|
Lynnel Joy Jenkins
Artistic Director
Conductor, Concert Choir
Lynnel Joy Jenkins is Artistic Director of the Princeton Girlchoir as well as
the choral teacher at the Timberlane Middle School of the Hopewell Valley
Regional School District in Pennington, New Jersey. Prior to these
appointments, Ms. Jenkins served as graduate assistant for the music
education department at the University of Arizona in Tucson. In this
capacity she conducted the University of Arizona's High School Outreach
Choir, supervised student teachers, taught undergraduate music education
courses including choral, secondary, and elementary methods.
Ms. Jenkins's varied conducting and teaching experience ranges from the
elementary to collegiate level. She has served as Assistant Professor of
Music Education at the Westminster Choir College of Rider University and
Conductor of the Resident Training Choir at the American Boychoir School in
Princeton, New Jersey. She was on the conducting staff of the Temple
University Children's Choir where she served for three seasons. In her last
year at Temple, she was the Associate Music Director of that ensemble. A
former music specialist at the Haverford School in Haverford, Pennsylvania,
she developed and implemented a general music program for elementary school
children based on the pedagogy of Zoltán Kodály.
Ms. Jenkins is a choral conductor and music educator of international
stature, having lectured and conducted in China, Hong Kong, Iceland, and
South Africa. She has served as guest conductor for numerous choral
festivals in the United States and a clinician for several professional music
conferences. She serves on the conducting faculty for the Virginia
Organization of Kodály Educator's Vocal Arts Camp and the
Kodály Certification Program at Texas State University.
Ms. Jenkins has earned degrees from Westminster Choir College of Rider
University and Temple University, and at both institutions was awarded the
Elaine Brown Conducting Award. She holds a certificate in Kodály
pedagogy from Westminster Choir College of Rider University and level two
Orff-Schulwerk certification. She is a candidate for a doctor of musical arts
degree in choral conducting at the University of Arizona in Tucson.
Melissa Malvar-Keylock
Associate Director
Conductor, Grace Notes, Semi-Tones
Melissa Malvar-Keylock conducts the Semi-Tones and Grace Notes choirs of the
Princeton Girlchoir. She is the Director of Choral Music at Moorestown
Friends School, where she conducts five upper and middle school choirs, and
teaches Advanced Placement Music Theory. She serves on the board of the New
Jersey Choral Director's Association as the R&S Chair for Children's
Choirs (Repertoire and Standards). Her 5th grade school chorus was selected
to perform for the 2008 South Jersey Elementary Choral Festival, and her
Concert Choir, Women's Choir, and A Cappella school choirs took gold medals
in an Orlando choral festival (2008). Previously, Mrs. Malvar-Keylock
worked with the Indianapolis Children's Choir as the Director of Satellite
Programs/Assistant Education Director, and worked with the Lawrence (Kansas)
Children's Choir. She holds a master of music in conducting degree from
Butler University where she conducted the BU Women's Glee Club, and studied
with Henry Leck and Ruth Dwyer. She holds an undergraduate degree in music
education from Wheaton College, completed her coursework for Kodály
certification from Capital University, and is a member of the American Choral
Directors Association, Music Educators National Conference, Organization of
Kodály Educators, and Pi Kappa Lambda. She is listed in "Who's Who in
American Women." Mrs. Malvar-Keylock is a successful choral clinician
and published composer/arranger with Colla Voce and Hal Leonard Publishing.
Over 10,000 copies of her music have been sold. Her pieces are performed at
honor choirs, state music festivals and by children's choirs throughout the
country, including the Appleton Boychoir, Maryland State Boychoir,
Indianapolis Children's Choir, Columbus (IN) Children's Choir, and the
Evansville Children's Choir. Upcoming engagements include serving as the
guest clinician for the 2010 South Jersey Elementary Choral Festival in
March, guest conducting for The Badger State Girlchoir and a high school
choir in Virginia during May 2010, presenting at the NJ ACDA
Elementary/Junior High Immersion event in June 2010, and conducting the 2011
NJ Elementary Festival (NJCDA) . Her husband, Fernando Malvar-Ruiz, is Music
Director of The American Boychoir, and the couple resides in Lawrenceville,
NJ.
