WE HOLD THESE TRUTHS

From: Los Angeles, California. LA Opera: Crab Man in Porgy and Bess (2007, debut); Sage/Counselor in The Festival Play of Daniel (2010); Habakkuk in The Festival Play of Daniel (2012); On Now recital (2021); the Digital Short We Hold These Truths (2022); Simon/Pharisee in The Three Women of Jerusalem (2022); Amadou in Omar (2022); soloist in Frankenstein with Live Orchestra (2022); Emperor in Turandot (2024). He works regularly with LA Opera Connects as a teaching artist.

Born and raised in Los Angeles, Ashley Faatoalia has been singing for as long as he can remember. He studied voice at Chapman University with Dr. Peter Atherton and since then he has been performing around the world.

In the first few years of his professional career, Ashley has become a sought-after vocalist for new works and experimental projects working closely with composers from across the country including, Lewis Pesacov, Rand Steiger, Bruno Louchouarn, Christopher Cerrone, Anne LeBaron and many more.

Often noted for his soaring tenor and warm stage presence, he has recently performed the role of Antron’s father in the premiere of Anthony Davis's Pulitzer Prize-winning Central Park Five with Long Beach Opera, the role of the Crab Man in Porgy and Bess with Seattle Opera, EUROPERAS with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and The Industry, Albert Hoffman in Anne LeBaron's LSD: The Opera with The Industry, his debut as Marco Polo in the premiere of Chris Cerrone's Emmy Award-winning and Pulitzer-Prize-nominated Invisible Cities with The Industry, Charles Edward in Candide with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and many more. He has also had the honor of singing the national anthem to sold-out audiences at Dodger Stadium and the Staples Center.

Other work includes Remus in Treemonisha with Volcano Theatre of Toronto, recitals for LA Opera and more. He is featured on multiple professional recordings including the original cast recordings of Invisible Cities (CD/DVD/digital release) and The Edge of Forever (vinyl/digital release) and San Francisco Opera's production of Porgy and Bess (BluRay-DVD).

Learn more at AshleyFaatoalia.com.

LA Opera: Nicola in Fedora (1997, debut), numerous additional mainstage roles including Fiorello in The Barber of Seville, Schaunard in La Boheme and Wagner in Faust, as well as the Digital Short We Hold These Truths (2022); Olufemi in Omar (2022); Junius in The Rape of Lucretia (2023). He was a Resident Artist with LA Opera and performs regularly with LA Opera Connects programming.

Cedric Berry received his music diploma from Interlochen Arts Academy, and both his bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Southern California. He gained his first professional experience as a Resident Artist with LA Opera. His repertoire includes the title role in Gianni Schicchi, Collatinus in The Rape of Lucretia, Falstaff in Nicolai's The Merry Wives of Windsor, and Sarastro in The Magic Flute, all with USC Opera, Méphistophélès in Faust with Pacific Repertory Opera, Leporello in Don Giovanni with UCLA Opera, Dewaine in John Adams’ I Was Looking at the Ceiling and Then I Saw the Sky with Long Beach Opera, and the Good Man in Anne LeBaron’s Crescent City with The Industry. Cedric made his first European stage appearances as Jake in a concert version of Porgy and Bess in Madrid and Cuenca, Spain. He also appeared with LA Opera at the Savonlinna Opera Festival singing the role of the First Nazarene in Salome, and sang a concert in tribute to Paul Robeson for the Banlieues Bleues festival in Paris, France. 

On the concert stage, he has appeared with Bakersfield Symphony, Fresno Philharmonic and Santa Fe Symphony in Handel’s Messiah, Pacific Symphony in Mozart’s Great Mass in C minor, Arizona Symphony as Balthazar in Amahl and the Night Visitors, the Telemann Chamber Orchestra in a performance of Handel’s Messiah in Tokyo and of Bach’s Christmas Oratorio in Osaka, the Luckman Jazz Orchestra singing Duke Ellington’s Sacred Songs, the New West Symphony as Zuniga in Carmen, the Southwest Chamber Orchestra in Wuorinen’s The Haroun Songbook, the Pasadena Pops Orchestra in Jerome Kern’s Showboat Symphonic Suite, the California Philharmonic in Porgy and Bess Concert Suite, and the Los Angeles Philharmonic in Michael Torke’s Book of Proverbs. 

