CONTACT: Robert Patterson for Music at St. Alban’s 718 984 7756

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

METROPOLITAN OPERA SOPRANO TONNA MILLER AND INTERNATIONAL CLARINET VIRTUOSO IGOR BEGELMAN TO PERFORM “MUSIC OF TRIUMPH AND JUBILATION” IN SAINT ALBAN’S CONCERT SERIES WITH THE SAINT ALBAN'S FESTIVAL CHORAL SOCIETY, SINFONIA CELESTIS AND OTHER SOLOISTS ON SATURDAY, APRIL 26, 2008 AND SUNDAY, APRIL 27, 2008

Staten Island, NY – April 01, 2008– Music at Saint Alban’s announced today that the Saint Alban's Festival Choral Society, Sinfonia Celestis and soloists, conducted by Artistic Director and Series Founder Jeffrey Hoffman, will perform “Music of Triumph and Jubilation” – a concert of masterworks for chorus, soloists and chamber orchestra – on Saturday, April 26, 2008 at 7:30 PM and Sunday, April 27, 2008 at 3:30 PM. Featured soloists for this concert are virtuoso clarinetist Igor Begelman, and Metropolitan Opera soprano Tonna Miller. They will be joined as soloists by soprano Laurelyn Watson Chase, mezzo-soprano Tracy Bidleman, tenor Robert Cunningham, and bass-baritone Simon Cram. The concert will take place in the parish church of Saint Alban’s Episcopal Church, 76 Saint Alban’s Place, Eltingville, Staten Island 10312. The music performed on this concert will include Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Concerto for Clarinet and Orchestra, his motet for solo soprano Exsultate jubilate, and Franz Joseph Haydn’s Missa in Angustiis (“Lord Nelson” Mass). Tickets for this concert are priced at $20 for adults and $15 for senior citizens and students, and may be purchased by calling 718-984-7756 or by visiting www.MusicatSaintAlbans.org. A gala reception in the church’s parish hall will follow each performance, accompanied by a free exhibition of works by the South Shore Artists.

Founding Artistic Director and Conductor Jeffrey Hoffman says "Igor Begelman is one of the greatest living clarinetists. He has astonishing breath control, having perfected the art of circular breathing. He always delights audiences with the emotional breadth and lyrical beauty of his playing. We are very privileged to enjoy an ongoing artistic relationship with Mr. Begelman at Music at Saint Alban's and to be bring his interpretation of Mozart's great Clarinet Concerto to this concert.”

Mr. Hoffman continued, “We are also pleased to welcome back soprano Tonna Miller, who is a special member of our Music at Saint Alban's family, having been a recitalist for the series since its founding and a guest artist on our gala performances. Ms. Miller is one of the finest sopranos of her generation. Her clear, warm tone and effortless coloratura are just what one hopes for in hearing Mozart's beautiful 'Exsultate jubilate.' The Staten Island audience is uniquely privileged to experience Ms. Miller and the other fine soloists singing on this affordable concert with our remarkable Sinfonia Celestis and the Saint Alban's Festival Choral Society."

The concert will conclude with a performance of Franz Josef Haydn's Missa in Angustiis (“Lord Nelson” Mass) by the Saint Alban’s Festival Choral Society and Sinfonia Celestis with soloists Laurelyn Watson Chase, soprano, Tonna Miller, soprano, Tracy Bidleman, mezzo-soprano, Robert Cunningham, tenor, and Simon Cram, bass-baritone.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS Igor Begelman. Winner of an Avery Fisher Career Grant in 2000, clarinetist Igor Begelman’s virtuosity and imagination have been praised by critics as a “remarkable display of music making” and have earned him an impressive list of awards and concert engagements in the US and abroad. Mr. Begelman has appeared as a soloist with the Houston, Savannah, Bienne and Odense Symphonies as well as with L’Orchestre de la Suisse Romande. He has also performed recitals in Europe, Canada, Mexico, Japan and Israel. This season’s highlights include appearances at the Casals Festival as a soloist with the I Musici de Montreal in Puerto Rico and at the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, D.C. with the Debussy String Quartet. Mr. Begelman was awarded top prizes at the First Nielsen International, Geneva, Koussevitsky, International Clarinet Society, Heida Hermans International and Tilden Prize competitions. Other honors include the Special Prize at the Munich International Competition, Altamura/Caruso Foundation and the Salon de Virtuosi awards.

