Ethan Fran

 

Ethan Fran

Ethan Fran performs opera, oratorio, sacred music, and recitals frequently in the New York area and beyond. He has recently sung with New York Virtuoso Singers, Bard Festival Chorale, and MasterVoices (formerly The Collegiate Chorale). As soloist, recent highlights include Puccini's La Fanciulla del West with Apotheosis Opera, Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro with The Downtown Symphony, Schubert's Mass in E-flat with Sound Shore Chorale, and Bach's Mass in B Minor with Canterbury Choral Society.

Ethan is currently the Tenor Section Leader of Canterbury Choral Society.


Laura Jobin-Acosta

Long standing soprano section leader of Canterbury Choral Society Laura Jobin-Acosta is both a soprano and composer. Jobin-Acosta is a regular performer of new and classic work in NYC including performances at the prestigious venues within Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall. As a soloist, her professional singing experience expands internationally. Laura's compositions focus on Puerto Rican culture, BIPOC voices, & positive stories. OPERA America IDEA Resident Opera Composer at the National Opera Center, 2021-2022. Finalist in BMP: Next Gen as part of Beth Morrison Projects, 2021. Art song commissions from Opera on Tap, Five Boroughs Music Festival & On Site Opera. Current opera projects: The Curious Lady of Lyme Regis, a short opera film about paleontologist Mary Anning & La Alcaldesa, a full-length opera about Puerto Rico's Doña Felisa Rincón de Gautier, the first female mayor in San Juan. Other large work includes The Seven Last Words of Christ, a chamber oratorio for soloists and choir. Upcoming commissions from Brick Church in Manhattan, Ensemble Pi, & Canterbury Choral Society. BM in Classical Voice from Denver University, MM in Classical Composition from SUNY Purchase Conservatory of Music.  www.laurajobinacosta.com

Of her role in Canterbury Choral Society, Laura says, “As a section leader for CCS, it’s wonderful to share the beauty and power of such amazing compositions with singers of all levels. The music never goes underappreciated, as my fellow singers are there to sing with their hearts.”

Laura Jobin-Acosta 9-11-2020

Alistair Reid

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Alistair Reid, MA FRCO, enjoys a distinguished career as an international concert organist and choral conductor. He is the accompanist for Canterbury rehearsals, and a popular concert soloist. Alistair currently serves as Organist and Director of Music at St. Joseph’s Church Yorkville on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. He is also an Assisting Organist at Trinity Church Wall Street and The Brick Church. Alistair began his musical career as a boy chorister at his local church in London and began playing the piano at the age of eight. He studied music at the University of Oxford and, during this time, was Organ Scholar at Hertford College, Assistant Organist of the University Church, and Conductor of The Oxford Chamber Choir.  After graduating, Alistair crossed the Atlantic to serve as Organ Scholar of Christ Church, Greenwich, Connecticut, while continuing his studies with Gerre Hancock at St. Thomas Church, Fifth Avenue. Alistair was then appointed Assistant Director of Music at Christ Church Cathedral, Indianapolis. During his five-year tenure, he played for weekly broadcasts,  accompanied five European choir tours, and featured on the choir’s acclaimed CD, ‘My Spirit Rejoices’ on the Gothic label.

From 2004 to 2011, Alistair was Associate Director of Music and subsequently Director of Music of Coventry Cathedral in England. During this time, he directed the cathedral's five choirs, trained the boy and girl choristers, and played for a number of high- profile services, concerts, broadcasts, and international tours. He is featured on several CDs including ‘Choral Music from Coventry Cathedral’ on the Herald label and ‘The Best Christmas Carols Album in the W… Ever!’ on the Kingsway label Alistair was also Associate Conductor of the cathedral’s choral society, The Coventry Cathedral Chorus, and in 2010 helped to prepare Britten’s War Requiem for a performance marking the 70th anniversary of the bombing of the cathedral.


Hannah Spierman

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Soprano Hannah Spierman has appeared with Canterbury Choral Society as a soloist for Brahms's Ein deutsches Requiem, Ariani's Oratorio di San Francesco, and Handel's Saul. She has been the Soprano 1 Section Leader since 2017. Her recent opera performances include Donna Anna in Mozart's Don Giovanni and Agathe in Weber’s Der Freischütz with Bronx Opera; Rosalinda in Johann Strauss’s Die Fledermaus with Oswego Opera Theater; and Tatyana in Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin and Julia Jellicoe in Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Grand Duke with Utopia Opera. Additional roles with Bronx Opera have included Donna Elivira in Don Giovanni, Countess Almaviva in Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro, Musetta in Puccini’s La Bohème, Alice Ford in Verdi’s Falstaff, Birdie Hubbard in Marc Blitzstein’s Regina, and lead roles in two rarely produced works by Vaughan Williams: Alice Ford in Sir John in Love and Tormentilla in The Poisoned Kiss. With other New York-area opera companies she has performed the roles of Mimì in La Bohème, Micaëla in Bizet’s Carmen, Echo in Richard Strauss’s Ariadne auf Naxos, Giorgetta in Puccini’s Il tabarro, First Lady in Mozart’s The Magic Flute, and the title role in Gilbert and Sullivan’s Princess Ida.

Upcoming performances include Mařenka in Smetana's The Bartered Bride with Bronx Opera and the soprano solo in Mahler’s Symphony No. 4 with the Litha Symphony. She has also appeared with the New York Choral Society in Honegger's Le Roi David and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9; with the Litha Symphony in Vaughan Williams’s Serenade to Music; and with the Garden State Philharmonic in Handel’s Messiah.

A graduate of New England Conservatory, Ms. Spierman resides in The Bronx with her husband and frequent artistic collaborator, stage director Benjamin Spierman.

Christopher Tefft

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Christopher Tefft is a baritone bass from Grand Rapids, MI who lives and works in NYC. This marks his debut with Canterbury Choral Society. He is a proud member of Actors' Equity Association and frequently performs as a supernumerary actor at the Metropolitan Opera. He recently appeared in La Traviata with New Rochelle Opera. He has also sung at Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall and Carnegie Hall. Christopher toured Saudi Arabia and Egypt with Scooby Doo LIVE: The Mystery of the Pyramids. He has performed Off-Broadway as the principal understudy for Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene’s Drama Desk-nominated production of Amerike: The Golden Land in NYC. Regional theatre experience includes Les Miserables with the Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival

Chris has sung with the Litha Symphony Orchestra, Ember Ensemble of Schola Cantorum on Hudson, Brooklyn MetroChamber Orchestra, the New York Orchestra, the Israeli Philharmonic, and the NJ Festival Orchestra.  He has been a professional Christmas Caroler each holiday season since 2010. He has performed professionally in all five boroughs of NYC. Choirs tours include Germany, France, Belgium, Ireland, Finland, and Estonia. Training: BFA Millikin University and Interlochen Arts Academy. www.ChristopherTefft.net.