Dr. Jamie Bernstein Thomas

Dr. Jason Bishop

Director of Choral Activities, Penn State Erie
Conductor, The Erie Philharmonic Chorus
Artistic Director, The Young People’s Chorus of Erie

Dr. Jason Bishop is Director of Choral Activities at Penn State Erie, the Behrend College, in Erie, PA, where he also serves as conductor of the Erie Philharmonic Chorus. In 2008, Dr. Bishop changed the choral landscape of northwestern Pennsylvania by founding the first comprehensive youth chorus program in the region, the Young People’s Chorus of Erie, of which he serves as Artistic Director. As the first affiliate of the Young People’s Chorus of New York City, the Young People’s Chorus of Erie shares the YPC mission, providing opportunities for children ages 7 to 18 to participate in a comprehensive choral program that celebrates diversity, multiculturalism, and equal opportunities for children from a wide variety of backgrounds.

Dr. Bishop earned the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in choral conducting from the University of Oklahoma, where he studied with Dr. Dennis Shrock, and the Master of Music degree in choral conducting from Boston University, where he studied with Dr. Ann Howard Jones. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Music and Classical Languages from Rhodes College in Memphis, TN, where he studied conducting with the late Tony Lee Garner, graduated Phi Beta Kappa with distinction, was voted into the Rhodes College Hall of Fame, and received the Rhodes College Kinney Leadership Award for outstanding service to his community. In 1998, at just 21 years old, he was asked to serve as the first-ever student conductor of the Rhodes College Singers, leading the group on a two-week performance tour of Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms throughout the southeastern United States.

Before joining the faculty of Penn State Erie in 2007, Dr. Bishop served as Director of Choral Activities at Lesley University in Cambridge, MA from 1999-2003; as Assistant to the President of the Longy School of Music in Cambridge, MA from 2001-2003; as Music Director of the Broadmoor Chamber Singers in Natick, MA from 2001-2003; as Director of Music and Founder & Artistic Director of the Concert Series at St. Stephen’s United Methodist Church in Norman, OK from 2004-2007; and as Instructor of Choral Conducting and Conductor of the University Chorale & Opera Chorus at the University of Oklahoma from 2005-2006.

Praised for both his passion and his efficiency on the podium, Dr. Bishop is in frequent demand as a guest conductor, clinician, and adjudicator, with several performances of major choral-orchestral repertoire to his credit. He has also had the opportunity to sing as both baritone and countertenor in several chamber recitals and a number of professional choral ensembles, including the Santa Fe Desert Chorale of New Mexico, a professional vocal ensemble widely acclaimed for its exceptional choral performances. He has adjudicated numerous choral festivals, including the Oklahoma Arts Institute and the West Tennessee High School Festival. Dr. Bishop currently holds the position of Northwest Region Chair on the Board of the Pennsylvania Chapter of the American Choral Directors Association, and also serves as Editor of the Pennsylvania state choral journal, Polyphony. Recently, he created the first-ever Pennsylvania Student-Director Honor Choir, bringing together over 100 high school and college students, public school teachers, and college music professors from around the state of Pennsylvania to rehearse and perform together in the same ensemble.

In the summer of 2008, Dr. Bishop traveled as a guest assistant conductor with the Young People’s Chorus of New York City on its performance tour to Germany, Austria, and the Czech Republic.