Tonna Miller, soprano. Award winning young soprano and Texas native Tonna Miller is quickly gaining a reputation for her pure, dulcet voice and her delightful stage presence. She recently was heard at the Metropolitan Opera as Barbarina in Le nozze di Figaro; as Fortuna in L’incoronazione di Poppea for her Los Angeles Opera debut; in the title role in Patience with New York City Opera; made her Houston Grand Opera debut as Jano in Jenufa and Papagena in Die Zauberflöte; sang Yum-Yum in The Mikado for her Orlando Opera debut; Baby Doe in The Ballad of Baby Doe with Augusta Opera; Johanna in Sweeney Todd with Opera Colorado; her first Zerlina in Don Giovanni with Nashville Opera; and her first Sophie in Der Rosenkavalier with Michigan Opera Theatre. With New York City Opera, she has been heard as Johanna, Yum-Yum, Papagena, Frasquita in Carmen, and Helen Niles in Mourning Becomes Electra. Other recent engagements have included Offenbach operettas with BardSummerscape; Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro with the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra; Vespina in Haydn's L'infedelta delusa with the American Symphony Orchestra; Johanna and Adele in Die Fledermaus with Toledo Opera; Naiade in Ariadne auf Naxos with Santa Fe Opera; Josephine in H.M.S. Pinafore and Yum-Yum with Augusta Opera; both Josephine and Clorinda in La cenerentola for Nashville Opera; Nanetta in Falstaff with Glimmerglass Opera; and Handel's Messiah with the Handel & Haydn Society, and the Pacific Symphony. Engagements this season include Papagena with Opera Pacific; Carmina Burana with the Madison Symphony; and a return to Bard Summerscape in Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Sorcerer. This season, she also returned to Opera Pacific as Gianetta in L’Elisir d’amore.Ms. Miller has sung with Opera Theatre of St. Louis, where she has performed Wanda in Offenbach's La Grande-Duchesse de Gerolstein, Polissena in Handel's Radamisto, and Euridice in Monteverdi's The Tale of Orpheus. Ms. Miller has sung many recitals for Opera Theatre of St. Louis and has received two career grants from its Richard Gaddes Fund for Opera Singers. A versatile artist, she has performed a wide variety of roles, including Singer #1 in Conrad Susa's controversial 1973 opera, Transformations, La Princesse in L'Enfant et les sortilèges, Lauretta in Gianni Schicchi, Adina in L'Elisir d'amore, Mary Warren in The Crucible, Amante in Il Tabarro and Sofia in Il Signor Bruschino. Tonna Miller is a two-time nominee for the Richard Tucker Foundation's Sara Tucker Award; she was a finalist at the 1997 Birgit Nilsson Competition; winner of the Fred Mathias Award and finalist at the 1997 MacAllister Awards for Opera Singers, College Division; study grant winner at the 1997 Licia Albanese-Puccini Foundation competition; and regional finalist in the 1997 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions.

Laurelyn Watson Chase, soprano. Hailed by The New York Times for her “pure,” “agile,” and “winningly sweet-toned lyric soprano,” Laurelyn Watson Chase has enjoyed a busy career on stage. Classically trained as a pianist and cellist, she somehow landed on the operetta circuit. Ms. Watson Chase is a leading soprano with New York Gilbert & Sullivan Players and has performed extensively in New York and on tour in many of the country’s prestigious theatres and concert halls. Favorites include New York City Center, New Jersey Performing Arts Center, Wolf Trap, Cincinnati Music Hall, The Kravis Center for the Performing Arts in West Palm Beach, and historical gems such as the Shubert Theatre in New Haven, McCarter Theatre in Princeton, and the Southern Theatre in Columbus. Ms. Watson Chase regularly appears as Mabel in The Pirates of Penzance and Yum-Yum in The Mikado, but has also enjoyed shorter stints as Elsie in The Yeomen of the Guard, Rose Maybud in Ruddigore, Constance in The Sorcerer, Angelina in Trial by Jury, and The Sultana Rose-in-Bloom in the rarely performed The Rose of Persia. She has also recently added Josephine in HMS Pinafore to her repertoire and was honored with the 2006 Isaac Asimov Award for Artistic Excellence.