He has been the recipient of several awards including first place in LA’s Artist of the Future Competition, the Italian Educator’s Vocal Competition, and the Metropolitan Opera Western Region Competition. Los Angeles engagements include the lead role of Kublai Khan in Christopher Cerrone's Invisible Cities, an opera which was a 2014 Pulitzer Prize finalist, for The Industry. The production was listed as “Best of 2013” by the Los Angeles Times. The documentary of the production received an Emmy Award, and a CD was recorded and released in 2014. 

Learn more at CedricBerry.com.

From: New York City, New York. LA Opera: featured violin soloist in the Digital Short We Hold These Truths (2022).

Praised for “combining omnivory and brilliance” (The New York Times), four-time Grammy Award-nominated violinist and composer Curtis Stewart translates stories of American self determination to the concert stage. Tearing down the facade of “classical violinist,” Stewart is in constant pursuit of his musical authenticity, treating art as a battery for realizing citizenship. As a solo violinist, composer, Artistic Director of the American Composers Orchestra, professor at The Juilliard School, and member of award-winning ensembles PUBLIQuartet and The Mighty Third Rail, he realizes a vision to find personal and powerful connections between styles, cultures and musics. Stewart’s 2023 album of Love., a tribute to his late mother Elektra Kurtis-Stewart, has been nominated under Best Instrumental Solo in the 2024 GRAMMY Awards. 

JazzTimes raves, “he shows his audience the colors inside of himself—color(s) not yet invented. Far from self-indulgent, it is self-revelatory. It is vulnerable. It is creation.”

As a soloist, Curtis Stewart has been presented by Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, The Kennedy Center, Cal Performances, Washington Performing Arts, Virginia Arts Festival, The Juilliard School, and the 2022 Grammy Awards, among many others. He has made special appearances with LA Opera and singer-songwriter Tamar Kali; as curator and guest soloist with Anthony Roth Costanzo and the New York Philharmonic “Bandwagon,” touring performance installations from NYC’s Whitney Museum, Guggenheim Museum, and Museum of Modern Art; to MTV specials with Wyclef Jean; and sold-out shows at Madison Square Garden with Stevie Wonder, Bruce Springsteen, and Seal. Stewart’s 2021 album of quarantined song cycles and art videos, Of Power (Bright Shiny Things), was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Classical Instrumental Solo.

Stewart has been commissioned to compose new solo, chamber, and orchestral works by the Seattle Symphony, Virginia Symphony Orchestra, Carnegie Hall’s Play/USA, countertenor Anthony Roth Costanzo and members of the New York Philharmonic, The Knights, La Jolla Music Society, Sybarite5, the New York Festival of Song, Newport Classical Festival, the Royal Conservatory of Music, the Eastman Cello Institute, and more. In 2022, he was named Artistic Director of the American Composers Orchestra, a national organization dedicated to the creation, celebration, performance, and promotion of orchestral music by diverse and innovative American composers. Among his recent commissions, he composed The Famous People, five recompositions of Dvorák’s Slavonic Dances, for a premiere by violinist Gil Shaham with the Virginia Symphony in March 2023. 

In 2022, he was named Artistic Director of the American Composers Orchestra, a national organization dedicated to the creation, celebration, performance, and promotion of orchestral music by diverse and innovative American composers.

Curtis Stewart is a member of award-winning ensembles, PUBLIQuartet (Chamber Music America Visionary award, winner Concert Artist Guild, 2023 Grammy Award Nomination) and The Mighty Third Rail (Best Music, Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Comic Book Theater Festival). PUBLIQuartet’s album What Is American (Bright Shiny Things) was nominated for a 2023 Grammy Award. He has held chamber music residencies at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, National Sawdust, and made return appearances at the Newport, Detroit, Vision, NYC Winter Jazz Festivals. Curtis Stewart has worked with many of today's forward-thinking musicians, including Henry Threadgill, SilkRoad Ensemble, Jessie Montgomery, Alicia Hall-Moran and Jason Moran, Mark O’Connor, Julia Bullock, members of the International Contemporary Ensemble, Billy Childs, Alarm Will Sound, Linda Oh, JACK Quartet, members of Snarky Puppy, Don Byron, Matt Wilson, among many others.

