DARREN DAILEY
President & Artistic Director
Darren Dailey came to Jacksonville in 2006 and since then has been shaping The Jacksonville Children’s Chorus into a world-class organization. Under his artistic leadership, The Chorus has grown to serve over 1,000 First Coast children annually with five core performance choirs, multiple satellite rehearsal locations, and outreach throughout the region.
A nationally recognized clinician and conductor, Mr. Dailey has served as guest conductor in Carnegie Hall and Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center and the ACDA Honor Choir in Seattle. He has presented workshops for the National Association of Pastoral Musicians, Organization of Kodály Educators, American Choral Directors Association, and Music Educator’s National Conference. As the founding artistic director of the Boston Children’s Chorus, Mr. Dailey and his chorus performed at the 2004 Democratic Convention, and appeared as the host chorus on the television special, “Raising the Roof: A Celebration of the Life of Martin Luther King, Jr. in Song,” broadcast nationally on WGN, and performed internationally in Japan. He is the 2014 recipient of the Reinhold Foundation Outstanding Executive Director Award and currently serves on the Jacksonville University Linda Berry Stein College of Fine Arts Advisory Board. Mr. Dailey was honored in 2017 by Galaxy Music to create a Choral Series specifically for children’s voices. Under his leadership, the JCC received the 2017 Diversity and Inclusion Award for the State of Florida.
Mr. Dailey has produced four recordings: “Come and Rejoice” (Cantate), “Sing!” (Boston Children’s Chorus) and “Voices for Voices” (Jacksonville Children’s Chorus). His work may also be heard on “A Boston Christmas” (Back Bay Chorale), “Building Bridges” (Mystic Chorale) and “Amani Celebration,” a limited-edition compact disc of holiday songs from 15 children’s choirs to benefit African children who have been orphaned because of the HIV/AIDS epidemic.
In 2019, Mr. Dailey was honored with the distinguished Alumni Merit Award by Westminster Choir College. In 2020, Chorus America presented Darren with the Brazeal Wayne Dennard Award in recognition of his dedication to diversity and his contributions to the African American Choral Tradition. The Jacksonville Children's Chorus, under Darren Dailey's direction, achieved significant recognition in 2022, winning the American Prize for Choral Performance. Furthermore, in the same year, the ensemble was bestowed with the David C. Brotemarkle Award for their outstanding presentation of 'Songs of the Sunshine State.'
Mr. Dailey received a Bachelor of Music Education degree with a concentration in Voice from Westminster Choir College and a Master of Music Education in Choral Conducting from Appalachian State University’s Hayes School of Music.
Artistic Staff
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Instructor
Cyriac Adjevi-Neglokpe has been singing since the age of 8. He started in church choir where he developed his love for music. With his admiration of music, Mr. Adjevi
attended and graduated from Douglas Anderson School of the Arts in 2018 as a voice major. He then received a Bachelors in Music Education with an emphasis in Voice/Choral Studies from The Linda Berry Stein College of Fine Arts at Jacksonville University in
2022. Mr. Adjevi is also the director of Choral Activities at Samuel Wolfson School for Advanced Studies.
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Primary and Training Choir Conductor
Melissa Barnes served with Jacksonville Children’s Chorus for several years before moving to Alabama in 2010. She is thrilled to be returning to Jacksonville and the JCC as a Primary and Training Choir Conductor. Melissa received her Vocal Performance degree with additional studies in music education from the University of Mobile. She also studied at the University of Southern Mississippi where she was a proud member of the Marching Pride. Melissa brings over 25 years of experience in both performing and teaching all ages from preschool to adults. Her personal vocal performance experience includes leading roles in “Amahl and the Night Visitors,” “H.M.S. Pinafore,” “Mikado,” Handel’s “Messiah,” & John Rutter’s “Requiem.” She enjoys performing but has found her passion in guiding children to discover and develop their talents and creativity. She desires to assist in developing a high-quality choral music program while teaching not only musical and cognitive skills, but also social development, self-discipline, teamwork, and community involvement. She desires to teach her students by example to strive for excellence in everything they do.
