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Artistic Director and Soprano

LESLEY MANN

Dr. Lesley Maxwell Mann is an Associate Professor Music at Belmont University, where serves as Coordinator of Music Education, teaches coursework in Choral Methods, Middle School Methods, Conducting, Music Theory, Behavior Modification, and coordinates the Student Teaching program. She is the conductor of Bel Canto, a large choir of women comprised of majors across the university. Previously, Dr. Mann served on faculty at the College of Central Florida and served as the Director of Choral Activities at William R. Boone High School in Orlando, FL.


As a performer, she has sung with Vocal Arts Nashville, Collegium, the Festival Singers of Florida, and the Tallahassee Bach Parley. At Walt Disney World, she sang with the Voices of Liberty and swam with Finding Nemo, the Musical!


She received her Bachelor of Music Education, Master of Music Education, and PhD in Choral Conducting and Music Education from the Florida State University, studying with Andre Thomas, Judy Bowers, Kevin Fenton, and John Geringer. Dr. Mann is an active conductor, clinician, and adjudicator. Her research interests include vocal pedagogy in the choral setting, conducting gesture, and teacher education.

 

 

She lives in Franklin, TN with her husband Jason and children Cooper and Chloe. She enjoys running, hand lettering, and hiding in the bathroom to read books of all genres.

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Soprano

MARY BIDDLECOMBE

Mary Biddlecombe is proud to be a multi-season singer in Vocal Arts Nashville. Mary has also performed with Nashville Symphony Chorus, Portara, Music City Baroque, Early Music City, Collegium and Vox Grata in the Nashville area. Before moving to Nashville, Mary performed as a chorister and soloist with the Festival Singers of Florida, the Tallahassee Bach Parley, the Tallahassee Symphony Orchestra, and the Tallahassee Community Chorus. Mary serves as the Artistic Director of the Vanderbilt Youth Choirs and the Director of the Blair Academy at Vanderbilt University.

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Soprano

Bakara Anderson

Bakara Anderson is a Nashville-based soprano and voice teacher. She holds a Master of Music degree in vocal pedagogy from Belmont University and a Bachelor of Music degree in music education from Michigan State University. Originally from Durham, NC, Bakara has been studying voice since 2007. Her teaching career spans both classroom and private settings. She previously served as the Choral Director at Islands High School in Savannah, GA. Additionally, she was an Adjunct Professor of Voice at Trevecca Nazarene University from 2020 to 2024 and has served as an Adjunct Professor of Music at Belmont University since earning her master's degree in 2020. In addition to her teaching, Bakara enjoys performing in the Nashville area. Her performances include appearances with the Belmont Chorale, Nashville Opera, Visionary Vocal Collaborative, Opera on Tap Nashville, and the W. Crimm Singers. She has performed at prestigious venues around Nashville such as the Schermerhorn Symphony Center, Tennessee Performing Arts Center, National Museum of African American History, Oz Arts, and the Noah Liff Opera Center.

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Soprano

SARAH DUNNEVANT

Sarah Dunnevant is a lyric soprano and voice teacher based in the Nashville area. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Vocal Performance from MTSU, where she studied with H. Stephen Smith. Since then, she has performed with local ensembles such as Portara Ensemble, Nashville Opera, and Nashville Symphony Chorus. In 2019, she could be found touring with the Nashville Opera’s educational outreach program of “Abrazo de Oso!”, a youth opera by Anna Young. She premiered new works by Nashville area composers for local classical radio in 2020 and the Nashville Composer Collective in 2021 and 2022. She also sang as a section leader at West End United Church from 2019-2024, where she enjoyed singing sacred works large and small. Sarah has a keen interest in vocal pedagogy, having attended the Westminster Choir College Vocal Pedagogy Institute, and enjoys teaching weekly piano and voice students. Most recently, she won the Best Vocals award at VGM CON's 2024 Game Music Remix Awards with a cover in collaboration with the YouTube channel, ACappellaVGM. When she’s not making music, she also enjoys playing video games, watercoloring, and cooking with her husband Patrick, a Vocal Arts Nashville baritone.

