The Emmanuel Choir
The Emmanuel Choir sings for all major liturgies of Emmanuel Church and is Maryland’s premier liturgical choral ensemble.
The Emmanuel Choir 2021-2022 (Photo: Nick Hughes)
A fully-professional mixed-voice ensemble, its 12-member core is augmented by four Choral Scholars, each a local music student. Rooted in the great and expansive choral traditions of the Anglican (Episcopal) Church, the Emmanuel Choir’s repertoire spans the centuries — from Italian Renaissance to English Romantic; from plainsong to the 21st century — and includes regular world-premiere performances of new music composed for the Church of today and tomorrow.
The choir is led by Christian Lane, Director of Music. Read about its accomplished members below.
Listen to the choir
Soprano
Eden Bartholomew
Soprano Eden Bartholomew (she/they) is passionate about the ranges of expression, collaboration, and emotionality in vocal performance. She recently received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Vassar College, where they majored in Music and studied with Drew Minter. At Vassar, she won the Competition for Soloists (2021, 2022), and the Lucia V. Torian Award (2022, 2023) twice. Having also focused on British and American Literature at Vassar, Eden strives to combine literary analysis with performance; Eden’s past operatic performances include Die Zauberflöte (Papagena), L’Orfeo (Musica), scenes from L’incoronazione di Poppea (Poppea), and Speed Dating Tonight! by Michael Ching. Recently, she was featured as a Voice of Joan in Richard Einhorn’s Voices of Light at the Bardavon Opera House with Vassar College. In addition to singing, they love mountain biking, journaling, and traveling. Eden is currently pursuing her Masters of Music degree in Voice at Peabody Conservatory, where she studies with Professor Elizabeth Futral.
Lauren Kim
Choral Scholar Lauren Kim is currently pursuing her Bachelor's in Vocal Performance (Soprano) and Music Education at the Peabody Institute of The Johns Hopkins University. She has experience in piano performance/accompaniment and composition, and aspires to become a conductor predominantly working with vocal ensembles. Lauren is currently studying/has studied under the direction of Tony Arnold, Elizabeth Farnum, and Young Park. She has sung in productions including Così fan tutte (Dorabella, 2022), The Merry Widow (Valencienne, 2020), Die Fledermaus (featured soloist, 2019), and Le Nozze di Figaro (children’s choir, 2015). Other performances include multiple vocal and piano recitals at Steinway Hall and the Riverside Church in Manhattan, as well as a virtual recital with Juilliard & Nord Anglia. Lauren is also a founding member of Florence, a chamber ensemble comprised of six women’s voices, who strive to bridge gaps and bring people together through the power of music.
Nicole Stover is a vibrant singer with a fierce love for classical music and a passion for storytelling. Her focus centers around collaborative arts such as opera, chamber music, new music and choral singing.
Nicole Stover
A genre bursting at the seams with stories and escapism, performing opera is where Nicole feels most at home. Often playing women with a dramatic flair, she has performed as Nella in Varna International’s production of Gianni Schicchi and as Noémie in UNT’s production of Le Testament de Tante Caroline. Most recently, Nicole focused on the role of Miss Jessel from Britten’s The Turn of the Screw with Peabody Opera.
At her alma mater, the University of North Texas, Nicole was granted the opportunity to expand her knowledge of early music, delving further into chamber works with members of the acclaimed chamber group, Fantasmi, created and directed by Dr. Paul Leenhouts. She graduated with her BM in Vocal Performance in 2019 under the direction of Dr. Carol Wilson.
Nicole pursued her Master’s Degree in Vocal Performance at Peabody Conservatory, studying under the direction of Ah Young Hong.
Alto
Claire Galloway
British-American Claire Galloway’s theatricality covers the gamut of “palpable pain” and “splendid, funny moments” (B.I.T.R.). This season she joins Opera NexGen as Fiordiligi (Lily) in Così fan tutte. Ms. Galloway is a Fellow at the Ravinia Steans Music Institute and a featured artist in Baltimore Musicales’ series.
