Although I believe EVERY Sunday includes special music, I am elated that one of our newer congregation members, lovely soprano Audra Casebier, accepted my invitation to share her musical gifts with us next Sunday, March 5th, for our first Sunday of Lent. We are grateful that she will be joining the choir in a poignant a cappela rendition of the cherished hymn, Precious Lord, Take My Hand, and also sing a beautiful solo, Ave Verum Corpus, by the French Romantic composer, Francois Dubois, accompanied by myself on piano, and Julie Steiner on flute.
A bit of background on Audra, to get to know her a little better:Soprano Audra Casebier obtained her MM degree in Vocal Performance and Pedagogy from Westminster Choir College under the tutelage of Sally Wolf. Audra recently “delivered a powerhouse performance as the deeply troubled Anna Maurrant” (Times Argus) in Kurt Weill’s Street Scene at Opera North. Other recent performances include Lauretta (Gianni Schicchi) and the title role of Iolanta at Westminster. A 2014 Young Artist with Opera North, Audra has also participated in the CoOPERAtive Program as a Fellow in 2013 and a Young Artist in 2011. Audra received her BM in Vocal Performance from Kent State University.
As always, I hope to see you in church!
Holly Phares, Artist in Residence
