SDMC

Artistic Staff

Gary McKercher, DMA

Music Director

Gary McKercher was born, raised, and educated in the rural upper Midwest, earning his undergraduate music degree at Luther College, Decorah, Iowa. After a year of public school teaching in Minnesota, he spent a research year at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge, England singing with several Cambridge University choral ensembles including the Cambridge University Music Society conducted by David Willcocks, longtime conductor of Kings College Choir, Cambridge.

His advanced degrees in choral music were earned from California State University, Fullerton (MA), and University of Southern California (DMA). Over the past thirty years he has held college/university choral positions in Wisconsin, Iowa, California, and Kentucky. In addition, he completed post-doctoral study at the American Conservatory in Fontainebleau, France (1987), and in summer of 2004 studied and performed with the famed Tallis Scholars at Oakham, England.

While in California, Dr. McKercher sang with several distinguished choral organizations including the Los Angeles Master Chorale, the William Hall Chorale, the John Biggs Early Music Consort, the Carmel Bach Festival, and conducted the celebrated Music at Immanuel concert series at Immanuel Presbyterian Church in Los Angeles.

Since 1998 until coming to San Diego, he has been active in Madison, Wisconsin, founding the Wisconsin Chamber Choir, while freelancing seasonal productions with area musical and light opera companies. The chamber choir has been invited to perform for several state events including the opening of Madison's Overture Center, Wisconsin Public Radio broadcasts, and state choral conventions, in addition to recording and producing several CDs.

Over the course of his career, Dr. McKercher has conducted over forty choral/orchestral works including Bach's "Christmas Oratorio" and "Mass in B minor", Britten's "Cantata Academica" and "Cantata Misericordium", Haydn's "Creation"; Handel's " Messiah", "Ode to St Cecilia", and "Dixit Dominus"; Mozart's "Solemn Vespers of the Confessor" and "Requiem", Elgar's "The Dream of Gerontius"; Brahm's "A German Requiem" and "Naenie", Purcell's "Fairie Queen", and Stravinsky's "Mass" and "Symphony of Psalms".

 

Martin Green

Assistant Music Director

BIO: Pending.

Bryan Verhoye

Accompanist

Bryan Verhoye is a concert pianist who trained at the USC School of Music, the Aspen Music School, and the Peabody Conservatory. He has won first-prize awards from the International Piano Recording Competition and the Carmel Music Society, as well as multiple awards from the Musical Merit Foundation of San Diego. His performance in Carmel of Stravinsky's "Three Movements From Petrouchka" was broadcast on National Public Radio's syndicated Performance Today program.

In addition to being featured numerous times with the San Diego Symphony in both classical and jazz settings, he has appeared several times in the televised Carols By Candlelight concert alongside performers such as Kenny Loggins, America, The Little River Band and Kim Carnes; he has also appeared in concert with Grammy-award winning violinist/composer Mark O'Connor.

Mr. Verhoye has appeared frequently as a solo recitalist, accompanist, and chamber music performer in San Diego and throughout the West Coast. He has performed for the educational outreach programs of the San Diego Chamber Orchestra, the La Jolla Music Society and the Mainly Mozart Festival, and he currently gives the pre-concert talks for La Jolla Music Society's piano series.

Along with teaching piano, being a published composer and arranger, and being the accompanist for the San Diego Master Chorale, he is also Music Associate at Point Loma Community Presbyterian Church. See and hear more of Mr. Verhoye at http://music.download.com/bryanverhoye.