Raegan M. Ruiz
Associate Director
Conductor, Cantores
Raegan M. Ruiz is the conductor of the Cantores choir of the Princeton
Girlchoir, and she is in her ninth year as the Director of Choral Music at
Bensalem High School in Bensalem, PA. Raegan holds the Master of Arts in
Music and Music Education from Columbia University's Teachers College and
earned her Bachelor of Music in Music Education with honors from The College
of New Jersey, where she studied choral music with noted composer/conductor
Michael D. Mendoza. An experienced professional singer, Raegan has appeared
as Susanna in Mozart's Marriage of Figaro and as Adele in Strauss's
Die Fledermaus. For the past eight years, Raegan has been a
continuing member of the Philadelphia Singers, the group of professional
singers comprising the core of the Philadelphia Orchestra's resident chorus,
The Philadelphia Singers Chorale. With the Philadelphia Singers Chorale,
Raegan has sung under the direction of some of the most widely recognized
conductors in the classical music world: Simon Rattle, Charles Dutoit,
Wolfgang Sawallisch, and Christoph Eschenbach, just to name a few. She is an
active member of MENC: The National Association for Music Education as well
as its local affiliates the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association and the
Bucks County Music Educators Association. She also maintains active
membership in the American Choral Directors Association and Chorus America.
Raegan is a proud union member of both the National Education Association and
the American Guild of Musical Artists.
Kelly Ann Nelson Westgate
Associate Director
Conductor, Quarter Notes
Kelly Ann Nelson Westgate is the conductor of the Princeton Girlchoir's
Quarter Notes. She is also the Middle School Choral Director and General
Music Teacher at Princeton Day School. During the summers Ms. Westgate
is the conductor of the Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp Session IV Middle School
Choir, and has served as a faculty member at Interlochen, the Cincinnati
Children's Choir Summer Festival, and Western Michigan University's Seminar
Music Camp. Kelly Ann has served as the conductor of the 2008 Michigan
Junior High State Honors Choir, as well as the guest conductor of district
level elementary and middle school honors choirs in Michigan, Ohio, and West
Virginia. She has also presented at various music education conferences and
adjudicated choral and vocal jazz festivals throughout the Midwest. Her
co-authored article "Making Music with Our Youngest Singers" was recently
published in the American Choral Director's Association's Choral
Journal. Previously, she served as Associate Director and Outreach
Manager of the Cincinnati Children's Choir, where she conducted the Girl
Choir and Preparatory Choir, as well as overseeing the satellite choir
program and national choral festivals. Kelly Ann was also the Project
Manager and Educational Host for Linton Chamber Music's "Peanut Butter and
Jam Sessions" for preschool aged children, as well as a teaching artist for
the Cincinnati Opera's "Opera-tunities" youth education program, and the
Youth Choir conductor at Knox Presbyterian Church. Ms. Westgate has
done doctoral level work in Choral Conducting and Arts Administration at the
University of Cincinnati's College-Conservatory of Music (CCM), where she
served as a teaching assistant in the Music Education division. She received
her Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees in music education from
Western Michigan University. Ms. Westgate taught high school and middle
school choral music for eight years in both Michigan and Ohio, where her
ensembles earned superior ratings and honors such as invitations to perform
at the American Choral Director's Association state conference and at
Carnegie Hall with the composer Gwyneth Walker. She also served as adjunct
faculty at Western Michigan University where she directed "Gold Company II,"
part of the internationally acclaimed Gold Company vocal jazz program.
Kristen Acker
Accompanist, Quarter Notes
Kristen Acker is an alumnus of Westminster Choir College where she double
majored in Music Education and Piano Performance and Pedagogy. She has been
teaching high school choral music for 20 years in both public and
independent schools. She is currently the Upper School Choral Director and
Co-chair of the Performing Arts Department at Princeton Day School.
