NORTHWEST MISSOURI STATE UNIVERSITY
TOWER CHOIR
Welcome Letters
President Lance Tatum
Provost Jamie Hooyman
Dean Elise Hepworth
Chair Rachel Day
Assistant Chair Debra Brown
Program Texts, Translations, and Notes
Choral Personnel
Performer Bios
About Us
Voice Area Bios
Special Thanks/Acknowledgements
Bearcat Greetings,
On behalf of the Northwest Missouri State University Board of Regents, and the Northwest Leadership Team, we are honored that the Tower Choir will perform for the Nebraska Music Education Association Conference. I congratulate director Dr. Adam Zrust and his students for representing Northwest on such an impressive stage.
Dr. Zrust has a long history of high-quality performances and accomplishments and I know you are in for a treat. The performance you will see today is a testament to the excellence and greatness that surrounds the culture of Northwest Missouri State University. Performing for this association will be a moment in their college career that our students will never forget.
We are thankful for this tremendous opportunity, and we are excited that our students get to showcase their musical talents with you. Northwest is focused on student success, every student, every day and we are proud to provide our students with profession-based learning that allows them to stand out amongst their peers after graduation. I invite you to visit us on campus or online to learn more about the impressive programs and opportunities that we have for students.
Sincerely,
Lance Tatum, Ph.D. President
Northwest Missouri State University
Dear participants and friends of the Nebraska Music Education Association,
As the provost of Northwest Missouri State University, I am honored to welcome you to the Tower Choir’s performance at the Nebraska Music Education Association Conference. Our students are very excited to share their talents and love for music with you. This is an opportunity they will never forget and will forever be a bright achievement of their college careers.
Under the amazing direction of Dr. Zrust our students represent excellence, skill and passion for music to go with their Northwest pride. They represent the talented students of Northwest’s Department of Fine and Performing Arts, which continues to flourish and bring beauty and joy to our university, community and world. These students share their extraordinary gifts in a way that uplifts positivity and appreciation of the arts.
I hope you can sit back and enjoy the amazing music that our Tower Choir has prepared for you. We are extremely proud to have them represent Northwest Missouri State University and know that Dr. Zrust and our students will not disappoint. We are proud of the quality of instruction provided at Northwest and of the commitment and talent of these students who represent our institution at such a high level of excellence.
Sincerely,
Jamie Hooyman, Ed.D. Provost
Northwest Missouri State University
Dear Colleagues,
As the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Northwest Missouri State University and a proud member of the choral community, I am delighted to welcome you to this special performance by the Northwest Tower Choir at the 2024 Nebraska Music Education Conference. It is both an honor and a pleasure for me to attend and support this event for two reasons: first, I am a music educator and a former member of the Nebraska Music Education Association Conference, and second, I am an alumnus of Northwest Missouri State University and this very choir.
Throughout my life, music has been a source of meaning and solace. From my early days in elementary school, where it helped me express emotions and navigate relationships, to my middle and high school years that fostered self-discovery and a sense of belonging, music has been integral to my journey. As a college student, it equipped me with essential skills like communication and critical thinking, ultimately shaping my career in higher education and leadership. The students you see here today represent the profound impact of your teaching and mentorship. For that, I extend my heartfelt and sincere gratitude to you all.
I am immensely proud of this ensemble and their director, Dr. Adam Zrust. A remarkable musician and dedicated educator, Dr. Zrust is a native Nebraskan and a product of the state’s K-12 and higher education systems. Today’s performance is a testament to his ability to blend the art of choral music with the creation of a student-centered community, resulting in not only beautiful music but also mirroring the dedication our faculty and staff have for our students at Northwest Missouri State University.
Our choir members come from diverse backgrounds and pursue a wide array of academic degrees. While many are majoring in music, others are studying healthcare, business, computer science, education, agriculture, sciences, and humanities. At Northwest Missouri State University, we recognize the vital role the arts play in shaping future professionals— whether they become physicians, accountants, teachers, or programmers—fostering a commitment to education and appreciation for music.
I invite you to visit our beautiful campus in Maryville, MO, and experience firsthand the genuine care our faculty, staff, and administration have for one another and for our students. We value and treasure the arts, and it is privilege to share in this moment with you.
Warmest Regards,
Dr. Elise Hepworth Dean, College of Arts and Sciences Northwest Missouri State University
Dear NMEA Participants and Friends of Music,
As Chair of the Department of Fine and Performing Arts at Northwest Missouri State University, long-time singer, and descendant of music education in Nebraska, it is my great privilege to welcome you to Northwest Missouri State University Tower Choir’s performance at the Nebraska Music Education Association In-Service Workshop/Conference. I am especially honored to congratulate the members of Tower Choir, and their conductor, Dr. Adam Zrust, on their invitation to perform at this conference.
