Arts District Chorale

2215 ROSS AVENUE
DALLAS, TX 75201
PHONE (214) 942 5085
info@artsdistrictchorale.org

People

Performers

The Chorale encompasses a diverse group of amateur and professional musicians from all walks of life — from marketing directors, software designers and CPAs, to attorneys, engineers, artists and writers. Our common bond is a passion for the choral art as an essential ingredient of life, and a willingness to share it with the community at the highest level of performance.

To discuss an audition, call (214) 942 5085
or e-mail auditions@artsdistrictchorale.org.

Artistic Director

Michie Akin is the founding Artistic Director and Conductor of the Arts District Chorale.Mr. Akin holds degrees from the School of Music, Baylor University, Waco, Texas; and the School of Music, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, awarded with distinction. Further studies in choral conducting have taken him to the Hartt School of Music, and Westminster Choir College. Conductors with whom he has worked include Robert Shaw, Howard Swan, Elaine Brown, Paul Salamunovich, Rosemary Heffley, Kate Tamakin and Constantina Tsolainou.

Originally trained as a pianist, Mr. Akin took a 16-year hiatus from playing the piano to pursue other professional interests. He returned to public performance in 1997, and in succeeding years has performed at the annual Summer Music Festival of Alta Riborgorza, Spain; in Italy at the Amalfi Coast Music Festival; and most recently, at the Seventh Festival Sauvanese in Monte San Savino. In 1999 and again in 2000, Mr. Akin was one of 100 candidates from around the world to participate in the Concours des Grands Amateurs de Piano in Paris, France. In 2004, and again in 2006, he was one of six finalists in the Rocky Mountain International Amateur Piano Competition. In the 2004 competition, he received two special awards from the panel of judges for Best Performance in Romantic and Contemporary repertoire.

Mr. Akin most recently was Organist/Choirmaster for the Episcopal Church of the Ascension in Dallas. He previously served as Director of English Music for Cathedral Guadalupe and Director of Liturgical Music for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Dallas. Mr. Akin is a native of Terrell, Texas.

Geoffrey Moore, Creative Director & Assistant Conductor

Geoffrey Moore has served on the staff of several large churches including, most recently, Lovers Lane United Methodist Church where he was Director of Worship and Associate Director of Music. Before moving to Lovers Lane, he served for six years on the staff at Highland Park United Methodist Church. During his tenure there, Mr. Moore’s responsibilities included Associate Director of Music, Director of Contemporary Worship, Director of Media Resources and Interim Director of the Chancel Choir.

Before being appointed to the staff of Highland Park, Mr. Moore was the Associate Director of Education at The Dallas Opera. While at The Dallas Opera, he led a curriculum development initiative which garnered international attention. As a result of this work, Mr. Moore was invited to speak at several national and international conferences on topics of arts education, curriculum integration, and cooperative learning.

Mr. Moore is currently pursuing a Master of Divinity at Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University. As a result of his work examining the intersection of music and theology, he has been invited to speak at conferences in Berkeley, California, and Bristol, England. Mr. Moore has served as an adjunct faculty member at his alma mater, Southern Methodist University, where he earned a Bachelor of Music degree in Music Education and Music Theory and a Master of Music degree in Choral Conducting, and currently serves as an adjunct professor in the humanities department at Brookhaven College. He also works part-time with organizations such as the Dallas Symphony Orchestra and Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra.

Constantina Tsolainou, Principal Guest Conductor

Constantina Tsolainou, the Paul S. and Jean R. Amos Chair in Music and Director of Choral Activities in the Schwob School of Music at Columbus State University, has held conducting positions at Southern Methodist University, Westminster Choir College, New England Conservatory, McGill University (Montreal, Quebec), Oregon State University, and Oklahoma City University. Ms. Tsolainou has also served as Artistic Director of the Canterbury Choral Society in Oklahoma City and Director of Music at Lovers Lane United Methodist Church in Dallas, Texas. During her tenure at SMU, Ms. Tsolainou established the SMU/Dallas Vocal Arts Ensemble; while in Montreal she was the Artistic Director and Conductor of Anima Musica.

Ms. Tsolainou has presented workshops, master classes and concert performances in Australia, Canada, China, Europe, and throughout the U.S. In collaboration with James Jordan of Westminster Choir College, she developed the instructional video Ensemble Diction: Language and Style, Principles and Application, and participated in a second video entitled Group Vocal Technique: The Choral Ensemble Warm-up. Trained first as a singer, Ms. Tsolainou has appeared in opera and musical theatre productions in addition to numerous performances on the concert stage.

Ms. Tsolainou has prepared choruses for operatic productions and other collaborative performances presented by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Columbus Symphony Orchestra (Ohio), Fort Worth Dallas Ballet, Ballet Oklahoma, Opera Columbus, Opera Festival of New Jersey, Tulsa Opera, and Voices of Change. Conductors with whom she has worked include Leonard Bernstein, Charles Dutoit, Eric Ericson, Joseph Flummerfelt, Carlo Maria Giulini, Zubin Mehta, Riccardo Muti and Robert Shaw.

Danny Wesley Ray, Cabaret Music Director

Danny Ray has been a professional musician and teacher for over four decades. As a youngster, he sang with the Texas Boys Choir and learned to play piano, accordion, organ, and all of the wind instruments. After attending Texas Christian University, Mr. Ray both traveled with and arranged for a show band and a southern gospel male quartet.

Between 1976 and 1991, Mr. Ray served as Organist for Landmark Pizza and Pipes and Pipe Organ Pizza in Dallas, Pipe Organ Pizza in Houston, the Organ Grinder in Toronto, Organ Stop Pizza in Tucson and Phoenix, and Casa Mañana Theater in Fort Worth. He has performed solo concerts in Wilmington, Sacramento, Rochester, Phoenix, Atlanta, Houston, and Dallas. Mr. Ray joined the Turtle Creek Chorale as a singing member in January 1993, has arranged some of the music heard in each of the major concerts since then, and served as Composer-in-Residence. He previously held the position of Organist for Trinity Presbyterian Church in Dallas.

Active as a composer since the early 1980s, Mr. Ray’s recent major compositions include “Reflections: Songs Without Words” (an hour of music for meditation and relaxation) recorded by the Turtle Creek Chorale, “Hearing Voices” (a Cincinnati Men’s Chorus commission), and the musical “Genderella: A Real Fairy Tale” (book and lyrics by Robert Emery). His musical “The Three Sillies” (a Dallas Children’s Theatre commission) toured the country for nine months in 2001. Mr. Ray’s latest musical is “Hans Brinker, or the Silver Skates.” His compositions are published by Shawnee Press.

Board of Directors

The business, performance and artistic affairs of the Arts District Chorale are overseen by an active board of directors. The directors are accomplished musicians, artisans and business professionals from around the Dallas Metroplex.

Terry G. Connor
Tenet Healthcare Corporation

John R. Harpool, Treasurer
Electronic Data Systems Corporation

John M. Luby, Interim President
MD Training Company

Mindy Paine
Akorbi Language Consulting

Stephen C. Piper
SMU Cox School of Business

Anne P. Stark
Law Office of Anne P. Stark, P.C.

Timothy R. Stephens, Secretary
University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center

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