like to see a preview of the concert, you may attend an open rehearsal on Friday, December 3 from 5-6:30 p.m. The rehearsal is free and seating will be first-come, first-served.


Join us for the Biola University Annual Christmas concert as the Conservatory of Music presents Dawn of Redeeming Grace.


Questions?

Contact Conservatory of Music at:
562-903-4892
music@biola.edu


Program

Joy to the World | arr. Phil Snedecor
Biola Brass Ensemble

A Festive Christmas | Kenny Bierschenk
Biola Symphonic Winds

Angels From the Realms of Glory | arr. Dan Forrest
Biola University Chorus

O Little Town of Bethlehem | arr. Joshua Childress
Biola Jazz Combo

Angels We Have Heard on High | arr. Saunder Choir
(chant)
Hark! The herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King;
Peace on earth and mercy mild,
God and sinners reconciled.”
Joyful all ye nations rise,
Join the triumph in the skies
With the angelic host proclaim,
“Christ is born in Bethlehem.”
Hark! The herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King.”

O Emmanuel | Andrej Makor
Biola University Chorale
O Emmanuel,
Our king and our lawgiver,
Hope of the nations 
And their savior.
Come and save us,
O Lord Our God.

Silent Night | arr. John Tebay
Biola University Chorus

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel | arr. Jared Hashek
Alison Mills, violin

Be Born in Me | Bernie Herms and Nichole Nordeman
Hannah Nieblas, solo

Christmas Day: Choral Fantasy on Traditional Carols | Gustav Holst
Biola Symphony Orchestra

Gloria | Randol Alan Bass
Biola University Choruses and Symphony Orchestra

Chorale

Dr. Shawna Stewart, Conductor, Associate Professor of Choral Music
Carol Hughes, accompanist

 

Soprano

Aimee Asch

Ashley Holguin**

Maddie Jorgensen

Meredith Keller

Mary Beth Millar

Kenzie Paige*

Jessica Moses

Sierra Tatone

Lydia Tkach


Alto

Frances Azze

April Doyle

Talin Emmerson

Madeline Leung

Elizabeth Meinders*

Hadassah Meneses*

Elise Meyers

Phoebe Robinson

Alexandra Tong

 

Tenor

Caleb Britt

Kobe Burton

Joshua Guadarrama

Kenny Kremer

John Nguyen

Brendan Peters

Ruiyu Wang

Jaysson Yriarte

 

Bass

Matthew Chamberlain

Daniel Jow

Drinian King

Ben Lanz

John Monk

Chris Mott

Joseph Regier*

Benjamin Taylor

David Tolman

Marcos Torres

Raleigh Van Natta

*O Emmanuel, solo

**Angels We Have Heard on High, solo

University Chorus

John Tebay, Conductor
Carol Hughes, accompanist

 

Soprano

Juliann Berrios

Abigail Burt

Yarlene Cortez

Madeline Jensen

Grace Kelly

Jordan McGill

Hannah Meehan

Eve Ranieri

Sophia Smalley

Adriana Trujillo

 

Alto

Kayla Chen

Emilia Davies

Kayla Fermanian

Autumn Gerbrandt

Aimee Gundlach

Elena Johnson

Bingjing Lin

Eryn Lum

Sadie Marton

Clara Sevy

Adelee Smith

Leahwen Torres

Lilly Vannoy

 

Tenor

Caleb Barker

Kenny Cook

Justin Gonzales

Jackson Mathes

John Nguyen

Hunter Steinke

Nathaniel Yee

 

Bass

James Allison III

Rawleigh Grove

Daniel Kim

Jayden Saleh

Gabe Schippa

Marcos Torres*

Fredy William

*Angels from the Realms of Glory, conductor

Biola Symphonic Winds

Robert G. Feller, Conductor, Full Professor of Woodwinds, Brass and Percussion

 

Piccolo

Katherine Stoll

 

Flute

Bernandeth Ngrete

Katherine Stoll

Daisy Perrigan

Brenna Smith

John Monk

Tessa Sobek

Adriana Trujillo

 

Oboe

Aliya Ellis

 

Bb Clarinet

Noah Bush

Katy Feller

James Delgado

 

Bb Bass Clarinet

Ethan Montgomery

 

Bassoon

Kai Yin Lee

Justin Gonzales

 

Alto Saxophone

Arthur Montoya

Ariel Wilson

Caleb Britt

 

Tenor Saxophone

Julia Cochran

Jonathan Diaz

 

