As the new year begins it’s very special to be writing about the recent selection of the new co-Soloists of The Mother Church.
We were happy to have received many applications from members of The Mother Church who live in various parts of the world, and the selection process included much prayer and listening. Our many thanks go to every member who assisted with this process whether through prayer, recommending names, or actually applying for the position.
The new co-Soloists of The Mother Church are Rebecca Minor from New York, and William Burden from Princeton, New Jersey.
Rebecca earned a B.M. in voice performance from Ithaca College and sang in operas, musicals, and concerts until she discovered a passion for composing original sacred and secular songs. She has written sacred solos for voice and piano, which can be found on Watchfiremusic.com, an inspirational music company. Several of those pieces have been performed at The Mother Church by various soloists, including Rebecca, who often accompanies herself on the digital piano. A few of those songs can also be found on the time4thinkers.com podcast, The Weekly Musician. She also enjoys performing her secular songs and has given shows in New York City, upstate New York, Colorado, and California.
Rebecca has treasured the experience of singing in various Christian Science branch churches for over twelve years, mainly in New York City, where she lives. She has performed in church-sponsored concerts, summits, and in collaborative lectures featuring Chet Manchester, Ginny Luedeman, and Maryl Walters. As a class-taught student of Christian Science and a proponent of musical outreach, Rebecca is deeply grateful to be joining the platform of The Mother Church, along with Bill Burden, as co-Soloist.
Bill received a B.A. in Spanish Literature from Middlebury College in Vermont. He then received an M.M. in Voice from Indiana University. Bill has earned an outstanding reputation in a wide-ranging repertoire throughout Europe and North America. He has appeared at the Metropolitan Opera, San Francisco Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Houston Grand Opera, Seattle Opera, Opera Company of Philadelphia, Santa Fe Opera, New York City Opera, Florida Grand Opera, as well as La Scala, Glyndebourne Opera Festival, Paris Opera, Bavarian State Opera, Berlin State Opera, Canadian Opera Company, and the Saito Kinen Festival. In concert, Bill has appeared at the Edinburgh Festival and with Les Arts Florissant, San Francisco Symphony, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, St. Louis Symphony, Berlin Philharmonic, the BBC Symphony Orchestra, and Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
Bill’s recordings include Barber’s Vanessa with the BBC Symphony Orchestra (Chandos) and Musique adorable: The Songs of Emmanuel Chabrier (Hyperion).
This season Bill returns to the Metropolitan Opera for the new production of Thomas Adès’s The Tempest, the Opera Company of Philadelphia for Silent Night, and the Bayerische Staatsoper for Don Giovanni. He also appears in two world premieres: Mark Adamo’s The Gospel of Mary Magdalene at the San Francisco Opera and Theodore Morrison’s Oscar at the Santa Fe Opera.
Bill has served as a guest soloist at many Christian Science branch churches throughout his career. Bill is a member of The Mother Church and a class-taught student of Christian Science. He and his wife, Carol, and their two children live in Princeton, New Jersey. As he continues his career as an opera singer he looks forward to joining Rebecca Minor as co-Soloist of The Mother Church.
We hope you will be able to hear Rebecca and Bill sing in person at The Mother Church, or listen online by logging on to http://christianscience.com/publications-and-activities/online-services-and-events. Go to the biography page to learn more. Please join us in welcoming Rebecca and Bill.
With much love and appreciation for your support of the church services,
Nathan Talbot
Clerk of The Mother Church
