Born and raised in Pennsylvania, Dr. Mitchell Giambalvo received his doctorate in piano
performance from Florida State University. He then returned to complete a second master’s
degree in collaborative piano before becoming an adjunct professor of piano at Troy University
in Alabama. Giambalvo moved to Salt Lake City and joined the University of Utah staff in 2019.
Giambalvo has performed as a pianist for the Utah Opera, is a substitute pianist with the Utah
Symphony, and is the pianist for the Utah Flute Association. In addition to his work in Utah, he
serves as summer piano faculty at Montana’s Red Lodge Music Festival.
Aubrey Adams-McMillan, mezzo-soprano, enjoys an active career singing opera, musical
theater, chamber music, art song, and symphonic works. In her hometown she performs with
the prestigious Utah Symphony, Intermezzo, Utah Opera, NOVA Chamber Music, Southwest
Symphony, and Cathedral of the Madeleine concert series. She was the recipient of the Marian
Anderson scholarship at Westminster Choir College, the Penrose Scholar at Central City Opera,
and a two-time district finalist in the Metropolitan Opera competition and received the
encouragement award. As a new Doctorate student at the University of Utah, Aubrey is a
graduate teaching assistant with research interests ranging from phonation, to vagal tone.
A product of musical parents, John Knight Allen began his studies on the piano in Los Angeles
at age 4. He continued with the violin at BYU, and completed a M.M. in voice from the University
of Utah, where he is now finishing a DMA in vocal performance and choral conducting. John
performs internationally both as a violinist and singer, and enjoys interpreting the standard
repertoire and championing new works. John currently serves as Music Director for the South
Valley Unitarian Universalist Society and also regularly performs with the Bozeman Symphony
and Ballet West. In addition to performance, John is passionate about teaching music, yoga,
social justice, and skiing Utah snow.
Sam Plumb has been storytelling via song his whole life. A child of military veterans, Sam was
raised in several American states, settling in Utah as an adult. After spending his grade school
years in choirs and community theater productions, he decided to dedicate his life to the art of
singing. Following initial studies at the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, He received his B.M. in
Vocal Performance, Summa Cum Laude, from Utah Valley University. He is currently working
towards completion of a M.M. in Vocal Performance and Pedagogy at the University of Utah. As
a Teaching Assistant, he teaches undergraduate voice lessons and performs as part of the
University Graduate Vocal Quartet. It is his great privilege to share his voice with the art-lovers
of Salt Lake.
Originally from the Republic of Moldova, soprano Natalia Turchin Champagne has already
performed in multiple countries around the world including the Republic of Moldova, Romania,
Belarus, Poland, Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Austria, Russian Federation, Italy and the United
States. Natalia’s professional journey has already passed through one of the most prestigious
music conservatories in Russia – The Rimsky-Korsakov St. Petersburg Conservatory. Currently,
Natalia is a DMA Candidate in Vocal Performance at the University of Utah where she studies
with Dr. Robert Breault. Before arriving at the University of Utah, Natalia earned a MM in Vocal
Performance at Southeastern Louisiana University.
Dr. Monica A. Williams-McCullough, a member of Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society, joined the music faculty at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas in 2014 as an Adjunct Professor of Voice, receiving a full-time appointment as Visiting Assistant Professor of Music in 2019. Currently, she is the Co-Coordinator of the Voice Division. In 2018, she received UNLV’s College of Fine Arts Outstanding Part-Time Teacher of the Year Award and the Excellence in Teaching Award from the Nevada Music Teachers Association. Her students are winners of regional and national voice competitions and attend summer festivals in Europe and the United States. Monica’s students have been accepted into Dolora Zajick’s Institute for Young Dramatic Voices and several prestigious undergraduate and graduate voice programs, including the Eastman School of Music, Manhattan School of Music, the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music, University of Southern California’s Thornton School of Music, Northwestern Bienen School of Music and Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music.
Monica has performed on the operatic stage and has appeared often as a concert and chamber soloist. Upcoming performances include a concert with Opera Las Vegas in January 2024. She received her Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees from the University of Southern California. She continued her doctoral studies at the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University and completed her Doctor of Musical Arts at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
Currently, Monica is the Director of the Intermediate Program and the Opera Discovery Program at Dolora Zajick’s Institute for Young Dramatic Voices. She also is serving her third term as the Cal-Western Region Representative for the Student National Association of Teachers of Singing and recently completed two terms as the Nevada District Governor for the Cal-Western Region of the National Association of Teachers of Singing.