Northwest’s Tower Choir has a long-standing history of musical excellence, presenting performances locally, regionally, nationally, and internationally, at venues ranging from the Washington National Cathedral and the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts in Kansas City to their most recent international performance of a world premiere in Kenya. A trademark of the ensemble under the direction of Dr. Zrust is to extend regular invitations to regional high school musicians for collaboration on projects which extend vocal opportunities to choral ensembles, such as the 2024 opportunity to work with Sylvester Otieno on “‘MUSIKI WA KENYA’: Exploring Idiomatic & Artistic Performance Mannerisms” and 2025’s opportunity to interact with Jocelyn Hagen and Timothy Takach of NATION and Graphite Publishing.
The sustained history of outstanding leadership of the Tower Choir, along with the talent and dedication of the many students who have been part of this ensemble, have laid the foundation for today’s performance. Dr. Zrust’s careful attention to programming and vocal excellence has created an ensemble which will, I believe, take you on a musical journey of discovery and joy. This year’s Tower Choir is comprised of both music majors and students representing a cross-section of students from Northwest’s five departments and six schools.
I have the privilege of interacting daily with Northwest’s students as they create art, music and theatre within our interdisciplinary department and explore their place in the artistic world. I especially enjoy interacting with members of Tower Choir on a regular basis, noting their joy and dedication to the vocal arts. May you join in the beauty of this performance and embrace the power of the choral art form—an experience that connects us in ways unlike any other.
May you sing with joy today,
Rachel Day, DMA Chair, Department of Fine and Performing Arts: Art, Music, and Theatre Assistant Professor of Vocal Music
Dear Participants and Friends of NMEA,
On behalf of the music program in the Department of Fine Arts at Northwest Missouri State University, I would like welcome you to the Tower Choir’s performance at the 2024 Nebraska Music Education Association Conference under the direction of Dr. Adam Zrust.
Tower Choir has a long-standing tradition for quality choral performances at many conferences and venues over the years. The music faculty is proud of our choral tradition at Northwest Missouri State, and we are confident that the breadth and variety of this year’s performance will be excellent. I am pleased and thrilled to be in the audience to enjoy them myself.
We at Northwest Missouri State University are grateful to those in the Nebraska Music Educators Conference who have provided Tower Choir the opportunity to share this excellent music with all of you. Our students, the supporting musicians, and Dr. Zrust have prepared a diverse array of choral pieces whose performance will certainly be a life-long memory for each of them. We hope it is for you also.
Sincerely,
Debra R. Brown, Ph.D.
Associate Chair, Fine and Performing Arts
Northwest Missouri State University
NORTHWEST MISSOURI STATE UNIVERSITY TOWER CHOIR
Dr. Adam Zrust, conductor
Dr. Jiwon Choi, collaborative piano
PROGRAM NOTES & TRANSLATIONS
Dr. Adam Zrust, conductor
Dr. Jiwon Choi, collaborative piano
Trinity te Deum (2012) Ērik Ešenvalds Musica Baltica, MB 1416PS Contemporary
Dr. William Richardson, David Emerson, Paige Rodewald, trumpet
Dr. William Sutton, Paul Niedbalski, Aimen Zieske, trombone
Tom Trenney, organ
Heidi Beran, harp Shelby Shelton, percussion
Text: Anonymous, Book of Common Prayer
We praise thee, O God: we acknowledge thee to be the Lord
All the earth doth worship thee, the Father everlasting.
To thee all Angels cry aloud: the Heavens, and all the Powers therein.
To thee Cherubim and Seraphim continually do cry, Holy, Holy, Holy: Lord God of Sabaoth;
Heaven and earth are full of the Majesty of thy glory.
The glorious company of the Apostles praise thee.
The goodly fellowship of the Prophets praise thee.
The noble army of Martyrs praise thee.
The holy Church throughout all thе world doth acknowledge thee;
The Fathеr of an infinite Majesty;
Thine honorable, true and only Son;
Also the Holy Ghost, the Comforter.
Thou art the King of Glory, O Christ
Thou art the everlasting Son of the Father.
When thou tookest upon thee to deliver man thou didst not abhor the Virgin’s womb.
When thou hadst overcome the sharpness of death, Thou didst open the Kingdom of Heaven to all believers.
Thou sittest at the right hand of God in the glory of the Father.
We believe that thou shalt come to be our Judge.
We therefore pray thee, help thy servants, whom thou hast redeemed with thy precious blood.
Make them to be numbered with thy Saints in glory everlasting.