Besides Gilbert and Sullivan, Ms. Watson Chase has performed standard opera and concert literature with local and regional opera companie and orchestras around the United States such as Lake George Opera, Buffalo Philharmonic, Sioux City Symphony, Sun Valley Opera, Sorg Opera, Opera Northeast, Liederkranz Opera, Lake Placid Sinfonietta, Euro-Operetta Productions, and the St. Alban’s Sinfonia, now Sinfonia Celestis. She was also delighted to make her solo recital debut at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall.

As a regular guest at St. Alban’s, she has presented two solo recitals and appeared as the soprano soloist in Mozart’s Coronation Mass, Bach’s St. John Passion and Magnificat, and Stravinsky’s Mass. She has also participated in several Gala Concerts and was thrilled to sing with film legend Marni Nixon in last season’s smash hit event at Snug Harbor Cultural Center.

This season Ms. Watson Chase made her debut with the Fairfield Symphony Orchestra, toured the Mid-West with NYGASP, and performed at New York City Centre. She makes a welcome return to Music at St. Alban’s.

Ms. Watson Chase is a graduate of University of North Texas, Manhattan School of Music, Bel Canto Institute, and The Sommelier Society of America. She is the piano instructor at Lissemore Music Studios in Manhattan and is a proud member of Actors’ Equity Association.

Tracy Bidleman, mezzo-soprano, has delighted audiences with her portrayals of such diverse characters as Fiordiligi in Cosi fan Tutte, the mother in Hänsel und Gretel, Mother in Amahl and the Night Visitors, Alice Ford in Falstaff and Micaela in Carmen. She has appeared as soloist in Carnegie Hall, Avery Fisher Hall and Alice Tully Hall and has performed with symphony orchestras in Seattle, Phoenix, Colorado Springs, Wyoming, and Harrisburg. A regional winner in the Metropolitan Opera and San Francisco Opera competitions, Ms. Bidleman has also worked with such esteemed conductors as Janos Acs, Jacqeues Delacote, Julius Rudel, JoAnn Faletta and Jack Herriman. Ms. Bidleman is making her Music at Saint Alban’s debut in this performance.

Robert Cunningham, tenor, recently appeared on Broadway in the role of Paul in the 2007 Tony Award-winning production of Stephen Sondheim’s Company. Classically- trained at Manhattan School of Music, Mr. Cunningham made his Carnegie Hall debut in 2003 and has performed as Dorvil in Rossini’s La Scala di Seta, Tamino in Mozart’s The Magic Flute, Aminta in Handel’s Atalanta, and Sam in Kurt Weill’s Street Scene with Lake George Opera. At Manhattan School of Music, where he earned a Bachelor of Music degree, Mr. Cunningham was a student of Ted Puffer and in 1999 received a special scholarship to study abroad with acclaimed Rossini expert Maestro Herbert Handt.. Mr. Cunningham is making his Music at Saint Alban’s debut in this performance.

Simon Cram, bass-baritone, has sung extensively in the Pacific Northwest before coming to New York six years ago. He has sung the roles of Olin Blitch in Carlisle Floyd’s Susannah and the title role in Don Giovanni with Opera Indeed, Bartolo in Barber of Seville with Bremerton Opera, Ceprano in Rigoletto with Tacoma Opera, and Mefistofeles in Faust with Seattle Opera. As an oratorio soloist, Simon Cram has appeared often with the Saint Alban’s Festival Choral Society and Sinfonia Celestis, and has sung with the professional choirs of Holy Family (R.C.) Church and the Park Avenue Synagogue in Manhattan. Simon has performed both the St. Matthew and St. John Passions of J.S. Bach and several of Bach’s cantatas, as well as many other sacred works including the requia of Faure, Mozart, Brahms and Durflé. Additionally, he has sung numerous masses of Schubert, Mozart, Stravinsky and Amy Beach. He was an award winner in the Jack Straw young artist competition in Seattle. Mr. Cram is an audience favorite performer on the Music at Saint Alban’s series.