An avid teacher, Curtis Stewart teaches Chamber Music, Improvised Chamber Music, and “Cultural Equity and Performance Practice” at The Juilliard School; directs the Contemporary Chamber Music program at the Perlman Music Program; served on the board of Concert Artist Guild; conducted several orchestras and opera pit orchestras; and for 10 years led all levels of music theory and string orchestra at the Laguardia High School for Music & Art and Performing Arts in New York City. 

Stewart was born into a musical family – his father is avant jazz tuba pioneer Bob Stewart and mother Elektra Kurtis, a soulful Greek jazz violinist – who formed the framework of his sound world through daring improvisation, rigorous western classical training, and conceptual composition.

Learn more at CurtisJStewart.com.

From: Los Angeles, California. LA Opera: featured in the Digital Short We Hold These Truths (2021).

Selah Gospel Choir is a Black and women-led community performing arts organization that serves Los Angeles County under the fiscal sponsorship of Fulcrum Arts’ Emerge program, a 501(c)(3) that provides resources, communication services, and other support to artists and cultural organizations to further their artistic endeavors.

Founded in 2007, Selah Gospel Choir has cemented itself as a space for people who want to sing gospel music birthed by the spirit of the Black church and the ancestry of Black community but are either unable to find it in their home place of worship or do not identify with being in a church at all. Gospel music was introduced to the mainstream through the radically unifying activism of the 1960’s Civil Rights Movement. That collectivist spirit is the foundation of our mission to uplift and strengthen our communities through an individual connection by singing inspiring, soul stirring gospel music. Rooted in our mission, Selah Gospel Choir’s primary goals are to make gospel music available to all who wish to sing it; improve musicianship among our singers with focus on ear training, music theory, rhythm and movement; and share the good news by making a joyful noise to broad audiences via our bi-annual concerts, community events and various other performing and recording opportunities.

Selah Gospel Choir is not directly connected to any religious organization, yet the religious/spiritual makeup of our singers is broad and inclusive. Our singers are diverse across the identities of race, age, gender, sexuality, ethnicity and ability—and there is no audition requirement to join. It is core to our culture that all who enter our community are welcomed and shown respect and welcome and show respect to others. Circling around central values such as love, intersectionality and community, Selah Gospel Choir demonstrates these values as they sing for a purpose greater than themselves. This vibrant and challenging ensemble strives to remain authentic to the traditional and contemporary forms of gospel music.

Learn more at SelahGospelChoir.com.

From: Oakland, California. LA Opera: the Digital Short We Hold These Truths (2021).

Samuel Getachew is a Harlem-based poet and writer from Oakland, California. 

In 2021, he became the youngest opinion writer to ever be published in print in ​The New York Times at 18 years old. In addition to the Times, his writing has appeared in The Washington Post, Vogue Magazine, Teen Vogue, Paper Magazine, office magazine, KQED Arts and Culture, The East Bay Express, ​Refinery29, and numerous anthologies.  

His work spans poetry, non-fiction, cultural criticism, journalism, podcasting, spoken word performance, voice acting, and interviews. 

Most recently, Samuel joined office magazine as an Associate Editor.

From: Brooklyn, New York. LA Opera: composer of the Digital Short We Hold These Truths (2021).

Brooklyn born and bred artist Tamar-kali is a second-generation musician with roots in the coastal Sea Islands of South Carolina.

As a composer, Tamar-kali has defied boundaries to craft her own unique alternative sound.

As a performer, Tamar-kali speaks her lyrical truth with a supreme passion and a voice that will shake your foundation and shatter your expectations with its soulful intensity.

The pieces she composes and arranges for her string sextet and voice project: Psychochamber Ensemble, marries the classical music of her Catholic upbringing with post-punk sensibilities.

2017 marked her debut as a film score composer with Dee Rees’ Oscar-nominated Mudbound. 

Her ‘expressive and varied score’ [Variety] garnered her the World Soundtrack Academy’s 2018 Discovery of the Year Award and has been classified by Indiewire as one of the 25 Best Film Scores of the 21st Century.

The soundtrack for her score to Josephine Decker’s psychological drama SHIRLEY was named The Guardian’s Contemporary Album of the month in June 2020.

2022 saw her debut work from multiple commissions; the LA Opera digital short We Hold These Truths directed by Peabody Award winner dream hampton, a solo cello piece Little Bear Awakens for acclaimed cellist Matt Haimovitz’ Primavera Project alongside composers Josqin des Prez and Philip Glass as well as a return to the stage to perform Melancholy Ghosts and Other Mothers, a Beth Morrison Projects commissioned song cycle.

