Jacob Broussard – Composer

Jacob Broussard is an 19-year-old classical composer from Southern California. His first choral work is called Spirit Come, written when he was 16, and has been performed by the University of Southern California (USC) Chamber Singers;  a beautiful and slightly haunting piece.  Here’s a link to:  Spirit Come

He has always loved large chords and melodies that pull the emotion out of people.

His earliest memory was watching his older sister play the piano when he was 3-years-old.

Jacob writes: “Like most kids, I wanted to be just like my older sibling so I asked her to teach me. Not much of the patient one, she skipped the introductory stuff and went straight to “Ode to Joy”. I loved it and from that day on I never wanted to leave the piano bench. I also remember playing all three movements of Für Elise for my 3rd grade talent show, receiving my very first standing ovation!  I love everything about playing, it’s my outlet, my escape, and my constant. I know no matter what that my piano will always be there at the end of the day and I can let out everything on it.”

Though the piano’s his number one love, he dabbles with other instruments too: organ, vibraphone, marimba, guitar, bass, mandolin, banjo, contrabass, cello, viola, violin, trumpet, trombone, and sax.

Classical music has always been Jacob’s true passion.he was classically trained his whole life in piano and he could never get enough of listening to classical piano, orchestra, or choir.   Jacob states: “Naturally, when I began composing, my emotions and the story I try to tell just come out in a classical form.  I’ve always messed around with little melodies since I was little. It wasn’t until about two years ago that I started compiling those melodies and writing them down, eventually composing my first choral piece.”

Jacob is working on several other works for various ensembles as well as music for solo piano.

Bradley Hampton – Composer/Arranger/Vocal Music

“The Sing Off” and the “Pentatonix” have brought back to popularity, tight vocal harmonies sung a cappella.  We are excited to welcome award winning composer, Bradley Hampton to HolySheetMusic.com.  Here’s more about Bradley:

Bradley loves vocal harmony. Most of his teenage years were spent transcribing the music of The Beach Boys, The Hi-Lo’s, and Take 6. He would use his younger siblings as his experimental guinea pigs, teaching them those transcribed parts as well as practicing on them his own new creations.

Bradley has shared the stage with great vocal groups such as: Rockapella, The Nylons, The House Jacks, The Blenders, The Drifters, The Bobs, The Knudsen Bros., The Manhattan Transfer, and Jon Secada. Bradley is the music director, a singer, and arranger for the internationally award-winning a cappella group SoundStage. Award-winning credits include having won the L.A. Harmony Sweeps twice! SoundStage was recently featured on Emerald City Productions album Sing Me a Song: A cappella from around the World for Kids.

Bradley holds a Bachelor of Arts in Music Education with an emphasis in Composition from California State University, San Bernardino.  He now teaches classes in songwriting and arranging within the commercial music program at CSUSB. He is also the director of Vocal Jazz. In 2012 his vocal jazz group has opened for The Manhattan Transfer and in February 2014 they opened the show for The Real Group.

His arrangements are sung by numerous vocal groups including Voicemale on “Hims II”, and West Side 5 on their self-titled album (as well as Voices Only Forte II). He arranged the theme song for the award-winning web series “Dead Grandma” hosted by Jon Header. You can hear his jingles played on The Tim Conway Jr. Show as well as his arrangements sung as promo for the hit a cappella movie “Pitch Perfect”

He has won several awards for his original compositions including 3^rd place in the choral category for the Your LDS Music Store 2013 music contest  and honorable mentions for original song in the 1997 New Era music contest.

Bradley has been a judge for the regional Harmony Sweepstakes and ICCA’s.

When not composing or arranging, he plays piano accompanying for various vocalists, school and church choirs, and musical theater productions.

Dr. Christopher Quinn – Conductor/Composer

It is with great pleasure that I introduce Dr. Christopher Quinn – Conductor/Composer.  Here’s more about Chris:

Dr. Christopher Quinn (Director of Music, Professor) came to Westminster College in 1994 after completing a DMA in piano performance from the University of Colorado at Boulder where he received two awards in teaching. Within the first year at Westminster, Dr. Quinn created several performing ensembles and new music classes. Student interest grew rapidly and a new music minor degree program was created that included private lessons, performing ensembles, and academic music courses.

Under his leadership, the music faculty grew to over twenty-five adjuncts and two full-time music faculty members. Dr. Quinn formed the highly acclaimed Westminster Chamber Singers in 1996. The choir began touring nationally and internationally in 2000 and has a huge following wherever they perform. Most recently, the choir received a one-half million dollar gift to under-right all future tours; they celebrated in 2014 with a hugely successful tour of the United Kingdom.

With the recent construction of The Emma Eccles Jones Conservatory for Music, the music program launched a new Bachelor of Arts degree in music. The program is thriving in its fourth year with the addition of two new full-time faculty members, a staff accompanist, and a technical director.

