Artistic Director ~ Dean Rishel
Dean Rishel, a noted conductor,
composer, interpretive coach and teacher in the Philadelphia area, holds
degrees from the Westminster Choir College and the College of New
Jersey. Mr. Rishel has been a prolific composer since the premiere of
his first work,
Psalm
Cycle, in 1985. Mr. Rishel’s major work,
Requiem for the Children, was written in memory of the children
who perished in the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing and was premiered by the
Greater South Jersey Chorus and the Gloucester City Children’s Choir in
May 1996 at the Blockbuster/Sony Music Entertainment center in Camden,
New Jersey. The Requiem was presented in three major performances by the
Greeley (Colorado) Chorale, as well as a major performance in Oklahoma
City in 1998. The Requiem has also been performed in Pensacola, Florida
and Ocean City, New Jersey. Many of Mr. Rishel’s compositions have been
premiered locally, including
Magnificat Leggiero, Some Say, and
Take, O Take Those
Lips Away. Other commissions include
Music,
How Can I Keep from
Singing, Der Abend, and
Twilight at Sea, commissioned by ChildrenSong of NJ.
Personent Hodie and
The Pillar of Peace were composed for ChildrenSong, and
Candlefire for Lauda! Chamber Singers. Mr.
Rishel’s works have been published by Shawnee Press, Mark Foster Music,
Carl Fischer Music and can be obtained from online at
www.deanrishelmusic.com.
Mr. Rishel is serving his first season
as Artistic Director with the Philadelphia Voices of Pride.
Mr. Rishel has also served for over nine
seasons as Artistic Director of the Greater South Jersey Chorus and
brought that organization to regional prominence. He has also been a
frequent conductor with the Princeton Opera, having conducted
productions of The
Magic
Flute,
Hansel and Gretel,
Don
Giovanni and
The
Mikado. He has also served as adjunct
professor and director of the Choral Union Chorus of Rowan University
and as adjunct professor at LaSalle University, where he taught and
directed the LaSalle Singers.
Mr. Rishel currently resides in
Philadelphia.
Accompanist ~ Rob Blackwell
As a Musical Director / Pianist,
Rob has worked on more than 100 productions in
New York, Europe and much of the United States, including two years in
Europe with the London company of
Grease
and the recent revival of
Do I Hear a Waltz?,
at the George St. Playhouse, supervised by Stephen Sondheim and Arthur
Laurents. Rob’s original musical:
Before the
Rain, was workshopped with the Intimann
Theatre in Seattle and is slated for production in New York,
Off-Broadway in 2010. Philadelphia productions include
serving as music director and onstage pianist for a six month run of
Forever Plaid
at the Walnut St. Theatre and "Q" a musical about LGBT relationships for
the Philadelphia Gay and Lesbian Theatre Festival. In
addition to a music career, Rob sees clients and
teaches seminars using a holistic breathing technique called
rebirthing.