Program, Children Making a Difference

Festival Sanctus

Fueled by the power of a girl’s voice, Princeton Girlchoir presents extraordinary performances at home and throughout the world, while educating the musician, building confidence, and fostering a life-long love of singing together. Founded in 1989 as an after- school activity for girls interested in choral music, Princeton Girlchoir has grown into the area’s premier training and performance choir for girls, with over 300 choristers participating each year. The organization has seven choirs, comprising girls in 3rd through 12th grade. These choirs present music from a wide array of genres, conductors and composers.  While honing their musicianship, choristers begin life-long friendships, enjoy professional performance opportunities, and travel the world.

Princeton Girlchoir has been honored to perform in a wide array of venues for audiences both nationally and internationally. Notable performances include the North American premiere of Tan Dun’s Symphony 1997 with Yo- Yo Ma at Avery Fisher Hall in Lincoln Center; multiple appearances at Carnegie Hall; performances for dignitaries such as Hillary Rodham Clinton, Jeb Bush, Rush Holt, and Sandra Day O’Connor; performing the national anthem at several professional sporting events; and appearances at conferences of the American Choral Directors Association, Organization of American Kodály Educators, and NJ Music Educators Association.

Princeton Girlchoir is a program of Westrick Music Academy, home to choirs, music classes, and summer camps for musicians from kindergarten through adulthood.

This year, our choristers in Semi-Tones and Concert Choir have chosen to give the proceeds of their concert to support children affected by the war in Ukraine through a donation to the Ukrainian Federation of America (UFA). The Federation brings hope to Ukrainians and others around the world through helpful care and crisis response by responding to areas of challenge for Ukraine and people of Ukrainian background. Based in Philadelphia, UFA has aided Ukrainians and people of Ukrainian descent for 30 years. Recent volunteer efforts have included collecting and airlifting medical supplies and equipment to hospitals in Ukraine, recruiting trauma and ER surgeons to treat patients wounded in the war, providing a fleet of ambulances to transport injured children to hospitals in Ukraine, and sponsoring a canine therapy program. Funds from the 2022 Children Making a Difference benefit concert will support children affected by the war in Ukraine.

Please consider making a donation today on Venmo to help Princeton Girlchoir send support to children struggling in Ukraine.

For more information, visit their website

The Children Making a Difference Benefit Concert, now in its 15^th year, was founded by former Associate Director Melissa Keylock in memory of her mother, Adrienne Todd Keylock, and her love of helping others. All proceeds from this event are donated to a different charity each year. For the past five years, the recipient charity has been selected by the singers, based on areas of interest expressed by these young musicians. Since its inception, this event has raised over $40,000 for its beneficiaries.

2008: Trenton Food Pantry
2009: American Cancer Society, RWJ Children’s Cancer Unit
2010: Trenton Community Music School and Trenton Children’s Chorus
2011: SAVE Animal Rescue
2012: Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of Mercer County
2013: One Simple Wish
2014: Meals on Wheels of Mercer County
2015: Kiva
2016: Woman Space
2017: Comfort Cases
2018: Make a Wish New Jersey
2019: Sister Domingas & Friends Foundation
2020: Homefront
2021: Princeton Mobile Food Pantry

Click here to learn more about our staff

Lynnel Joy Jenkins, DMA (Artistic Director, Concert Choir and Ensemble) is Artistic Director of Westrick Music Academy and Choral Teacher at Timberlane Middle School of the Hopewell Valley Regional School District. At Westrick Music Academy, Dr. Jenkins conducts advanced groups, Princeton Girlchoir Ensemble and Concert Choir. She is a choral educator of international stature, having lectured and conducted choral festivals or music programs in Switzerland, China, Hong Kong, Iceland, and South Africa. Nationally, she has conducted honor choruses for one national, four regional, and several state conferences for American Choral Directors Association, two national conferences for OAKE, and numerous All-State choruses. Jenkins has earned degrees from Westminster Choir College (B.M.), Temple University (M.M.), and University of Arizona (D.M.A.), and at the first two institutions was awarded the Elaine Brown Conducting Award.

