About de Angelis Vocal Ensemble

Tenors

Ryan R. Brown

Ryan R. Brown is a choral conductor and baritone living in Los Angeles, California. He is currently the Associate Conductor of the National Children’s Chorus, Teaching Assistant at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) and an Ensemble Artist with Seraphic Fire.  Ryan is studying Choral Conducting with Dr. James Bass at UCLA. Some of his previous appointments include serving as Choral Director at Wachusett Regional High School in Holden, MA, Artistic Director of the Wachusett Community Choir, Artistic Director of the professional vocal ensemble Diamonds from the Dust, and as singer and conductor in Triad: Boston’s Choral Collective. In 2014, Ryan graduated as valedictorian at Westminster Choir College where he studied music education. As a lover of everything very old and very new he especially enjoys performing music of the renaissance, baroque, and contemporary periods. Some of Ryan’s recent performances include the role of Pontifex in Bach’s St. Matthew Passion with the Philadelphia Orchestra, and various modern operas with companies including the Spoleto Festival and Lincoln Center Festival.

Gerald W. Craft

Gerald W. Craft, tenor, is a staff singer at St. James’ Episcopal/Anglican Church in Los Angeles. In addition to the de Angelis Vocal Ensemble, Gerald has sung with the Donald Brinegar Singers, the Jouyssance Early Music Ensemble, the Corona Del Mar Baroque Music Festival, the Jeannine Wagner Ensemble, the Chorale Bel Canto, Cantori Sine Nomine, and has been tenor soloist with the Redondo Beach Baroque Music Festival and the Whittier College Bach Festival. In 2015, Gerald had the privilege of being tenor soloist in a Bach concert tour that performed in Greece and Bulgaria. He is the artistic director of Hollywood-based LASchola and is also a founding member of The Clarion Singers. Gerald is a technology director at Occidental College in Los Angeles, from where he earned a bachelor’s degree and studied voice with G. G. Prosper.

Eli Gunnell

A graduate of the University of California Los Angeles, tenor Eli Gunnell received a Master of Music from the New England Conservatory in Boston. He has been a staff singer with All Saints’ Church in Beverly Hills since 1997, and also performs regularly with the choir of St. James in the City Episcopal Church in Los Angeles, the Los Angeles Chamber Singers/Cappella and LA Schola.

Dermot Kiernan

Dermot Kiernan is an Irish tenor who recently finished a six year tour with the internationally renowned Irish ensemble, Celtic Woman. He holds a Bachelor of Music and a master’s in Medieval Music Performance and Musicology from The National University of Ireland, Maynooth. In 2006, Dermot was accepted into the post Master’s Degree programme at the University of Paris-Sorbonne and had the opportunity to work with Benjamin Bagby (Sequentia) and Katarina Livljanic (Dia Logis). During this time, Dermot developed a love for Gregorian Chant and Early Polyphony. He is a staff singer at Saint James Wilshire and sings with several ensembles in Los Angeles including the Golden Bridge Ensemble, the Wagner Ensemble and the Clarion Singers. Dermot also tours extensively as a music director with Irish singer Chloe Agnew (Celtic Woman) and Paul Byrom (Celtic Thunder). He has been a member of the de Angelis Vocal Ensemble since 2013, and is looking forward to this season.

John St. Marie

John St. Marie is a versatile musician, conductor, and teacher and is a frequent soloist in Southern California.  He has received critical acclaim for his versatile, impassioned performances.  As a featured soloist, John has performed numerous master works including Bach’s St. John Passion, Handel’s Messiah and Chandos Anthems, Vaughan Williams’ Hodie and Mass in G Minor, Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy, Mass in C, and Ninth Symphony, Haydn’s Lord Nelson Mass, and Mendelssohn’s Elijah and Conversion of St. Paul with noted choral organizations throughout Southern California.  John’s vocal talents can be heard on numerous movie soundtracks, popular video games and has sung on several Grammy Nominated classical and pop music albums.

A.J. Teshin

A.J. Teshin is a Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG/AFTRA) session singer in Los Angeles, and he also sings with the Los Angeles Master Chorale and Tonality.  Some film credits include: Transformers 5, Jumanji 2, Jurassic World, Star Trek: Beyond, Star Wars: Rogue One, Frozen, Godzilla, and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. He played a countertenor in episode #610 of abc/TV’s Castle.  As a chorister, he has worked under Grant Gershon, Gustavo Dudamel, Eric Whitacre, Charles Dutoit, Michael Tilson Thomas, Sir John Rutter, and Alan Gilbert.   Several years ago, Mr. Teshin sang on “$5-Foot-Long” radio and TV spots for the fast food restaurant company, Subway.  Teshin’s vocals are also on several volumes of the best-selling relaxation music series Liquid Mind by composer Chuck Wild. Mr. Teshin has composed music cues for the web series Failing Upwards and the independently produced film Waiting in the Wings.  AJ Teshin has a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre from The Boston Conservatory of Music, and currently works with singers of all styles in his recording studio in Hollywood.