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Choreographer
KT joined the JCC team in 2016 as a member of the Administrative Staff but extended her scope into the Artistic Staff in 2017. She began dancing at the age of 3 and has held a passion for the performing arts ever since. KT’s ties to the Chorus go back as far as 1996 when she joined the JCC as a young singer under the direction of Jim Taylor, the Chorus’ first conductor. In her two years as a member of the JCC, she enjoyed opportunities to perform at various venues around the state and country, and even in Carnegie Hall. During her college years, she expanded upon her dance background, becoming heavily involved in the Ballroom and Latin Dance community of Florida, where she became a professional Latin dancer, ballroom dance instructor, and even an aerialist.
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Primary & Training Choir Conductor
Virginia is a Jacksonville native and has both of her music education degrees from Jacksonville University, where in 1995 she first became involved with the Jacksonville Children’s Chorus as a volunteer. When the conductor, Jim Taylor unexpectedly couldn’t accompany the chorus to sing in New York, Virginia took the group on their very first choir experience to sing in Carnegie Hall!
Virginia has enjoyed teaching music for over 42 years in both the local private and public school systems as well as in several local churches. Elementary schools like St. Mark's Episcopal, Brookview, San Mateo, Parkwood Heights and Windy Hill have enjoyed having Virginia as their music specialist. She received the Teacher of the Year award in 1995 at Windy Hill Elementary.
She was the music specialist at Jacksonville Country Day School for 25 years and has recently retired. Her JCDS Chorus consistently received first place awards and superior ratings at the Music USA Festival in Orlando and were chosen to perform at the Florida Music Educators Conference in Tampa in 2004. Her JCDS students have been chosen to sing in the Florida Elementary All-State Chorus every year for over ten years. A special moment for her was to take her JCDS Chorus to New York where they performed in Carnegie Hall alongside the JCC under the direction of Darren Dailey when he had his Carnegie Hall conducting debut in 2008.
In 2018, the University of North Florida chose Virginia to be one of four teachers recognized with the Gladys Prior Award For Career Teaching Excellence. This is an annual award given to only four local teachers who have proven over the years to give tremendous inspiration to their students. Finally, in 2020, the Florida Music Educator Association chose Virginia to be the Florida Elementary Music Educator of the Year.
Virginia is excited to be back with the Jacksonville Children’s Chorus and believes every child deserves a chance to shine on stage. She believes in the JCC mission of inspiring excellence in young singers through a high-quality choral music education!
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Primary & Training Choir Conductor
Faith Powell, a JCC Alum and Jacksonville Native, is currently pursuing her Master’s degree in Music Education from the University of North Florida with a concentration in Choral Music. She graduated from Douglas Anderson School of the Arts in 2019 as a voice major with a vocal music seal.
In her youth, she was a member of the Concert and Touring Choirs here at the Jacksonville Children's Chorus, where she traveled worldwide singing in countries such as Canada, Russia, Sweden, Germany and more. She was also given the opportunity to sing alongside stars like Kristen Chenoweth and Amy Grant.
Most recently, she has sung with Voices of Jacksonville and UNF’s Osprey Treble Chorus. She has taught private Voice, Piano and Ukulele at Jacksonville School of Music since 2021. Faith is passionate about making beautiful music and teaching the next generation to do the same. She is thrilled to be a part of such a wonderful team here at JCC.
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Instructor
Safiya Ali has been studying music since the age of 8. Starting on her grandparents organ, she developed her love for music. She has now played piano for over 17 years and has been studying voice for 12 years. She is a recent graduate of the University of Central Florida with a Masters of Arts in Music. Miss Ali also holds a Bachelors in Music Education from Jacksonville University. Miss Ali has been teaching private voice and piano lessons for 5 years and is currently an Elementary Music Teacher in St. John’s County.