Tom T. Shelton, Jr.(Associate Director, Conductor, Semi-Tones) is associate professor of Sacred Music at Westminster Choir College, in Princeton, NJ. Focusing on children’s and youth music at Westminster, Professor Shelton teaches classes in conducting, sacred music, music education, and conducts the Williamson Voices Treble Ensemble. In addition, he is the director of Children’s and Youth Choirs at Princeton United Methodist Church

Before moving to NJ, Mr. Shelton taught middle school choral music in Winston-Salem/Forsyth County, (NC) for 18 years. During that time he was selected Teacher of the Year multiple times and was presented the North Carolina Middle School Music Teacher of the Year award by the North Carolina Music Educators Association.

Mr. Shelton has conducted choral festivals and presented workshops in throughout the United States and Hong Kong. He has served as an adjudicator for the Penabur International Choral Festival (Jakarta, Indonesia); the Rovdo International Choral Festival (Belarus); and worked on several projects with the “Soul Sounds Academy” (Sri Lanka). He is the Series Director for the Music for Young Voices Series with GIA Publications and has over 60 compositions published by Choristers Guild, Colla Voce Music, G. Schirmer, Galaxy, GIA Publications, Growing in Grace Curriculum, Heritage Music Press, Hinshaw Music Company, Musicspoke.com, Santa Barbara Music Press, and Walton Music.

An active member of the American Choral Directors Association, Mr. Shelton served as the National President (2017-2019).

Jaeyeon Chung
(Collaborative Pianist, Semi-Tones) was born in South Korea and began playing the piano at a young age, accompanying her church choir by the time she was 12 years old.

She attended Westminster Choir College Graduate School in Princeton, where she majored in Piano Performance and Pedagogy, before returning to Dankook Graduate School in Seoul, South Korea, where she majored in Piano Accompanying. She studied Dance Accompanying at Sungshin Women’s University (Graduate) School In Sungshin, South Korea, later earning a third graduate degree in Piano Performance and Pedagogy from Westminster Choir College in Princeton, NJ. She also studied at Ecole Normale, France.

Jaeyeon has performed extensively in places such as the Australia Opera House in 1992 and Ecole Normale, France in 1997, where she also studied. Jaeyeon’s accompanying resume includes playing for the Gospel Church in Yeouido, Korea in 1992, Seoul Arts High School in 2005, the Korean Ballet Company, and Bergen Catholic High School, Oradell, NJ 2015. For more than ten years, Jaeyeon has accompanied and performed in numerous colleges, universities, and other venues in South Korea and worldwide.

Today Ms. Chung is the staff Pianist at Westminster Choir College, where she accompanies the Williamson Voices Treble Ensemble and Conservatory Violin Group.

She is also an accompanist for the Princeton Ballet School, Princeton Girls Choir, and Tiny Turtle Academy Pre-Kinder Music teacher in Basking Ridge, NJ., and accompanist at Queenship of Mary Roman Catholic Church in Plainsboro.

Julia Hanna 
(Collaborative Pianist, Concert Choir) has performed widely in the New York and Philadelphia metropolitan areas, building an extensive repertoire of solo and chamber music.   Currently, she serves as a coach and accompanist at Westminster Choir College.   As an accompanist she has also performed and toured with several choirs from the New York area, in which capacity the New York Times has praised her performances as “vivid” and “deft.”   In 2018 Julia was honored to be a featured performer in a Philip Glass opera workshop in North Adams, Massachusetts.

Ryan Brechmacher
(Composer and Collaborative Pianist) is an active performer, composer, teacher and pianist. Originally from Bowling Green, Ohio, Ryan Brechmacher earned his Bachelor of Music degree in both Piano Performance/Pedagogy and Theory/Composition, studying with Ingrid Clarfield and Stefan Young at Westminster Choir College of Rider University. As a solo performer he has given recitals in Ohio and New Jersey, and has served as an accompanist for the Westminster Youth Chorale, Voices Chorale, and many singers and instrumentalists in the area. He has taught at Bowling Green State University’s Summer Piano Camps, Westminster’s Middle School Piano Camp with Lillian Livingston and at Westminster’s High School Piano Camps with Ingrid Clarfield.