Having performed roles such as Blanche (Dialogues of the Carmelites), Vitellia (La Clemenza di Tito), Dinah (Trouble in Tahiti), Contessa (Nozze di Figaro), and Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni), she has also premiered roles in works by Steven Crino, Jonathan Dove, and Frances Pollock.
She has performed with the new Podcast Opera Company, Saltworks Opera, Baltimore Concert Opera, the Savannah Voice Festival, Bel Cantanti Opera, and Stillpointe Theatre. Ms. Galloway’s innovative recital programing has resulted in the best-attended concert event at the Baltimore War Memorial Arts Initiative in past seasons.
Sonya Knussen
Sonya Knussen is a singer, music educator, and composer, with a diverse background that spans festival creation, concert programming, and teaching. In her performing, she holds a special fondness for ensemble singing. Sonya has also ventured into uncharted territories, such as singing through a megaphone on the iconic Tower Bridge and participating as a vocal animateur for education projects with the BBC Proms and ENO Baylis.
As a music educator, Sonya offers a wealth of knowledge and insights in her individual lessons. Her approach is holistic, aimed at nurturing musical growth while encouraging students to think outside the box. She is committed to unlocking the true musical potential of each student by embracing their individuality and artistic expression.
Sonya is also a composer and the founder and artistic director of Go Compose North America, an online composition program offering workshops to students of all abilities. She has collaborated with hundreds of musicians worldwide to offer educational opportunities to young people, both in person and online.
For more information about Sonya, her range of work, and her musical family, visit www.sonyaknussen.com.
Kaylee Parker
Mezzo-Soprano Kaylee Parker is an avid choir member and teacher based in Baltimore, MD. Kaylee earned her Master’s degree in Vocal Performance from California State University, Long Beach at the Bob Cole Conservatory of music where she studied voice with the late tenor Timothy MacDougall. Performances include the American premiere of Phillip Glass’s The Perfect American with Long Beach Opera, Dinah in Leonard Bernstein’s Trouble in Tahiti, Old Lady in Bernstein’s Candide, as well as several performances with the CSULB Video Game Orchestra. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Music Education from the University of North Dakota. While at UND, she performed with UND Choral and Opera programs, sang with the Grand Forks Master Chorale, music directed Godspell! and Little Women at a local high school, and maintained a private piano and voice studio.
Kaylee has been teaching elementary and middle school music for five years. She has spent five summers with the Des Moines Choral Festival singing a variety of choral music with graduate conductors. She enjoys traveling to new places with her husband, Dillon, a needlepoint hobby, and spending time with their tuxedo cat, Cleocatra.
Tenor
Cameron Falby (tenor) is an artist and vocalist based in Baltimore. Raised by two choir directors in central Maryland, they went on to study at Manhattan School of Music and then the Peabody Conservatory, where they received a BM in Composition.
They work as a freelance choral singer and vocalist in the greater Baltimore area, performing everything from sacred music to new music to folk and indie. They regularly appear with local ensembles including Mind on Fire, Chantry, the Peabody Renaissance Ensemble, and as a Vocal Fellow with the Baltimore Choral Arts Society. As a self-taught visual artist, they work in the mediums of photography, performance, film, and digital media – making art that plays with gender, shapeshifting, fantasy, and pop aesthetics. Former teachers include Michael Hersch, Felipe Lara, Phyllis Bryn-Julson, and Marian Hahn.