Baritone Saxophone

Alexander Reams

 

Trumpet

Oliver Trinidad

Sean Leahy

Tyler Botka

 

French Horn

Renee Yam

Hannah Meehan

Nicholas Rogalski

Josh Grover

James Allison III

Skyler LeBlanc

 

Trombone

Luke Montgomery

Jason Rhue

Adam Zimmerman

 

Euphonium

Michael Acevedo

 

Tuba

James Hunter

 

Percussion

Nicolas Sapper

Titus Nagle

Ilhan de la Cruz 

Jazz Combo

Joshua Childress, Director

Joshua Childress, saxophone

Josh Grover, piano

Alex Minney, bass

Joseph Hartono, drums

Biola Symphony Orchestra

Marlin Owen, Conductor, Associate Professor of Strings

 

Violin I

Alison Mills

Lucy Kim

Natalia Henderson

Anna Krahn

Katie Braito

 

Violin II

Brianna Moore

Daniel Shaffer

Elizabeth Gieser

Annika Miller

Amelia Lim

Alexandra Shellans

Leonora Wagner

 

Viola

Seulgee Park

Leahwen Torres

 

Cello

Daniel Jow

Jiayi Qin

Yeji Lee

Caleb Metts

Madeline Charnow

 

Bass

Sam Solorzano

 

Piano

Yu Yuan

 

Flute

Bernandeth Ngrete

Katherine Stoll

John Monk

Daisy Perrigan

 

Clarinet

Noah Bush

 

French Horn

Renee Yam

Hannah Meehan

James Allison III

Josh Grover

 

Timpani

Nicholas Sapper

Biola Faculty

 

Shawna Stewart

Shawna Stewart

Dr. Shawna Stewart is Director of Choral Studies at Biola University in La Mirada, CA where she conducts the Biola University Chorale and the Vocal Jazz Ensemble. As associate professor, she teaches courses in conducting and choral methods. Dr. Stewart holds degrees from the Eastman School of Music (M.M. Conducting), the University of Southern California (D.M.A. Choral Music), and has served on the faculty at John Brown University and North Dakota State College of Science. She has also held the position of Music Director at several churches in CA and NY. Presently, with an additional interest in early childhood music education, she is the owner of and teacher at Children’s Music Academy in Whittier, CA.

Dr. Stewart frequently serves as an adjudicator and guest clinician for choral festivals, workshops and honor choirs throughout the United States, including ACDA, SCVA, and ACSI. Under her direction, the Biola University Chorale has performed at the 2016 and 2020 Western Division Conference of the American Choral Directors Association and the 2017 National Collegiate Choral Organization’s Biennial National Conference. She is a member of ACDA, NATS, and SCVA, has served on the California ACDA board (6 years), and is currently a Western region national board member for NCCO.



John Tebay

John Tebay

John Tebay received his Bachelor of Music Education from Biola University. He began his career in 1976 as Minister of Music and Worship at Calvary Church of Placentia, California, USA, where he directed the music program for 17 years. In 1981, he became the choral director at El Dorado High School in Placentia, California. He has been director of choral studies at Fullerton College in Southern California since 1985. During that time, he has conducted the 110-voice Concert Choir, the Chamber Singers, the Collegiate Chorale, the Men’s Chorale, the Women’s Chorale, the Vocal Jazz Ensemble, and the song and dance troupe, Bravo.

John’s choirs have performed for ACDA, NCCO, CASMEC and MENC Choral Conventions. Other performances include national and international engagements. He is currently Dean of Fine Arts at Fullerton College.



Robert G. Feller

Robert G. Feller

While serving as a graduate assistant at the Eastman School of Music, Robert G. Feller graduated with a Master’s Degree in Performance and Literature in Trumpet, and was awarded the coveted Performer’s Certificate for outstanding performance. His trumpet teachers have included Barbara Butler (Chicago), Boyde Hood (Los Angeles Philharmonic), Anthony Plog (International Recitalist/ Freiburg School in Germany), John Clyman (Los Angeles), Vincent Chickowitz (Chicago Symphony) Master class performer, Joan La Rue (Long Beach), Gary Wiedeman (Garden Grove), and Frank Maltz (Huntington Beach).