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Instructor
Julian David Bryson is Director of Choral Activities at Jacksonville University (FL), where he leads three choral ensembles and teaches courses in conducting, education, entrepreneurship, and music appreciation. He and the choirs of JU were finalists in three categories for The American Prize 2023. Previously, Julian served on the faculty of Curry College in Milton, MA and was a founding member of Triad: Boston’s Choral Collective. He has taught elementary, middle, and high school musicians at Randolph School of Huntsville, AL and Carlisle School of Martinsville, VA and holds a doctoral degree in Choral Conducting from the University of Kentucky, writing his dissertation on choral collectives. He also earned degrees in conducting and composition from the University of Tennessee. He is a composer whose work brings together historically opposed ideas and communities and has garnered national recognition. Awards include winning the ACDA Raymond W. Brock Student Composition Contest, the Yale Glee Club Emerging Composers Competition, and the MSUM Dragon Music Prize. Commissions include the Florida Vocal Association All-State Choirs, University of Kentucky, San Jacinto College (TX), First Baptist Church of Huntsville (AL), and the Voices of Jacksonville.
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Primary & Training Choir Conductor
Susanne Dailey is a musician with many years of experience in both teaching and performing music. She has served in public and private schools in New Jersey, North Carolina, Massachusetts, and Florida. In addition to teaching general music and chorus at the elementary level, Susanne has worked as Organist/Pianist at many churches throughout her career. Mrs. Dailey received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Music Education from Westminster Choir College in Princeton, N.J. and her Master of Arts degree in Music Education from Appalachian State University in Boone, N.C. She has trained in the Kodály and Orff-Schulwerk methodologies and is committed to providing young singers with the foundations of music reading and music making. She is also a certified Kindermusik Instructor. Mrs. Dailey has been the Music Director at St. Mark’s Episcopal Day School since 2006 and teaches Pre-K through 6th-grade music classes.
Susanne is well respected as an educator and has been acclaimed for her special rapport with singers as well as her fine musicianship. She believes that music is critical in nurturing a child's cognitive, emotional, social and physical development. She is dedicated to ensuring that each child experiences the joy, and excitement learning music brings! Susanne's husband, Darren Dailey, is the Artistic and Executive Director of the Jacksonville Children's Chorus. They have two wonderful daughters, Mary and Megan.
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Collaborative Pianist
Sachiko Frampton started her career as a professional collaborative pianist soon after she started to study at the high school division of Musashino Academia Musicae, a conservatory in Tokyo, Japan. Through high school and college, she studied piano under Yoko Minagawa and Takashi Kawasaki, and collaborative piano under Penka Badev. Until she moved to the United States with her family, she performed numerous recitals as a collaborative pianist and traveled throughout Japan as a pianist with the percussion ensemble Group Woods.
Before she moved to Jacksonville in 2012, she worked in Arizona as a collaborative pianist for Grand Canyon University, high schools in the greater Phoenix area, and for the State Convention of Choral Directors of Arizona.
Here in Jacksonville, she is a staff pianist at University of North Florida School of Music and has worked with Douglas Anderson School of the Arts and Paxon School for Advanced Studies.
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First Steps In Music Instructor
Jessye Russom grew up taking violin, voice, piano, and viola lessons and has always known music was her passion. She began teaching private lessons part-time in 2015, and after graduating from the University of North Florida with her bachelor's degree in Viola Performance in 2018, she began building her career as a full-time private music teacher. She and her husband both teach violin, viola, cello, and piano to children of all ages. On the weekends, Jessye is a freelance musician and performs viola in trios and quartets at weddings and other special events. She is a substitute violist with the Jacksonville Symphony, and the Venice Symphony in south Florida.
Jessye has been teaching a First Steps Music class with the Jacksonville Children's Chorus since the spring of 2022. She got her first job as a preschool music teacher with the Goddard School of Ponte Vedra in 2020, and loves sharing the joy of music with preschoolers.
