Praetorius CHRISTMAS VESPERS
Musician, Chorister, and Musette Profiles
Musician Profiles
SUSANNA PERRY GILMORE, concertmaster, enjoys a multifaceted career as orchestral concertmaster, soloist, chamber musician and Celtic fiddler. She has performed with Apollo’s Fire since 2014 when she joined them for the Sugarloaf Mountain concerts and recordings as well as the Sephardic Journey album. She is concertmaster of the Omaha Symphony and co-creator of Celtic Journey, a touring orchestral pops production. She received her degrees from Oxford University and New England Conservatory.
BRANDON ACKER, lutes, is a specialist on early plucked instruments. He runs a successful YouTube channel which has over 640,000 subscribers and 70 million views. In 2020, he and his wife founded the online music school Arpeggiato. Brandon’s performance career has evolved from playing in rock bands to his current focus playing early music. He has toured extensively through Canada, the US, and the UK, and is in high demand both as a soloist and continuo player.
MATTHEW BASSETT, timpani & percussion, has performed with Apollo’s Fire since 1993. He holds a Bachelor’s degree from CIM and a Master’s degree from Cleveland State University. Currently, he is principal timpanist with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra. In addition to performing, he maintains a busy schedule teaching privately, conducting, and repairing percussion equipment.
PETER BENNETT, organ, is Professor of Musicology at CWRU, and Head of Harpsichord at CIM. As a keyboard player and director he has appeared in the UK and Europe, recording and broadcasting to critical acclaim with Ensemble Dumont, and as a scholar has published widely on music in early-modern France. His latest book, Sounding the Liturgy in Early Modern France: Music and Power at the Court of Louis XIII appeared with Cambridge University Press in 2021.
NICOLE DIVALL, viola, was a core member of the Australian Chamber Orchestra from 2005 to 2020. She has held the position of Principal Viola with ensembles including the Ohio Chamber Orchestra, Cleveland Chamber Symphony, and Sydney Philharmonia. She has appeared as Guest Principal with the Sydney Symphony, Handel & Haydn Society, Albany Symphony, and as soloist with Apollo’s Fire and New York Baroque Incorporated. She is currently Principal Viola of Apollo’s Fire and a core member of Four Nations Ensemble.
CALEB HUDSON, trumpet, a Lexington, Kentucky native and Juilliard graduate, is known for blending virtuosity and sensitivity as a trumpet soloist. A former member of Canadian Brass, The New York Times praised his playing as “brilliantly stylish.” He has performed Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 2 on modern and baroque trumpet, premiered Biedenbender’s River of Time at Carnegie Hall, and released his solo album Nothing Less in 2024. He recorded Suzuki Trumpet School Volume 1 and is deeply rooted in Christian faith.
GREG INGLES, sackbut, attended the Interlochen Arts Academy and graduated from the Oberlin Conservatory and SUNY Stony Brook. Before his career in early music, Greg was the Solo Trombone in the Hofer Symphoniker. He is the music director of the early brass ensemble Dark Horse Consort. He frequently plays with The Handel & Haydn Society of Boston, Philharmonia Baroque, and Tafelmusik. He played with the Globe Theater in their Broadway debut of Twelfth Night and Richard III.
SEAN McGHEE, sackbut, is a Cincinnati-based trombonist. Originally from Virginia, he studied at Indiana University and CCM. McGhee founded the Ars Perpetuum concert series to bring historically informed performances to Cincinnati. He has previously performed with Charlotte Bach Festival, Catacoustic Consort, and the Consort in the Egg. He also plays modern instruments with the Akron and Canton Symphonies. When not performing, he is probably running, cooking, or spoiling his pit-mix George.
KATHRYN MONTOYA, recorder, appears with a variety of orchestral and chamber music ensembles including the Boston Early Music Festival Orchestra, Tafelmusik, Bach Collegium San Diego, and Handel & Haydn Society. She teaches at Oberlin Conservatory and has been on faculty at numerous workshops, training programs, and masterclasses. She enjoys a varied musical career including performing on the GRAMMY® award-winning recording of Charpentier with BEMF, the Globe’s Tony Award-winning Twelfth Night, and filling in on recorder with the Los Angeles Philharmonic.
