Composer, conductor, violinist, and violist Richard Auldon Clark is Artistic Director and Conductor of the Manhattan Chamber Orchestra, Manhattan Contemporary Chamber Ensemble, and the Finger Lakes Chamber Music Festival. A strong proponent of American music, Mr. Clark has performed and/or recorded hundreds of world premiers, and his work ...

Composer, conductor, violinist, and violist Richard Auldon Clark is Artistic Director and Conductor of the Manhattan Chamber Orchestra, Manhattan Contemporary Chamber Ensemble, and the Finger Lakes Chamber Music Festival. A strong proponent of American music, Mr. Clark has performed and/or recorded hundreds of world premiers, and his work has received extraordinary praise in the New York Times, Fanfare, American Record Guide, Washington Post, and dozens of others. Mr. Clark has recorded the music of David Amram, Henry Cowell, Seymour Barab, Lukas Foss, Alan Hovhaness, Otto Leuning, Osvaldo Lacerda, Dave Soldier, Alec Wilder, and many more. An active studio musician as well, Mr. Clark has performed and recorded for Broadway, television, commercial, and film music, including several films for Philip Glass. Mr. Clark’s compositions have been praised in the New York Times and broadcast on NPR stations around the country. With more than twenty chamber works to his credit, Mr. Clark has premiered six new compositions in the past three years at Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall, and in September 2016, his opera Happy Birthday, Wanda June with a Libretto by Kurt Vonnegut was premiered by Indianapolis Opera. A frequent collaborator, Mr. Clark works with dancers, choreographers, and visual artists in the creation of new works. Currently, Mr. Clark is Professor of Music at Butler University where conducts the Butler Symphony Orchestra and Butler Ballet.

Soprano Jessica D. Montgomery (she/her) is a recent graduate from Syracuse University, obtaining both a Masters in Vocal Performance and Vocal Pedagogy. Jessica has had the opportunity to perform in London and Ghana as a soloist and a chorus member of Syracuse Opera’s 2019 production Don Giovanni. Before ...

Soprano Jessica D. Montgomery (she/her) is a recent graduate from Syracuse University, obtaining both a Masters in Vocal Performance and Vocal Pedagogy. Jessica has had the opportunity to perform in London and Ghana as a soloist and a chorus member of Syracuse Opera’s 2019 production Don Giovanni. Before the pandemic, Jessica had the opportunity to coach with assistant conductor Caren Levine from the Metropolitan Opera in spring 2020 at Syracuse University. Through 2019-2021, Jessica received countless opportunities to perform Spirituals and African American art songs at Hendricks Chapel’s Music and Message program.

Jessica is the 2019 finalist of the Civic Morning Musical Vocal Competition, 2020 and 2021 recipient of the Patti Thompson-Buechner Award, the 2021 voice category winner of the Setnor School of Music Aria and Concerto Competition, 2021 Future Professoriate Program Teaching recipient from the Graduate School. In addition, Jessica is the 2021 scholarship recipient of the Renee Crown Honors Foundation at Syracuse University. Jessica was selected to perform a newly composed work entitled Moments in Sonder by composer Brittany E. Boykin with the permission of the Maya Angelou Estate. Jessica later expanded on the life of Angelou in her lecture-recital this past June.

This past spring, Jessica performed opera scenes singing “Magda’s Aria” from the opera The Consul by Menotti and performing the role of Fiordiligi in Act 2 of “Prendero quel brunettino” from the opera Cosi fan tutte by W.A. Mozart with VPA’s Opera Workshop.

This August, Jessica will attend Mannes School of Music in New York City to continue her opera endeavors with Grammy-nominated Mezzo-Soprano Margaret Lattimore. Jessica’s professional affiliations include serving as the External Vice President for The Graduate Student Organization for the 2020-2021 academic year, Province Officer of Sigma Alpha Iota International Music Fraternity to the chapters at Mansfield University, Hartwick College, SUNY Potsdam, and Syracuse University, Glimmerglass Festival, and Opera America. Jessica is excited to perform with the Symphoria Orchestra to share her love of music with the audience.