FEATURED ARTISTS

CLARA ROTTSOLK , soprano

Clara Rottsolk has been lauded by The New York Times for her “clear, appealing voice and expressive conviction.” With repertoire ranging from the Renaissance to the contemporary, her appearances have taken her across the United States, the Middle East, Japan, and South America. She specializes in historically informed performance practice, singing with ensembles that include American Bach Soloists, Santa Fe Pro Musica, Colorado Bach Ensemble, Trinity Wall Street Choir, and Seraphic Fire. Clara’s Bach repertoire includes his Mass in B minor, St. Matthew Passion, St. John Passion, and the Easter, Ascension, and Christmas Oratorios along with Mozart’s Grand Mass and Requiem, Handel’s Messiah, Vaughan Williams’ Dona nobis pacem, and Richard Einhorn’s Voices of Light She has performed at the Carmel Bach Festival, Philadelphia Bach Festival, Whidbey Island Music Festival, and Boston Early Music Festival. A native of Seattle, Ms. Rottsolk earned music degrees at Rice University and Westminster Choir College and was awarded recognition for musical excellence by the Metropolitan Opera National Council. Currently she is based in Philadelphia and teaches voice at Swarthmore, Haverford, and Bryn Mawr Colleges.

MELLISSA ATTEBURY, alto

Praised by the New York Times as a “rich-toned alto who brought a measure of depth to her performance,” Melissa Attebury appears regularly in oratorio concerts where her skill in music of the Baroque is in particular demand. Recent appearances include Messiah, Christmas Oratorio, the St. St. John Passions, and Elijah. Venues where she has recently appeared include Carnegie Hall with conductor Alan Gilbert and the New York Philharmonic, The Washington Chorus and The Choir of Trinity Wall Street. Ms. Attebury is featured on the Grammy-nominated Israel in Egypt with the Choir of Trinity Wall Street and as a skilled ensemble musician, appears on Julia Wolfe’s 2015 Pulitzer Prize-winning work Anthracite Fields, recorded with Bang on a Can All-Stars. Melissa is the Associate Director of Music at Trinity Wall Street, is on the faculty of the Berkshire Choral Festival, and manages Trinity’s music outreach program in the public schools.

THOMAS COOLEY, tenor

Praised by the New York Times for his “sweet, penetrating lyric tenor with aching sensitivity,” and by San Francisco Classical Voice as “an indomitable musical force,” Thomas Cooley is a singer of great versatility, expressiveness, and virtuosity. Internationally in demand for a wide range of repertoire in concert, opera, and chamber music, Cooley performs regularly with major orchestras such as the Atlanta and National Symphonies; the Minnesota Orchestra and St. Paul Chamber Orchestra; Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Copenhagen Philharmonic; the Gewandhaus Orchestra Leipzig, and the Osaka Philharmonic. His repertoire on the symphonic stage includes works such as Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis; Berlioz’s Requiem; Haydn’s Creation; Mendelssohn’s Elijah; and Elgar’s Dream of Gerontius. Renowned for his agility and skill in Baroque music, Mr. Cooley is in demand, particularly as an interpreter of the works of Bach and Handel. This year, he returns for his 10th season as the tenor soloist at the Carmel Bach Festival. He appears regularly with such groups Boston Baroque,