Evan Collins serves as the Minister of Music at The First Presbyterian Church in Cleveland. He oversees all aspects of the music ministry, directing the Chamber Singers and coordinating the church's rich tradition of sacred music. Under his leadership, the music program continues to bring world-class choral performances to Sunday worship, drawing on a repertoire that spans five centuries of sacred choral literature.
Kaya Sparks is a fourth-year voice performance major at the Baldwin Wallace Conservatory of the Performing arts. She has performed a robust variety of choral works and operatic roles throughout her time at BW, such as David Lang's Little Match Girl Passion, Bach's Mass in B Minor, and Offenbach's Orpheus in the Underworld as Cupid. Although she is an opera student, she is a choral singer at heart and is thrilled to be part of the music ministry at The First Presbyterian Church in Cleveland.
Leah Jennings-Brown has a master’s degree in musical theatre from Oklahoma City University, where she studied with the world renowned voice teacher, Florence Birdwell, who also taught Tony winner’s Kelli O’Hara (Leah’s classmate) and Kristin Chenoweth. With over 20 years of NYC, touring, international, and regional theatrical credits, she is well equipped to share her love of music with the next generation of performers. Previously, she taught voice through the EMG Collective in NYC. Most recently she starred as Franchesca in The Bridges of Madison County in Atlanta, Georgia. Favorite credits include multiple seasons with Great Lakes Theatre and Idaho Shakespeare Festival, featured soprano at Tokyo Disney, Mrs. Phagan in Parade, Carrie in Carousel, and both Sarah and Adelaide in Guys & Dolls. Fun fact, Leah is also a proud former Miss OCU (Oklahoma City University) 1999, and 3rd runner-up to Miss Oklahoma. Throughout her years competing in the Miss Oklahoma system, she was awarded over $50,000 in tuition scholarships. She has since judged several state pageants and worked closely with two former Miss America’s prior to their claiming the crown. A proud member of Actors Equity, she continues to perform and share her love of music with her many voice students. She and her husband Stephen are the proud parents of Raylen, and are so happy to call Cleveland home.
Val Sibila (pronouns xe/xem/xyrs) is a soprano soloist known for xyr “dulcet voice” and “clarion tone [with] ethereal splendor.” Xyr performances include J.S. Bach’s Cantata 140, Mickey McGroarty’s Stray Birds, Gwyneth Walker’s The Great Lakes, Beethoven’s “Choral Fantasy,” and Handel’s Messiah. Val made xyr international debut in J.S. Bach’s Magnificat at the Lexington Bach Festival.
Xe achieved xyr Master of Music degree from the Cleveland Institute of Music in 2023, studying with Dr. Mary Schiller, with stage roles as Noémie in Massenet’s Cendrillon, Ruth in Daniel DiMarino’s Ruth, First Witch in Ernest Bloch’s Macbeth, and scenes from Rigoletto, Un ballo in maschera, Little Women, Le Nozze di Figaro, and Così fan tutte. Val performs as a member of the Chamber Singers at First Presbyterian and the Cleveland Chamber Choir. Xe teaches lessons in voice and piano at Chagrin Valley Music and is voice faculty at The Fine Arts Association.
Rayna Brooks, mezzo-soprano, is the current director of choirs and vocal music at Lakewood High School in Lakewood, OH. She received a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance and a Bachelor of Music Education from the Conservatory of Music at Baldwin Wallace University and a Masters in Music Education from Case Western Reserve University. Brooks enjoys singing around the Cleveland area wherever and whenever she can!
Morgan Potts, mezzo-soprano, is currently pursuing her Master of Music in Voice Performance at the Cleveland Institute of Music, where she studies with Dr. Mary Schiller. She is recognized for her vivid stage presence, emotional depth, and compelling musical storytelling. Audiences and colleagues alike have praised her ability to fully inhabit a wide range of characters, as well as her agility and insight in contemporary repertoire.
Morgan made her professional debut as Young Edward Vernon/Ensemble 2 in Blind Injustice by Scott Davenport Richards, presented by Chagrin Arts. Her 2025 season highlights include her upcoming performance of Zita in Gianni Schicchi as well as her recent performance of Meg in Verdi’s Falstaff and Presendia in Nico Muhly’s Dark Sisters. Other notable roles include Hérisson de Porc-Épic in Chabrier’s L’Étoile, Elisetta in Cimarosa’s Il Matrimonio Segreto, Prince Orlofsky in Strauss II’s Die Fledermaus, Cherubino in Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro, Sherlock Holmes in Hans Bridger Heruth’s A Certain Madness, and Hänsel in Humperdinck’s Hänsel und Gretel.
