Labeled a "Rising Star" by the American Guild of Organists, Cecily DeMarco was born and raised in Boca Raton, Florida where she was homeschooled from K-12. This May she will graduate from the Juilliard School where she studies with world renowned teacher and organist, Paul Jacobs. She has been accepted into the Master of Music program at Juilliard and will return there in the Fall.
Cecily has performed at St. Patrick's Cathedral (NYC), The Juilliard School (NYC), Hitchcock Presbyterian (Scarsdale, NY), Parish of Christ the Redeemer (Pelham, NY), Church of St. Agnes (NYC), St. Vincent Ferrer (NYC), Brick Presbyterian Church (NYC), Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church (Fort Lauderdale, FL), First Presbyterian Church (Pompano Beach, FL), Bethesda By the Sea (Palm Beach, FL), Saint Andrews Chapel (Sanford, FL), First United Methodist Church (Eugene, Oregon), and University Congregational church (Seattle, WA).
In 2021, Miss DeMarco competed and won first prize in the New York City Chapter of the Regional Competition for Young Organists (RCYO), and proceeded to also win first prize in the Northeast Regional Competition. Because of this win, she participated as a “Rising Star” in a winner’s concert at the 2022 American Guild of Organists National Convention in Seattle, Washington. Cecily is also a co-founder of the Sacred Music Florida Competition.
While not playing the organ, Cecily enjoys painting, arts and crafts, and baking.
Soprano Kerrigan Bigelow, from North Andover, Massachusetts, is an undergraduate student at The Juilliard School. There, she is under the tutelage of Elizabeth Bishop. At Juilliard, Bigelow has performed in many recitals, presenting various types of repertoire including contemporary opera and art song. In 2021, she covered the roles of Sospetto and Grace 2 in Juilliard's production of Rossi’s Orfeo. During the summer of 2022, she made her debut as Zerlina in Don Giovanni, and Kahout in The Cunning Little Vixen at the Chautauqua Opera Conservatory. In May, 2023, She made her Juilliard Opera debut as Una Novizia in Suor Angelica by Puccini. Bigelow also made her NYFOS debut at Juilliard in May.
Bigelow placed first and won the award for Best Performance of a Grieg Song at The Edvard Grieg Society Vocal Competition. Other accomplishments include second prize in The National Society of Arts and Letters Shirley Rabb Winston Scholarship Competition, and first prize in NATS Boston and Music Worcester Young Artists Competition in 2021.
Coming up, Bigelow will perform at Merkin Hall, in New York City, presenting art songs in Chinese. Following, she will travel to Minnesota and perform a recital of Scandinavian songs at Norway House
Vocalist, Actor and Director Russell Fox has over 40 years of experience performing, directing and managing in regional theaters and theme parks across the country. Russell’s training started in his teens and continued throughout his career. As a theater major at Middle Tennessee State University, he studied vocal technique with Cynthia Perkins, a former Broadway singer/actor. He continued his studies in L.A. at the Robert Handly Acting Institute focusing on Uta Hagan’s Respect for Acting and applying her technique to the message and intent behind the lyrics of a song. Notably, Russell has performed as Jinx in Forever Plaid, Seymour in Little Shop of Horrors, Che in Evita, The Baker in Into the Woods, Huck in Big River and Al in A Chorus Line to name a few of his favorites. At Walt Disney World, he originated the role of Clopin in The Hunchback of Notre Dame - A Musical Adventure, and had principal roles in The Hoop Dee Doo Review, Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Specular, The World Dancers and sang with the a cappella group the Voices of Liberty. Most recently, he directed Cabaret for Osceola Arts and A Little Night Music with Alamo City Opera (San Antonio, TX). Russell is adept at identifying and mitigating potential performance issues and guiding performers to hone their craft for success. His passion for mentoring and coaching continues to this day.
Dr. Mason is highly regarded as a music educator, conductor, and clinician having served as the Associate Conductor of the Bob Jones University (SC) Symphony Orchestra, conducting a wide range of repertoire from opera to classical standards. He has guest-conducted high school, university, and community bands in North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Colorado, and South Carolina in addition to his home state of Florida. He received the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Instrumental Conducting from the University of South Carolina (Magna Cum Laude).
Dr. Mason was Director of Choral Ensembles at Bob Jones Academy in Greenville, South Carolina for 12 years. His choral ensembles received statewide recognition, placing first in the AA and AAA divisions of the South Carolina Choral Festival for two consecutive years. His students joined approximately 200 other singers from the United States and Canada for a performance of Haydn’s Lord Nelson Mass at Carnegie Hall in New York City in May, 2001. Dr. Mason has taught Music Theory and other courses on the high school level and as an Adjunct Music Professor at Saint Andrews Conservatory and Reformation Bible College in Sanford, FL. He also has performed as a trumpeter with the Southwest Florida Symphony Orchestra (Fort Myers, FL) and formerly held positions with the Northeast Philharmonic Orchestra (Scranton, PA), the Greenville (SC) Symphony and the Toledo (OH) Symphony. Dr. Mason is a founding member of the Aurora Brass Quintet, and has performed with them throughout the Southeast and Northern Italy.
A native of Mariyskaya ASSR, Russia, Olga Kolpakova received her Masters of Music Degree in violin performance from Kiev Tchaikovsky Conservatory along with two years of post-graduate study as concert performer, orchestra soloist, chamber ensemble soloist and music instructor. Ms. Kolpakova is an accomplished 7 year alumni member of the elite Kiev Chamber Orchestra where she made annual world tours across the globe. Currently, Ms. Kolpakova has a very full teaching schedule of private students. She frequently performs professionally at special events, major theme parks, and solo and chamber concerts; and is involved with several symphony orchestras across the state of Florida.
Cynthia Jimenez has taught piano since 1994 in her home studio. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music from the University of Central Florida, under the tutelage of Laurent Boukobza. Cynthia has been teaching at Saint Andrews Conservatory since 2008 and has participated in the summer music academy in various ways over the years. She has had many years of experience as a church pianist in both a traditional setting with a choir, as well as a contemporary music service. Cynthia is a member of the Orlando Music Club and the Florida Federation of Music Clubs. Her students participate in the annual FFMC Junior festival.
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