Andrew Hann
Andrew Hann (he/him) is a piano and voice teacher, singer, pianist, and yoga practitioner based in unceded Piscataway land colonized as Baltimore, Maryland. He specializes in creating brave spaces for students to develop and explore what interests them. In addition to offering singing and piano lessons, he offers gendered speech work to help individuals discover their authentic voice which aligns with their identity. As a performer, Andrew has demonstrated his versatility by appearing on stage as a vocalist, harpsichordist, and pianist. He holds Masters of Music degrees in both Early Music Voice and Harpsichord Performance (2015) from Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University and a BM in Voice Performance from Shenandoah Conservatory. Favorite roles include Arnalta in L'incoronazione di Poppea, Orphée in La descente d'Orphée aux enfers, Pane in La Calisto, and Jimmy Smith in the premiere of Frances Pollock's social justice opera Stinny.
Bass
T.J. Callahan
Bass-baritone T.J. Callahan (he/him/his) is inspired by the collaborative power of the voice and specializes in creating compelling performances of ensemble music from all eras. He completed his Master’s in Solo Voice Ensemble singing with distinction in 2022, studying under Robert Hollingworth at the University of York. While in England he was actively engaged as an ensemble singer, appearing with Contact Polyphony and in several festivals. An early music specialist, he sang with the Rameau Project at both the Sheldonian Theatre and as a solo chorister at Stour Music.
A regular liturgical singer since 2016, T.J. is delighted to sing with the Emmanuel choir. Previously, he served as a Deputy Vicar Choral in the York Minster Choir and for five years he was a soloist at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Seattle. He has made regular appearances with the Byrd Ensemble and helped found Radiance, a professional ensemble specializing in early and contemporary American repertoire.
T.J. is lucky to enjoy frequent engagements as a studio artist with vocal ensembles. He can be heard on the world premiere recording of Nico Muhly’s Small Raine with the Tudor Choir, and has done studio work for Vox16, the Byrd Ensemble, and electronic music duo ODESZA. He holds a Bachelor’s in Computer Science from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and is currently studying for his Master’s in Historical Performance Voice at Peabody Conservatory.
Robin McGinness
Employing “impressive singing … well-supported tone and supple phrasing,” (Baltimore Sun) baritone Robin McGinness connects characters to ideas, and listeners to sounds.
As a baritone soloist, Robin has performed in the Kennedy Center Concert Hall and Carnegie Hall’s Stern Auditorium. Other notable performances include Carmina Burana with Maryland Symphony Orchestra, Duruflé Requiem with the Peabody Symphony Orchestra, and Brahms Requiem with The Washington Chorus, a performance praised by the Washington Post for its “warm baritone.”
Robin holds degrees from Oberlin Conservatory and the Peabody Institute, and currently teaches courses on grant writing and career skills at Peabody. Previously, McGinness has been a resident artist at Opera Theater St. Louis, Pittsburgh Festival Opera, Teatro Nuovo, and Bel Canto at Caramoor and was the Baritone Studio Artist in the Arizona Opera Marion Roose Pullin Opera Studio. An award-winning performer, Robin placed first in the Sylvia Greene Vocal Competition, second in the Piccola Opera Competition, and received the Patricia A. Edwards Award in the Annapolis Opera Vocal Competition.
Morgan Sullivan
Bass-contralto Morgan Sullivan (she/her) is a concert singer, composer, and harpsichordist focused particularly in the fields of historical performance practice and 20th century English song and church repertoire.
Ms. Sullivan has previously sung with Bach Collegium Japan, Folger Consort, Yale Voxtet, Yale Schola Cantorum, Juilliard415, Mountainside Baroque, American Baroque Orchestra, Baltimore Baroque Band, and Peabody Consort and can be heard as the baritone soloist in Ian Farrington’s orchestration of Brahms’s Ein deutsches Requiem recorded under David Hill for Hyperion. Prior moving to Baltimore she served in the choirs and as voice instructor to the Boys of Trinity on the Green in New Haven, CT under R. Walden Moore.
Ms. Sullivan holds a BMus from Peabody Conservatory, where she studied under baritones John Shirley-Quirk and William Sharp, and a MusM from the Yale School of Music under tenor James Taylor. She currently serves on the faculty of The Voice Lab in Chicago and provides gender-affirming voice care from her personal studio, vox morgan.