Richard Elliott

Richard Elliott is Principal Organist at the Mormon Tabernacle in Salt Lake City, where he participates in the daily recital series on the 206-rank Æolian-Skinner organ and accompanies the Mormon Tabernacle Choir on the choir’s weekly radio and TV broadcast, “Music and the Spoken Word.”  As accompanist for the Tabernacle Choir he has performed in many of the world’s great halls and appeared on numerous television and radio programs, including the NBC “Today Show,” the “CBS Morning Show” and “A Prairie Home Companion.”

Dr. Elliott appears on dozens of recordings and videos with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.  In his work with the choir he has collaborated with many guest artists including Andrea Bocelli, the Canadian Brass, Renée Fleming, Evelyn Glennie, the King’s Singers, Brian Stokes Mitchell, the Oak Ridge Boys, Charles Osgood, the Osmonds, and Robert Shaw.

In 1994 he recorded his first solo compact disc, titled “In the Shadows of the Everlasting Hills,” on the Pro Organo label.  His second solo CD on the Mormon Tabernacle organ, “Every Time I Feel the Spirit,” was released in the summer of 2009 on the Klavier label.  He has also recorded three compact discs in collaboration with his colleagues on the Tabernacle organ staff.  Dr. Elliott is a published composer and arranger of music for organ and for choir.

Prior to his appointment as a Tabernacle organist in 1991, Dr. Elliott was an assistant professor of organ at Brigham Young University.  He has performed extensively as a recitalist in the United States, has appeared as soloist with the Utah Symphony, and for several years was assistant organist at the John Wanamaker Department Store (now Macy’s) in Philadelphia, home to the world’s largest functioning pipe organ.  A Fellow of the American Guild of Organists, Dr. Elliott has been a featured performer at several national and regional conventions of the guild.

A native of Baltimore, Maryland, Dr. Elliott received his early musical training at the Peabody Conservatory.  He went on to study organ at the Catholic University of America, the Curtis Institute of Music, from which he received the BMus degree, and the Eastman School of Music, where he received MM and DMA degrees.  His organ teachers have included David Craighead, Dale Krider, William Watkins, and John Weaver.

Dr. Elliott is married to a professional pianist, Elizabeth Cox Ballantyne, and they are the parents of two sons.

For information on Music and the Spoken Word airings in your area, please call 1-800-247-6655 or visit www.musicandthespokenword.org.  Enjoy the program anytime on YouTube (youtube.com/MormonTabChoir).  For more information on the Choir, visit www.mormontabernaclechoir.org.

Nancy Hanson

Nancy Hanson comes to the stage with a deep love of music. At twelve years old she successfully negotiated a deal with her mother to end the piano lessons and pick up the guitar.  Guitar playing came naturally and she spent hours learning and playing songs written by her favorite artists and strongest influences including John Denver, Dan Fogelberg, and James Taylor in the early days, and later Nanci Griffith, Shawn Colvin and Mary Chapin-Carpenter.  “All those years I spent listening to and playing covers by these great artists, I was subconsciously learning to write.”

Nancy worked her way through college playing and singing cover tunes at local clubs and restaurants.  She graduated with a B.S. in Psychology and began her work as a counselor for troubled children and teens.  In 1993 she tried her hand at songwriting and just one year later she was invited to play as a finalist in the Telluride Troubadour Contest (CO).  This validation of Nancy’s songwriting ability encouraged her to continue to write and play contests where her music could be heard.  Nancy went on to be a New Folk Finalist at the Kerrville Folk Festival (TX), and the Napa Valley Music Festival (CA), and a winner at both the Rocky Mountain Folks Festival Songwriting Contest and the Telluride Troubadour Contest (CO).  Nancy’s song “Drops in a Bucket” won the 1998 Fast Folk Café (NY) Songwriting Contest and earned 2nd place in the folk category of the 2000 John Lennon Songwriting Contest.

Nancy's past appearances include the Bluebird Café in Nashville, The Fast Folk Café in New York City, and shows to sell out crowds at various venues in her home state of Utah. She has tremendous live performance skills and it is apparent by her dedicated and loyal fan base. 

Often referred to as “the natural” by fellow musicians and fans alike, Nancy Hanson continues to grow as a songwriter, performer, and recording artist.  Much like the great names that inspired her, Nancy continues to inspire and lift others as she musically paints about the wonders and mysteries of life and love.

Jenny Oaks Baker

Grammy Nominated Artist Jenny Oaks Baker is one of America’s most accomplished classical violinists. Whether her music is experienced live or through one of her many recordings, it is impossible to escape the magic of her artistry.