ANNA O’CONNELL, harp & soprano, specializes in self-accompaniment with folk, medieval, renaissance, and baroque instruments. Her research interests include medieval chant and seventeenth-century Italian women composers. She earned her Master’s in choral music from the University of Southern California and her Doctorate in historical performance practice from CWRU.
ALEX OPSAHL, cornetto & recorder, studied recorder at the Royal Academy of Music and cornetto at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis, earning top prizes including the Moeck Solo Recorder Competition and the RAM Early Music Prize. She has performed with leading ensembles including the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra, Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Boston Early Music Festival, and Philharmonia Baroque, and has appeared with Innsbrucker Festwochen, Oslo Opera, and Glyndebourne Opera. She has recorded with Barokkanerne and the Norwegian Baroque Orchestra and co-founded Tesserae and Dark Horse Consort.
LUKE RINDERKNECHT, timpani & percussion, trained with Matthew Bassett before earning multiple degrees from Juilliard. From Lorin Maazel’s production of Britten’s Turn of the Screw, to appearances with Metropolis Ensemble, Alarm Will Sound, and The Knights, he has gravitated towards chamber orchestras. He is principal timpanist and solo percussionist for CityMusic Cleveland and performs chamber music with Blue Streak Ensemble, Ars Futura, and No Exit New Music Ensemble. He teaches at Bowdoin International Music Festival, Cleveland State University, and CIM’s Academy.
RENÉ SCHIFFER, cello, is praised for his “interpretive imagination and patrician command of the cello” (Cleveland Plain Dealer). A native of Holland, he toured internationally with Sigiswald Kuijken’s La Petite Bande for 16 years. He has also performed and recorded with the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra and in over 50 projects with Tafelmusik. As a concerto soloist, he has performed at Carnegie Hall and many international venues. He can be heard on over 40 CD recordings across 6 labels.
ERIK SCHMALZ, sackbut, received degrees in performance from Oberlin Conservatory and the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. Shortly thereafter, he was introduced to early music, and since then has had the opportunity to perform and record with many of the premier ensembles in North America. A specialist in historically informed performance on period trombones ranging from renaissance slide trumpet to the romantic era, Erik and his instrumentarium of forty historic trombones currently reside in Winchester, Connecticut.
WILLIAM SIMMS, lutes, appears regularly with Apollo’s Fire, The Thirteen, Heartland Baroque, Indianapolis Baroque, The Arcadia Players, and The Washington Bach Consort. He has performed numerous operas and oratorios with such ensembles as The Washington National Opera, Opera Philadelphia, and American Opera Theater. Venues include Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center, The Barns of Wolf Trap, Tanglewood, and the National Cathedral. He performed on the GRAMMY®-winning Songs of Orpheus with Apollo’s Fire and Karim Sulayman.
KATHIE STEWART, recorder, is Curator of Historical Keyboard Instruments and Teacher of Baroque Flute at Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music. She is a founding member and principal flutist of Apollo’s Fire, and has performed with ensembles including The Cleveland Orchestra, Tafelmusik, Portland Baroque, Philharmonia Baroque, and the Washington Bach Consort. She is also Assistant Director of the Seattle Baroque Flute Workshop. Kathie is an avid proponent of Celtic music, playing Irish flute and whistle on several Apollo’s Fire recordings.
SARAH STONE, viola da gamba, was drawn to baroque cello and viola da gamba through a curiosity in the cultural background of the music she plays. She is executive director of Repast Baroque, a chamber music ensemble based in New York City, and manages Bitterroot Baroque, a community orchestra in Hamilton, Montana. Performances include Trinity Baroque Orchestra, Seraphic Fire, and The Sebastians. She loves gardening, animation, long walks, deep-dives into digitized collections, and her cats Nyx and Erebus.
PERRY SUTTON, trumpet, leads a musically diverse life, performing in baroque, orchestral, chamber, and commercial music settings with equal dexterity. His early music credits include: Trinity Baroque Orchestra, Handel & Haydn Society, Boston Early Music Festival, and Tempesta di Mare During the times the trumpet stays in the case, Perry maintains a small teaching studio and is an avid golfer.
