Annual Christmas Special Concert at SMA Saturday, December 4

The annual Christmas Special concert will be presented by SMA’s APPLAUSE Series this Saturday, December 4 at Sweetwater Municipal Auditorium, 400 Locust, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are available with half price for students. Advance tickets are on sale at the Chamber and online at www.sweetwaterauditorium.org. Tickets will also be available at the door...

In addition to the local select choir conducted by Jonathan Jones, the musical program will be presented by guest artist, Lyndi Williams Krause, soprano and the Southwestern String Quartet. Quartet members are Naomi Marens, first violin; Kristie Cheng, second violin; Steven Lech, viola; and Chase Crouch, cello. Marcus Bradford from Amarillo will accompany Mrs. Williams and the choir. Martha Taylor was rehearsal accompanist but had to cancel her performance due to health issues.

Born in Amarillo, Texas, Lyndi Williams Krause has been singing professionally for many years. Studying vocal performance, her voice coaches and teachers have included Carol Wilson at the University of North Texas (UNT), Mary Jane Johnson in Amarillo, TX and Joe Ella Cansler at West Texas A&M University. She studied opera with Mila Gibson and was involved in Amarillo Opera as a singer, arts education mentor, and music business intern.

Williams Krause has been given the opportunity to perform with many national ensembles, orchestras and opera companies including the American Baroque Opera Company, University of North Texas Opera, Amarillo Symphony, Amarillo Opera, TEXAS the musical drama and Amarillo Master Chorale. She was recently the title role in Handel’s Alcina and appeared as Speed Dater #29 in Speed Dating Tonight, Sarah in The Ballad of Baby Doe, and the Mother in Amahl and the Night Visitors among many other productions and scenes.

She enjoys performing symphonic concert works and has appeared as the soloist for Handel’s Messiah, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, Mozart’s Requiem and Orff’s Carmina Burana.

In 2009, Williams Krause was presented the opportunity to premier composer Edward Manukyan’s World without War on words by Noam Chomsky, one of the world’s leading intellectuals and peace activists. Her collaboration with Manukyan went further, putting the composer’s entire list of works for soprano into her active repertoire. She also gave the premier of the English version of Loris Tjeknavorian’s Love Songs for soprano and symphony orchestra in Los Angeles.

During the summer of 2010, Mrs. Williams Krause performed her international debut with her Concert Tour through the Republic of Armenia. Working with some the country’s greatest composers, she sang for Alexander Arutunian, Edward Mirzoyan, Loris Tjeknavorian and the family of Lazar Saryan, a composer and student of Dmitri Shostakovich. After returning to the United States, and in balance with her professional activities as a concert soprano, she managed a unique project, Musical Tribute to Scientists, which honors the world’s leading scientists with concert performances of musical dedications. Its success attracted attention from James Watson, Steven Weinberg, Noam Chomsky and others.

She is currently continuing her singing career, finishing her doctorate at the University of North Texas (is ABD), and is currently the Senior Administrative Coordinator of Admissions and Scholarships for the College of Music at UNT. When she is not singing and working, she enjoys time with her husband, Allen, and being the Mom to her two daughters Clara and Parker.