Choir
The Emerson choir consists of about 25 members, varying widely in musical experience. The choir typically performs anthems during worship services twice a month, as well as two major seasonal performances each year. We run the musical gamut, performing works by traditional and contemporary American composers, classical works, world music, chant, and music in varying languages and styles. The choir's more recent accomplishments include performing selections from Paul Winter's Missa Gaia at the Annual SWUUC Conference of 2012, where we put Emerson on the UU Musical map! Our more recent seasonal concert performances have included Howard Goodall's Eternal Light, Mozart's Vesperae solennes de confessore, K. 339, selections from Handel's Messiah, Gabriel Faure's Requiem, and the Stephen Schwartz musical Pippin, to name a few.Our goal is to move the listener, whether that by spiritual, thought provoking and/or entertaining means. And, although the choir consistently performs at a high level, be not afraid!Rehearsals are structured to keep the mind engaged, motivate our more experienced singers, while breaking the details down enough to make sure the novice singers are able to successfully participate. We also have professional staff singers to guide in the musical development of the choir. Interested? No auditions are necessary, and all voices are welcome. Email: Bonnie@emersonhouston.org
Folk, Rock, and Celtic Bands
In addition to the choir, the Emerson community has a diverse number of guitarists, fiddle players, harpists, bassists, pianists, etc. Small bands play together during worship services and at Emerson social events, performing songs of beloved folk-rock singer/song writer activists throughout the year. Wanna jam with us? Email: Bonnie@emersonhouston.org
Staff Keyboard Artist, Andrew Focks
Andrew Focks is an internationally recognized artist hailed for his poetic lyricism, depth of interpretation, and ferocious intensity. Met with enthusiastic public response, his performances frequently garner the highest critical acclaim. With a repertoire spanning five centuries of music, Andrew has performed across the United States, Europe, and the People’s Republic of China. He has been awarded 1st prizes in numerous state, regional, national and international competitions as a soloist, chamber musician, and concerto soloist, and has worked in master classes with such artists as Robert Levin, Andras Schiff, Dr. Michael Baron, the Vienna Piano Trio, and many others. Equally at home in various genres of literature and performance, Andrew has enjoyed collaborations with various chamber music ensembles, vocalists, instrumentalists, orchestras, and choirs, and has been heard on the Boston Classical Music Station. After winning the American Guild of Organists Scholarship, he studied organ under Christa Rakich. He has held performance positions at the Second Congregational Church of Boxford, Massachusetts and Fellowship Presbyterian Church in Tallahassee,
Florida. Andrew received his pre-college training at the New England Conservatory of Music graduating with high honors, and his Bachelor of Music in
Piano Performance at Florida State University, where he was awarded the Brautlecht Scholarship for Academic and Performance Excellence. He is currently earning his Masters of Music in Piano Performance at Rice University under full scholarship. His teachers have included Patricia Clark, Ya-Fei Chuang, Dr. Read Gainsford, and Dr. Jon Kimura Parker. Keen to explore areas outside of the musical world, Andrew received his solo certificate in single-engine aircraft aviation and holds a black belt in the martial arts. He is represented by Price Rubin & Partners International Artist Management.
Staff Singers - Head Section Lead, Adrian Rodriguez
Adrian O. Rodriguez is beginning his fourth year as Head Section Lead at Emerson Unitarian Universalist Church. He received his Bachelor of Music in Music Education from the University of Houston, where he served as the conductor for the UH a cappella chamber choir, Floreat. Adrian currently serves as the Director of Choirs for Robert E. Lee High School in Baytown, TX, and is concurrently pursuing a Master of Music Education from the Westminster Choir College in Princeton, NJ. Adrian has been instrumental in providing music education to the children and youth at Emerson, conducting and instructing the children during the December 2011 Holiday Review.
Soprano Section Lead, Megan Wilhelm
Megan Wilhelm, soprano, is a well-rounded, multi-talented artist. She recently performed as a young artist with the CoOPERAtive program at Westminster Choir College. She received her Bachelor of Music degree in Vocal Performance from the University of Houston’s Moores School of Music in 2012, where she studied voice with Melanie Sonnenberg. While studying at UH, she appeared in several productions at the Moores Opera Center, including the roles of Second Lady in The Magic Flute and the Milliner in Der Rosenkavalier. She was also greatly involved in the internationally recognized Moores School Concert Chorale, serving as the alto section leader from 2011-2012. Also during the 2011-12 season, she performed as the soloist for Foundry Methodist Church’s performance of the Durufle Requiem. From 2008-2011, the Amarillo native was actively involved with Amarillo Opera, providing outreach to the children of the Amarillo area as an Artist-In-Training. She also performed in several Amarillo Opera productions from 2006-2008 as a leading chorister. During 2009, she competed internationally as a semi-finalist in the Llangollen International Eisteddfod young soloist competition. This is Megan's first season with Emerson.
Alto Section Lead, Brittany Hines-Hill
Brittany Hines-Hill is a New Jersey native, where she gained her Bachelors Degree in Vocal Performance from Westminster Choir College. During her time there, she won the Meistersinger International Opera Competition in Graz, Austria and made her solo debut at Lincoln Center with the New York Philharmonic in Bach's St. Matthew's Passion. In 2011, she was a National Semi-Finalist in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. This coming January she'll be performing in Mozart's Don Giovanni as Donna Elvira in Princeton, New Jersey. This is Brittany's first season with Emerson.
