The Mainstay kicks off the fall season of the Hedgelawn Classical Series with mezzo soprano Taylor Hillary Boykins and Friends on Sunday September 29 at 8pm. Tickets are $15 online, by phone reservation or at the door. Information and advance ticket sales are available on the Mainstay’s website at www.mainstayrockhall.org
The Hedgelawn Classical Series Returns for the Fall Season! Join Mezzo Soprano Taylor Hillary Boykins and her talented friends for Basic Human Emotion, an exploration of the many emotions we humans face on a day-to-day basis through art song. There will be songs, stories and laughs- not your typical classical concert!
Dubbing herself “little but mighty,” Mezzo Soprano Taylor Boykins doesn’t sell herself short when tackling the tall orders of the opera stage. Taylor made her Kennedy Center debut in 2014 as Mrs. Roché in Tony Small’s eco-conscious musical, RUKA. Later that year, she returned to The Kennedy Center as Alexis in the world premiere of Tony Small’s operetta Qadar, with opera luminary Denyce Graves as Artistic Director.
Taylor can be found sharing her talents all over the greater Baltimore area. She began this season in recital with Thrive Music Live, followed by an appearance with St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church as soloist for their performance of Duruflé’s Requiem. During the 2017-2018 season, Taylor made her West Coast debut as alto soloist with the Gonzaga University University Concert Choir, performing Michael Tippett’s A Child of Our Time in Spokane, WA. Taylor was commissioned to perform An Evening of Opera; a lecture recital covering opera, art song, and a history of black opera singersat the University of Toledo. In fall of 2016, she made her debut as alto soloist in Gustav Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde, with one of Baltimore’s innovative chamber orchestras, Symphony Number One. The year before that, she had a taste of contemporary opera, performing in the world premiere of Frances Pollock’s opera STINNEY. Throughout her time in the Charm City, Taylor has given volunteer performances at Basilica Place Senior Living and she’s performed with Concert Artists of Baltimore and The Walters Art Museum.
Taylor earned her Master of Music degree in vocal performance from the Peabody Conservatory of the Johns Hopkins University, where she was a protégé of Denyce Graves. A native of Michigan, she received her Bachelor of Music degree from Oakland University in Rochester, MI as a student of contralto, Nadine Washington.
Maria Adele Scott, originally from Delaware, began piano lessons at age 6, and later studied with Liliya Maslov at the Music School of Delaware. She has performed in countless venues including Peabody’s Friedberg Concert Hall, the Grand Opera House of Delaware, the Kennedy Center, and Carnegie Hall. Maria has performed a wide range of piano ensemble repertoire and has extensive experience as a collaborative artist. Last year, she traveled to Hamburg, Germany to compete in the Classic Winds International Saxophone and Clarinet Competition and Festival as a collaborative pianist. In addition to maintaining and organizing her own private teaching studio, Maria is an accompanist for the Peabody Preparatory.
Aaron Thacker has performed extensively in the realm of Opera. He has served as rehearsal pianist for North Carolina Opera, Baltimore Lyric Opera, Peabody Conservatory, and The Ford’s Theatre. He has appeared on NPR with celebrated tenor Noah Stewart and played for many of the most sought after opera singers in the country including Christine Goerke, Denyce Graves, and Steven LaBrie. He currently is on the faculty at the George Washington Carver Center for the Arts and Technology, in Towson, MD.
The Mainstay (Home of Musical Magic) is the friendly informal storefront performing arts center on Rock Hall’s old time Main Street. It is a 501(c)(3), nonprofit dedicated to the arts, serving Rock Hall, MD and the surrounding region and is committed to presenting local, regional and national level talent, at a reasonable price, in an almost perfect acoustic setting. Information and advance ticket sales are available on the Mainstay’s website http://www.mainstayrockhall.org.