Mr. Feller studied conducting with Larry Curtis (Instrumental, CSULB), Hans Beer (Orchestral, USC), David Wilson (Choral, USC), and David Effron (Orchestral, ESM). He was the founder and director of the Professional Christian Wind Ensemble conducting numerous concerts in Southern California. For two years he also served as the conductor of the Pacific Brass Ensemble, Southern California’s premier Brass Ensemble. For the 5 years of its existence, he was the conductor of the Los Angeles Holiday Brass concerts which was comprised of the best brass players in Southern California.

He has been a performing member of the California Philharmonic, California Wind Orchestra, the Long Beach Municipal Band, the Rochester Philharmonic, Pasadena Symphony, Pasadena Chamber Orchestra, the Ontario Brass, the Nazareth Brass Quintet, and played lead trumpet in dozens of Civic Light Opera productions. He has been a trumpet performer in many of Disneyland’s atmosphere groups including playing lead trumpet for the nationally acclaimed Symphonic Fantasy Tour. From 1989 – 2016 Mr. Feller was the Head Clinician for Disney Performing Arts Excellence in Entertainment Workshops leading approximately 4000 film scoring session workshops. In the course of ten years, he traveled extensively with the Continental Brass and Singers, conducting and playing trumpet in more than 2000 concerts in over 29 countries Worldwide. Mr. Feller was a founding member of Gabriel Brass, a trumpet trio with a four-piece rhythm section, whose crowning achievement was to represent the USA in North and South Korea as well as China. He’s lead teams to Romania to minister to orphans and abandoned babies with Heart2Heart International in 2002, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019, and is scheduled to return every other year.

Currently Mr. Feller is the Head of Winds and Percussion at the Biola University Conservatory of Music. He also conducts the Symphonic Winds, directs the Brass Ensemble, and coaches the Woodwind Quintet, Brass Trio, and Horn Quintet. In addition to teaching Basic and Advanced Instrumental Conducting, Brass Methods, Instrumental Literature for Schools, Guided Research for Instrumental Literature and Pedagogy, he coordinates other activities related to instrumental music.

He just recently retired from playing trumpet, but he was a member of Quartet Biola, a faculty quartet from the Biola Conservatory of Music, who traveled to Japan, mainland China, Hong Kong, Indonesia and Singapore performing in solo concerts, recitals, giving masterclasses, and leading workshops. During his career, he has performed in 31 different countries.



Marlin Owen

Marlin Owen

Marlin Owen is head of Strings Department at Biola University and conductor of the Symphony and Opera Orchestras. He also teaches courses in music history, world music cultures and has been awarded Biola’s “Distinguished Professor of the Year” award. He is a very active performer as a solo cellist, chamber musician, guest conductor and clinician with performances through the U.S., Mexico, Europe and Asia. He studied cello with Peter Farrell at University of California – San Diego, Janos Starker in Switzerland, piano with Edward Epple, and guitar with Manuel Lopez Ramos in Mexico City. He conducted the UCSD orchestra, the San Diego Civic Youth Orchestras and has an ongoing commitment to train young musicians. He is an active supporter and performer of 20th C. composers and music of world cultures. Recent musical travels have been to Eastern Europe, Thailand, Kenya, the Middle East, Norway, Italy, Iceland, Iceland, China, Japan, Indonesia and Singapore. For the past 20 years he has performed chamber recitals and conducted concerto concerts with the internationally famed pianist of the Beaux Arts Trio, Menahem Pressler, Biola University’s Distinguished Artist in Residence.



Joshua Childress

Joshua Childress

Joshua Christian Childress is an alumni from Biola University and current Graduate Student at CSU Long Beach. From the start of music career in grade school, Joshua has strived to achieve the best sound he possibly could and to glorify God. From starting clarinet, to picking up saxophone in junior high and excelling at Redondo Union High School, Joshua has received multiple soloist rewards throughout various competitions. In his college career, Joshua has received the top soloist reward in the 2018 Greeley Jazz Festival, and the Top Collegiate Saxophonist Reward in the 2019 Reno Jazz Festival. Now Joshua has gone on into the professional LA scene as a studio musician, producer, teacher and performer. Joshua has also recorded for Converse, Kelly Rowland, LA times and DiscoverLA while releasing his debut album “Let’s Go There!”. Joshua can be seen playing all over both LA and Orange County.

Acknowledgements

Jeff Askew, Technical Assistance

Brooke Brooks, Operations Manager | School of Fine Arts and Communications

Gina Cabrera and Ellery Sablan, Administrative Assistants | Conservatory of Music

Facilities Services, Set-up

PRG, Video equipment rental

University Marketing, Program and website

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