Janger (2004) Earthsongs Publications
Ngiring mejangeran di jaba tengahe
Sriag sriog, ngining mejangeran di jaba tengahe
*’jaba tengahe’ is the middle section of a traditional Balinese house
Traditional Balinese arr. Budi Susanto Yohanes Contemporary
Let’s dance ‘Janger’ in *‘jaba tengahe’ Swaying to and fro, Let’s dance ‘Janger’ in ‘jaba tengahe’
They Are Mother (2022)
Jennifer Lucy Cook
Graphite Publishing, GP-C009 Contemporary
Mary Roth & Aubrey Peterson, soli Dr. Jiwon Choi, collaborative piano
When I was working on the words for this piece, I consulted with my friend Reverend Alex Reegan, who is a trans man and interfaith minister, to create a text that embodies the energy of the feminine divine that is present in any gender. I chose to use they/them pronouns, which capture both the nonbinary and the nonsingular mystery and grandeur of the divine creating force, and by doing so, welcomes everyone into the work.
I wanted to explore the many aspects of the divine; pairing a grounded Mother Nature with a joyous playful being who is capable of laughter, a force that is present in the large and small moments, the noise and the silence, and most importantly, the divine creative spark in each of us. That allinclusive, loving creative spirit shows up for me in the potential for movement (“the ready muscle in the sprinter”), the pleasures of modern life, (“the steady heat lamp in the winter”), and serves as a reminder not to take myself too seriously (“laugh lines around the all-seeing eye”). In identifying a creator this way, I channel these same qualities into my own life and my own identity, and it’s my hope that the audience for “They Are Mother” finds themselves within it too.
- Jennifer Lucy Cook
What shall I call this force I know
Who do I come to when I wonder
The space that holds me when I’m low
More than a parent, friend, or lover
They are Mover
They are Maker
They are Mother, mm
They are Mother, mm
They are the breath I see in cold
They are the ready muscle in the sprinter
They are the glitter and the gold
The stead heat lamp in the winter
They are Mover
They are Maker
They are Mother, mm
They are Mother, mm
They nod and know
They need nothing
They’re god and grow
They bleed blessings
They nod and know
They need nothing
They’re god and grow
They bleed blessings
They are solitude
They are multitude
They are gratitude Gratitude
Laugh lines around the all-seeing eye
And I can lean into the sky
Laugh lines around the all-seeing eye
And I can lean into the sky
What shall I call this force I know
Who do I come to when I wonder
They are Mover
They are Maker
They are Mother, mm
They are Mother, mm
They are Mother, mm
They are Mother, mm
Tchaka (2016) Sydney Guillaume sydneyguillaume.com Contemporary
Payton Dollins, and Kaden Jones, Shelby Shelton, Christepher Sok, percussion
Tchaka is one of the most popular meals in Haitian cuisine. It’s a “melting pot”–a tasty mélange of different food products such as corn, beans with pork, and crustaceans. Likewise, Haitian folklore consists of a huge variety of rhythms and dances that when mixed together give birth to extraordinary works. Bon appétit and happy listening!
-Sydney Guillaume
French & Haitian Creole
Chofe dife! Nou pral manje tchaka!
Chofe dife, brase mayi, pa bliye tisale,
Nou pral manje yon bon tchaka.
Nou pral moye monte yon bouyon tèt chaje.
Twa tanbou yo frape, tout moun rele anmwe.
An nou pote kole pou nou tout ka vanse.
An nou makonnen ansanm nan yon bèl amoni
Yon bon bouyon lakay, yon tchaka mizikal.
Se yon bon bouyon lakay, yon tchaka nasyonal!
Chofe dife! Chofe dife!
Yanvalou, Kontredans, Rabòday se gwo koze.
Mizik lakay, o wi, se bèl bagay.
Pote kole; kòtakòt n ape vanse
Chofe dife! Chofe dife! Tchaka ape monte!
Ibo, Bolero, Banda, Mayi, Congo, Petro, Maskaron… Mizik sa yo se konpa lakay.
Nou danse Kalinda, nou change Rabòday, Tèt ansanm, nan renmen, an nou fè bèl bagay.
Chofe dife! Chofe dife!
Nou proklame lespwa e nou change lapè, Pou limyè la jistis blayi sou tout latè.
N ap kontinye chante pou fè lavi pi bèl.
Nan jistis, nan renmen, an nou manje yon bon tchaka!
Ayibobo!
-Gabriel T. Guillaume (2015)
English Poetic Translation
Turn up the fire! We are going to eat tchaka! Turn up the fire, stir up the corn, don’t forget the salt pork!
We are going to eat a delicious tchaka. We are going to cook up a mind-blowing stew.
At the sound of the three drums, everyone yells out hurray.
If we join together we can all move forward. Let us enmesh in lovely harmony
A delicious homemade stew, a musical tchaka.
It’s a delicious homemade stew, a national tchaka! Turn up the fire! Let’s get cooking!
*Yanvalou, Kontredans, Rabòday are amazing. Folk music, oh yes, that’s good stuff. Let’s stick together; side by side we can move forward.
