Concert Hall
Runtime
75 min
Patrons are requested to silence cell phones and other electronic devices during performances.
The taking of photographs and the use of recording equipment are not allowed in this venue.
This performance is an external rental presented in coordination with the Kennedy Center Campus Rentals Office and is not produced by the Kennedy Center.
Eugene Rogers, conductor
National Capital Brass and Percussion
Rod Vester, guest artist, piano
Paul Byssainthe, Jr., organ and piano
Patrice “PatriceLIVE” Forbes, guest artist, soprano
Stafford High School Chamber Singers
Joe Eveler, director
The Washington Chorus & Handbell Ensemble
*Sing along with The Washington Chorus! Sing-alongs are denoted with an asterisk.
^As a part of its Side by Side high school education program, The Washington Chorus is pleased to be joined by Stafford High School for these performances.
All events and artists subject to change without prior notice.
National Capital Brass and Percussion
National Capital Brass are represented by the Metropolitan Washington, D.C. Federation of Musicians, AFM Local 161-710.
The Washington Chorus Handbell Ensemble
Artistic Director
Eugene Rogers
A two-time Michigan Emmy Award winner, a 2017 Sphinx Medal of Excellence recipient, and a 2015 Grammy® Award nominee, TWC Artistic Director Eugene Rogers is recognized as a leading conductor and pedagogue throughout the United States and abroad. In addition to being the founding director of Exigence, Dr. Rogers is the director of choirs and an associate professor of conducting at the University of Michigan.
Piano
Rod Vester
Recently named as one of the top 30 professionals by Musical America, Dr. Rod Vester is an educator, researcher, entrepreneur, pianist, organist, composer, conductor, and producer who excels in gospel, jazz, classical, and contemporary music. He has performed with numerous artists, across genres, including Grammy Award winners Kirk Franklin, CeCe Winans, the late Aretha Franklin, and Stellar Award winners Richard Smallwood, Tye Tribbett, Kurt Carr, Smokie Norful, and many others.
Organist
Paul Byssainthe, Jr.
Paul Byssainthe, Jr. is an accomplished organist, conductor, and composer. A native of New York, he has been involved in music since a young age. He was a multiple winner in the International Concert Alliance Piano Competition as well as the Piano Teachers’ Congress of New York Piano Competition. He is a graduate of Andrews University, where he earned the Bachelor of Arts degree in Music and the Master of Music Degree in Orchestral Conducting.
Associate Conductor
Jonathan King
Celebrated as a “fresh presence,” and “fully alive” (Washington Post), Associate Conductor Jonathan King is an artist “whose attention to textural detail and rhythmic precision leave nothing to be desired” (ArtsFuse). He is currently a doctoral candidate at the University of Maryland School of Music, where he has directed the University Chorale and serves as Assistant Conductor, Chorus Master, and Junior Lecturer with Maryland Opera Studio.
Stafford High School
Joe Eveler
Joe Eveler has been the Choral Director of the award-winning fine arts department at Stafford High School since 2003. Eveler was named the interim Artistic Director of the Chamber Chorale of Frederickburg January 21 and appointed the permanent Artistic Director in January 2022. Eveler has a bachelor’s degree in Music Education from Lebanon Valley College and a master’s degree in Choral Music Education from Florida State University.
The Washington Chorus (TWC), now in its 62nd season, is one of the foremost symphonic choruses in the nation. Noted for the superb artistry of its performances and recordings of the entire range of the choral repertoire, TWC is widely recognized as a cultural leader in the nation’s capital.
A three-time Grammy® nominated and two-time Grammy® Award winner, the 160-voice Washington Chorus presents an annual series at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, regularly performs at the invitation of the National Symphony Orchestra, and appears annually at the Music Center at Strathmore in Maryland. TWC has appeared at the invitation of leading orchestras including the National and Baltimore Symphony Orchestras. TWC is proud to have sung with the NSO in more than 300 performances, under the direction of many of the world’s greatest conductors, including Gianandrea Noseda, Christoph Eschenbach, Leonard Slatkin, Mstislav Rostropovich, Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, Seiji Ozawa, Sir Neville Marriner, Kent Nagano, Marin Alsop, Gustavo Dudamel, Sir Andrew Davis, and many others.
TWC has sung for numerous prestigious events throughout its history— inaugurations, papal visits, with the Rolling Stones during their 50th anniversary tour, and at the White House in 2013 and 2014 for the President and First Lady.
Singers
*section leader
•chorus council
‡pro-core member
♫chorus president
Donald J. Borut, Treasurer
Peter Clunie
Louis R. Cohen
Taylor Cortright
Jeri Darling
Shannon Finney
Catherine French, Past Chairman
Nancy Ortmeyer Kuhn, Chorus President, Ex-Officio
Lisa McLane
Kara Morrissey, Board Chair
Eugene Rogers, Artistic Director, Ex-Officio
Anthony Salvi-Exner, Interim Executive Director, Ex-Officio
John Shakow
Griha Singla
Alan Taffel
Andrew Teie
Sam Zhao, Secretary
Knight Kiplinger, Chairman Emeritus
Dianne Peterson, Executive Director Emerita
Eugene Rogers, Artistic Director
Jonathan King, Associate Conductor
Wei-Han Wu, Accompanist
Anthony Salvi-Exner, Interim Executive Director
Emma Moores, Deputy Director
Eric J. Rubio, Director of Finance & Administration
Robert Schroyer, Director of Production & Community
Patrice N. Forbes, Senior Development & Marketing Manager
Brandon Pelar, Communications Manager
Jennie Weyman, Communications Manager
*Represented by ATPAM, the Association of Theatrical Press Agents and Managers.
Steinway Piano Gallery is the exclusive area representative of Steinway & Sons and Boston pianos, the official pianos of the Kennedy Center.
The box office at the Kennedy Center is represented by I.A.T.S.E, Local #868.
The technicians at the Kennedy Center are represented by Local #22, Local #772, and Local #798 I.A.T.S.E., AFL-CIO-CLC, the professional union of theatrical technicians.
The Washington Chorus wishes to thank the following organizations for their major support.
The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation
The Clark-Winchcole Foundation
The Dallas Morse Coors Foundation for the Performing Arts
DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities
ExxonMobil Foundation
The Greater Washington Community Foundation Arts Forward Fund
Hand in Hand Fund
HMF Beaudoin Family Foundation
The Kiplinger Foundation
KPMG
Robert and Dee Leggett Foundation
The Meredith Foundation
The National Capital Arts and Cultural Affairs and the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts
The National Endowment for the Arts
Small Business Administration
Willard Inter-Continental Hotel
The Washington Chorus wishes to thank the donors who help the organization fulfill its mission of presenting excellent choral music throughout the Washington Metropolitan Area, and before international audiences. We are deeply grateful to these donors for their outstanding generosity. (The following donor lists reflect contributions received between July 1, 2020, and November 1, 2021. If names have been inadvertently misspelled or left off, please accept our apologies and contact TWC at 202-342-6221.)
Millennium Baton: $25,000+
Platinum Baton: $10,000–$24,999
Gold Baton: $5,000–$9,999
Silver Baton: $2,500–$4,999
Bronze Baton: $1,000–$2,499
Cantata Level: $500–$999
Oratorio Level: $250–$499
Aria Level: $150–$249
Prelude Level: $25–$149