About Me.
Soloists for Mozart Vespers solennes de confessore
May 11, 2024
Nicola Santoro, soprano
Soprano Nicola Santoro is quickly establishing herself as a foremost interpreter of contemporary music. Most recently, she was an Apprentice Artist with the Chautauqua Opera Company and performed in works such as Thumbprint (Annu) and The Mother of Us All (Lillian Russell), directed by Omer Ben Seadia and Keturah Stickann and conducted by Kristin Roach and Steven Osgood, respectively. She starred in the collegiate premiere of The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs as Chrisann Brennan under the direction of Kevin Newbury and Maestro Michael Christie. She also appeared as Mrs. O’Malley in the collegiate premiere of It’s a Wonderful Life by Jake Heggie and Gene Scheer. As a member of the inaugural Dandelion Opera Institute in 2020, Nicola worked with numerous mentors such as Pierre Vallet, Ailyn Pérez, and more to refine her craft during the pandemic. Other educational programs she has been a part of include SongFest and The CoOperative Program, where she attended as both a Young Artist and Fellow.
During her time at Indiana University, where she received her Master’s in Music, Nicola studied with Carol Vaness in her private studio as well as in her opera workshop, where Nicola starred as Lauretta in a production of Gianni Schicchi. In 2019, Nicola made her German premiere as Papagena in Die Zauberflöte. She also appeared as a soloist in several concerts with the Thüringer Symphoniker.
Recently, Nicola received the Encouragement Award in the Boston District of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Awards. In previous years, she was a prize winner in the National Society of Arts and Letters Competition two years in a row, was a semifinalist in the Orpheus Competition, and was a recipient of the distinguished Georgina Joshi International Fellowship.
As a soloist, Nicola was scheduled as the soloist for Dan Forrest’s Jubilate Deo with the Columbus Indiana Philharmonic before the program’s cancellation due to the pandemic. She has also sung as a soloist with The Handel Project (Alexander’s Feast), Pilgrim Church (Messiah) and with euphoniumist Demondrae Thurman (A Summer’s Journey).
Caitlin Winston, alto
Cait Winston is a vocalist, performer, and music director based in Boston, MA. Passionate about new works and processes, Cait is experienced in collaborating with composers and playwrights to develop and debut new music and theater works in the Boston area and New York City. A recent graduate of the Boston Conservatory at Berklee with a degree in Voice Performance, she is an active performer in the Boston choral and theater scene, currently working in project production and marketing at MF Dynamics, as well as serving as Music Director at ArtBarn Community Theater and Spotlight Productions. Cait is now a member of the Tanglewood Festival Chorus with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. She is delighted to share beautiful music with you all!
Connor Burke, baritone
Connor Burke is very excited to be singing with Newton Community Chorus. He is from Wilmington, MA, and has been singing for longer than he can remember, relying on his parents for stories such as singing along to the radio in the grocery store at age two. In the 4th grade, his life as a performer began when he entered the talent show and sang “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell. That same year, he began playing the trumpet in the North Intermediate School band. Connor continued with wind band in the Wilmington Public Schools until graduating from high school, which led to a desire to study music in college.
Connor received a BM in Music Composition and Theory from Boston University, with a concentration in voice. While studying, he developed a love of art songs, and though he wrote music in various styles for various ensembles, many of his pieces were for solo voice and piano and sung by him.
Upon graduating in 2017, Connor began singing at the Eliot Church of Newton, under the direction of Monique Weiss Byrnes. He also works as a songwriter for Sonfinch.com, where he writes, records, and produces songs commissioned by clients for various occasions.
Aside from music, Connor loves watching and following sports, specifically football and basketball. He also plays Dungeons & Dragons every week. His favorite dessert is tiramisu, and though it may upset his tummy, he will never say no.
Tim Levesque, tenor
Tim is a Vermont native and has been fascinated with music from a young age. In the second grade he wanted to learn the trumpet, but his mother told him: "No you'll learn piano." He is forever grateful for this, because it galvanized his love for harmony, polyphony, and J. S. Bach. In high school he developed a special interest in the Passion works by Bach, enthralled by the ephemeral sound he heard at the Marlborough Music festival. He went on to study vocal performance at Wheaton College as a baritone. There, he focused on the solo concert work of Händel, Mozart operas such as Le Nozze di Figaro, and German lieder.
In his post-collegiate years, his range began to expand, and he has been involved in the Lyric Tenor Fach ever since. Living in Boston the past few years, he has pursued graduate vocal studies at the Longy School of Music and the New England Conservatory. Opera has been of particular interest recently, developing his bel canto technique and performance practice. His recent appearances include concert arias by Edward Elgar and Gustav Mahler, Steven Sondheim musical theater showcase; operatic roles in Rossini's Il turco in Italia, Benjamin Britten's Peter Grimes, and W. A. Mozart's The Magic Flute. He is a strong advocate of emphasizing the singer-actor in classical repertoire, developing modern interpretations in performance. He has explored this specifically in Mozart operas throughout New England, and in French opera roles such as Paris in Offenbach's opera La Belle Hélène.
He also loves teaching, and finds happiness helping young male singers find their inner instrument. When not singing, Tim works with animals at an ER clinic, and enjoys water sports, horse riding, and baking. He is a strong advocate of the artist finding balance in life while pursuing their craft.
Soloist for Rutter Requiem
Blair Bailey, soprano
Blair Bailey is a soprano vocalist based in Rockland, MA. She currently sings with the Fine Arts Chorale in Weymouth (since 2015), the Unicorn Singers in Hingham (since 2022), and most recently joined the Hingham Congregational Church as a Soprano Section Leader. Blair has participated in choral ensembles and music programs since the age of ten. Her classical performances have ranged from Renaissance and Baroque to Romantic along with other performances featuring pop songs, vocal jazz, and musical theater. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Music from Salem State University in 2013. Outside of choral experience, Blair earned her Master’s in Advertising from Boston University in 2014 and currently works for the market research firm CMB as a Senior Data Management Director.
