Saturday, May 22, 2027
7:30 pm

Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité celebrates the elegance and color of French music. Debussy’s Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun opens with sensual beauty, followed by Françaix’s playful Flower Clock with oboist Adam Parnell. Vox Pacifica and soloists bring Debussy’s The Blessed Damoiselle to life, before Ravel’s ever-building Boléro closes the season in hypnotic, unforgettable fashion.

Pre-Concert Chat - You're invited to arrive a little early to join Maestro Wheatley and guest artist Adam Parnel, for an intimate pre-concert chat. Theater doors open at 6:40 pm for general seating, with the chat beginning at 6:45 pm. When the chat concludes, attendees will leave the theater and re-enter with their ticket to take their reserved seats for the concert.

Claude Debussy
Prelude a L’apres-midi d’une Faun

Jean Francaix
L’Horologe de Flore

Claude Debussy
La damoiselle élue

Leo Delibes
”Flower Duet”

Jacques Offenbach
Barcarolle

Maurice Ravel
Bolero

Total Runtime: 2 hours

ARTIST BIOS

Adam Parnel, oboe

Adam Parnell attended the Oberlin Conservatory and furthered his studies at the University of Southern California. His primary mentors—James Caldwell, Alan Vogel, and Shauna Purcell—have been instrumental in shaping his development as an oboist.

Adam has had the privilege of performing as a soloist with the Corvallis Symphony, playing the Bellini Oboe Concerto. He also performed the Strauss Concerto with the Puget Sound Symphony, where he enjoyed playing English Horn for over 10 seasons. He currently plays oboe and English Horn for Philharmonia Northwest and holds the principal oboe chair in the Solstice Symphony Orchestra. He’s also performed with various Seattle-based ensembles, including Harmonia, LUCO, and the Pacific Northwest Opera, and subs with the Seattle Symphony Orchestra.

Outside of his oboe performances, Adam's love for music extends to karaoke, where he was a national finalist at both the 2023 and 2024 Karaoke World Championships. Balancing his passion for music with a career as a Senior Program Manager in Learning & Development, Adam continues to stay connected to the joy and discipline of making music.

Virginia Elizondo, soprano

Described as, “a young, blooming, dramatic soprano with the aura of Gundula Janowitz,” Virginia Elizondo is a proud, born-and-raised Houstonian. She attended The University of Texas at Austin where she studied voice with Dr. Cynthia Morrow, receiving a Bachelor of Music in Music Business with a Voice Performance Certificate. She completed her Master of Music in Voice Performance at The University of Washington in Seattle, studying with Dr. Carrie Shaw.

Recent performances include Mozart’s Requiem (Soprano Soloist, Texas), the World Premiere of The Ribchester Edition of Claudio Monteverdi’s L’incoronazione di Poppea (Drusilla, Trentino Music Festival, Italy), Joe Illick’s Frida Kahlo and the Bravest Girl in the World (Frida, Seattle Opera), Bachianas Brasileiras No. 5 by Brazilian composer, Heitor Villa-Lobos (Skagit Symphony), Tacoma Opera’s Intermezzo series, Opernfest Prague Voice Fellow (Czechia, 2023 and 2024), Samuel Barber’s iconic Knoxville: Summer of 1915 (Philharmonia Northwest), Engelbert Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel while on tour with NOISE, (Mother, Washington), The Ecstasy of Gold from The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, by celebrated film composer, Ennio Morricone (Skagit Symphony), Beethoven’s Mass in C (Soprano Soloist, Texas), Puget Sound Concert Opera’s La Callas: A Birthday Celebration (Soloist and Maria Callas cover), and Menotti’s The Consul (The Foreign Woman and Magda cover). She looks forward to debuting Debussy’s La damoiselle éleu with Mastero Michael Wheatley in 2027.

Lauded for her, “courageous repertoire choices, and her ability to own her interpretation of each piece,” Virginia also regularly tours as a recitalist, with carefully curated programs that captivate, inspire, and celebrate. Among her most popular programs are The Dearest and the Best: A Tribute to Veterans, Lines for Valentines, Heartstrings: Selections for Soprano and Piano Quintet, and Silhouettes of the Sea, an artistic collaboration with painters, sculptors, and photographers in exhibition of the magnificent and myriad depictions of the ocean through both vocal music and the visual arts.

In addition to performing, Virginia loves reading mysteries, is a lifelong Houston Astros fan, and believes that all good road trips start with a Beach Boys sing-along. She and her husband live in Anacortes, Washington with their three children.

Ashlie Smith, mezzo

Mezzo-Soprano, Ashlie Lauren Smith has established herself as a versatile and expressive performer, known for her captivating stage presence in both operatic and concert settings. Ashlie pursued a Master of Music in Voice Performance at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, where she had the privilege of studying under distinguished teachers such as William McGraw and Sylvia Plyer. She also holds a Bachelor of Music in Voice Performance from Stetson University, where she was mentored by Jane Christenson and Mollie Rich, further honing her craft during a year of study in Freiburg, Germany with Viola De Galgóczy-Mécher.

Ashlie’s extensive stage experience includes leading roles such as "Luisa" in The Fantasticks and "Johanna" in Sweeney Todd. She has also performed in the title role of Copland’s The Tender Land and as "Zulma" in Rossini’s L’Italiana in Algieri. Her concert appearances include solo performances in Handel’s Messiah with the Orlando Philharmonic, Mendelssohn’s St. Paul Oratorio, and Vaughan Williams' Serenade to Music.

Recently, Ashlie performed as the mezzo-soprano soloist in Haydn's Seven Last Words of Christ and took part in the Arizona Bach Festival Masterclass series. Her collaboration with the Oak Hill Production Studio included a beautifully rendered performance of "Oh Holy Night." Additionally, Ashlie worked with the legendary Bobby McFerrin last summer, further exploring contemporary vocal techniques and improvisation in a collaborative and innovative setting.

Ashlie is particularly excited to collaborate once again with Maestro Michael Wheatley for this performance of Elgar's Sea Pictures. She previously performed under his baton in Ravel’s Shéhérazade with the Seven Hills Sinfonietta and is thrilled to reunite with him for this evocative work.

Vox Pacifica, Treble Chorus

Founded in the summer of 2018, Vox Pacifica is a choir of alto and soprano singers based in Bellingham, WA under the artistic direction of Wendy Bloom.

Since our debut in the fall of 2018, Vox Pacifica has continued to perform a diverse catalog of musical styles and repertoire that is a reflection of our mission to share joy, embrace diversity, and build community. Our season schedule includes two choral performances along with a cabaret-style offering each February.

Vox Pacifica is honored to have been one of several choirs from our six-state region invited to perform at the ACDA-NW Conference in Spokane, WA in January 2024!