Dr. Barbara Baker

Internationally Noted Conductor and Clinician

Barbara Wesley Baker, internationally noted conductor and educator, conducted the Chamber, Women’s, Men’s, Concert  and Gospel Choirs at Eleanor Roosevelt High School for 30 years before retiring in 2008.. Her choirs won numerous first place trophies and superior ratings at state, national and international festivals. Her Chamber Choir won first place, best choir, and best soloist at the Chicago, Illinois Heritage Music Festival in March 2007.  Dr. Baker recently conducted a masterclass on Black Gospel Music for the City of Mondovi, Italy sponsored by the performing group, Cantus Firmus. She also co-guest conducted with Dr. Joseph Flummerfelt, the “Lift Every Voice and Sing, An American Masterpieces Choral Festival” sponsored by the Houston Chamber Choir in Houston, Texas in 2008.. Dr. Baker frequently presents sessions at division and national conventions of the American Choral Directors Association, and the Music Educators National Conference. She will be a choral music headliner for the Texas Music Educators Association’s convention in February, 2009.  Dr. Baker conducted master classes at the Toronto International Music Festival and the Choral Music Experience/British Choral Institute, Hertfordshire, England for Dr. Doreen Rao. Dr. Baker conducted the 2000 ACDA Eastern Division High School Honor Choir, and her Chamber Choir performed with Dave Brubeck at the 2000 MENC National Convention in Washington, D.C. She has guest-conducted state and regional honor choirs in Pennsylvania, Nebraska, Louisiana, Texas, New Mexico, Washington State, and Virginia, as well as in Canada.  Dr. Baker taught and conducted secondary school students in Limerick and Dublin, Ireland for the Royal Dublin Society. Dr. Baker taught at the Hartt School of Music, McDaniel College (formerly Western Maryland College) and at the Brightleaf Music Workshop at Duke University. From 2001-2003, Dr. Baker co-music directed The Choral Arts Society of Washington’s (DC) Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Choral Tribute at the John F. Kennedy Center.  Her Women’s Choir performed on the 2003 program as a featured choir. For the past 28 years, Dr. Baker has been the director of the Colesville United Methodist Church Gospel Choir.

Dr. Baker earned her Bachelor of Music Degree from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro; the M.A. degree from Teachers College, Columbia University, NY, NY; and the Ph.D. degree from the University of Maryland. While completing her doctorate, she was selected as an American Association of University Women Research Fellow. She has published articles in scholarly journals, including The College Music Society, and contributed material to several textbooks including MENC’s “Teacher to Teacher; A Music Educator’s Survival Guide(2004) and Music! Its Role and Importance in Our Lives” (1994, 2000, and 2006).   She is married and has one son.

Ballet Hispanico

Ballet Hispanico explores, preserves and expands the passion and joyous theatricality of Latino dance through the work of its Company, School of Dance, and Primeros Pasos, its innovative dance education program. Artistic Director Tina Ramirez established the organization in 1970 to provide dance training and performance opportunities for underprivileged Latino youth, and has since given signature flair to Hispanic dance in America, transforming Ballet Hispanico into the nation’s preeminent ambassador of Hispanic culture. Through performance, training and education, Ballet Hispanico’s mission is to celebrate and further interpret the moving and beautiful aesthetic of this dynamic culture and to share it with all people.

The Ballet Hispanico Company has roused audiences worldwide with its magnetic energy and vivacious choreography. Its 13 members perform works by Latino choreographers and other noted artists from around the world, fusing Latin dance with classical and contemporary forms. Over 75 pieces have been commissioned for the Company, with theatricality and passion propelling every move.

The Ballet Hispanico School of Dance is rooted in Tina Ramirez’ original vision of a curriculum encompassing ballet, contemporary and Spanish dance techniques. The School offers a rigorous Pre-Professional Program and an open division Enrichment program, along with an Adventures in Dance program to stimulate creativity and cultural awareness in young children.

Primeros Pasos carries Ballet Hispanico’s work with youngsters into the classroom with a wide-ranging roster of tailored educational activities designed to further students’ academic progress while providing the thrill of accomplishment in dance. The program annually serves over 20,000 New York City and thousands of others around the country.

Jose Costas

Mr. Costas comes to Ballet Hispanico from Orange Coast College, where he was Associate Professor of Dance for the past eight years. In addition to his role as a professor, he created the annual “Festival Latino,” a one-day Latino dance and music event in celebration of El Dia De La Raza (October 12) held at Orange Coast College. Costas also developed “Recruit to Dance,” an outreach program that provides high School students the opportunity to experience college level dance classes at no cost. This project, now in its third trimester, brought many Latino students to Orange Coast College. Costas holds an M.F.A. in dance from the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University and a M. Ed. from Catholic University of Puerto Rico.

Costas began his dance training in his native Puerto Rico, under the direction of Julie Mayoral and Lolita San Miguel. As a principal dancer with Ballet Hispanico, he performed lead roles in many ballets and performed with the company throughout the United States, Europe and South America. He has worked extensively as a choreographer, creating pieces for colleges and companies around the country. Costas is also a master teacher, working extensively with educational programs for Ballet Hispanico, City Center and the Orchestra of St. Luke’s. He has taught master classes in ballet, modern, jazz and ethnic dance styles for universities, dance schools and public schools in the United States and Puerto Rico. In 1995, he received a Modern Dance Award given by Puerto Rican Institute of New York. He taught at California State University, Dominguez Hills for four years before becoming a full-time faculty member in the Orange Coast College Dance Department.