Turn up the fire! Turn up the fire! The tchaka is cooking!
*Ibo, Bolero, Banda, Mayi, Congo, Petro, Maskaron… These are the rhythms of our roots.
We danced *Kalinda and we sang *Rabòday, Heads together, with love, let us do great things.
Turn up the fire! Turn up the fire!
We proclaim hope and we sing of peace, So that the light of justice spreads throughout the earth.
We’ll keep on singing to make life more beautiful. In justice and in love, let’s eat a delicious tchaka.
Amen!
*traditional Haitian rhythms
I’ll Be On My Way (2011) Shawn Kirchner shawnkirchner.com
Dr. Paul Hindemith, baritone Dr. Jiwon Choi, collaborative piano
There’s quite the backstory for this piece.
I have lived a block away from the church where I work for many years. But for much of that time, there was no stoplight at the one busy street between me and the church. I would carefully wait for breaks in traffic to dart across (noticing that if I happened to be wearing a suit, people would magically stop for me — but if I wore regular clothes, no such luck.) One time (maybe in 2004), waiting at the corner, a city bus whizzed powerfully by, and I remarked to myself: “What if I weren’t paying attention some day, and got into the path of that bus?” Looking as far down that long street as I could see — and feeling the sense of freedom one gets on the open road — my immediate response was “Well, I’d be on my way.”
Instantly, the idea for the song sprang into my mind, and on the way home I came up with the chorus: “I’ll be on my way, I’ll be on my way; I’ll have left my feet of clay upon the ground, I will be glorybound, I’ll be on my way.” The rest of the song soon followed, because sometimes they just come like that — fast, easily, all at once.
For a number of years after the song came into being, that street crossing remained dangerous. People were hit, or almost hit, multiple times. My friend Jon was knocked off of his bike. Finally, our church’s large corner sign was damaged after yet another collision, and my pastor Susan had had it with the unnerving accidents. Penning a letter to the city, she added that “one of our members has even written a song about being killed at this corner.” Within a month or two the city put in a stoplight at the corner. Finally!
When I recorded my Meet Me on the Mountain bluegrass album in 2006, I added this song as the final track, even though it dated a few years before the rest of the set. I wanted to record it so that Dolly Parton would have a nice version to be inspired by, so she could record it herself. I have always imagined this song as a “Dolly song,” and I still do. Dolly, if you ever read this, it’s all yours! Upon deeper reflection, I have felt other layers of meaning reverberating in this song. The opening stanza has these words: “What pain there might have been will now be past, and my spirit will be whole.” In 1998, my mother was tragically killed by a disturbed young man. For long weeks, I “relived” her terrifying final moments. But eventually my mind was done processing the trauma, and I could fall asleep without trouble. It had finally dawned on me that she was no longer suffering, and I didn’t also have to keep suffering by carrying her suffering. That is the sense beneath the songs’ words: “what pain there might have been will now be past.” It really is possible to lay down a burden that no longer needs to be carried.
I also cherish a serendipitous moment that came about because of this song. Myrlie Evers Williams, the Civil Rights activist and widow of Medgar Evers, happened to be at my church for a memorial service when she heard us perform this song. I didn’t recognize her at first, but she expressed interest in the song as she came out of the sanctuary with her daughters, and I ran quickly home to get a CD for her (crossing that aforementioned street.) I found her at the reception, and accepted her invitation to sit down and join her. We began to talk about the song, and as we both shared about the tragic death of loved ones, I suddenly realized it was her, recognizing her face from interviews I had seen. I asked her if she was Myrlie Evers, and she said yes. What an honor to meet her. We spoke about healing and spiritual freedom, and I will always cherish that special moment of connection, which would never have happened if it weren’t for that dangerous street crossing way back when.