Jeffrey Hoffman, Artistic Director and Conductor, is a New York City-based composer and conductor who hails originally from Greenville, South Carolina. He is founder and artistic director of Music at Saint Alban’s and of the Saint Alban’s Festival Choral Society. Jeffrey Hoffman has been musical director for numerous opera, operetta and musical theatre productions at such places as the Liederkranz, downtown’s Access Theatre and Barrington Stage Company in the Berkshires. A rising talent among young classical conductors, his multi-faceted career encompasses notable positions as organist and choirmaster, award-winning film composer, in-demand theatre music director, vocal coach and accompanist. Under his artistic direction, Music at Saint Alban’s has garnered a reputation for its high standard of excellence in classical music performance, presenting international artists who share his abundant passion for the music; and which has won a loyal and growing audience among residents of Staten Island and the greater metropolitan area. Jeffrey Hoffman’s compositions have been featured in concerts in and around New York City and his film scores have been screened in film festivals and on television around the world, from Sydney to Berlin, Toronto to Amsterdam and Sundance to the New York Musical Theatre Festival. His score for John Scott Matthews’ short film musical Back Story was awarded the 1999 Polo Ralph Lauren Festival’s Reel Award for Best Score. Maestro Hoffman has served as assistant organist/choirmaster to two of the United States’ foremost church musicians (Robert J. Powell and Charles Callahan) and is former associate organist for Saint Francis of Assisi Church in Manhattan. He currently holds positions as organist and choirmaster for Christ Church in Pelham, New York and as organist for the Rossmoor Jewish Community in Rossmoor, New Jersey. An alumnus of Manhattan School of Music – where he studied composition, organ and conducting on scholarship – and of the BMI Lehman-Engel Musical Theater Workshop, he has studied with such luminaries as Giampaolo Bracali, Richard Danielpour, David Gilbert, Amy Kaiser, Alec Wyton and Maury Yeston.

The Saint Alban’s Festival Choral Society is a community-based chorus sponsored by Saint Alban’s Episcopal Church and dedicated to the study and public performance of choral masterworks with professional soloists and orchestra. Under the artistic direction of Jeffrey Hoffman, the Society presents concerts of choral masterworks with keyboard accompaniment and with chamber orchestra. It has featured a repertoire as diverse as J.S. Bach’s Magnificat in D and Johannes-Passion (St. John Passion); both Gabriel Fauré’s and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Requia, Giovanni Battista Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater, John Rutter’s Gloria, Igor Stravinsky’s Mass and music of Broadway’s great composers. Membership in the Society is open to any and all interested singers from the Staten Island community and beyond. The only requirements for membership are the purchase of scores of the pieces being studied and regular attendance at rehearsals throughout the choral season.

Sinfonia Celestis is comprised of some of the New York City metropolitan area’s most in-demand free-lance orchestral musicians. Formed in 2002 as the Saint Alban’s Sinfonia, the orchestra has its origins in concert performances conducted by Maestro Hoffman on Staten Island’s critically-acclaimed Music at Saint Alban’s concert series. Recently renamed to reflect its expanded role throughout the area, Sinfonia Celestis specializes in chamber symphonic repertoire of the baroque, classical and early romantic eras, as well as music from our own time composed for chamber orchestra. Past performances of the orchestra have included Mozart’s Requiem, “Coronation” Mass in C, and Flute and Harp Concerto; J.S. Bach’s Johannes-Passion and Brandenburg Concerto No. 2, and Ludwig van Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy.

ABOUT MUSIC AT ST. ALBAN’S Music at Alban’s is a community outreach of Saint Alban’s Episcopal Church. Now in its sixth season, this critically-acclaimed series of affordable classical concerts by international artists regularly presents seven performances during each season. All performances are held in historic Saint Alban’s Episcopal Church in Eltingville on Staten Island’s South Shore – a cultural icon in the community since 1865. Tickets and season subscriptions are available by calling 718-984-7756 or by visiting www.MusicatSaintAlbans.org. Saint Alban’s Episcopal Church is located at 76 Saint Alban’s Place, Staten Island, NY 10312. For further information about Music at Saint Alban’s, please contact Robert Patterson, Managing Director at 718-984-7756.

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