EMI TANABE, violin, enjoys a multifaceted career as a baroque violinist and a solo crossover artist. In addition to her work with Apollo’s Fire, she performs with Haymarket Opera and Third Coast Baroque. Her facility with improvisation has led to many solo performances with world music, Latin, and jazz ensembles across the country, including the renowned Surabhi Ensemble, children’s music band Wendy & DB, and Teatro ZinZanni. She holds degrees in violin performance from the University of North Texas and Roosevelt University.
KIRI TOLLAKSEN, cornetto, enjoys a varied career as a performer and teacher. Kiri has performed throughout North America with ensembles including Piffaro, Apollo’s Fire, Toronto Consort, TENET, Tesserae, Harmonia Stellarum, Philharmonia Baroque, and Dark Horse Consort. With degrees from Eastman, Yale, and University of Michigan, Kiri has served on the faculty of Indiana University, Brass Antiqua, and the Amherst and Madison Early Music Festivals.
SUE YELANJIAN, contrabass, has performed with many of the leading North American baroque orchestras, including Relic, Tafelmusik, the Handel & Haydn Society, and Chatham Baroque. She has performed at the Carmel Bach Festival, Tanglewood, and Ravinia, as well as the Sturm und Drang Festival in Germany. She attended Oberlin Conservatory and received degrees from the Cleveland Institute of Music and Boston University.
Chorister Profiles
JENNIFER BATES, soprano, enjoys a multifaceted career in the opera and concert worlds. She has sung with the New York Philharmonic, Mostly Mozart Festival, and New York City Opera. Internationally, Jennifer’s engagements have included solo appearances with Leonard Slatkin at the Three Choirs Festival; Robert Tear at the Dartington International Summer Festival; and Sir David Willcocks at Royal Albert Hall.
ELIJAH BOWEN, tenor, specializes in early music and has been seen as a soloist with Indianapolis Baroque, Bloomington Bach Cantata Project, and Internationale Bachakademie Stuttgart. Operatic roles include performances with IU Opera Theater and Haymarket Opera Company. Formerly a staff singer at Christ Church Cathedral (Indianapolis), he now sings at St. Francis in the Fields, Louisville, KY.
LESLIE FRYE, mezzo-soprano, has been performing and recording with Apollo’s Fire for twelve years. She has sung with the New York Philharmonic, Quire Cleveland, Gaudium, and The Publick Musick. Her versatile path includes projects with Max von Egmond, Bobby McFerrin, and Richard Miller. An accomplished pianist and passionate educator, she devotes much of her career to her students.
MICHAEL GALVIN, bass-baritone, has performed with Boston Lyric Opera (La Bohème, Aida, Omar) and Boston Early Music Festival (Don Quichotte, Circé, Alcina, Orlando Generoso), appearing in BEMF’s Circé (CPO). Ensemble credits the Handel & Haydn Society, The Thirteen, and Nightingale. As drag artist Donatella Fermata, he recently starred as the Sorceress in Dido & Aeneas with Atlanta Baroque.
SETH HOBI, baritone, is currently pursuing a Master’s in voice at the University of Notre Dame’s Sacred Music program. He received his Bachelor’s degree in vocal performance from Cleveland State University and sings with Apollo’s Fire as a Young Artist Fellow. His work includes ensemble and solo singing in early music, oratorio, opera, and art song.
KIRA MCGIRR, mezzo-soprano, performs repertoire spanning from Baroque to contemporary. Solo performances include Elgar’s Sea Pictures; Mozart’s Requiem and Coronation Mass; and Handel’s Messiah, among others. Debuting this season with Lexington Bach Festival, Heights Chamber Orchestra, and Musical Theater Project, she also returns to Cleveland Repertory Orchestra, and Perrysburg Symphony. Kira sings with Cleveland Chamber Choir and at Trinity Cathedral.
FRANCISCO PRADO, baritone, is in his eighth season with Apollo’s Fire. He has been heard throughout the greater Cleveland area, including performances with The Cleveland Opera, The Cleveland Orchestra Chorus, and as a soloist with The Cleveland Orchestra. Francisco is a graduate of CIM, and currently serves as the Director of Music at St. Rocco’s Catholic Church.