- Shawn Kirchner
NORTHWEST TOWER CHOIR
Soprano I
*Emma Aborn (Lamar, MO) –Vocal & Instrumental Music Education
*Katie Carroll (Lee’s Summit, MO) – Elementary & Special Education
+Mary Roth (Chicago, IL)– Vocal Music Education
Soprano II
Terra Coccovizzo (Kansas City, MO) – Theatre Performance, Music minor
*Aubrey Peterson (Liberty, MO) – Vocal Music Education
Lillibeth Sokolowski (Sedalia, MO) – Vocal Music Education
Carli Valentine (Saint Joseph, MO) – Music: Wellness
Alto I
Kaleigh Hildahl (Columbia, MO) – Vocal Music Education
Bridget Hopkins (Creston, IA) – Speech & Theatre Education
Mariah Krzyzaniak (St. Joseph, MO) – Vocal Music Education
Dani Lorenzo (Macon, MO) – Bachelor of Science: Music emphasis
Grace McKinnon (Jameson, MO) – Art Education
Addisyn Musser (Gower, MO) – Secondary English Education
Addison Thornburg (Omaha, NE) – Elementary Education
Alto II
Joleigh Barth (Butler, MO) –Vocal Music Education
Libby Cruickshank (Cameron, MO) – Elementary Education
Alaina Garcia (Lee’s Summit, MO) – Social Studies Education
+Morgan Jaeger (Olathe, KS) – Management & Marketing
Kayla Mason (Harrisonville, MO) – Vocal Music Education
Tenor I
Connor Betts (Moberly, MO) – Vocal Music Education
+Kasey Domer (Independence, IA) – Vocal Music Education/Piano
Mason Ward (Hannibal, MO) – Vocal Music Education
Tenor II
Colton Gamble (Lee’s Summit, MO) –Mass Media: Broadcast Technology
Jameson McCauley (Saint Charles, MO) –Business Administration
Corban Springs (Saint Joseph, MO) –Vocal & Instrumental Education
Noa Wecker (Trenton, MO) –Biochemistry
Bass I
Andrew Hedin (Bellevue, NE) – Vocal Music Education
Logan Jackman (Cameron, MO) – Undecided
Andrew Krigbaum (Hannibal, MO) – Psychology
Maximus Maretoli (Savannah, MO) – Human Services/Psychology
Bass II
Matthew Baalman (Topeka, KS) – Geographic Information Systems
Dominic Jimenez (Kansas City, MO) – Vocal Music Education
+Alex Reid (Holt, MO) – Vocal Music Education
Dawsen Sorensen (Atlantic, IA) – Biology
+denotes section leader
*denotes choral assistant
PERFORMER BIOS
Adam Zrust
Dr. Adam Zrust is the Director of Choral Studies/Assistant Professor of Choral Music Education at Northwest Missouri State University, where he conducts Tower Choir, University Chorale, Concert Choir, and teaches specialized courses in music education. Prior to his appointment at Northwest, he served on the faculty of the University of Central Missouri, where he was Director of Choral Activities and Voice Area Coordinator. As a teacher, he has had opportunities to instruct in both secondary and post-secondary settings. Prior to his collegiate teaching, he was Director of Choirs at Mansfield Legacy High School in the Dallas/Fort Worth area.
Dr. Zrust earned a PhD in Choral Conducting and Music Education from Florida State University, and an MME from Florida State University. Additionally, he holds degrees in Music Business and Music Education from the University of Nebraska-Kearney. He is a member of the American Choral Directors Association, Nebraska Music Educators Association, Missouri Music Educators Association, and the National Association for Music Education. He lives in Missouri with his wife, Kate Zrust, and five-year-old twin sons, Benjamin and Samuel.
Shelby Shelton
A native of Central Texas, Shelby Shelton is an active performer, composer, and educator living in Maryville, Missouri. She is currently serving as the director of percussion at Northwest Missouri State University and the front ensemble coordinator at Carolina Crown drum and Bugle Corps. Shelby is also pursuing a DMA in percussion performance at James Madison University studying with Casey Cangelosi.
Shelby received a Masters of Music degree in percussion performance and a post-baccalaureate degree in music education from Middle Tennessee State University. She attended Lindenwood University in St.Charles, Missouri for her undergraduate studies where she double majored in percussion performance and English literature.
Shelby is passionate about all things marching arts and has worked with the Cavaliers Drum and Bugle Corps’ percussion section for the past five seasons. She has instructed many other groups including the Sacramento Mandarins, Madison Scouts, George Mason Indoor percussion, Music City Drum Corps, James Madison Marching Royal Dukes, Father Ryan High School, and Veritas indoor percussion. Shelby has performed three seasons as a member of the Tennessee Titans Blue Crew drumline.
Shelby Shelton is a member of the PAS marching committee and the PAS diversity alliance. Shelby proudly endorses Innovative Percussion, Pearl/ Adams, and Zildjian cymbals.
Paul Hindemith
Baritone Paul Hindemith has been hailed as “touching and expressive” by the Washington Times and has performed with the San Diego, Utah Festival, Ohio Light, and Fargo-Moorhead Operas as well as the Minnesota Orchestra. Equally comfortable in musical theatre, the Omaha native was named “a remarkable talent” by BroadwayWorld Kansas City for his performance as Bobby in Stephen Sondheim’s Company. He most recently appeared as Ivan Turgenev in the University of South Dakota Opera Theatre’s premiere of Michael Ching’s new opera Notes on Viardot about the life of famed opera singer and teacher Pauline Viardot Garcia. He will reprise the role with Music on Site in Wichita in December.