Grammy Award winning tenor, Thomas Glenn enjoys a favorable reputation as a creative interpreter of bel canto and Classical period literature, as well as modern works.
His most frequent operatic roles include Count Almaviva in Rossini’s Il barbiere die Siviglia, Lindoro in L’italiana in Algerì, Ferrando in Mozart’s Così fan tutte, and The Evangelist in J.S. Bach’s St. Matthew Passion. In contemporary works, he created the role of Robert Wilson in John Adams’ Doctor Atomic and enjoys collaborating on new works by composers like Jack Perla, Jake Heggie, David Schiff, Tarik O’Regan, and Rufus Wainright.
Thomas has performed at major opera companies including San Francisco Opera, The Metropolitan Opera, The Lyric Opera of Chicago, Netherlands Opera, the Canadian Opera Company, and The English National Opera among others. He has also performed with major orchestras including the Atlanta Symphony, The Cleveland Orchestra, the National Arts Centre Orchestra of Canada, China National Symphony, San Francisco Symphony, Seattle Symphony, The Philadelphia Orchestra, Colorado Symphony, Berkeley Symphony, Oakland Symphony, and others.
Thomas’ recent engagements include the roles John Singer Sargent in Damien Geter's American Apollo with Des Moines Metro Opera, Dr. Caius in Falstaff with Palm Beach Opera, Le Chevalier des Grieux, in Massenet’s Manon with Opera Idaho, The Nervous Senator in Rufus Wainright’s Hadrian at the Canadian Opera Company, Alfred in Die Fledermaus with Calgary Opera, Tenor Soloist in Rossini’s Stabat mater with Oakland Symphony, and The Shepherd in Stravinsky’s Oedipus Rex with the Philharmonia Orchestra of London with Esa Pekka Salonen, conducting.
Thomas also serves as area coordinator and assistant professor of voice at Utah State University. His alma matres are Brigham Young University, University of Michigan, and Florida State University. He is a former Adler Fellow at the San Francisco Opera, a past winner of the Concours International de Chant de Canari, France, and a semi-finalist in the Monserrat Caballé Competition in Zaragoza, Spain.
Emily Castleton has extensive teaching and performance experience over the past 30 years and teaches all vocal styles. She holds degrees in Contemporary Voice (BFA - Music Dance Theater, BYU) and Classical Voice (MM – Opera Vocal Performance, BYU) and is a DMA candidate in Voice Pedagogy (Contemporary Voice/Science Research Track) at Shenandoah University.
Emily is passionate about teaching & training university students who are planning careers in the performing arts and voice teachers and professionals who want to sing and teach contemporary vocal styles. You can find a list of her upcoming teacher training course offerings on her website: emilycastleton.com.
Currently, Emily is an Adjunct Voice Instructor at the Department of Theatre, University of Utah in Salt Lake City, with Music Theater and Theater Majors, teaching contemporary and classical vocal styles. She has also taught contemporary voice majors at Shenandoah Conservatory, Brigham Young University, and Utah Valley University. Her current and former students perform on Broadway, in Broadway touring companies, in regional theaters, as recording artists, lead singers in bands, and teach at universities and private studios nationwide.
Emily has wide-ranging performance experience in regional theaters, as a guest artist for concerts, and has toured with shows in the US and Europe. She has recorded on multiple albums and worked as a voice coach for television, as well as lecturing at Colleges and Universities.
Emily’s research work focuses primarily on vocal acoustics for contemporary styles. She has presented at the Voice Foundation National Symposium and is researching vocal acoustics for her dissertation. She is a member of The Voice Foundation, NATS, PAVA, and MTEA and is an NCVS-trained Vocologist.
You can contact Emily through her website: emilycastleton.com, via email: emily@emilycastleton.com, or text: 801-921-0475.