Morgan has enriched her training through young artist programs such as Texas Music Festival (2022), Frost School of Music’s Summer in Salzburg (2023), Opera Seme (2024), and Harrower Opera Workshop (2025). She holds a Bachelor of Music degree from Kennesaw State University.
From a young age, Morgan used music as a powerful emotional outlet—what began as a childhood passion has evolved into a profound artistic calling. Today, she is driven by a deep sense of gratitude for the opportunity to breathe life into music and connect with audiences through each performance.
Noah Whitaker is a first year Master of Arts in Music Education student at Case Western Reserve University. In 2024 he graduated with a major in Music Composition under Dr. Laurence Sherr and a certificate in Music Entertainment Business at Kennesaw State University (KSU). Coming from a choral background within south Georgia, he is currently studying for the goals of K-12 choral music education and choral composition for stage performance. As a tenor vocalist, he currently performs with the Case Concert Choir under Dr. Chris Clark. He has previously performed with the KSU Chamber Singers and Men’s Ensemble and has been inducted into Pi Kappa Lambda.
Dominic Aragon is a native of Wichita, Kansas. He currently resides in Cleveland, Ohio where he is a chorister at the historic First Presbyterian Church in Cleveland in downtown Cleveland. Mr. Aragon recently completed an Artist Diploma in Voice Performance at the University of Colorado–Boulder. While living in the Front Range, he performed concert works by Handel, Mozart, Bruckner, Poulenc, Saint-Saëns, Fauré, and Claussen with various ensembles and sang as a chorister with the Colorado Bach Ensemble and the Boulder Bach Festival. He has also enjoyed performing roles including Figaro in Le nozze di Figaro, Onegin in Eugene Onegin, Bernardo in West Side Story, Yamadori in Madama Butterfly, Fredrik in A Little Night Music, Falke in Die Fledermaus, Escamillo in The Tragedy of Carmen, and Nardo in La Finta Giardinera. As a resident artist with the Ad Astra Music Festival, Mr. Aragon premiered the role of Narrator in Anna Pigdorna’s Our Trudy and performed the role of Pa in Missy Mazzoli’s Proving Up. He recently performed the role of Luis Garzón in Reinaldo Moya’s chamber opera, Tienda, at Augsburg University in Minneapolis and Bonobo/David in Matthew Aucoin’s Second Nature with Opera Grand Rapids.
Dr. Christopher L. Clark is the Director of Choirs at Case Western Reserve University. Dr. Clark conducts the award-winning Case Concert Choir and teaches classes in choral music education, conducting, qualitative research, and secularism. Dr. Clark is also the Artistic Director for the Singers’ Club of Cleveland, a men’s chorus that has existed since 1891. Before joining CWRU, Dr. Clark was the Director of Vocal Music for the Southern Berkshire Regional School District in Sheffield, Massachusetts, teaching choir to students in grades 3-12 with 9 distinct choral ensembles. During his time in Massachusetts, Dr. Clark was also the Music Director at Grace Church in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, conducted the Albany Gay Men’s Chorus, conducted the Sheffield Messiah Choir, and associate conducted the Cantilena Chamber Choir.
His research interests include the choral music of British suffragist Ethel Smyth, how the religiosity of a teacher overtly or discreetly influences student instruction, and non-religious spirituality. Dr. Clark’s research has been published in ACDA’s publication The Choral Journal, Choral Canada’s journal Anacrusis, and the International Journal of Music Education. He is a frequent honor choir conductor and presenter at music education conferences such as the International Society for Music Education, the National Association for Music Education National Conference, the American Choral Directors Association National Conference, The World Choral Expo in Lisbon, Portugal, the ACDA Eastern Division Conference, as well as the Music Education Associations of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Ohio, and Maryland. Dr. Clark was designated a 2013 Yale “Distinguished Music Educator,” a 2019 Berkshire County “40 under 40,” and is a quarterfinalist for the 2022 Grammy Music Education Award.
Dr. Clark earned a Bachelor of Music cum laude from Cleveland State University, two Masters of Music degrees in Choral Conducting and Music Education from Bowling Green State University, and a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Music Education from The Hartt School of Music.