Paul made his European singing and stage directing debut in Pergolesi’s La serva padrona with the Grumo Festival in Italy. He has directed opera and musical theatre scenes at several Universities including Humperdinck’s opera Hansel and Gretel for the University of South Dakota for which he created a new singing translation. He regularly serves as music director for theatres in northwest Missouri and received a commendation from the Kennedy Center American Collegiate Theatre Festival (Region 5) for his music direction of Spring Awakening at Missouri Western State University. In the spring, he will direct Paul Gordon’s recent musical Pride and Prejudice at Northwest Missouri State University where he is an assistant professor of vocal music.
In addition to NWMSU, Paul has taught at Missouri Western State University, Georgia College and State University, Concordia College (Moorhead, Minn.), the University of South Dakota, and Omaha North High School. He holds degrees in vocal performance from the University of Minnesota, the University of Maryland, and Southern Methodist University, where he graduated summa cum laude with honors in the liberal arts and with minors in German, Mathematics, and Chemistry. Paul is an advisor to the newly formed LGBTQIA+ student group “Prism” at Northwest. In his spare time, Paul enjoys playing board games, doing logic puzzles, and learning languages; his current streak on Duolingo is nearly 1300 days.
Jiwon Choi
Dr. Jiwon Choi’s performances have spanned many venues throughout the United States, South Korea and Italy. She was invited to perform in the inaugural event of the 2017 Seattle International Piano Competition and Festival and world premiere compositions at the 2013 International Beethoven Festival in Chicago. She has also joined Italian Operatic Experience as a coach in Urbania, Italy. She has won awards in national and international competitions including: First Prize of the 2014 American Protégé International Competition, marking her debut at Carnegie Hall, First Prize of Golden Classical Music Awards International Competition, and Puerto Rico International Collaborative Piano Competition, and she was selected as a Finalist in the professional division of The American Prize national competition.
Choi holds a DMA in Piano Performance and Pedagogy from the University of Kansas, where she served as Graduate Teaching Assistantship and a faculty at the University of Kansas Community Music School. She received her MM at Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University and her BM at DongAh University in South Korea. She is currently collaborative pianist and coordinator of collaborative piano at Northwest Missouri State University.
PERFORMER BIOS
Tom Trenney
Composer, conductor, organist, preacher, and teacher Tom Trenney has been blessed to serve as Minister of Music to First-Plymouth Church in Lincoln, Nebraska, since 2009. In 2019, he became Associate Professor of Music and Director of Choirs at Nebraska Wesleyan University. Tom’s choirs have been honored to perform for state, regional, and national conventions of the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA), and they have been award winners in the American Prize for choral ensembles. He serves as Music in Worship Chair for Midwest ACDA.
Tom has been a featured performer at churches, colleges, and concert halls across the country including Philadelphia’s Kimmel Center, Seattle’s Benaroya Hall, Kansas City’s Kauffman Center, Kennedy Center, and Carnegie Hall. His choral compositions are published by Augsburg Fortress, Beckenhorst Press, Choristers Guild, E.C. Schirmer/Galaxy, Morningstar, Musicspoke, Pavane, and G. Schirmer. His piece “From Generation to Generation” won the Raabe Prize from the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians in 2023.
A graduate of the Cleveland Institute of Music and the Eastman School of Music, Tom is grateful for the inspiration of his teachers and mentors –especially Anton Armstrong, David Davidson, Craig Hella Johnson, (Mister) Fred Rogers, William Weinert, Anne Wilson and Todd Wilson.
Heidi Beran
Heidi was first intrigued by the harp when she saw it played at a wedding and began lessons shortly after at 8 years old. Her primary teachers include Mary Bircher, Kathleen Wychulis, and Alice Chalifoux. In 1999, she released the “Reflections of Christmas” solo recording.
In Spring of 2005, Heidi completed a degree in Harp Performance at the University of Nebraska - Lincoln. Over the years, Heidi has had many performance opportunities including Hastings Symphony Orchestra, UNL Symphony Orchestra, Lincoln’s Symphony Orchestra, Omaha Symphony, Lincoln’s New Music Agency, The Brown Palace Hotel (Denver), Abendmusik, and numerous other special events, churches, restaurants and weddings. She is Treasurer for the Great Plains Chapter of the American Harp Society and has been teaching harp students for over 25 years. Heidi resides in Lincoln, Nebraska with her husband Jan Michael and their three active children.
Bill Richardson
Dr. William Richardson serves as Professor of Music at Northwest Missouri State University in Maryville, Missouri, where he has taught since 1999. A Fulbright Scholar, he served as Visiting Professor of Trumpet at the Jazeps Vitols Latvian Academy of Music in 2010. He holds degrees from the University of Texas at Austin (DMA-Trumpet Performance), Florida State University (MM-Trumpet Performance), and Central Missouri State University (BME).
