Joyful and Triumphant Roster

Chamber Choir

• Soprano
• Alto
• Tenor
• Bass

Erica Aichholz

Leah Basora

Grace Bigelow

Tori Hyman

Mia Laboy Reyes

Stephanie O’Neill 

Tiffany Sanchez Borjas

Melisa Acosta

Claire Fischinger

Opal Hearst 

Erasly Isalgue 

Kaylee Price

Juliana Shryock

Sophia Torres

Isabella Westling

Ryan Bussert 

Michael Cherbini

Miguel Coates 

Carlos Esquilin

Oliver Long

Sebastian Plymette

Stephen Santos 

Luke Stephens

Owen Day 

Canon Dobson 

Jeff Dubuque

Anthony Fabyanic

Michael Miller

Josue Otero

Aaron Powers 

Philip Smith

Symphony Orchestra Roster

• Violin 1
• Violin 2
• Viola
• Cello
• Bass
• Harp
• Flute
• Oboe
• Clarinet
• Bassoon
• Saxophone
• Horn
• Trumpet
• Trombone
• Euphonium
• Tuba
• Percussion

Lisa Hallinan, co-concertmaster

Natalia Rosen, co-concertmaster

Alana D’Angelo

Cindy Rojas

Serena Santiago

Kira Parker

Leah Forudi

Michael Cherbini

Nathaniel Hayes

Abigail Glass

Jacklyn Supan

Debra Williams

Taylor Bensen

Alissa Micallef

Lakyn Tilley

Jasmine Hernandez

Alyia Tucker

James Tiebout

Rachel Cox

Melissa Gomez

Arwen Cooper

Jonathan Gardella

Lia Gaitan

Erica Isom

Leunamme Tanis

Faith Childress

Joshua Myers

Kassandra Cooper

Josiah Fleming

Matthew Vigil

Charlotte Young

Katherine Robbins

Emily Silver

Jacob Romano

Chloe Durity

Mario Mendoza

Hailey Wessinger

Tracy Carlson

James Tsang

Maria Fe

Piper Kemmerer

Roberto Reyes

Gabriel Burgos

Nicole Gaitan

Iris Brown

Drea DaSilva

Syrr Gray

Caden Traylor

Beky Steinbrecher

Joshua Hellberg

Susan Palma Lara

Henrie Ramirez  

Brisayda Chavez  

Matthew Johnson

Jonathan Fuentes

Blake Waligora

Timothy Wilcox  

Kleber Flores Hernandez

Eric Martinez

Adell Davis

Alex MacDonald

Jeff Goldblatt  

Liam Feahr

Stephane Pierre

Robert Law

Nicholas Romig

Bel Canto

Cantabile

University Choir

About our Ensembles

Bel Canto Choir is open to all sopranos and altos by audition regardless of major.  The choir champions repertoire specifically composed for treble voices, especially works written by women. The ensemble began in fall of 2019 and has consistently impressed and inspired audiences in performance. They have been selected by peer-review to perform at the Florida ACDA convention in October. 

Cantabile Choir of tenor and bass voices includes students of all majors from across the university.  This is the first year the ensemble has been offered as a course at FGCU.  The singers are excited to begin a tradition of excellence that spreads across the university, and through the community of SW Florida.  

The Chamber Choir is a mixed, auditioned ensemble open to all students regardless of major at FGCU.  Recognized for their remarkable versatility, the ensemble performs choral music from the Renaissance to newly commissioned works.  The choir performed for the Florida chapter of the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) conference in 2021.  Every three years the choir performs internationally including Spain and France (2023), Rome (2020), the Baltic States (2017), and Austria and the Czech Republic (2014).   

The University Choir is a non-auditioned, mixed ensemble open to students of all majors on campus at FGCU.  The choir studies a diverse choral repertoire from many cultures and historical eras and gets the opportunity to work with choral clinicians from around the United States every year. Students in the ensemble receive General Education (Humanities) credit. The choir performs choral-orchestral masterworks, and have recently performed Poulenc’s Gloria, Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms, and will perform Dvorak’s Te Deum this April with the Naples Philharmonic Chorus. 

The Symphony Orchestra is the top, auditioned orchestral ensemble at FGCU.  The Symphony performs on and off-campus, and frequently collaborates with the FGCU Choirs in the Southwest Florida region.  A versatile group, the repertoire ranges from large Romantic era works to smaller, Baroque and Classical productions and recently composed modern works.   

Biographies

Trent R. Brown is Professor of Music at Florida Gulf Coast University where he directs three of four choral ensembles, teaches courses in choral literature, conducting and choral methods, and supervises student teachers. As the Artistic Director of Choral Artistry, he conducts the adult, professional-core ensemble in multiple choral-orchestral performances and educational outreach activities in the region.  He holds degrees from The University of Arizona (D.M.A.), The University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee (M.M.), and the University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire (B.M.E.).  He can be contacted at trbrown@fgcu.edu.

Kyle Szabo serves as the Orchestra Director at FGCU, where he directs the Symphony and Chamber Orchestras. He frequently travels throughout Florida as a clinician for middle and high schools, adjudicator at competitions, and as a guest conductor with professional and community orchestras. He conducted the 2022 FMEA All State Honors Orchestra. Szabo performs as a violinist and violist, and has performed as a recitalist and chamber musician in several different states. He was previously a faculty member at Ripon College (Wisconsin) as Director of Orchestral Activities. Szabo earned a Doctorate in conducting at James Madison University, a Master of Music in violin performance from the Peabody Conservatory, and a Bachelor of Music in violin performance from Rutgers University.  

Bryan Ijames is Assistant Professor of Music Education & Associate Director of Choral Activities at Florida Gulf Coast University where he directs two of four choral ensembles and teaches choral methods. His current research surrounds Alice Parsons & Samuel Coleridge-Taylor choral-orchestralmasterwork The Atonement. He holds degrees from The University of Michigan (D.M.A), Mississippi State University (M.MEd.), Eastern Kentucky University (M.M.) and High Point University (B.A.). He can be contacted at bijames@fgcu.edu.  

Abigail Allison is the staff accompanist for the choral program at Florida Gulf Coast University and works with student and professional instrumentalists and vocalists in Southwest Florida. In addition to her work at FGCU, she is also the pianist for Choral Artistry, serves as music co-director of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Greater Naples, and accompanies the Bay Singers of Bonita Bay. She is a founding member of the Nautilus Chamber Players, an organization that performs chamber music written after 1900, and is a member of the Allison Duo with her husband, saxophonist Shawn Allison. Abbey holds a double degree in piano performance and string education from Ithaca College.