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Soprano

EMMA JACKSON

Emma Jackson, soprano, is proud to be a founding member of Vocal Arts Nashville. A Lexington, Kentucky, native, she came to Nashville for college and found that she didn’t want to leave. She is a graduate of Vanderbilt University (B.M., M.Ed.), where she studied voice with Gayle Shay and was a founding member of the Vanderbilt Chorale under the direction of Tucker Biddlecombe. Since 2012, Emma has been a staff musician at West End United Methodist Church, serving as a soprano soloist and section leader and as a children's music director. A once-and-future music educator with a passion for middle school, Emma is currently primarily at home with her two young children.

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Alto

Angela Stenzel

Angela is a second year graduate student at Belmont University where she received her undergraduate degree in Music Education, and is currently studying under Dr. Savanna Sokolnicki. This past summer she spent her time with Opera Lucca performing the role of Zita in Gianni Schicchi. In the fall, Angela performed the roles of Hansel in Hansel and Gretel and Jo March in Little Women for the Belmont Opera Scenes production “From Page to Stage.”

 

She is currently preparing the role of Witch in Hansel and Gretel in Belmont Opera Theatre’s upcoming spring production, and recently was selected for Belmont’s Graduate Honors Recital. She is preparing for some engagements with the Belmont Wind Ensemble and the Belmont New Music Ensemble. She also has the opportunity to work with composer and educator, Dr. Mark Volker, on showcasing a piece at the Southeastern Composers League.

 

When she isn’t performing, Angela can be found spending time outside with her husband, Zach, and their two corgis, Phoebe and Finn. She also loves to bake and enjoys a good fantasy novel.

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Alto

Rachel Asmus

Rachel Asmus is a graduate California State University, Fullerton, with a BA in Music Education under Robert Istad and Christopher Peterson. She was the director of choral music at Bernardo Heights Middle School and JSerra Catholic High School where she created curricula for the Arts Magnet Program and coached the girls golf team.

 

Rachel earned her MM in Choral Conducting from Temple University Boyer College of Music, where she was awarded, the Robert Page Conducting Scholarship. At Temple, she taught undergraduate conducting courses and served as the assistant conductor for five choirs including Dr. Rollo Dilworth’s community choir, the Singing Owls.

 

A founding member and alto section leader of the Southern California professional ensemble Choral Arts Initiative, Rachel performed on their Grammy-nominated album, "Into Wilderness." She has also had the pleasure singing with the Pacific Choral, Nashville Symphony Chorus, and West End United Methodist. When not immersed in music, Rachel enjoys helping people achieve their real estate and property management goals. She also loves spending time with her family and teaching her two daughters how to golf!

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Alto

BETHANY DISANTIS

Bethany DiSantis is a Nashville area choral director and vocalist. She is currently the Middle and High School Choral Director at the University School of Nashville where she directs vocal ensembles for grades 5-12 and music directs the middle school musical. In addition to teaching, Bethany can be found singing all around the Nashville area with a variety of ensembles. She is an alto section leader and Children's/Youth Choir director at West End United Methodist Church, the alto section leader of the Nashville Symphony Chorus, and is thrilled to be in her fourth season singing Alto 1 with Vocal Arts Nashville. Bethany attended Vanderbilt University, where she majored in Vocal Music Education. Bethany is passionate about all forms of ensemble singing, from traditional choirs to chamber choirs to contemporary acapella to musical theater and beyond! Outside of her musical endeavors, Bethany loves to cook, play video games, eat delicious food at restaurants around Nashville with her favorite people, and hang out with her cats Buttercup and Jasmine.