JOE SCHLESINGER, countertenor, attended Augustana College and DePaul University. He received a Netherlands-America Foundation Fulbright Fellowship to study in the Netherlands where he sang with the Netherlands Opera and the Dutch Reisopera. He has performed with Quire Cleveland, Music of the Baroque, Seattle ProMusica, Vox Regis, and Madison Bach Musicians. He enjoys traveling with his husband and three sons.
JEFFREY STRAUSS, baritone, has been praised as “an elegant and energetic singer” (Seen and Heard International). A frequent soloist with Apollo’s Fire for 30 years, he studied in Paris with Gérard Souzay and has performed internationally with leading period instrument groups and modern orchestras. He has also championed contemporary music, working with Ralph Shapey, Milton Babbitt, Lawrence Axelrod, and others.
GREGÓRIO TANIGUCHI, tenor, is native Angeleno and a Brooklyn resident, specializing in music of antiquity and the contemporary as chamber artist and soloist. Gregório is passionate about artistic community, coaching language, and knitting. Since recording his mother’s favorite fado during lockdown, he’s been learning guitarra portuguesa—and cornetto. He enjoys being part of his ecological community by raising native wildflowers.
NADIA TARNAWSKY, alto, is a specialist in traditional Ukrainian folk singing in addition to her work with Medieval and Baroque ensembles. As a recipient of a Fulbright Award, she has taught and performed Ukrainian folk songs in many venues in North America and Europe and has sung with Cappella Romana, Trobár and the Kitka Ensemble among others.
BRIAN WENTZEL, tenor, is a singer, keyboardist, and composer. He holds degrees in organ performance, sacred music, and mathematics, and is a Fellow of the American Guild of Organists. When he is not making music, he works as the Business Manager for the Lake Erie Crushers, a minor league baseball team.
APOLLO’S MUSETTES – Treble Youth Choir
Quinley Armstrong is a freshman at Shaker Heights High School who enjoys playing trumpet in the symphonic band at school and playing volleyball competitively. Quinley has been singing for 8 years, and is excited for this opportunity to perform with Apollo’s Fire for the first time.
Aika Birch, 16, is a student at Jackson High School, and sings in their choir program. This is her third year playing violin in the Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra and in her free time she enjoys reading, sewing and taking long walks.
Lucia Cortes loves to sing, play the cello, and disappear into a good book. A freshman at Hathaway Brown, she is delighted to make her debut with Apollo’s Musettes. At home, she is closely supervised by her cat, Fez.
Lizzie Harbaugh is a sophomore at Shaker Heights High School and excited to be singing for the first time with Apollo’s Musettes. She recently appeared in the ensemble of the musical Chicago and as the lead role in Heights Youth Theater’s Cinderella.
Grace Hartley is in fourth grade at Lomond Elementary. She loves math, reading, drawing, and playing the violin. She also sings in the St. Paul’s Episcopal Church Children’s Choir.
Rosie Horvath is a junior at Chagrin Falls High School and is happy to be back performing with the Musettes. She plays violin with the Contemporary Youth Orchestra and is a first year student at Chagrin Academy for the Performing Arts.
Vedi Mehta is a seventh grader at Hathaway Brown School, sings in chorus and enjoys music. She plays piano and tennis, loves dancing and learning to cook, and enjoys traveling to explore new places.
Olivia Pich is a 4th grader at Hathaway Brown. A budding classical violinist, she loves reading, writing, drawing, and singing. Curious by nature, she likes to collect seashells and rocks and is excited for her first performance with Apollo’s Musettes.
Federica Salvagni attends Hathaway Brown School in the 7th grade. She made her debut with Apollo’s Fire last year in the performance Wassail! in the role of Molly. She regularly performs with Heights Youth Theater and enjoys playing volleyball!
Isabel Strozewski is a vocal major at Cleveland School of the Arts High School and enjoys performing musical theatre. She is an avid reader, music listener, and writer.
Molly Walsh, a 6th grader at Hathaway Brown, makes her Musettes debut. Since 2022 she has shined in musical theatre with multiple leads and hopes to perform for life. Molly is also involved in Model UN, speech and debate, skiing, softball, volleyball, and basketball.
Beatrice Watkins, attends Hathaway Brown Upper School where she performs with the HB Singers. She was previously part of the HB Middle School Chorus and North Park Ensemble. She also enjoys playing the guitar and horseback riding.