Freedom is a Constant Struggle, a concert curated and co-produced by the artist and presented by Lincoln Center featured Sea Island Symphony: Red Rice, Cotton and Indigo, an orchestral love letter to her Gullah Geechee roots as part of 2023’s Summer for the City Outdoor Festival.

Watch Night, a theatrical work conceived and directed by Bill T. Jones and composed by Tamar-kali with a libretto by Marc Bamuthi Joseph made its world premiere November 8, 2023 as part of the long awaited Perelman Performing Arts Center’s inaugural season.

Tamar-kali’s 2024 artistic landscape includes the scores and soundtracks for John Ridley’s Shirley Chisholm biopic starring Regina King and history making Oscar nominee Rachel Morrison’s feature directorial debut Flint Strong as well as a live excerpt of her latest opera work, The Swann, presented in concert form as part of Harlem Stage’s 40th Anniversary season.

Learn more at Tamar-kali.com.

From: Detroit, Michigan. LA Opera: director of the Digital Short We Hold These Truths (2021).

dream hampton is an award-winning filmmaker and writer from Detroit. Her works include the Frameline feature documentary Treasure (2015), the BET docu-series Finding Justice (2019) and Lifetime's Emmy-nominated Surviving R. Kelly (2019), which broke ratings records and earned a Peabody Award. In 2019, hampton was named one of Time's 100 most influential people in the world.

Learn more at dreamhampton.com.

LA Opera: conductor of the Digital Short We Hold These Truths (2021).

American conductor Anthony Parnther is beginning his fifth season as Music Director of California’s San Bernardino Symphony Orchestra. As conductor of the Gateways Music Festival Orchestra, whose members hail from leading orchestras nationwide, it was Parnther who led its sold-out Carnegie Hall debut, showcasing the world premiere of I Can by five-time Grammy winner Jon Batiste. 

A master of multiple genres, Parnther has conducted many of the world’s preeminent artists, from Joshua Bell, Lynn Harrell, Jessye Norman, and Frederica von Stade to Imagine Dragons, Wu-Tang Clan, John Legend, Metro Boomin, Avenged Sevenfold, and Rihanna. The Los Angeles Times hailed Anthony as “The quintessential L.A. musician of our day.” Parnther’s recent conducting engagements include the New York Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Baltimore Symphony, Cincinnati Symphony, Atlanta Symphony, National Symphony Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Buffalo Philharmonic, Calgary Philharmonic, Detroit Symphony, LA Opera, Music Academy of the West, Rochester Philharmonic, Sydney Symphony in Australia, and the Chineke! Orchestra, with whom he debuted at the BBC Proms.

Dedicated to amplifying traditionally underrepresented voices, Parnther has reconstructed and performed orchestral works by Margaret Bonds, Duke Ellington, Zenobia Powell Perry, Florence Price, William Grant Still, and Samuel Coleridge-Taylor. As well as leading LA Opera’s world premiere of Tamar-kali Brown’s oratorio We Hold These Truths and Long Beach Opera’s revival of Anthony Davis’s Pulitzer Prize-winning Central Park Five, Parnther has premiered and recorded works by Batiste, Kris Bowers, Chanda Dancy, Davis, Adolphus Hailstork, Marian Harrison, Philip Herbert, Daniel Kidane, Gary Powell Nash, James Newton, Perry, Price, Taylor, George Walker, Errollyn Wallen, James Wilson, and John Wineglass. For his extensive championing of works by Black, Latino, and women composers, Parnther was profiled as a “Local Hero” by Los Angeles’s KCET/TV.

As one of today’s foremost film conductors, Parnther helms recording sessions for many of the world’s top international feature films and television series, working in close collaboration with some of the most decorated media composers in the industry. On the scoring stages of Los Angeles, San Francisco, Nashville, Budapest, Glasgow, and London, he has led the scoring sessions for projects like Avatar: The Way of Water, Oppenheimer, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Encanto, Star Wars: The Mandalorian, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, Nope, Creed III, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, Diaries of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules, Ice Age: Adventures of Buck Wild, Tenet, American Dad, Turning Red, PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie, and League of Legends.

Learn more at AnthonyParnther.com.