Elizabeth M. Hartnett
Accompanist, Concert Choir and Cantores
Elizabeth M. Hartnett joined Princeton Girlchoir in the summer of 2008.
She is the principal choral accompanist for the choirs at Hopewell Valley
Central High School and Timberlane Middle School, a position she assumed in
the fall of 2006. In addition, Ms. Hartnett is the Director of Music
Ministry at St. Alphonsus Church in Hopewell, NJ.
Ms. Hartnett earned her Bachelor of Music degree in Piano Performance
and Pedagogy from Westminster Choir College of Rider University in Princeton,
NJ, where she has studied with renowned pianist, Ingrid Clarfield, and
renowned accompanist J. J. Penna. Ms. Hartnett maintains an
active piano studio in the Hopewell/Pennington/Princeton area.
Fred Meads
Accompanist, Semi-Tones
Fred Meads is Director of Vocal Studies at the American Boychoir School in
Princeton, New Jersey. His responsibilities there include teaching private
voice lessons, music theory instruction and conducting the training choir.
Previously he served as Artistic Director of the Fort Wayne Children's Choir
from 1999-2009. Under his leadership, the choir of over 300 singers
performed throughout the community, state and at festivals around the world.
Last summer, the choir performed at the renowned Festival 500 in
St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada. In 2003 and 2009 the choir sang for
the IMEA State Music Convention. He also serves as Director of Children's
Music at Marble Collegiate Church in New York.
Mr. Meads' range of choral experience includes directing a variety of
choirs in public and private schools, churches and at the college level. He
has presented choral workshops for the American Guild of Organists, IPFW
(Indiana and Purdue University - Fort Wayne), Ball State University
and for the Indiana Music Educators Association. He has been conductor for
Circle the State with Song festivals throughout the state. Mr. Meads served
on the ICDA State Board for six years and is now a member of the New
Jersey-ACDA Board. As a vocalist, he has performed at the Bay View Music
Festival (MI), Brevard Music Center (NC), and in several Carnegie Hall choral
performances led by the late Robert Shaw.
Mr. Meads received the Bachelor of Music degree in Music Education from
Ithaca College, NY and the Master of Music degree in Choral Conducting from
the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Mr. Meads was selected
as a conductor for the Chorus America Master Class in San Francisco and the
International Choral Conductor's Symposium in Toronto. He recently completed
three levels of training at the Kodály Institute of Capital University
in Columbus, OH where he received two scholarships as a top student. He was
the 2005 recipient of the Margaret Keegan Award for Excellence in Arts
Education presented by Arts United of Fort Wayne.
Janet A. Westrick
Founder and Artistic Director Emerita
Janet Westrick, founder of the Princeton Girlchoir, retired in 2009 after
twenty years of devoted leadership. An accomplished music educator and
choral director for over forty years, she also was a member of the music
faculty at Princeton Day School for twenty-two years, and for six of those
years, she was Head of Music and Performing Arts before retiring in 2005.
She is an honors graduate of Capital University in Columbus, Ohio, has done
graduate work at Western Michigan University and Westminster Choir College,
and is certified in both Kodály and Orff instruction. A life member
of the American Choral Directors Association, Ms. Westrick has served
that organization in committee and conference work. She has presented
workshops at Westminster Choir College and was a presenter at the American
Boychoir National Choral Conference in 2002 and 2003. Her peers recognize
her as a specialist in drawing out the very best from children's voices. She
was the 1997 recipient of the Women of Distinction Award for the World of the
Arts presented by the Delaware-Raritan Valley Girl Scout Council, and a
recipient of the 2005 Princeton YWCA Tribute to Women Award.
Ms. Westrick currently serves as parish musician at Christ the King
Lutheran Church in Kendall Park, New Jersey and is a member of the Board of
Directors of the Trenton Community Music School.
It has been my joy and privilege to shepherd and watch the Girlchoir grow
into the strong and vibrant organization it is today. I look forward to
watching its continuing evolution, and to listening to much beautiful music
in the future from all our wonderful girls. In addition, I hope to keep in
touch with our many alumnae members.
|