Jenny began playing the violin at age four, and made her solo debut in 1983 when she was only eight years old. She received her Master of Music degree from the renowned Juilliard School in New York City and her Bachelor’s degree in violin performance from the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia.

Jenny Oaks Baker has released ten best-selling albums since 1998 as a Shadow Mountain Records Artist. Her album Wish Upon a Star: A Tribute to the Music of Walt Disney earned a nomination for the 54th GRAMMY Awards for Best Pop Instrumental Album. Jenny’s albums consistently chart on Billboard, with her 2010 album Then Sings My Soul hitting the #1 spot on the Top Classical Albums chart.  Her newest album, Noël: Carols of Christmas Past, produced and arranged by Emmy award winning composer Kurt Bestor and featuring former “Celtic Woman” star Alex Sharpe, will release October 2012.

Jenny Oaks Baker’s performance career is equally impressive.  In April 1999, she made her Carnegie Hall debut as a featured soloist in the Easter Festival Concert. She will perform with the Pittsburgh Symphony this concert season at the invitation of the late Marvin Hamlisch, whom she soloed under multiple times. She has performed as a soloist in Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center, Strathmore Hall, Coolidge Auditorium at the Library of Congress, and the Kennedy Center.

Jenny has soloed with the National Symphony, Jerusalem Symphony, San Diego Symphony, Utah Symphony, Orchestra at Temple Square, and the internationally acclaimed Mormon Tabernacle Choir.  She has also been featured in television and radio broadcasts nationwide.  Her “In Performance” BYUTV Special Silver Screen Serenade, features Jenny performing music from her album of the same name.

With her extensive performing and recording careers in addition to her superlative education, Jenny is an esteemed expert and served as a judge for the 2007 Stradivarius International Violin Competition. In April 2008 Governor Jon M. Huntsman Jr. of Utah awarded her the Governor’s Mansion Artist Award for excellence in artistic expression.

For seven years, Jenny Oaks Baker performed as a first violinist in the National Symphony Orchestra before resigning in 2007 to devote more time to her young family.  Jenny, her husband, and their four children reside outside of Washington D.C.

Website: www.jennyoaksbaker.com

YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/user/jennyoaksbaker

Facebook: www.facebook.com/jennyoaksbaker

Josh Wright

Billboard #1 artist Josh Wright has delighted audiences across the United States and in Europe. His self-titled album “Josh Wright” topped the Billboard Classical Traditional chart just three weeks after its release in April 2011. Josh studied under renowned pedagogue Dr. Susan Duehlmeier at the University of Utah, completing his Bachelor of Musical Arts degree and Master of Music degree. He currently studies at the University of Michigan, pursuing his Doctor of Musical Art degree as a pupil of Dr. Logan Skelton. Josh will release his next CD, “My Favorite Things,” on May 7, 2013 with Shadow Mountain Records. Josh is a listed Steinway Artist.

Josh was the winner of the 2013 Rosamond P. Haeberle Piano Award competition. He was also the gold medalist at the 2010 Seattle International Piano Competition, the first prize winner of the 2010 American Protége International Competition of Romantic Music (New York, NY), and the second prize winner of the 2011 Music Teachers National Association National Competition (Milwaukee, WI). He recently competed in the International Chopin Piano Competition Preliminaries (Warsaw, Poland), the Gina Bachauer International Artists Competition (Salt Lake City, Utah), and the National Chopin Competition (Miami, Florida). He has won top honors and competed in numerous other competitions including the New York Piano Competition, the Louisiana International Piano Competition, the Julia Crane International Piano Competition, the National Federation of Music Clubs Competition, the Pinault International Recording Competition, the Music Teachers National Association National Competition, The Stravinsky Awards International Piano Competition, the National Music Teachers Association Stillman Kelly competition, and the Eastman International Piano Competition.

Josh has appeared numerous times with symphony orchestras including: the Utah Symphony, the Temple Square Orchestra, the Salt Lake Symphony, the Summer Arts Orchestra, and the University of Utah Student Chamber Orchestra

Josh has participated in master classes and lessons with numerous concert pianists, including Leon Fleisher, Menahem Pressler, Garrick Ohlsson, Sergei Babayan, John Perry, Boris Slutsky, Nelita True, Paul Schenly, Ian Hobson and Awadagin Pratt. Josh was the piano double on the TV show “Everwood.”

Josh has created a free online piano instructional series to assist piano students of all ages and abilities with various aspects of technique and musicality.  This can be found on his YouTube Channel – www.youtube.com/joshwrightpiano.

Josh currently offers private online piano lessons for students across the world. Please email him at josh@joshwrightpiano.com for more information.