An accomplished composer, his works have been heard throughout the United States and Europe. He has had pieces premiered by the Westminster Schola Cantorum, Westminster Youth Chorale, Bowling Green Junior High School Bands, the Bowling Green Area Community Band, VOICES Chorale, Princeton Day School choirs, and Princeton Girlchoir’s Concert Choir and Quarter Notes. His piece, “The Lobster Quadrille”, was the winner of the 2010 Cincinnati Children’s Choir Composition Competition and has recently been published by Alfred Music Publishing.

Mr. Brechmacher has been teaching private piano lessons at Princeton Day School since the Fall of 2008, where he also serves as the Staff Accompanist.

Dan Kassel 
(Cello) is a contemporary cellist based out of NJ who uses live looping and layering technology to weave tapestries of sound. His material has been described as funky, groovy, meditative, soulful and mesmerizing. He performs regularly throughout the Tri-State area for weddings, fine restaurants, fundraisers, festivals, small venues and more, and his music has been featured by WXPN, NJ.com, and many independent blogs. Dan delights in sharing his eclectic sound with those looking for something meaningful and different.

Princeton Girlchoir and Westrick Music Academy wishes to thank the following individuals and organizations for making today’s concert possible:

• New Jersey State Council on the Arts
• Discover Jersey Arts
• Princeton Area Community Foundation
• Nassau Presbyterian Church
• Our wonderful volunteers who help in so many ways
• Our donors like you who made this concert possible!

Board of Directors

Archana Pradhan, MD, MPH, President
Mark J. Badros, Treasurer
Daniela M. Phayme, Secretary
Kristy V. Kyriakopoulos
Xiaobing Li
Jena Prideaux McWha
Frederick A. Pettit, Esq.
Laura Fenster Rothschild, PsyD
Craig Vachris
Joan A. Valcin
Michael Wasden
Mary Jane Weiss, Ph.D., BCBA-D
Lynnel Joy Jenkins, DMA, Artistic Director, Ex Officio
Hilary K. Butler, Executive Director, Ex Officio

Advisory Board

S. Tina Biswas
Carol Burden
Jordan M. Corn
Patricia Cornet
Barbara Burke DiCostanzo
James M. Jordan
Peter F. Kelly, Esq., Legal Advisor
John P. Leonard, DM
Beth Nichols
Janet H. Perkins
Carolyn Sauer
Alice Teti
Jason Vodicka, DMA
Jan A. Westrick

Princeton Girlchoir Staff

Lynnel Joy Jenkins, DMA, Artistic Director, Concert Choir and Ensemble
Hilary K. Butler, Executive Director
Fred Meads, Education Director, Eighth Notes and Quarter Notes
Chaequan Anderson, Associate Director, Cantores
Tom Shelton, Associate Director, Semi-Tones
Rachel DiBlasio, Operations Manager
Jenna Rose Cipolla, Operations Assistant
Carolyn Sienicki, Communications Director
Blanca Gonzalez, Office Manager
Jaeyeon Chung, Collaborative Pianist
Julia Hanna, Collaborative Pianist
François Suhr, Collaborative Pianist
Stefanie Watson, Collaborative Pianist
Zoe Beaton, Cantores Conducting Fellow
Maddie Meier, Concert Choir and Ensemble Conducting Fellow
Megan Sholette, Concert Choir Conducting Fellow
Visa Ramanathan, Eighth Notes Intern
Rachel Herway, Quarter Notes Intern
Anya Nirschl, Quarter Notes Intern
Henna Sharma, Semi-Tones Intern
Julia Weiss, Semi-Tones Intern
Devin Embrich, Rehearsal Coordinator
Rebecca Mercedat, Rehearsal Coordinator
Jasmin Villatoro, Rehearsal Coordinator

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Click here to learn more or make a donation today!