Under Dr. Richardson’s direction, the Northwest Jazz Ensemble has performed twice at the Missouri Music Educators Association (MMEA) conference, twice at the Nebraska Music Educator’s Association (NMEA) conference, and overseas at the “Music for London” concerts at St. Johns Smith Square. Named “Outstanding University Jazz Ensemble” at the 2020 University of Kansas Jazz Festival, the Northwest Jazz Ensemble most recently performed at the 2022 Glenn Miller Festival in Clarinda, Iowa. An active clinician, Dr. Richardson has directed Missouri All-District Jazz Ensembles (Districts #1, #2, #3, and #9) and the 2011 Arkansas All-State 2nd Jazz Ensemble. He is a frequent performer and presenter at the annual Midwest Trumpet Festival.
Richardson is a member of the St. Joseph Symphony and the St. Joseph Big Band. He is active in many professional organizations, including the International Trumpet Guild, Phi Beta, the American Federation of Musicians, and Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia. He has published articles in the Journal of the International Trumpet Guild and the I.T.G. Junior newsletter. A Conn-Selmer clinician and performing artist, Dr. Richardson’s affiliation with Northwest Missouri State University has taken him to Austria, China, England, Estonia, Finland, Japan, and Latvia.
Will Sutton
William Sutton, Assistant Professor of Music at Northwest Missouri State University, teaches low brass and music theory and leads the Northwest Concert Band. Dr. Sutton spends his summers teaching low brass and music theory at the New England Music Camp in Sidney, Maine. He has performed with the Kansas City Symphony, Grand Rapids Symphony, Topeka Symphony Orchestra, Saint Joseph Symphony, Lansing Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra of Northern New York, Holland Symphony Orchestra, and Capital Region Wind Ensemble. Dr. Sutton has been invited to perform and present at The Midwest Clinic, International Tuba Euphonium Association Conferences, Nebraska Music Education Association Conference, and has appeared as a soloist with many college and university ensembles throughout the United States. He has attended the Leonard Falcone International Tuba and Euphonium Festival as both a competitor and adjudicator. Dr. Sutton is an Eastman Musical Instruments artist, performing on the Willson 2900, Eastman 836, and Eastman 866.
NORTHWEST VOICE AREA
Rachel Day
Dr. Rachel Day serves as Assistant Professor of Vocal Music and Chair of the Department of Fine and Performing Arts at Northwest Missouri State University. She was previously Professor of Voice at Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, AZ. She has two MM degrees (Voice Performance and Voice Pedagogy) and a DMA degree from Arizona State University. Her doctoral document is titled, “Vocal Pedagogy at the End of the Twentieth Century: Revealing the Hidden Instrument.” Her private voice studio, Daylight Voice Studio, specializes in empowering singers as they sound with their entire selves.
A 2017 CoreSinging® certified teacher, Rachel wrote one of the teacher perspective chapters in the 2022 Rowman and Littlefield publication of Meribeth Dayme’s work, “CoreSinging: A Joyful Approach to Singing and Voice Pedagogy.” In 2021, expanding her interdisciplinary toolbox, she completed the Summer Vocology Institute with Dr. Ingo Titze, becoming a certified vocologist, and received Bones for Life® teacher certification, a program of somatic awareness developed by Ruthy Alon and inspired by Dr. Moshe Feldenkrais. As an active recitalist, Rachel focuses specifically on performing music by women and underrepresented composers. One recital presentation, “The Women Sing!”, included songs by Florence Price, Mable Bailey, Maria Szymanowska, Pauline Viardot-Garcia, Shruthi Rajasekar, Masi Asare, Lucy Simon, Goldrich & Heisler, and Georgia Stitt. Her most recent faculty recital, “Emily’s Words…”, was comprised of women composers’ settings of Emily Dickinson’s poetry—she presented selections from that recital at the SHE Festival of Women in Music.
Paul Hindemith
Baritone Paul Hindemith has been hailed as “touching and expressive” by the Washington Times and has performed with the San Diego, Utah Festival, Ohio Light, and Fargo-Moorhead Operas as well as the Minnesota Orchestra. Equally comfortable in musical theatre, the Omaha native was named “a remarkable talent” by BroadwayWorld Kansas City for his performance as Bobby in Stephen Sondheim’s Company. He most recently appeared as Ivan Turgenev in the University of South Dakota Opera Theatre’s premiere of Michael Ching’s new opera Notes on Viardot about the life of famed opera singer and teacher Pauline Viardot Garcia. He will reprise the role with Music on Site in Wichita in December. Paul made his European singing and stage directing debut in Pergolesi’s La serva padrona with the Grumo Festival in Italy. He has directed opera and musical theatre scenes at several Universities including Humperdinck’s opera Hansel and Gretel for the University of South Dakota for which he created a new singing translation. He regularly serves as music director for theatres in northwest Missouri and received a commendation from the Kennedy Center American Collegiate Theatre Festival (Region 5) for his music direction of Spring Awakening at Missouri Western State University. In the spring, he will direct Paul Gordon’s recent musical Pride and Prejudice at Northwest Missouri State University where he is an assistant professor of vocal music.