Korianne Orton Johnson has been seen all over the world performing and directing in Washington D.C, California, Colorado, Virginia, Texas, Washington State, Utah, Montana, and most recently Austria. Some of her favorite roles include: "Audrey" in Little Shop of Horrors; "Amneris" in Aida; "Mother" in Ragtime; "Lily" in The Secret Garden; "Frankie" in 110 in the Shade (starring Audra McDonald); "Adelaide" in Guys and Dolls; "Adele" in Die Fledermaus; “Yum Yum" in the Mikado; "Millie" in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers; and "Babette" in Beauty and the Beast. She was recently seen in the World Premiere of Hans Christian Anderson in New York at the Hale Theatre in Sandy Utah originating the role of “Bunny Bailey”. Korianne is an Assistant Professor in the School of Music at Brigham Young University where she serves as the Division Coordinator for contemporary voice and the Head of the Music Dance Theatre Program. She teaches group voice lessons, private voice lessons, musical theatre seminars/classes and music directs mainstage productions on their beautiful campus. Her students can be seen performing on Broadway tours, Off-Broadway and On-Broadway productions, and at Disney Resorts all over the world. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Music Dance Theatre and Masters of Music in Vocal Performance from Brigham Young University.
Valentine Baron is a native of France, after a BM and a MM in Musicology received in Montpellier, France, she moves to New York to pursue a MM in Voice Performance and Pedagogy at New York University in the studio of the tenor Dr. Scott Murphree. While studying at NYU she teaches voice as an adjunct in the same institution. In 2022 she graduates with her Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) at the University of Nevada Las Vegas in the studio of the soprano Dr. Linda Lister. She is the winner of the 2022 National Opera Association Dissertation Competition with her doctoral document entitled “Developing Vocal Agility of Light Lyric Coloratura Soprano Voices Through the Neglected Repertoire of French Opéra Comique.” Currently living in Las Vegas, Valentine is a faculty member at the University of Nevada Las Vegas’s music department where teaches vocal pedagogy and a seminar in French melodies.
Praised as a "mature artist with a voluminous sound," Canadian baritone and composer Joel Balzun is currently a faculty member at California Baptist University and Fullerton College. Highlights of his 2023-2024 season include his debut at Los Angeles Opera, Schaunard (La bohème) with Opera Las Vegas, works of Mozart with San Luis Obispo Master Chorale and a recital with Cincinnati Song Initiative. Other recent performance highlights include Marcello (La bohème) with Pacific Opera Project, Giorgio Germont (La traviata) with Opera Santa Barbara, works of Ralph Vaughan Williams with San Luis Obispo Master Chorale and numerous recitals featuring Black Dog by Tom Cipullo throughout Southern California. He was the guest artist for the NATS Cal-Western Region Conference in 2023, and was also a presenter for the virtual 2022 and 201 conferences.
Kelly Burge is a former professor of voice at Saint Mary’s College in Moraga, California. Her students have been on American Idol, with Disney, and have launched careers across the globe. As one of eleven Estill Voice Training mentors and course instructors in the United States, Kelly took her experience and applied it to modern pop singing.
Kelly also had her own amazing career in voiceover. You may have heard her voice in the world’s larges online game, League of Legends, heard by 180 million people worldwide.
Kelly has a BA in music, a M Ed in instructional design, an EMCI with Estill Voice International, and is an ASCAP published songwriter.
David Eggers is a Broadway vet, having performed in 10 Broadway musicals, including Annie Get Your Gun, Wonderful Town, Curtains, and Billy Elliott, among others. Before becoming Assistant Professor of Musical Theatre at the University of Utah, he directed/choreographed multiple regional productions, including the tour of Nice Work If You Can Get It, Annie in Mexico City, and I’m Still Getting My Act Together… at Laguna Playhouse, among others. As an associate director/associate choreographer, he’s worked with Kathleen Marshall, Rob Ashford, and Mark Brokaw, on multiple Broadway, off-Broadway, and regional productions.
At the University of Utah, David teaches acting, and studio/showcase classes. For the U, he’s directed Cabaret, Nine, And the World Goes ‘Round, with Into the Woods upcoming this spring. He recently launched a podcast called The Mental Game of Musical Theatre, which coincides with a book he’s writing for publication on the same topic. @ProfEggers
Bass-baritone, Seth Keeton’s performances have been described by The New York Times as “driven” and “emotionally pointed,” and “stentorian” by Opera News. He has performed operatic roles throughout the US, and at Theater Bremen in Bremen, Germany. In 2006, he was a national finalist in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions and has received awards from the Sullivan Foundation. As a recitalist he presents tightly knit programs, singing pieces in unique combination and often including rarely performed works. As a scholar Keeton has created an online song index, SongHelix, that makes it easy to find related song repertoire. This index can be found at www.songhelix.com. Mr. Keeton received his Doctorate of Musical Arts in Vocal Performance from the University of Minnesota and is an Associate Professor of Voice, and the chair of the Voice Area at the University of Utah School of Music.