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Virtual Preschool Conductor
Marissa Dickerson is returning to the Jacksonville Children’s Chorus virtually from California. A Texas native, she earned her Bachelor of Music Education from Stephen F. Austin State University where she graduated summa cum laude. After teaching kindergarten through eighth grade music and choir, Marissa returned to Stephen F. Austin State University to pursue her Master's of Music in Choral Conducting. After completing her degree, she moved to Jacksonville and worked in elementary, teaching early childhood through sixth grade music, as well as working with the JCC Lyric, Training, and Primary choirs. The military moved her family to San Diego, CA where she is currently staying home with her two children Alan and Cecilia.
Mrs. Dickerson is passionate about making music accessible to children and making choir a place where they can work together to grow as individuals as well as musicians.
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Assistant Choreographer
Roseanna George, first began dancing at the age of 11 in Miami, FL where she studied the styles of ballet, jazz, contemporary, lyrical and hiphop. She took up ballroom dancing three years later, attending lessons alongside her parents for 3 more years before graduating highschool and moving to Jacksonville to attend college.
While in college she learned the way of "Step" dancing and began teaching it at various schools in Duval county with "Step-In-School, Inc." ran by Adam Barnes in partnership with The Cathedral Arts project. In 2013, she returned to ballroom dancing beginning her career as an instructor after completing her teacher training program at A Social Affair dance studio for six years.
Currently, Roseanna, now teaches at All About Ballroom and is the studio manager as well as the junior program coordinator. She teachers one of the largest junior programs in the North Florida area hosting nearly 30 juniors starting from as young as 5 years old to 18 years of age. She competes with her students in the Professional/Amateur division in the American style Rhythm and Smooth but also teaches and competes with them in International Latin and Standard styles as well.
Professionally she competes with her professional partner, William Brand, owner and operator of Dance Center International in Orange Park, FL in both the Professional rising-star and Professional open divisions in the American Rhythm style of ballroom dancing. Together they have been made finalist for the Boca Ballroom Dancesport Competition in 2020 & 2022, Grand National Championships in 2020 and the Eastern United States Dancesport Championships in 2021.
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Cantate Choir Conductor
Dr. Julie M. Song is a visiting faculty at the School of Music, University of North Florida (UNF). At UNF, she teaches multiple courses related to music and music education, including Men’s Choir (5 O’clock Singers), Research in Music Education, Advanced Choral Conducting, Teaching Elementary Music and Secondary Choral Music Methods. She also oversees student-teaching internships. Prior to UNF, Julie taught at the University of Florida, New York University and multiple universities in Korea. In addition, Julie has taught students in multiple formats in K-12 and adult lifelong learning programs in both South Korea and the USA, covering both choir and solo voices, as well as various genres of music such as classical, Broadway, pop, K-pop, and church music. She has been a choir director for more than 15 years, leading church choirs in New York and Korea. She frequently sings at local churches to support community music. She has extensive performance experience as a singer in both Korea and USA, including in the New York metropolitan area and Florida. She has had leading roles in contemporary operas, such as If This Be Madness and Rotation, and she released the album, Prayer, containing 16 new songs in English and Korean. Her research focuses on vocal health education for singers and music teachers, music education philosophy, and social justice as relates to a diverse classroom environment. Her research has been presented at international, national and regional conferences, such as the International Society for Music Education Conference, the Cultural Diversity in Music Education Conference, the National Association for Music Education Conference, and the Florida Music Education Association Conference. Her research has been published in Update: Applications for Research in Music Education. She also serves as a reviewer for leading music education journals. Julie received a Ph.D. in music education from the University of Florida, and a Post-Master’s Advanced Certification in vocal pedagogy and a M.A. in music education from New York University. She holds an M.M in music performance as a singer and a B.A in music education from Korea. Julie also studied choir conducting in the Juilliard School Evening Division, and she is Kodaly and Vocology certified. She has won several awards, including the Richard Hirsh Memorial Award for Students in the Arts (NYU), the David L. Wilmot Prize for Excellence in Music Education (University of Florida), and the Dissertation Finish Line Award (University of Florida).
Administrative Staff
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Business & Development Manager
353-1636, ext. 4
KT joined the JCC team in 2016 as a member of the Finance Department. With a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering, and experience in project management, quality engineering, and accounting, KT joined our team as Accounting Assistant and is now the Business and Development Manager for the Jacksonville Children’s Chorus.