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Alto

MARY SCHEIB

Mary Scheib is so pleased to be singing alto with this fine group. A native of Indiana, this Hoosier girl moved to Nashville for love almost 18 years ago after several years pursuing a singing career in New York. In Nashville, Ms. Scheib has had the privilege of singing with Portara Ensemble, Collegium Vocale, Vox Humana, Christ Presbyterian Church, West End United Methodist Church, First Presbyterian Church, and the Nashville Opera. Her opera and oratorio career has taken Ms. Scheib across the country singing roles such as: Hanna Glawari – The Merry Widow, Second Lady – The Magic Flute, Nella – Gianni Schicchi, Fire/Princess/Nightingale – L’Enfant et les Sortil­éges, and Sister Angelica – Suor Angelica. Ms. Scheib received a Master’s degree in Vocal Performance from the University of Michigan where she studied with Shirley Verrett, and her Bachelor’s degree in Vocal Performance from Butler University. With a deep love of choral music and singing in community, Ms. Scheib has been a life-long chorister. Other great loves are her two children and husband, Kurt, who all enjoy singing dance parties in the kitchen before dinner.

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Tenor

CRAIG ZAMER

Dr. Craig Zamer is Professor of Music and Director of Choral Activities at Tennessee Tech University where he directs a non-auditioned Concert Choir and the Tennessee Tech University Chorale, Tennessee Tech’s top auditioned choir. Dr. Zamer also teaches undergraduate courses in choral conducting, choral literature, and secondary choral methods.


Dr. Zamer received his Bachelor of Arts degree with a double major in Vocal Performance and Music Education from Virginia Tech University. He also holds the M.M.E. and Ph. D. degrees in Music Education and Choral Conducting from The Florida State University. Before his graduate work he taught high school choral music at Stone Bridge High School in Loudoun County, Virginia.


In 2018 Dr. Zamer debuted in Carnegie Hall conducting choirs from Tennessee and Mississippi in a performance of Dan Forrest’s Jubilate Deo with full orchestra. Dr. Zamer has been an invited clinician, conductor, and adjudicator in Alabama, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, New York, Tennessee, and Virginia.

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Tenor

Matt Taylor 

​Matt Taylor is the Director of Choral Activities and Vocal Music Education at Lipscomb University, where he directs the ensembles Concert Choir and University Chorale, and teaches coursework in Choral Methods, Conducting, Choral Literature, and Aural Skills. Matt also serves on the faculty of the Tennessee Governor’s School for the Arts as director of the Governor’s School Chorale. A passionate conductor and educator, Matt spent five years as an Associate Choral Director at Wando High School in Charleston, SC. Matt made his international conducting debut in 2022 with the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir, where he was selected as one of five emerging guest conductors from across North America. He has performed in collegiate and professional choirs as a vocalist, and is an accomplished double bassist and composer. He holds degrees in music from Samford University (BM - Composition), Louisiana State University (MM - Choral Conducting), and The University of Georgia (DMA - Choral Conducting).

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Tenor

SCOTT BRONS

Tenor and composer Scott Brons is thrilled to be a part of Vocal Arts Nashville’s season. He is a graduate from Lipscomb University with a degree in piano performance. In addition to accepting a position with Second Stage Theatre as the season’s musical director, Scott is the music intern and tenor section leader of both choirs at West End United Methodist Church, where he was recently a soloist in their performance of Beethoven’s Mass in C. He was also the tenor soloist for Lipscomb University’s performance of Carmina Burana. Upcoming new works include film scores and musical theatre pieces.

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Tenor

TUCKER BIDDLECOMBE

Dr. Tucker Biddlecombe (Ph.D.) is Professor of Choral Studies and Associate Dean of Undergraduate Education at Vanderbilt University’s Blair School of Music. There he conducts the Vanderbilt Sixteen as well as courses in conducting and music education. He also serves as Director of the Nashville Symphony Chorus, which has included chorus preparation for many of the repertoire’s most revered masterworks. During his tenure the all-volunteer Nashville Symphony Chorus has produced two major world-premiere recordings, performed a concert at Carnegie Hall, and have held several international tours. He has conducted honor choirs in a dozen states and conducted residencies in the United Kingdom and China.

