Reading Room Sunday

READING ROOM SUNDAY …. an old Sausalito tradition.
January 12, 2025 at 2:00 pm

Join us in the Fireplace Room for wine or champagne, homemade pies, music and fellowship.
Sausalito Woman’s Club

RSVP to Liz O’Keefe at okeefe25@comcast.net (seating limited to 40 people)

Ohio-born tenor Jonathan Smucker has sung more than fifty roles in opera, oratorio, operetta and musical theater, ranging from early Baroque to contemporary, with a specialization in new works.

A fixture on Bay Area and California stages, Jonathan’s recent appearances include the Witch of Endor in Handel’s Saul with Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra and Chorale, Tenor Soloist in Bach’s Magnificat with Peninsula Cantare, Miles in Missy Mazzoli’s Proving Up with Pasadena Opera and as a guest San Francisco Conservatory of Music, First Elder/Tassi/Oculist in the West Coast premiere of Laura Schwendinger’s Artemisia with Left Coast Chamber Ensemble, the title role in Jephtha with Handel Opera Project, and Zotico in Cavalli’s Eliogabalo with West Edge Opera.

Jonathan is a full time member of the Regular Chorus at San Francisco Opera, and tenor soloist at Christ Episcopal Church in Sausalito. He sings frequently with the American Bach Soloists Cantorei and the Philharmonia Baroque Chorale. A committed music educator, he teaches voice and serves as co-coordinator of the voice area at San José State University. Jonathan earned his Bachelor’s, Master’s and Postgraduate degrees in voice at San Francisco Conservatory of Music.

Monica Chew (she/her) is an Oakland composer and pianist who celebrates presenting rarely performed music and new works from around the world. A “gifted player with an affinity for deeply sensitive expression” (Whole Note), she has composed since 2017 and couldn’t be happier about it. Her work has been featured as part of the Gabriela Lena Frank’s Creative Academy for Music, Verdant Vibes, Hot Air Music Festival, Community Women’s Orchestra, and Left Coast Chamber Ensemble. Her writing has been reviewed as “monumental” and “stunning” by San Francisco Classical Voice. Prior to 2015, she worked nearly a decade as a principal software engineer on security and privacy at Mozilla and Google. She lives in Oakland with her husband, an 1899 Steinway B, a clavichord, and a disused violin.