Brian Manternach, DM, is an associate professor in the University of Utah Department of Theatre and a research associate for the Utah Center for Vocology, where he is on the faculty of the Summer Vocology Institute. His students have been cast in film, TV, national and international Broadway tours, and regional Equity theatres.
A recipient of the 2021 Faculty Excellence in Research Award from the University of Utah College of Fine Arts and the 2016 Voice Pedagogy Award from the NATS Foundation, he has given presentations for the Pan American Vocology Association, Voice Foundation, Physiology and Acoustics of Singing, Voice and Speech Trainers Association, TEDxSaltLakeCity, and for NATS at national, regional, district, and chapter conferences.
He is an associate editor of the Journal of Singing—writing and editing “The Independent Teacher” column—and a regular columnist for Classical Singer magazine, which has published more than 100 of his interviews, articles, and reviews.
Lynn Maxfield, PhD, is the associate director of science and research for the Utah Center for Vocology and is on the faculty of the Summer Vocology Institute. He is also an associate professor in the University of Utah School of Music, where he teaches courses in voice pedagogy and vocology. In addition, he serves as a vocal coach for the University of Utah Voice Disorders Center, where he provides patients habilitative voice coaching in coordination with the medical team, both during and after medical treatment.
His research has been published in numerous voice-related journals and he is an associate editor for the Journal of Singing. He has given podium presentations for the Acoustical Society of America, Fall Voice, NATS, Voice and Speech Trainers Association, and the Voice Foundation, among others.
He is a founding member of the Pan American Vocology Association, currently serving on the organization’s Board of Directors.
Teaching artist, Mary Jane McCloskey, has been active in Arts Education and performance for more than 30 years! She was honored to be awarded “West Valley Teacher of the Year” for her arts education work in the public schools. She also served as Education Director for Arizona Opera, where she developed the “Opera in a Box” school presentation. The program was awarded several state and local grants to bring a simple, fun opera introduction into classrooms around the Phoenix Metro area.
Mary Jane serves as Arizona District Governor for the National Association of Teachers of Singing. She has previously served on the board of the Valley of the Sun NATS Chapter as Co-Chair for the Arizona District Student Auditions, as well as the Arizona Summer Heat CM Auditions.
Mary Jane has preformed in opera, concert and musical theatre. She was nominated for a 2022 Arizona ZONI award for best supporting actress for her portrayal of “Mother Abbess” in “The Sound of Music.""
Mary Jane has an MM in Vocal Performance from The University of Michigan, a BM from the Wheaton College Conservatory of Music and her CM vocal pedagogy certificates from Shenandoah University.
Educator, scholar, and soprano Dr. Kaitlyn Sabrowsky (nee Johnson) maintains a private voice studio in Phoenix, a faculty position at Grand Canyon University, and an active performing career. Sabrowsky earned her DMA in Voice Performance at Arizona State University, Master of Music at Indiana University, and Bachelor of Music at Rice University. Celebrated for her “strong dramatic voice,” Sabrowsky is at home in operatic performance ranging from classical to contemporary. She has performed with companies including Arizona Opera, Atlanta Opera, and The Phoenix Symphony, among others. Her research interests include feminism in opera, worship music pedagogy, and the holistic health of performing artists.
Melissa Treinkman, DMA, is an assistant professor of musical theatre vocal performance at the University of Southern California. Dr. Treinkman has presented at the NATS National Conference, the PAVA Conference, the Association of Popular Music Education Conference, the Northwest Voice Conference, and the Voice Foundation Symposium. Her publications can be found in the Journal of Singing and the Journal of Voice. She was the 2020 recipient of the Voice Foundation’s Sataloff Award for Young Investigators and was the first to win in the category of vocal pedagogy. She currently serves as an associate editor of the Journal of Singing, where she is the author of "The Vocal Point" column. At LA Opera, she sang in the featured ensemble for the GRAMMY award winning production of The Ghosts of Versailles, performed the role of the Vendor in Carmen, and performed the role of a Noble Page in Tannhäuser. www.melissatreinkman.com
Erica Waxer has been a voice teacher in the San Francisco Bay Area for over 15 years. Erica received her Bachelor in Music Performance in Vocal Arts from the University of Southern California and is currently pursuing a masters in vocal pedagogy from the University of Wales Trinity Saint David in conjunction with the UK based Voice Study Centre. Erica is also an active performer in musical theater and opera.