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Baritone

PATRICK DUNNEVANT

Patrick Dunnevant is a composer, conductor, and baritone. He is a graduate of Belmont University (B.M. Music Education) and Westminster Choir College (M.M. Composition), where he was a member and soloist with several of their world-renowned choirs, including the Westminster Choir, Symphonic Choir, and the early music ensemble, Kantorei. His compositions, which have been praised for their “lustrous sonic colors,” (ArtsNash), have been performed by regional and All-State honor choirs across the country and the UK, and are published by Colla Voce Music and GIA Publications, Inc.Patrick currently serves as the Assistant Director of Portara Ensemble; recently, he has prepared and conducted the choir in performances of "Brich dem Hungrigen dein Brot, BWV 39" by J.S. Bach, "i remember", a world premiere by Cortlandt Matthews, and "Mass" by Steve Dobrogosz. He is also a co-founder of the Nashville Chamber Music Series, an organization dedicated to creating intimate performances of contemporary classical and jazz music in non-traditional settings. When he's not making music, he also enjoys playing video games and baking with his wife Sarah, a Vocal Arts Nashville soprano.

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Baritone

Skip Stradtman 

Skip Stradtman is a choral music educator, conductor, and composer based in the Southeastern United States. Skip currently serves as the Choral Director at Christ Presbyterian Academy in Nashville, TN. Skip holds a Doctorate of Musical Arts in Composition and a Master of Music degree in Choral Conducting from The University of Alabama. He holds a Bachelor of Music Education degree from Florida State University. Skip’s choral pieces are regularly performed by academic, community, and church choirs across the Southeastern United States. His works have been featured at multiple regional and national conferences, most recently including the 2024 Florida Music Educators Conference, the 2023 Louisiana All-State Mixed Chorus, and the 2023 Montreat Music and Worship Conference. Skip received Editor’s Choice from JWPepper for his arrangement of “Be Thou My Vision” (Gentry Publications) in 2023. You can find recordings and scores of Skip’s music at skipstradtmanmusic.com.

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Baritone

MARQUES RUFF

American bass-baritone Marques Jerrell Ruff has performed across the globe, gracing the stages of the Walt Disney Hall in Los Angeles, Weiner Musikverein in Vienna, the Rudolfinum in Prague, and the Mariinksy Theater in St. Petersburg. A former member of the Grammy® award-winning ensemble, Chanticleer, Mr. Ruff has traveled to dozens of countries concertizing with the ensemble, and has given numerous vocal and conducting masterclasses. He has distinguished himself as a versatile, dynamic performer who excels in oratorios, musical theater, music of the African-American experience, and choral conducting. Marques Jerrell Ruff has been the featured soloist on several recordings, including a world premiere by the talented young American contemporary classical composer, Nico Muhly, entitled ‘Three Moon Songs.’ The Hartford Courant marveled, “Ruff has a voice that has power, clarity and brilliant shades of color.”

 

As a conductor Mr. Ruff has had the privilege of conducting the Missouri Choral Artists in a wildly successful concert program entitled “Made in America: A Choral Tapestry,” as well as the Parkway All-District Honor Choir in St. Louis, MO. He has worked with several distinguished conductors including: Joshua Habermann, James Bass, Simon Carrington, and William Fred Scott. In addition to a 2010 recording of a song cycle, ‘Guided Imagery,’ composed by Staff Sergeant Daniel J. Campolieta, Marques also appears on the album ‘Sure on this Shining Night’ with famed American composer, Morten Lauridsen. A graduate of Central Connecticut State University, Mr. Ruff was the University Singers Scholarship recipient, under the direction of Dr. Pamela J. Perry. He also holds dual Master of Music degrees in Choral Conducting (R. Paul Crabb) and Voice Performance (Christine Seitz) from the University of Missouri-Columbia. Currently, he is the interim Director of Choral Activities at Tennessee State University.

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Baritone

JEFFREY AMES

Jeffery L. Ames serves as Director of Choral Activities, and is a Full Professor within the School of Music at Belmont University.  His prior appointments include Assistant Director of Choral Activities at Baylor University and Choral Director at Edgewater High School and Lincoln High School in Florida.

