Cardinal Mooney senior shares recital stage with Reba Evans and Lee Dougherty Ross at Church of the Redeemer

May 12, 2014 / Sarasota, Fla. — Cardinal Mooney Catholic High School senior Monica Gonzalez will give a recital at the Church of the Redeemer on Sat., May 24, at 7:30 p.m. Gonzalez, a soprano who will begin her studies this fall at the renowned Manhattan School of Music in New York, will be joined in the recital by contralto singer Reba Evans and accompanied by pianist Lee Daugherty Ross. A reception in Gillespie Hall at the church will follow this free concert.

A high school senior, Gonzalez was recently awarded a scholarship for south Sarasota County musicians by Venice Musicale, a Venice nonprofit that funds musical education opportunities and also hosts and promotes music events. This fall, when Gonzalez begins attending the Manhattan School of Music, a highly competitive conservatory founded in 1917, she will be walking in the steps of  dozens of notable musicians who studied at the school over the last century, including jazz icons Donald Byrd, Ron Carter, Max Roach, Herbie Hancock and Harry Connick Jr.

Evans is a New York City-based singer associated with the Manhattan Opera Studio. She has performed as Dryade in Strauss’ Ariadne auf Naxos, as Annina in Der Rosenkavalier, as Suora Zelatrice in Puccini’s Suor Angelica and as Third Lady in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte. Evans has a long-standing relationship with Redeemer; she studied with Organist/Choirmaster Ann Stephenson-Moe, led Redeemer's renowned choir as alto section leader and soloist, and has returned numerous times over the years to perform in Redeemer's Great Concert Series: as the alto in Handel’s Messiah, the alto soloist in Durufle’s Requiem and most recently as Bradamante in Handel's opera Alcina.

Pianist Lee Dougherty Ross has been performing since age 12, when she debuted with the Norfolk Symphony Orchestra. She later graduated from the Eastman School of Music with a double major in both piano and voice, and her singing career has included performances at Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall and Broadway in New York, Queen Elizabeth Hall in London and the Kennedy White House. 

The Church of the Redeemer is located at 222 S. Palm Ave., in the heart of downtown Sarasota. For more information, call 941-955-4263 or visit redeemersarasota.org.