In addition to NWMSU, Paul has taught at Missouri Western State University, Georgia College and State University, Concordia College (Moorhead, Minn.), the University of South Dakota, and Omaha North High School. He holds degrees in vocal performance from the University of Minnesota, the University of Maryland, and Southern Methodist University, where he graduated summa cum laude with honors in the liberal arts and with minors in German, Mathematics, and Chemistry. Paul is an advisor to the newly formed LGBTQIA+ student group “Prism” at Northwest. In his spare time, Paul enjoys playing board games, doing logic puzzles, and learning languages; his current streak on Duolingo is nearly 1300 days.
NORTHWEST MUSIC FACULTY
Dr. Debra Brown, Music Education, Chair of Music
Dr. Jiwon Choi, Collaborative Piano
Dr. Rachel Day, Voice/Pedagogy, Fine & Performing Arts Department Chair
Dr. Paul Hindemith, Voice/Pedagogy
Dr. Sammy Holloman, Flute/Music Theory
Mrs. Stacy Lendt, Horn
Dr. Anthony Olson, Keyboard Instruments
Dr. Bill Richardson, Trumpet/Jazz Ensembles
Ms. Shelby Shelton, Percussion/Music Education
Ms. Ali Snyder, Clarinet/Music History
Dr. Kathryn Strickland, Director of Athletic Bands/Instrumental Music Education
Dr. William Sutton, Low Brass/Music Theory
Dr. Joseph Tomasso, Woodwinds/Music Theory
Dr. Adam Zrust, Director of Choral Activities/Choral Music Education
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Dr. Lance Tatum, University President
Dr. Jamie Hooyman, Provost
Dr. Elise Hepworth, Dean, College of Arts and Sciences
Dr. Rachel Day, Chair, Department of Fine and Performing Arts
Dr. Debbie Brown, Chair of Music
Dr. Rachel Day, Voice
Dr. Paul Hindemith, Voice
Nikki Hackett, Department of Fine and Performing Arts Office Manager
Ryan Griesinger, Program Design
Dr. Anthony Maglione, William Jewell College
Paul Niedbalski
Dr. Bill Richardson
Dr. Will Sutton
Dr. Thomas Rinn, Texas State University
IT TAKES A VILLAGE
Northwest Tower Choir members would like to thank the music teachers listed below who have made a positive and lasting impact on our lives and musical development:
Carla Oliver, Chris Munce, Brady Finch, Tyler Busick, Laurie Bonta, Paul Weissenborn, Colton Butcher, Jessica Bennett, Matt Dunseith, Khobic Johnson, Adam Zrust, Mary Schubich, Jeremy Fox, Lucas Mattson, Tommy Boynton, Rachel Day, Jiwon Choi, Kate Fuller, Sara Kurz, Wesley Sisk, Mitchell Martinez, Paul Hindemith, Jason Elam, Helen Traphagan, Ashley Kempt, Jennifer Stammers, Kyle Minx, Beth McLenaghan, Darren Verbick, Melissa Stan, Dan Rassmussen, Stephanie Skizas, Anna Strong, Becky Payne, Jacob Lowry, Amy Krinke, Katie Fischer, Beth Files, Holly Dahn, Kevin Coker, Samuel Anderson, Joshua Lawlor, Phil Karns, Mark Fuller, Michael Mills, AJ Reimer, Janelle Reetz, Ellie Johnson, Nancy Buennemeyer, Kate Fuller, Sara Kurz, Michael Fuller, Jeff Duffy, Rebecca Snider, Joni Voss, Paul Hart, Jamey Derks, Jeremy Hess, Sean Carder, Dre’Shon Tolbert, Stephen Rew, Cynthia Coster, Bill Johnson, Shea Twenter, Pam Williamson, Robert Davis, Jena McElwain, Erin Stewart, Allison Oates, Raquel Lawrence, Linda Zellmer, Kip Mathew, Ben Johnson, Arielle Orme, Michelle Streit, Kathy Eckert, Jamie Crutchfield, Amanda Norman, Brandon Hord, Amber Welter, Leslie Thompson, Lorrie Dixon, Mark Pennington, Brett Wilson, Tye Hanke, Kaitlin Pearson, Jane Warner, Michael Peters, Julia Mullin, Robin Steinhaus, Tim Hercules, Jennifer Moorman, Sheryl Warren, Sean Carder, Christin Musser, Rachel Middaugh, David Bauer, Dawn Bussey, Anne Foradori