The Emerson choir consists of about 25 members, varying widely in musical experience. The choir typically performs anthems during worship services twice a month, as well as two major seasonal performances each year. We run the musical gamut, performing works by traditional and contemporary American composers, classical works, world music, chant, and music in varying languages and styles. The choir's more recent accomplishments include performing selections from Paul Winter's Missa Gaia at the Annual SWUUC Conference of 2012, where we put Emerson on the UU Musical map! Our more recent seasonal concert performances have included Howard Goodall's Eternal Light, Mozart's Vesperae solennes de confessore, K. 339, selections from Handel's Messiah, Gabriel Faure's Requiem, and the Stephen Schwartz musical Pippin, to name a few.Our goal is to move the listener, whether that by spiritual, thought provoking and/or entertaining means. And, although the choir consistently performs at a high level, be not afraid!Rehearsals are structured to keep the mind engaged, motivate our more experienced singers, while breaking the details down enough to make sure the novice singers are able to successfully participate. We also have professional staff singers to guide in the musical development of the choir. Interested? No auditions are necessary, and all voices are welcome. Email: Bonnie@emersonhouston.org
Folk, Rock, and Celtic Bands
In addition to the choir, the Emerson community has a diverse number of guitarists, fiddle players, harpists, bassists, pianists, etc. Small bands play together during worship services and at Emerson social events, performing songs of beloved folk-rock singer/song writer activists throughout the year. Wanna jam with us? Email: Bonnie@emersonhouston.org
Staff Keyboard Artist, Andrew Focks
Andrew Focks is an internationally recognized artist hailed for his poetic lyricism, depth of interpretation, and ferocious intensity. Met with enthusiastic public response, his performances frequently garner the highest critical acclaim. With a repertoire spanning five centuries of music, Andrew has performed across the United States, Europe, and the People’s Republic of China. He has been awarded 1st prizes in numerous state, regional, national and international competitions as a soloist, chamber musician, and concerto soloist, and has worked in master classes with such artists as Robert Levin, Andras Schiff, Dr. Michael Baron, the Vienna Piano Trio, and many others. Equally at home in various genres of literature and performance, Andrew has enjoyed collaborations with various chamber music ensembles, vocalists, instrumentalists, orchestras, and choirs, and has been heard on the Boston Classical Music Station. After winning the American Guild of Organists Scholarship, he studied organ under Christa Rakich. He has held performance positions at the Second Congregational Church of Boxford, Massachusetts and Fellowship Presbyterian Church in Tallahassee,
Florida. Andrew received his pre-college training at the New England Conservatory of Music graduating with high honors, and his Bachelor of Music in
Piano Performance at Florida State University, where he was awarded the Brautlecht Scholarship for Academic and Performance Excellence. He is currently earning his Masters of Music in Piano Performance at Rice University under full scholarship. His teachers have included Patricia Clark, Ya-Fei Chuang, Dr. Read Gainsford, and Dr. Jon Kimura Parker. Keen to explore areas outside of the musical world, Andrew received his solo certificate in single-engine aircraft aviation and holds a black belt in the martial arts. He is represented by Price Rubin & Partners International Artist Management.
Staff Singers - Head Section Lead, Adrian Rodriguez
Adrian O. Rodriguez is beginning his fourth year as Head Section Lead at Emerson Unitarian Universalist Church. He received his Bachelor of Music in Music Education from the University of Houston, where he served as the conductor for the UH a cappella chamber choir, Floreat. Adrian currently serves as the Director of Choirs for Robert E. Lee High School in Baytown, TX, and is concurrently pursuing a Master of Music Education from the Westminster Choir College in Princeton, NJ. Adrian has been instrumental in providing music education to the children and youth at Emerson, conducting and instructing the children during the December 2011 Holiday Review.
Soprano Section Lead, Megan Wilhelm
Megan Wilhelm, soprano, is a well-rounded, multi-talented artist. She recently performed as a young artist with the CoOPERAtive program at Westminster Choir College. She received her Bachelor of Music degree in Vocal Performance from the University of Houston’s Moores School of Music in 2012, where she studied voice with Melanie Sonnenberg. While studying at UH, she appeared in several productions at the Moores Opera Center, including the roles of Second Lady in The Magic Flute and the Milliner in Der Rosenkavalier. She was also greatly involved in the internationally recognized Moores School Concert Chorale, serving as the alto section leader from 2011-2012. Also during the 2011-12 season, she performed as the soloist for Foundry Methodist Church’s performance of the Durufle Requiem. From 2008-2011, the Amarillo native was actively involved with Amarillo Opera, providing outreach to the children of the Amarillo area as an Artist-In-Training. She also performed in several Amarillo Opera productions from 2006-2008 as a leading chorister. During 2009, she competed internationally as a semi-finalist in the Llangollen International Eisteddfod young soloist competition. This is Megan's first season with Emerson.
Alto Section Lead, Brittany Hines-Hill
Brittany Hines-Hill is a New Jersey native, where she gained her Bachelors Degree in Vocal Performance from Westminster Choir College. During her time there, she won the Meistersinger International Opera Competition in Graz, Austria and made her solo debut at Lincoln Center with the New York Philharmonic in Bach's St. Matthew's Passion. In 2011, she was a National Semi-Finalist in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. This coming January she'll be performing in Mozart's Don Giovanni as Donna Elvira in Princeton, New Jersey. This is Brittany's first season with Emerson.
