The Five Cities Baroque Festival

Today's installment of our series is on tenor--and Friend of the Festival--Mike Williams!

Tenor Mike Williams has made himself known as an in-demand church musician and choral singer in the greater New York and Philadelphia areas. Mike currently serves as a Gentleman of the Choir in the world-renowned Choir of Men and Boys at Saint Thomas Church on Fifth Avenue. He recently made his debut as the Evangelist in Bach’s St. Matthew Passion with the Illinois Bach Academy under the direction of Dr. Andrew Megill. A graduate of Westminster Choir College of Rider University, he has performed a wide range of concert works including Haydn’s “Die Jahreszeiten” (Choir) with the The Philadelphia Orchestra, Bach’s “Johannes passion” (solo) with the Illinois Bach Festival, Beethoven’s “Symphony No. 9” (solo) with the Princeton Symphony Orchestra as well as Bernstein’s Candide (choir) where he shared the stage with narrators Bradley Cooper and Carey Mulligan. He has performed under the baton of Yannick Nezet Seguin, Christian Macelaru, Dame Jane Glover, Nathalie Stutzmann, and Sir Simon Rattle.

Mike will be singing in the chorus and as one of our cadre of tenor soloists at our closing performances of The Five Cities Baroque Festival: Handel’s “Israel in Egypt” (Springfield performance) and The Five Cities Baroque Festival: Handel’s “Israel in Egypt” (Decatur performance) - like all of our events next week, free and open to the public. Don't miss him!

Today's is on one of our absolute stalwarts--a singer who's been with us from the beginning--mezzo-soprano Gabrielle Timofeeva López.

Gabrielle Timofeeva López is a mezzo-soprano from San Juan, Puerto Rico. Based in Chicago since 2022, she sings frequently in diverse choral settings ranging from early to new music. She is a member of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Chorus, Grant Park Music Festival Chorus, and Saint James Cathedral Choir, and sings with choral ensembles such as Music of the Baroque, Stare At The Sun, Bella Voce, Vox Madonna, Eco Voice - Voice of the Earth, and Chicago Opera Theater. As a soloist, she has worked in opera and zarzuela productions, performing lead and supporting roles, and has sung in chamber and symphonic settings performing classical works, from Beethoven’s 9th Symphony, Handel’s Messiah, and Mozart’s Great Mass in C Minor, to world premieres of contemporary works by Guarionex Morales Matos, and others. In this capacity she has featured with organizations such as the Chicago Philharmonic and The Five Cities Baroque Festival in Illinois, as well as the Orquesta Sinfónica de Puerto Rico, Orfeón San Juan Bautista, Álea 21, and others, in Puerto Rico. She is an alum of the Conservatorio de Música de Puerto Rico - Página Oficial where she received a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance in 2020, and also of the Miami Music Festival, Tafelmusik Baroque Summer Institute, and American Bach Academy.

Gabrielle will be thrilling this year's audiences as the mezzo soloist at The Five Cities Baroque Festival: Handel’s “Israel in Egypt” (Springfield performance) and The Five Cities Baroque Festival: Handel’s “Israel in Egypt” (Decatur performance), coming up in less than two weeks. If you heard her at previous Festivals, you already know you won't want to miss her. If you haven't - you'll want to be there! As always, all events are free and open to the public.