In 2003, Dr. Quinn was awarded the distinguished Gore Excellence in Teaching Award; an honor bestowed on one faculty member each year. He also received the distinguished Naomi Weyher Renewal Leave which provided an opportunity to pursue post-doctorate work in conducting and a solo piano recording, A Tribute: The Piano Stylings of Ken Manzer. In 2014, Dr. Quinn was awarded a sabbatical leave to study composition with David Zabriskie and Steven Roens. His setting of The Lord’s Prayer has been rearranged with new harmonies and is set to be published in 2015 with several other choral works.

With the growth of the music program came many gifts to the music program. Dr. Quinn has actively participated in bringing over 8 million dollars in gifts to Westminster College. Last year, for his many years of service and excellence, Dr. Quinn was honored to be named the Florence J. Gillmor Professor of Music.

The Lord’s Prayer

This beautiful setting of The Lord’s Prayer by Christopher Quinn has been performed by choirs all over the world. The opening melodic phrase ascends with the text and word painting techniques are found throughout the piece. The exquisite melodic and harmonic elements are accompanied by a sophisticated piano accompaniment that requires an able pianist. Originally published in 2005, this setting includes some new harmonization, accompaniment figures, and fewer divisi sections, making it accessible to most choirs.

Michael Merrill – Composer/Arranger

HolySheetMusic is proud to publish Michael Merrill’s “Winter Lullaby” and welcome him to our group of talented composers, arrangers and lyricists.

WINTER LULLABY:

 “Winter Lullaby” means to capture the essence of seeing and feeling something holy, wonderful, and beautiful from a child’s perspective. The simplicity and sense of quiet reverence throughout this piece, coupled with the purity of the fallen snow, illustrates the peace and joy that exists within one who is innocent, like a child. With this innocence, slowly, the transformation from a winter scene to a heavenly place occurs in a gradual and glorious display.” – Skyler Wixom, poet.

Winter Lullaby  (Click to see and hear his music)

BIO:

Michael Merrill was born into a military family in 1988 in Tachikawa, Tokyo, Japan, and claims Albany, Oregon, USA as his home. He began taking piano lessons like a good little boy as a child, but quickly grew bored of it and quit like a normal little boy. He began playing the saxophone in 5th grade and singing in choir during high school, getting involved in theater and stage musicals along the way. He started “composing” at around twelve when he would fiddle around at the piano, trying to play various tunes by ear and experiment with different patterns. He changed his mind from wanting to be a history teacher to a professional musician after playing in band under the direction of Stuart Welsh at West Albany High School, Oregon, who premiered his first orchestration for band in Spring of 2006.

Beginning later that year, he attended Brigham Young University-Idaho where he studied music education for the first few years. After some changes in mind and heart, he ultimately decided to change from music education and saxophone performance, under the tutelage of Dr. Mark Watkins, to composition. He was accepted into the then-budding composition program in 2012 and began his studies under Dr. Daniel Kerr, and later with Darrell Brown. While at BYU-Idaho, Michael received commissions from various students for their senior recitals, including one from a particularly lovely lady who would later become his wife. He received many awards and recognitions for his music, including two 2nd prizes (Glory to God in the Highest, Winter 2012, and Anthem for Doomed Youth, Fall, 2012) and one 1st place in the school’s Research and Creative Works Conference (Mass for the Last Days, Winter 2014). Anthem for Doomed Youth was also the winner of the school’s first art song competition in June of 2012, where Michael also won the “Audience Favorite” award with Ickle Me, Pickle Me, Tickle Me Too (text by Shel Silverstein). In the fall of 2013, Michael’s operetta Perfection of the Life (libretto by Ray Alston) was selected for performance by the school’s opera scenes program, and was well received by the audience on its premiere in December of that year. He graduated with a B.M.S. in Composition and Saxophone Performance in April of 2014.

Skyler Wixom – Lycistist

Michael currently lives in Rigby, Idaho, and will be moving to the United Kingdom later this year where he will study under Royal Composer Paul Mealor FRSA. Michael and his wife, Helen, enjoy Harry Potter, Doctor Who, and going on walks together. Helen is also the 2nd Oboist in the Idaho Falls Symphony.

J. Chris Moore – Composer/Performer/Educator

J. Chris Moore, a 1971 graduate of CCM with a Bachelor of Music degree in vocal performance and choral education, taught public school music for two years before being named the Executive Director of the Springfield Arts Council, a position from which he will retire this coming August after 39 years of dedicated service.  His High Street United Methodist Chancel Choir has toured Germany and currently sponsors a monthly Sanctuary Series of visiting artists.  Chris has performed as soloist with the Springfield Symphony and the Cincinnati Pops Orchestras, has performed and served as assistant music conductor of the Stephen Foster Story in Bardstown, Kentucky, and has years of experience both accompanying, directing and conducting music theater productions throughout the Miami Valley.  He is currently directing and choreographing Kenton Ridge High Schools production of “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.”   Chris regularly consults with not for profit arts organizations in the areas of board and program development, and fundraising, and has 20 pieces of choral music published by Lorenz Publishing and Beckenhorst Press.