Yue Yin, a soprano, hails from a musically enriched background in China. With a decade of piano study, she earned a bachelor's degree in vocal performance from London's Royal College of Music and pursued further studies in the United States, obtaining master's and doctoral degrees in vocal literature and performance from Indiana University, alongside vocology certification.
In her diverse career spanning a decade, Yue has thrived in collaboration with professional music companies across genres. Her vibrant role in higher education involves mentoring over 80 students from diverse backgrounds, many of whom progressed to college-level studies. Operating a private voice studio since 2012, she continually expands her reach. Recent appointments as an Adjunct Voice Instructor at Moorpark College and a voice instructor for the International Christian Choral Conductor Society underscore her unwavering dedication to teaching. Additionally, she serves as a voice instructor and consultant for college overseas programs in China.
Tenor Nicholas Perna’s voice has been hailed by the Houston Chronicle as “an impressive sound,” and the South Florida Sun Sentinel praised his “emotionally driven performance.” Perna was a recent finalist for the American Prize for men in opera, and has appeared multiple times in recent seasons with Opera Mississippi. He debuted the one person play Letters to Puccini for Opera Mississippi in 2022. Perna was twice selected as a Santa Fe Opera Apprentice Artist singer. Additional Operatic credits include Don José in Carmen, Rodolfo in La Bohème, The Duke in Rigoletto, Nemorino in L’Elisir d’amore, Alfred in Die Fledermaus, & Tamino in Die Zauberflöte. Symphonic soloist appearances include Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde, Beethoven's Symphony no. 9, Handel’s Messiah, & Orff’s Carmina Burana.
Dr. Perna is Associate Professor of Voice and Voice Pedagogy at Mississippi College, Producer for Lyric Stage at MC, and a voice research associate at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. He is a Presser Music Foundation awardee, and has presented research on four continents at events such as the Voice Foundation’s Symposium on the Care of the Professional Voice, ICVT, NATS National Conference, and Physiology and Acoustics of Singing (PAS). Perna is Vice President for Outreach for the National Association of Teachers of Singing for the 2022-2026 term. He is the creator and co-host of the VocalFri Podcast, http://www.vocalfri.com. Your weekly dash of voice science, pedagogy, and pop culture. Perna holds graduate degrees from the University of Miami & the University of Houston.
Michaela Kelly, soprano, is a doctoral candidate and graduate teaching assistant at the University of Southern California, Thornton School of Music. She is a visiting lecturer of voice at Scripps College and is the vice president of programs for NATS-LA. This past summer, Michaela was an Art of Song Fellow with the Toronto Summer Music Festival and a voice teaching fellow at the Classical Music Institute. Recently, Michaela has sung as a soloist with the Claremont Concert Orchestra and Thornton Wind Ensemble for the Bach Christmas Oratorio with I Cantori di Carmel. Previously, Michaela sang the role of Blanche in Dialogues of the Carmelites with the New England Conservatory Opera Theater. While at NEC, she was a soprano soloist in Die Schöpfung with NEC chorus and orchestra. Michaela holds a Bachelor’s of Music Education from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and a Master’s of Music in Vocal Pedagogy from the New England Conservatory.
Payton Rose Ballinger is native to Peculiar, MO and is a second-year double major in Vocal Performance and Psychology at Pepperdine University. At Pepperdine, Ballinger is actively involved in the Thornton Opera Program, through which she is currently preparing the role of Hanna Glawari (The Merry Widow) and has previously performed in Le Nozze di Figaro (Ensemble, Cherubino Cover), HMS Pinafore (Cousin Hebe, Buttercup Cover), and various other Opera and Oratorio scenes in Heidelberg, Germany. She is active in the Pepperdine Chamber and Concert Choirs, having performed Oratorio, classical, spiritual, and contemporary repertoire. Additionally, Ballinger is involved in the Pepperdine Pickford Ensemble, is a Music and Academic Scholarship Recipient, and serves both as a Choral Student Worker and a Production Crew Lead. Ballinger currently studies voice with Dr. Keith Colclough and has previously studied with Professor Ida Nicolosi.