
Joanne Pruitt Koehn , mezzo soprano, is founder and Artistic Director of the Amici Music Ensemble.
For over sixteen years she was Artistic Director of Great Lakes Opera Company in Milwaukee, having produced operas, musical theatre as well as children's shows to over 7,000 children per show. Joanne has performed in the American National Opera tour across the U.S. under the auspices of Sol Hurok. She was soprano soloist in a concert tour of 15 German cities including Berlin, Hamburg, Heidelberg, Hannover, Cologne, Bonn and Mainz which was supported by the United States Information Service. Another significant tour was the national and international tour of My Fair Lady out of New York City.
Joanne's education includes a Master of Music degree from the University of Wisconsin in Vocal Performance, receiving the Music Department and the School of Fine Arts highest awards. Additional study in the Austin area, Europe, Chicago, New York City, Los Angeles in voice, theater and dance. She teaches voice and presents Workshops of Musical Theatre, Opera and Popular Music. Joanne teahes voice and opera workshop at the Performing Arts Center of Great Hills Baptist Church in Austin. She also teaches at her private studio.
Nurenberg Germany Concert Tour of Germany
"The American ensemble includes Joanne Koehn, the soprano with radiant, colorful high tones. She is an excellent performer, who transmitted to the ballads and songs not only seriousness but also an inner gaiety"
Newspaper: Frankische Tagespost Hannover
Germany
"Joanne Koehn, soprano, has delicate and subdued qualities which are very moving and delineate the contours of the song texts. With the timbre of her voice she effortlessly colors the serious songs and those of playful romanticism. Her artistically simple rendition of the Negro spiritual, "Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child", remained in our memory for a long time."
Newspaper: Hannovershe Rundschau
Ramon Ramirez, Pianist, Tenor, holds undergraduate and graduate degrees from Michigan State University where he studied voice with Carl Saloga, J. Loren Jones, Paul Beningfield, and Harlan Jennings. Later, Mr. Ramirez studied with the internationally recognized vocal coach and accompanist, John Wustman. In recital he has collaborated with Canadian pianist Melvin Kirby and has appeared with the Saginaw Symphony, the Corning Symphony, and the Binghampton Symphony.
David Groves, Pianist, Organist, has been church pianist or organist since he was thirteen years old and is currently the organist at Great Hills Baptist Church. David’s first piano students were those he taught when he was in high school and college. Later he taught students in both public and private schools in San Marcos and San Antonio. He has also taught music theory and composition to advanced students at the GHBC Performing Arts Center. After retiring from his full time job in 2009, he began teaching piano with the PAC. David has a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Piano from Texas State University. In addition, he did graduate studies in piano and theory at Texas State University and Indiana University.
Tenor Juan del Bosco was born in Mexico City on the 19th of December 1984.
He studied International Relations at the Universidad Ibero Americana, transferring to the University of Texas at Austin to study music and to complete his work in International Relations. Placido Domingo was his mentor and he played Domingo's recordings as well as Carreras and Pavarotti's with the Three Tenors recording over and over again. Music is his passion. Master classes with his teacher, David Small, Pedro LaVirgen, Mignon Dunn and Kenneth Griffiths were part of his studies in the last five years.
Juan studied with the Metropolitan Opera Mexican soprano Rosario Andrade, who also sang with Placido Domingo in Central Park performances as well as many other world renowned singers. Favorite tenor roles include Rudolfo in La Boheme, Lt Pinkerton in Madame Butterfly, Cavaradossi in Tosca, Nemorino in L'Elisir d' Amore, and many Zarzuela roles. Recently in Austin at the First Baptist Church of Austin, Juan sang the tenor part in Misa Criolla at the First Baptist Church conducted by Louise Kemp-Avant. In 2005 he played the role "Capo" in the Zarzuela "La del manojo de rosas" by Pablo Sorozabal in Morelia Michocan, Mexico, with the Youth State Orchestra conducted by Jorge Rivero, at the Ocampo Theater. This is his first concert with Amici Music Ensemble.
Stephen McElroy, Pianist, moved to Austin from his native California to attend the University of Texas where he studied piano and earned a master's degree. He is active as a teacher, coach and accompanist, performing with singers, instrumentalists, choirs and theatrical productions in the Austin area. He has performed recitals in Texas and California. In addition to the piano, Stephen has studied voice and organ as well as choral conducting at the University of Texas and the Conservatory of Music at the University of the Pacific in Stockton, California. He has also performed on an instrument built in the style of a Mozart-era fortepiano.
Dan Evans started playing trumpet at the age of ten. Formal training in music began at the famed Peabody Conservatory of Music in Baltimore where he was also a member of the Peabody Orchestra. He continued studies in trumpet under the principal and assistant principal of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and made top ranking of a #1 rating in the All State Solo competition. Additional classical training was in Chicago with the principal trumpet of the Chicago Lyric Opera. After studying he traveled full time on the road with a seventeen member contemporary Christian band called Eternity. For five years he traveled with the group throughout the United States, Central America, Israel and Rome. During that time Dan recorded five album projects with the group. After settling in Austin he became a member of another contemporary Christian band called 3:16 and traveled for three years in and around central Texas. He has been a member of the Great Hills Baptist Church Orchestra for twenty six years as lead trumpet. He has played for over 60 weddings and performs regularly at Great Hills Baptist Church.
Rob Greenfield was born 6/16/74 in Dallas, TX. He began studying piano at age 7 and continued through college at the University of Texas at Austin where he earned a Bachelor of Music Degree in Piano Performance in 1996. At UT Rob studied classical piano with Dr. Betty Mallard and jazz piano with Jeff Hellmer. After college he worked as a pianist on cruise ships for a little over 2 years. He returned to Austin in 1999 and has remained. Rob plays in and around Austin, at a church, in musicals, restaurants, at weddings. Rob has also been teaching piano lessons for 8 years.
Susan Murray, Soprano: "With parents who sang me to sleep every night and sent me to musical kindergarten, I was destined to love music. With a degree in piano from the University of Delaware under my belt, I launched into a career that included teaching preschool music, piano lessons, children's choir at Great Hills Baptist Church for the past 26 years, and most recently, elementary music at Trinity Episcopal School for the past 7 years. I would like to thank John Murray, my wonderful husband of 27 years, for his support through all my musical endeavors, especially in my renewed interest in singing!"
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