KT’s ties to the Chorus go back as far as 1996 when she joined the JCC as a young singer under the direction of Jim Taylor, the Chorus’ first conductor. In her two years as a member of the JCC, KT enjoyed opportunities to perform at various venues around the state and country, and even in Carnegie Hall. Since then, she has continued her passion for music, participating in numerous bands and choirs at her church, and through high school and college. KT’s love of the arts has also extended to dance, where she has become a professional Latin dancer, ballroom dance instructor, and even an aerialist.
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Marketing, Recruitment, and Special Events Assistant
353-1636, ext. 3
Kiera Bates, a native of Jacksonville, recently earned her bachelor's degree in Communications and Media from Florida State College at Jacksonville. Throughout her studies, Kiera had a strong desire to work with a nonprofit organization and even completed an internship with a local nonprofit prior to graduation. She is thrilled to now be a part of the JCC team and contribute to the organization's efforts in showcasing the wonderful work of The Jacksonville Children's Chorus to the community.
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Business Coordinator
353-1636, ext. 2
Joyanne was born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida. She graduated from the University of North Florida with a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry. She worked for a few years in healthcare at nursing and rehabilitation facilities under the Business Office. In late 2020, she started at the JCC as a volunteer helping with videography and now works as the Business Coordinator.
Joyanne’s love for music started at a young age and was involved in her school choir in middle school. She continued with music by participating in her high school chorus, show choir, and musical productions. During her time in the chorus, she participated in choral and solo and ensemble vocal competitions. She also had the opportunity to perform all over the country. Her most notable performances include performing in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City and Disney’s Candlelight Processional. Joyanne is excited to be a part of the JCC team.
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Development Associate
353-1636, ext. 7
Daniel Lopez is a proud Jacksonville native with a deep-rooted connection to the power of music. After graduating from Paxon School for Advanced Studies, Daniel embarked on a journey that blended his academic pursuits with his love for the transformative influence of music. He pursued a major in Economics at the University of Central Florida (UCF) while also embracing his musical talents as a Euphonium player in UCF's Concert Band. However, his pursuit of knowledge eventually led him to Tennessee Technological University, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Interdisciplinary Studies with a focus on Religious Studies and Business.
In his role as a Development Associate, Daniel channels his deep appreciation for music into a mission to share the Jacksonville Children's Chorus story with the community. He is resolute in his dedication to cultivating support for the organization, driven by a profound belief in the life-changing potential of choral music. Daniel is committed to ensuring that the Jacksonville Children's Chorus can reach and transform as many lives as possible through the profound, unifying, and transcendent power of music.
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Program Manager
353-1636, ext. 6
Dorothy Leitch is a Florida native – born and raised in St. Petersburg, then moved on to Georgia for higher education. She received her Associate of Arts from Oxford College of Emory University and went on to receive her bachelor's degree in Business Administration with a major in Computer Information Systems from Georgia State University, while also starting her professional career with Coca-Cola. After graduation, she moved to Jacksonville – a city her father’s family had lived in since the 1800’s. Here she and her husband of over 35 years, Jim, have lived and raised their family with three children - Carlisle, Emily, and Sarah (an alumni of the JCC Touring Choir).
Since living in Jacksonville, Dorothy has worked in many businesses including the Federal Reserve Bank and several small, privately-owned companies. Once her children all started school, Dorothy became a teacher in Duval County Public Schools at Dinsmore Elementary, where she taught second through fourth-grade students for 15 years.
It was through Sarah, her youngest, that Dorothy began to volunteer with The Jacksonville Children’s Chorus in 2014. Through her personal experience, Dorothy developed a love and an appreciation for the JCC. As the Program Manager for the Jacksonville Children’s Chorus, Dorothy feels that her role serves everything she loves – children, music, and working in a business-related position. Dorothy is excited to be a part of the JCC family.
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Program and IT Coordinator
353-1636, ext. 1
Coming soon….