As a choral clinician, Dr. Ames has conducted senior and junior high school mixed and male choirs at the state and regional conventions of the American Choral Directors Association and the Music Educator’s National Conference, including the inaugural Florida Male All-State Chorus, and annually at Carnegie Hall with the National Youth Choir.  He has performed and guest conducted internationally in the countries of Costa Rica, Germany, Italy, Latvia, Estonia, South Korea, and the Republic of Ghana. 

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An accomplished accompanist, he has performed and collaborated with well-known conductors such as André Thomas, Jo-Michael Scheibe, Lynne Gackle, and Anton Armstrong. Additionally he has collaborated with well-known celebrities such as Trisha Yearwood, Laura Bell Bundy, CeCe Winans, Connie Smith, Ricky Skaggs and The Whites, internationally acclaimed mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves, Michael W. Smith, Kathy Mattea, Sheryl Crow, and legendary rock band the Rolling Stones.

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With a reputation as a distinguished and well-respected composer and arranger, Dr. Ames’ music has been premiered by the Florida Music Educators Association, the Florida American Choral Directors Association, the Southern Division of ACDA, at National ACDA Conferences, and on the 2017, 2015, 2013, and 2011 telecasts of Christmas at Belmont. His compositions and arrangements are published with Colla Voce Music, Earthsongs, Santa Barbara Music Publishing, and Walton Music Corporation.

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Professor Ames holds the Ph.D. in Choral Conducting/Choral Music Education and a Master of Choral Music Education degree from The Florida State University, and a Bachelor of Music degree, with a double major in Vocal Performance and Piano Accompanying, from James Madison University.  He holds the honor of being the first recipient of the National ACDA James Mulholland Choral Music Fellowship, as well as being the first African American to represent the United States in the ACDA International Conductor Exchange Program. He lives in Nashville with his lovely wife and three children.

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Bass

CHRISTOPHER MITCHELL

Christopher Mitchell, lyric bass, is a professor of music at Murray State University in Kentucky where he teaches voice lessons and directs the Una Voce Tenor Bass Chorus and EQ Blu, a contemporary a cappella ensemble.  

As a professional chorister, he performs frequently with the Taylor Festival Choir in Charleston, South Carolina.  Past honors as a soloist include selection as a national semi-finalist in the NATS Artist Awards and Midwest Regional Finalist in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions.  

As a conductor, Dr. Mitchell was recently honored to receive the 2021 Robert K. Baar Award for Choral Excellence from the Kentucky Chapter of the American Choral Directors Association. 

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Bass

Ryan Bede

Ryan Bede, baritone, is a member of the music faculty at Belmont University, where he teaches voice and Italian/English diction courses. Prior to relocating from the Pacific Northwest to Nashville in 2021, he taught on the faculties of Seattle Pacific University and Tacoma Community College. He also maintains a private voice studio, both in-person and online, reaching students nationwide. He holds degrees from the University Of Puget Sound (BM) and the University Of Washington (MM & DMA). He is also active in the southeast region of the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS), and served as Tahoma chapter President prior to his move to Tennessee.

 

He appears regularly with numerous regional opera companies and orchestras, including a recent return to Nashville Opera in Bizet's "Carmen" this past September. He made his Nashville Symphony debut as a soloist in "Voices Of Spring" in April of 2024, and sang his first Beethoven 9th Symphony performances with the Nashville Philharmonic last season. Other recent engagements have included stage roles at Seattle Opera, Tacoma Opera, Opera Idaho, and Opera New Jersey, and concert performances with Harmonia Orchestra of Seattle (Handel's "Messiah") and the Federal Way Symphony (Vaughan Williams "Fantasia On Christmas Carols").

 

As a professional chorister, he is a member of the Franklin Chamber Choir and a section leader/soloist at First Presbyterian Church Nashville. This is his third season on the roster of Vocal Arts Nashville.

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